97C5ENVY

This POLL is just for fun and is NOT intended to be harmful in anyway

Below is a picture I took of what has side-lined my vette for the last two months (shift-rod disconnected from the tranny input-rod (dowel-pin fell out)). This is what the tranny input-rod looked like when i pull the transmission apart from the TQ-tube. As you can see the rubber boot was pushed back about 1.5" inches exposing the retaining-pin area thus allowing the dowel-pin to eventually vibrate loose and fall out. The rubber boot has a lip on the front edge that slips into a groove on the shifter rod thus holding the boot in place, which in turn could have kept the dowel-pin from vibrating loose and falling out. And yes the rubber boot still fits tightly around the rod, and it is not worn in any way.

So my poll is: "Who's to blame?"

dougbfresh

What the difference what who's to blame, you can't prove it either way.

Bluefire

If there needs to be blame, I'd suggest you blame fate and then, fix it.

lucky131969

I did not disconnect the shift rod when I removed my drivetrain. I find it hard to believe that the fate of the pin relied on the rubber boot to keep it in place. Instead, the boot would be used to keep out moisture, contamination, etc. The pin in question does have a groove, which suggests that some sort of mechanical keeper is employed to keep it in place.

**edit** reviewing the service manual again, it specifically calls the pin in question a "roll pin". The pin in the picture clearly is not a roll pin. Where did it come from?

lucky131969

Perhaps it's just my creative imagination, but that pin looks like a cut down valve stem.......

C5XTASY

The wrong type of pin was installed. A roll pin would be pressure fit and not extract itself.
Ed

bumble-z

Probably a c clip pushed into the grooved area of the pin & fell off? I agree, definitly not a roll pin or also known to be called a rolled (rist?) pin, which if using the proper sizing would have had to be tapped in & tapped out w/ a punch.

GeorgeZNJ

, Well at least the op knows where the blame lies. At this point I would just fix it, contact the shop, show them pics and let them know that they just lost a customer and any references.

ArKay99

Somebody went McGiver on it.

lionelhutz

Hello, the roll pin holding the shifter linkage to the shift rod in the transmission did not fall out. Look at the first picture again. The "u-joint" in the shifter linkage has fallen apart.

Either bad luck or it was stressed by being twisted or bent enough to loosen it up. Honestly, I have no idea what holds that together but it could be a clip captured between the two parts holding that pin in place. In either case, the boot should not hold together anything. Your "tuner" could be at fault for damaging the linkage though but it's really impossible to tell - the linkage could have just failed too for no real reason or even possibly because you have been hard on it changing gears.

I think the big question is why two months to figure this out???

Peter

FourG63 97GST

I'll say it's just a defect, my rubber boot never covered that pin (an still doesn't), it only covered the other compression pin which you can see I pulled back to get the compression pin out to remove the shift linkage. I took a pic, to I can remember how it went

Carcass

The pin in this picture is not a roll pin,and neither are the pins in my 98-they're solid pins.
The only reason I know this is that during my recent clutch install,I slid the boots back to lube and inspect the shift rod couplers.
Those boots don't slide back on their own,but they don't hold the pin in,either.(if positioned correctly,they DO cover the entire coupler to keep out dirt and moisture)

The pin in the op's picture is bent,which suggests that at one time or another,the tranny has been shifted a bit more agressively than the coupler was designed to handle,which possibly bent and loosened the pin,causing it to fall out.
The groove in the pin suggests that a broken or missing circlip may be the real culprit here.

Granted,if the boot was in the proper place,it might have held the pin in place for awhile ,but that is not really the purpose of the boot.
It does seem like whoever installed the tranny should have made sure the boot was positioned correctly on the shift rod,but I don't think that's the reason the pin fell out.
IMO,the shift rod couplers are undersized for the amount of force they can potentially be subjected to,seems to me like they could be alot beefier,especially considering what a pia they are to replace...

MattB

I have to agree that the rubber boot does not keep the pin in place. And when I messed with mine it was definitely a roll pin that needed to be pressed out and in. The pin in the photo looks a little suspicious, the grove does not look like it belongs, but I'm no parts expert on Vettes maybe they used that type of pin at some point.

97C5ENVY

I agree it should be a roll-pin, and that the pin that is in there definitely is not OEM.

lionelhutz - The reason it has taken me two months is because I have a life...however you are welcome to donate $800+ to me and I'll be glad to have a repair shop do it faster.

LVZO6

As you were taking it apart were there any other indication of shoddy work (missing bolts, cross threaded hardware, things like harnesses not put back in place, ect...)? If not I would say it was a part failure because if they do crappy work it would normally show up somewhere else also.

Something funny-I have 29 years automotive experience (ranging in all areas) and was considering going to work at a "high end performance shop" here in Las Vegas he wanted to start me at $10.00/hour. Just imagine the talent they get for that and they are working on your Vette or other $$$ car.
Good luck with the repair.

97C5ENVY

LVZ06 - Yes there are other indicators of shoddy work. But I'm not here to bash the tuner. The bad thing is this was my second trip to that tuner and both times received crappy repair service. The first time i figured they might just be having a bad day, but a second time two years later?....either I'm just lucky or there's a trend developing.

Carcass

Just to clear something up here:
The pin that secures the entire shift rod assembly to the shift shaft on the trans,is a ROLLPIN.
It's fairly obvious from the pin that fell out of yours,FourG63 97GST's picture of his coupler,and the coupler on my 98,that I just inspected a week ago while my drivetrain was out,that the PIVOT pin on the coupler is a SOLID pin.
If you'd like to install a rollpin,fine,that's up to you-but the pin that fell out of yours appears to me to be the correct one.
Rollpins are made of spring steel,which will shatter if overstressed-But the solid pin will obviously bend and fall out,so it may not matter which one you use.
I myself would use a grade 8 hardened bolt,with a Nylok nut,and come up with a different boot to weatherproof it.
But it's not my car we're talking about here.
Good Luck with the repair,whatever you do...

lionelhutz

No, it should not be a roll pin. You are mistaken at what you are looking at and all the people who have responded in kind have not paid attention to the first post which clearly shows where the pin actually came from. Since you posted that the pin holding the linkage to the tranny fell out they have read that and assumed that pin you pictured should have been the roll pin.

The roll pin holds the shifter linkage onto the stub shaft that sticks out of the front of the tranny. When you knock the roll pin out and remove the linkage there is nothing but a straight stub shaft with a hole in it sticking out of the front of the tranny. In your first picture, part of the shift linkage is still on the tranny and if you moved the boot further you'd find the roll pin is still installed and it's still under the boot.

The pin you have found holds the flex joint in the shifter rod together. Those pins are solid pins. I can't say the pin you have is the OEM one because I have never taken the linkage pivots apart but I'd bet money it is the correct OEM part you have pictured.

I'm not the only one who has commented on this already yet it seems you still haven't paid any attention to the posts explaning what pin you really found. You keep saying you don't want to knock the tuner yet you are firmly sticking with this "wrong part" being the cause of your problems when it's just not true.

If all you want is the satifaction of knowing the tuner must have left the boot positioned wrong then, YES, he left it in the wrong position. BUT, it makes little difference since the boot WAS NOT designed to hold any pin in place and the shift linkage would have still failed.

Peter

Ikester

Then the blame can only go to you for going back to shop you already knew does bad service...theres no such thing as justifying bad service due to a bad day...thats retarded

97C5ENVY

Sooooo true!!! I gave this tuner a second chance only because they are a very popular tuner and forum supporter. Lesson learned.