Shift Lever

[jimoshel]

'86-'89 AX5, maybe AX15, How do you remove the upper shift lever from the lower? Book just says remove it but gives no clue how. There's two holes like there might be a pin holding it. I got the trans out by removing the four bolts holding the cover on the top of the tranny. leaving the lever and cover hanging from the console. floorboard.

[sloride]

Its spring loaded.  Push down on the flat round part and turn counterclockwise I believe.  It'll pop right out.

[1987Comanche]

 I remove them all by pulling the 4 bolts.  Supposedly you can break it free with a CCW twisting motion but, I haven't had much luck with that.  Biotex tried that and had his break free violently.  FYI Quadratec has a new AX-15 top gasket for $2.50...

[sloride]

I get them apart at the junk yard that way quite often.  It helps the 'tower' the part that cradles the ball part of shifter is stationary.  If its out of the tranny, I put it in the vise, that way I can push down with both thumbs and twist.

[Keyav8r]

I got my BA-10 shifter apart by clamping the lower part in the vise and bumping the shoulder on the end of the upper part with. 2x4 and a 32oz. ball peen hammer. Popped right off - OK, after about 3 or 4 healthy whacks it popped right off. The end of the lower part of the BA-10 shifter is square and the upper part has a square hole, so I don't think it would come off by a twisting motion.

However, the AX transmission shifters may come apart that way.

[jimoshel]

Just checked. The AX4,5.15 and Ba 10 shift levers are all identical from the cover up. Found a note on another XJ site describing the way Keyav8 did it. Tried it. It worked.

[sloride]

I use a pickle fork to separate the shifter from the lower portion. I thought you wanted shifter separated from the adapter.

[jimoshel]

I used the spreader jaws on a 10 ton Porta-Power. Over kill but it worked.