transmission play.

[txranger14]

89' carbd, 4spd, has a lot of play between gears. i can shift into any gear and still move the shift knob 3-4 inches either way, i want to tighten this up, is there a way to do that without visiting mechanic or dropped trans?

[RhodeStiva]

I had the same thing I put a civic short shifter in and have no play now.

[MasterTec]

It's probably bad linkage bushings. I replaced mine with corksport's bronzeoil bushings. They really made a huge difference:

http://www.corksport.com/corksport-bronze-oil-shifter-bushings.html

[txranger14]

how long did it take u to install em? difficult?

[navdoc101]

Many post on this suject, do a search. Check out skimsuka's thread " Shifter sloppiness solved!! no Austrailian nonsense". He has listed all the parts & part #s you need.

[MasterTec]

Not a big deal.. just remove the bolt. The old bushings will probably just fall out in pieces... pop new ones in.. reinstall bolt.

[Bert]

As others have pointed out there are nylon bushings in the shifter linkage under the floor, one set at the front and another at the back. While under the car it is easy to establish which ones (or both) to replace as the 'slop' in the linkages is readily apparent when someone moves the shifter inside the car.
The parts you need are usually available through Mazda and merely describe the car as "92 Protege" when you do. Oftentimes it's a good idea to replace the shoulder bolt while you're at it (also for 92 Protege).

[1990new]

The attached shifter pictures here may help:

http://www.fordfestiva.com/forums/profile.php?do=editattachments

[FestYboy]

bad link