help! gear shift nob noise driving me crazy

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Ok I have a 96 ranger 5spd. The little plastic piece on top of the gear shift nob that tells you the shift pattern is loose and is making a very loud noise. Its so loud that when I first heard the noise I thought for sure something was loose behind the dash. I finally narrowed the noise down to the gear shift nob. Well the bad part is the the entire nob is not secured to the shaft securely because of the thread patter on the shaft not the nob is broken off. So my question is can i somehow replace the nob? or do I have to replace the whole shaft? Or any other way? Thanks in advance!
 
So the splines on the shifter itself are worn off? That is odd.

Most aftermarket knobs are too small for the Ranger's shifter, but in your case they may be the best bet if the splines are in fact trashed. You may have to bore out the aftermarket knob some. Then use JB Weld or a similar strong epoxy to hold it on.

If the splines on the shifter are salvagable in anyway, Ford does make some shifters that do not have the separate plastic gear pattern diagram on it. They are just one peice. You may be able to order one at a dealer or find one in a junkyard.
 
Hey thanks 01. Its not so much that the splines are stripped its more like it was a sleeve that went over the shaft and the sleeve is broken off in half and wedged into the nob itself. So instead of the one piece types that you are talking about there are at least 3 pieces in this one. Makes a lot of sense huh? I wish more companies would (KISS)! I guess its cheaper to make one part out of 3 instead of just 1 part.
 
Oh, OK. I see what you are saying. That sleeve should be glued on. Heat it up and pull it off. 2003-up Rangers should have the shift knob you want.
 
International medium duty trucks for years that came with Spicer 5 speed and 6 Plus transmissions had a horrible vibration noise. The factory fix for it was to pry the little plastic #@$%! pattern piece out and full the cavity with silicone adhesive and reinstall the plastic insert. It worked like a charm.

It won't fix worn out splines but if it's the plastic piece vibrating in yours it might work to fix the noise at least.
 
Silicone RTV will work well, but you have to let it dry for a real long time, as it will act as if it is in a tube, still.
Common cheap quick epoxy that will break down at 200F or so will work great.
 
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