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Raised / Lifted Dakotas
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BO
Dodge Dakota
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8/09/2002
13:25:43

Subject: 5-speed w/lift
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I have done a search and have been reading alot of posts about the 3" body lift with a 5spd. Butno one has explained how to get the fix the problem with the shifter. I have a RC 2001 with bucket seats so i dont think the shifter will hit the console/armrest, but i dont want it to hit the dash. I know some one has to have this same setup and has done the lift. also i want to run 33x12.50 tires i dont go offroad that much so rubbing wont be a major concern. Any help would be very much appreciated. I want to do this right.



Torque
Dodge Dakota
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8/09/2002
18:43:20

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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I think me and Tallquad are the only two that have lifted 2001+ with 5spds. Tallquad heated up his gear shift and was able to bend it so it'd clear the console and the dash. I tried that and couldn't get it right.

With the help of Iman23, we made a "linkage" to reposition the gear shift forward and to the right out of flat steel.

I don't remember the specs of it, but here's a link to a pic of it in place:

http://www.coloradodesigns.com/truck/shifter_mod.jpg

I had to do just minor trimming of the plastic shifter boot retainer frame so the gear shift won't hit it in 2nd, 4th, and reverse. The gear shift is slightly closer to the dash, but I don't bust my knuckles or anything.

I emailed Performance Accessories to see if they had any ideas (the manual mentions nothing about the 5spd), but they have never got back with me.

HTH

http://www.coloradodesigns.com/truck



BO
Dodge Dakota
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8/11/2002
02:25:57

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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tallquad do you have any pictures of the bend you put in your shifter? Or could you e-mail me and tel me how you done it? Torgue how long have you have that modified piece on the shifter? Have you had to tighten it any since you first put it on? My e-mail is bryan66_97@yahoo.com Anyone who has any ideas please help. I dont want to end up like some of these people who are nocking their lifted dakotas because of some bugs they couldnt work out.



TallQuad
Dodge Dakota
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8/12/2002
20:30:37

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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I've done a couple write-ups on here on how I did the bend on the shifter which will help more than I can go into right now. But in short, I used a torch to heat up the shifter and bent it while it was glowing hot. The rest is really guess work and we got lucky just before I was about to give up. It took about 5 hours but it was worth it in the end. Here are a couple pics:

http://members.cox.net/tallquad/



ole
GenIII
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8/13/2002
16:09:49

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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Yo, Tallquad !

I finally looked at the pics on your website,
beetchin' !

I have been standing on the fence, thinking
about putting a 3" body lift on my 2001 QC 4x4
5-spd 4.7L ....

Several Q's:

I assume you did the cutting after the Fabtech
front lift ? What is the distance from the ground to the the bottom edge of your front fender flares ?

In your pics, it looks like your shifter is WAAAY
shorter than myne ? (2001 4x4 shifter is much longer and bends in the middle ? )
Did you cut it down ?
It looks like your bending was right at "the base"
I assume you did this "on the bench" ?
If you haven't posted "all the details" about your process of bending the shifter, could you
e-mail me all the details ?

Thanksabunch !


Go Fast -Take No Chances !

Torque
Dodge Dakota
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8/14/2002
22:34:24

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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I think I've had it in place about a month and a half or two months, and it loosened up about a week after the install (where the new bolt screws up into the gear shift, not the other part). I only had it hand tight is the reason. Since I tightend it with a wrench, I've been putting off going down and getting some metric star washers because it has been working so well. I think the two nuts and bolt I used were 14mm (only available at a specialty fastener place for $2 (NAPA or Home Depot didn't carry any this large).

It has worked great. I wouldn't recommend heating and bending the part Tall Quad did. If for some reason you can't get it right or it breaks, it's expensive. It is a $190 part (you have to buy a kit, DC doesn't sell it seperately). I was lucky Iman23 was close by to use his as a reference to get mine back into the original shape. It is a real pain in the ass to heat and bend it. If someone who has success (like TallQuad :) would take some pics from all angles and post them, it would probably only take a couple tries to get it prefect. I quit after 4 times of remove/heat/bend/cool/installing.

If you want, I can remove the rubber boot and take some measurements of the flat metal (if Iman23 doesn't chime in).



ole
GenIII
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8/15/2002
12:00:23

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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Doh !

I must have been thinking hopeful thoughts . . . my shifter does look
the same as TallQuad's . . .

I think I'll just have to (ouch)buy the kit and try to do the bend like
TQ did . . .

My garage door hangs down pretty low, just enough that a 3" lift would
be 1" too much ... I should be able to cut down the PA body lift spacers to 2", right ???



Go Fast -Take No Chances !

TallQuad
Dodge Dakota
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8/15/2002
20:52:07

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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Hey ole, nice truck! The grill gaurd looks great on there, I might have to that one of these days (if it works with a body lift?). About the body lifts, PA makes a 2" lift too! Easier than cutting blocks...hehe.

It looks like you figured out the shifters are the same size, mine just sits 3" lower, well almost.

I didn't cut the shifter at all or change it from stock other then bending. We used an old Ford rim to hold the shifter at the base by poking it into one of the lug bolt holes. We had 3 guys, one holds the rim with his foot, one with the torch, and one who would bend. We heated the base where we wanted to bend it with a cutting torch till it was glowing. Then I would bend the shifter to where I thought was good, sprayed it with water (don't dunk it, it might crack) and installed it back in truck. Its a pain because you install and unistall every time. If you have a good eye and a sence of measurement, its not as hard to do. The key is, when bending... really BEND IT! Don't do little wussy bends because it will take forever! You'll get a feel of how much to bend after the first few. The rest is trial and error, repeating the process. Thats really it. You do a bend, put it back in the truck, shift all gears and see where it hits..."ok, lets bend it 1 more inch down and to the right..." or something like that. You'll get it to the point where it doesn't hit anything when shifting thenyour done (assuming you like how it looks and feels). We actually had it right early on but the shifter sat too far right - away from me so my arm was extended out. So we spend most of the time perfecting the best angle.

Now I know A LOT of people don't recommend doing it the way I did, and I don't disagree. Unfortunatly though, I was the first to try it so I had no experience to go from. I know there has to be easier and better ways, Torque has found one of them. At least you'll know what WILL work if you have the patience and know-how.

BTW - my truck is 42" from ground to lower fender flare (front).



Jeff Kreman
GenIII
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8/19/2002
22:48:43

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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I put the PA 3" body lift on my truck, its a 5 speed, and I didnt do anything to the shifter. I looked at it, put it on and at first it was tough to keep in second, but now it stays as though nothing changed. The only difference in the shifter, that I did, was bought a B&M shift handle and put it on the stick. Worked for me, not saying that it will work for you. My 2 cents.

" MASSIVE Power Plant - 2.5 L 4 Cyl ! "

Jason Gilbert
Dodge Dakota
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8/20/2002
01:11:17

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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Hey TallQuad, You live here in the valley? PHX?



TallQuad
Dodge Dakota
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8/20/2002
22:12:39

RE: 5-speed w/lift
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Yup!



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