Both the shifter plate and ball housing sit on top of the floor so even with
the bolts missing it should not be sitting on top of the spare tire. The
sleeve on top of the spring on the shift rod may have come loose letting the
rod fall. All the nuts on the plate and ball housing are 6mm. The four on
the plate were lock nuts.

Dennis

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
Ian Stewart
Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2012 10:14 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Shifter came unbolted from floor

I paid off a local mechanic to fix my engine, but today, my gear-shifter
came totally unbolted from the floor. The shift lever is still securely
bolted to the linkage, but the nuts that secure the shift-lever housing and
the lower gearshift mechanism housing have totally vanished. The gearshift
mechanism housing is just kind of laying there on top of the spare tire.
The bolts on the shift lever housing are still in place, but their threads
appear to be partially stripped. Unfortunately, I am too stupid to read the
shop manual in depth, so I am wondering how big these bolts and their
corresponding nuts are, so I can find replacements tomorrow. Also, what else
should I be looking at while I'm in there?