ive seen people say that you can shift the auto my gear indicator looks like this

Park

R
N
D
D for over drive
2
1

now would i shift from 1 then to 2 then to over drive or regular drive and how do i know its time to shift from 1 to 2 then to drive or over drive.Also on a scale 1 being easiest(like adding oil)10 being hardest (putting on manifold) what would it be 1 thruogh 10.

 

It depends how hard you want to make it. Take your time and reason it out. Follow the instructions and make sure you buy the extra switch from Radio Shack that they recomend. I modified mine for a smoother shift. More time but worth it. Im using the standard GM cable and arm. Didnt have to go underneath the car except for a fine tune on the cable adjuster, My shifter sits about 1-1/8" lower and 2 " ahead over std installation. I found that when I had the std shifter out of the car and compared it to the B&M shifter I could see why the complaints of hard shifting on this forum. The BM shifter eyelet that holds the cable taunt is about 3/4 higher than std. This gives a much more steeper incline angle on the cable that could let it bind. I removed the std base off the old shifter and placed the BM on top. You have to grind the lip of the old shifter to accept the BM in some areas but no big deal. I cut off the eyelet FROM THE BM SHIFTER that holds the cable so I could use the old eyelet to remount the std cable. I cut back the BM eyelet at is base 1/8" just in case I needed some adjustment. You have to cut some areas on your face plate naturally but the provided face plate covers all. You mount the assembly back onto the original spots. Have to drill the back bracket on the car to hold the back of the shifter down but no big deal. You will have to cut out a slot in the ashtray compartment(its plastic) to accept the moving ahead of the shifter but the great part is it isnt seen as the ashtray is formed in such a way that when you put it back in; it covers the shifter.On the BM shifter there is a metal flat spring that follows the ratchet gear teeth for shifting. The std cable will touch slightly where the spring is mounted. I didnt want to take any chances of rubbing so I SLIGHTLY ground some off the underside of the bolt holdown and I mean slight just enough for clearance.
I have an 1988 Formula 350 with p/w and mirrors.The std face plate that is supplied will interfere with slightly on the power mirror switch and the slide button to open the ashtray. I got around this buy cutting out a perimeter of the plate from 1/8 gasket and gluing it to the underside and notching the gasket accordingly. I hit the gasket with a black magis marker and you cant see it now.
With this setup the crappy shifter boot wont work. Went to Walmart and got a std universal leather boot. Kinda cut hear and there to make it fit and brought it to a friend and she sewed it up accordingly. I had her sew on some velcro at the bottom all the way around. Because the face plate has the gasket raise now I glued the opposite side velcro to the plate. I had her sew on velcro also to close around the shifter handle itself. Came out great. Remember; take your time with the fitting above and it will come out nice. Its not rocket science ; its just taking your time for a good fit. I didnt use the regular T handle but found a sold metal round chrome *** from Mr Gasket p/n 9627 i think; ($14.00 CDN) AND IT LOOKS GREAT as my shifter is lowered and doesnt look top heavy from the T handle. You in effect have a short throw type stick now and I feel now more comfortable to select and drive with. This sounds long winded but not difficult.
1988 Formula 350 \
13.93@99.32MPH

 

Wow, Midniterider, that sounds like a hell of an install. I'd love to see some pics.

I used all of the hardware that came with the shifter, and mounted it according to the B&M Instructions. With this install, the shifter sits just a little higher, and about an inch or two forward of where the stock shifter's 'Drive' position is. I like my shifter mounted high and forward, so I don't have to move my hands too far. It's an automatic, so short/long throws don't matter much, just bang the ratchet and go.

Lots of people complain about the cable, but i've had no problems with it for almost four years.

I agree, that you should get the extra relay that the instructions mention. It greatly helps wiring it up. I also suggest trying to get as many wiring connections made before you put the wiring in the car, as there isn't much slack to patch in to the stock harness.

When it comes time to adjust the cable, I suggest getting a friend to give you a hand. It's a pretty straightforward procedure, but if you do it by yourself, it will make for a lot of trips under the car.

I used the Camaro/Firebird-specific model in my '86 Trans Am. I believe the shifter plate was designed to bolt in to one of the early Camaro consoles, and so later consoles take some modification. I didn't have any problems with the swiches, but my console was already modified to fit a CB radio in place of the ashtray. I'm not too crazy about the rubber shift boot that comes with the console. It's kind of a pain to get it in the first time, but it seems to be holding up well. (Just don't get Armor-All ANYWHERE near it)

My install took about 4 hours or so, start to finish. Call it about a 4 for difficulty, but a 7 for detail, as it's not too bad, but there's a lot of little things to do.

 

Oh, yeah, the shift pattern...
It will look something like this:

P

R
N
D
3
2
1

For a hypothtetical drag race/street race, You will pull the shifter back to '1' and shift up from there. Shift points will be determined by your engine/drivetrain combo, but the rule is to shift up when your car stops pulling in a certian gear. (probably a little short of the redline)

Of course, shift speed or kickdowns depend on the state of tune/modification of your transmission, not your shifter. If your car won't chirp the 1-2 shift now, it won't do it just because you have a new shifter.
On a car with a stock transmission, this is primarily an appearance mod, but it does have some funtion, like preventing you from shifting from D to 2nd when you really want 3rd. (Mostly it just looks cool)
Ratchet shifters really shine when paired with a good shiftkit or an enhanced valvebody. When you're in the 3-2-1 range, it will hold the gear selected, and pop of hard, fast shifts as fast as you can bang the handle.

 

this is going to sound dumb but with these shifters i can still put in OD and let the tranny do the shifting for when im just driving around, correct?

 

KMan: To answer your question: Yes, 'Drive' still works the same.

Unless you do any internal mods to your transmission (the oily parts), the transmission will act just like it did with the stock shifter.

 

thats what i thought, thanks

 

Going to try and post the pics. Never did this before.

 

Nice job, man. It almost looks like a factory install.

 

Dude you should see the entire car. That Bird is spotless!!! and I mean Spotless! I have never seen a cleaner or nicer Formula anywhere.

 

It took you four hours to install the shifter? Thats incredable. I installed the megashifter in 1 1/2 hours, while installing the new heater core. I guess it helps that the CD player is in a custom fit housing. My mirror controls are also on the door panel instead of the center console, I've got the window controls and rear hatch controls there instead (defrost, opener, wiper) maybe its just for the berlinettas. I don't run my tranny any differently than normal with the B&M in there though. Just throw it into overdrive for freeways and highways, drive for the curvy hills. Transmissions are expencive and not fun to install (just put mine back in three weeks ago). It is a 3 on the install difficulty if you ask me. The only hard part is hooking up the wires in the confined area, and I have no idea what other switch was suggested for the wiring besides the coil lock out and the reverse light switch. For your reference, the 14 gauge purple and yellow wires are the coil lockout, the blue and green 18 gauge wires are reverse lights. It might come in handy to know that.