Ford Flex shift knob install in Explorer

[ThunderbirdSport]

Lol, the mechanic "said"...

Get yourself a decent code scanner...there's a decent one at wal mart for 50 bucks...it'll tell you exactly what the CEL (check engine light) means.

Never heard of a fuel pressure sensor, but I have a regulator. However, on returnless systems, I don't believe there is a regulator..

What engine does your Exploder have?

 

[maraqa]

I purchased Ford part number 8G1Z-7213-A Ford Flex shift knob for $9 and installed it in place of my stock Explorer shift knob.

Old knob:
View attachment 395407
New:
View attachment 395408

To begin, remove the chrome trim around the shifter, and pop off the console section with cupholders.

Then begin to remove the OEM Phalic shifter. Slide down the chrome trim on the bottom, which reveals one 4mm set screw on the passeger side. Loosen this.

On the passenger side of the shifter mechanism you will see a white connector below the shift interlock solenoid. There is a small black connector on the front top that needs to be disconnected. I used a icepick like tool to pop it off. This wire is for the OD button, and needs to be disconnected before removing the shifter.

View attachment 395409

Once the wire is disconnected, you should be able to remove the oem shift knob. I did not have to disassemble the console any more than taking the top cup holder section off, but you may find it easier to take more of the console apart to complete this step.

Once the shifter is removed you are left with this:
View attachment 395410

You can see the hole that the oem set screw locks into here.

To attach the Flex knob you will need to drill two 29 gauge (0.136 in/3.454 mm) holes into the shift shaft shown above. On the passenger side, drill one hole 28.5mm below the oem hole. Test install the Flex shifter and mark the hole location on the drivers side. Remove the flex shifter and drill the drivers side next. You may want to start a small pilot hole before moving up to the M29 sized drill bit. It is important to use 29 gauge bit so the screws that come with the Flex shifter will self tap into the shift rod. There is not much room for error or another size here.

Once the two new holes are drilled, you will need to modify the Flex OD button wire. The connector is different between the two, so cut off the OD wire on the OEM shifter and the connector on the flex shifter and switch them.

Now you are about done. Instead of fishing the OD wire back down thru the original routing, I routed it over to the drivers side, and looped it forward and back to the connector on the passenger side. I verified that it wouldn't bind on anything by shifting thru all the positions. This should make sense when you have things apart.

That's about all there is to it! For less than $10 and a little work, you now can reach the climate controls, etc, and in my opinion looks much better. It is almost 3 inches shorter than the old knob too!

View attachment 395411

can I replace mine with a customized one? like the one for the challenger from mopar