B&M UNIMATIC SHIFTER User Manual

Installation Instructions

Unimatic Shifter

Universal Shifter for Automatic Transmissions

Part Number 80775

©2010, 2000 by B&M Racing & Performance Products

The B&M Unimatic is a universal
shifter that will work with virtually any
two, three or four speed automatic
transmission. It differs from other uni­versal shifters in that it uses a cable
to connect the shifter to the transmis­sion rather than a solid rod. This al­lows you to locate the shifter almost
anywhere on the floor of the vehicle.
The B&M Unimatic also incorporates
a neutral safety switch so that you
cannot accidentally start the vehicle
in gear. An additional safety feature
requires that the shifter stick must be
pushed down lightly to shift into Re­verse or Park.

Cable brackets and levers are in­cluded for most popular automatic
transmissions. However to install this
shifter on a Ford AOD transmission
you will need B&M installation kit
#40496. To install this shifter on a
4L60E or 4L65E equipped with a
PRNDL switch you will need B&M
installation kit #75498, otherwise use
supplied GM bracket.

The installation of this shifter can
be handled by anyone with a mini­mum of mechanical experience and
basic hand tools. It is important to
follow the instructions. Read each step
and if you do not understand it, go
back and read it again.

Before beginning your installation,
check the parts list at the end of
these instructions to see that all of
the necessary parts have been in­cluded in your kit. If anything is miss­ing, see your B&M dealer.

Also check the tool requirement
list to make sure you have all the
necessary tools and supplies before
starting your installation.

INSTALLATION

The vehicle should be off the ground
for ease of installation. Jack stands,
wheel ramps or a hoist will work fine.
Do not use a jack alone. Make sure
the vehicle is firmly supported.
STEP 1. Remove the stock shift link­age;
Column Shifters: Remove all rods,
levers or cables from the column and
the transmission. Place the column
shift lever in the Park position. Re­move the pin holding the shift lever in
the column and remove the lever as­sembly. If your vehicle is equipped
with a locking steering column, se­cure the column lock lever in the full
up position. WARNING: This allows
the steering wheel to be locked and
the ignition key removed WHENEVER
the ignition key is turned to the “lock”
position WHILE THE VEHICLE IS
MOVING, OR AT ANY OTHER TIME.
Console Shifters: Remove the shifter
mechanism from the console. Discon­nect the rod or the cable from the
transmission. Remove the cable
bracket if equipped. If there is a cable
or linkage from the console shifter or
the transmission to the steering col­umn lock, it must be blocked in the
Park position as described above.
NOTE: Shifter installation may require

console modification or complete con­sole removal depending on the space
available in your vehicle.
STEP 2. Determine where you want
to locate the shifter in your vehicle. It
should be a place where the floor is
flat, either in the center of the tunnel
or on the floor next to the tunnel. Look
under the car to be sure that the area
is clear of frame members or exhaust
systems where you will mount the
shifter. Since the cable comes out the
rear of the shifter there should be no
obstruction for 8" behind the selected
shifter mounting location. There should
also be 2.5" clearance below the floor
for shifter and cable clearance. Punch
a small hole in the floor where the
shifter stick will be located.
STEP 3. Cut the template out of the
instruction booklet and place it on the
carpet. Locate the X on the template
over the hole you punched in the floor.
Mark the outline of the cutout area on
the carpet. Remove the carpet. Mark
the cut out area on the floor. With a
center punch mark the locations of
the four mounting bolts. Cut out the
center area and drill four 9/32" holes
at the center punch marks.
STEP 4. Install the shifter through the
hole in the floor from the top. The
cable bracket points towards the rear
of the vehicle. Secure the shifter to
the floor with four 1/4-20 x 1-1/2" bolts,
washers, lockwasher and nuts. If the
shifter does not sit flat on the floor,
put extra washers between the shifter
and the floor as spacers. Tighten the

Printed in U.S.A.

9500369-09

FRONT

Cable "eye"

Cable route for GM and
Ford installations

Figure 2

four bolts.
STEP 5. Check the operation of the
neutral safety switch. (This step is
not necessary on Chrysler transmis­sions.) The switch should be on when
the shifter is in the Park position (with
the shifter handle all the way forward)
and in the Neutral position (two posi­tions behind Park). The switch should
be off in all other positions. This can
be checked with a test light or an ohm
meter, or you can probably hear the
switch clicking when shifting from Park
to Reverse, from Reverse to Neutral
and from Neutral to Drive. If the switch
is not operating correctly:

1. Watch to see that the switch oper-

E-Clip

Figure 1

Cable route for
Chrysler installations

Large wide loops provide
freer shifting and longer cable
life

Cable loops around to
the back of the shifter

ating lever moves up and down as
the shifter is moved through the
gears. The lever should move up in
Park and Neutral and be down in
the other gears. If the lever does
not move, put a little oil on the
pivot.

2. If when the lever does move, and

does not turn the switch on and off,
loosen the two screws holding the
switch to the shifter by about a half
a turn, just enough to move the
switch. Move the switch up or down
until it operates correctly and then
retighten the screws. Do not loosen
these screws too much, or the nut
plate on the back side may fall off.

Slot in

backing plate

Locking nut

STEP 6. Attach the cable to the
shifter. The end of the cable with the
small fixed hex and the large nut at­taches to the shifter. Loosen the lock­ing nut on this end of the cable sheath
and slide the cable into the slot on the
shifter backing plate (See Figure 1).
Put the “eye” over the cable pin. Tighten
the locking nut on the cable to 10 lb­ft. Do not overtighten. Use the sup­plied e-clip to hold the “eye” in place.
STEP 7. Check that the shifter moves
through all the gear positions and that
the other end of the cable moves in
and out. Route the cable to the trans­mission as shown in Figure 2 to avoid
sharp bends or damage to the cable.
For GM and Ford transmissions route
the cable to the transmission from the
rear. For Chrysler transmissions the
cable must be looped around to the
front side of the transmission.

GM vehicles: Go to Step 8
Ford vehicles: Go to Step 13
Chrysler vehicles: Go to Step 19

GENERAL MOTORS

STEP 8. If you have not already done

so, remove the stock selector lever
nut and the selector lever. Discard
the stock lever and the stock shifter
linkage. Install the B&M selector
lever in position. Install the stock
selector lever nut and tighten se­curely (See Figure 3). The lever
must be installed so it can travel its
full arc equally in both directions
across the center. If the lever is

2

GM cable bracket

Spacer

Use these two holes for
TH-400 transmission. Use
other two holes for other
GM transmissions

Spacer

F

Cable swivel
Cotter pin
(Use front hole)

R

C

GM lever

5/16 x 1" bolt and spacer
(Metric trans use M8 x 25 bolt)

installed backwards, the swivel will
hit the oil pan during the rearward
travel arc. The lever should travel
smoothly from front to back with a
positive click in each gear position.

STEP 9. Remove the two transmis­sion oil pan bolts from the middle of
the left side of the oil pan. Install the
cable bracket in position (See Figure

3). The bracket must be installed with
two spacers between the pan and the
bracket. (If your transmission is
equipped with a cast aluminum oil
pan, these spacers should be omitted
however the cable bracket may have
to be modified.) Install the two 5/16"­18 x 3/4" bolts supplied and tighten to
12-13 lb-ft. If your transmission has
metric bolts install the two 8mm bolts.
Do not overtighten as this can dam­age the pan gasket.
STEP 10. Route the shifter cable ac­cording to Figure 2. Avoid kinks and
sharp bends and route the cable away
from hot engine or exhaust parts. The
cable may be secured up and out of the
way with nylon cable ties.

Remove the two rubber boots, one
large nut, and a large lockwas her from
the threaded end of the shifter cable.
Slide the end of the cable into the cable
bracket. Install the large nut and the
lockwasher loosely over the end of the
cable. Install the two rubber boots onto
the end of the cable. Install the swivel
on the threaded end of the cable and
position it in the center of the threaded
portion.

GM cable bracket (Trimming of bracket

7/16" nut

required if used on cast aluminum pan)

Figure 3

STEP 11. Move the transmission se-

lector lever by hand to full rear position
(Low). For four speed automatic trans­missions (TH200-4R, TH700-R4. 4L60,
4L60E, and 4L65E) move the shifter
lever to the rearmost position. For three
speed automatic transmissions move
the shifter lever to the next to the
rearmost position. Adjust the large
nuts on the cable so that the swivel will
slide into the front hole on the selector
lever. Tighten the large nuts completely.
Be sure that the swivel will slide freely
in and out of the hole in the selector
lever. Note: The shifter will not op-

erate correctly unless the front hole
in the shift lever is used.

Leave the swivel out of the hole and
move the selector lever to Park, all the
way forward. Also move the shifter to
the Park position (all the way forward).
Reinsert the swivel into the front hole
in the selector lever. Check to see that
the swivel will slide freely in and out of
the front hole in the selector lever in
this position. If it does not slip in freely,
adjust the swivel slightly until it will slip
into the hole in the lever.

Move the shifter back to the Low
gear position and check that the swivel
will still slide easily in and out of the
front hole in the selector lever. (If you
do not use the front hole in the lever, it
will be impossible to correctly adjust
the cable.) Operate the shifter through
all the gear positions. Check to make
sure the swivel will slide in and out of
the front selector lever hole in each
gear position. The shift cable is now

correctly adjusted. Install the cotter
key supplied with the shifter into the
swivel and spread the key ends.

If you have a problem, DO NOT
FORCE THE SHIFTER, this will dam­age the cable, the shifter or the trans­mission. Simply start at the beginning
and carefully check all your steps.
STEP 12. On GM vehicles the neu­tral safety switch may be located on
the shifter (steering column or con­sole), or it may be a mechanical inter­lock in the steering column that pre­vents the key from turning to the Start
position unless the shifter is in the
Park or Neutral position. Identify the
type of neutral safety system you have.
If the key will not turn to the Start
position unless the stock shifter is in
Park or Neutral, you have a mechani­cal interlock, otherwise you have a
neutral safety switch. If you have a
neutral safety switch, locate and iden­tify the neutral safety wires (engine
will not crank unless these wires are
connected together). With either type,
disconnect the battery ground cable
to prevent accidental shorts. If you
have a neutral safety switch, extend
both wires from the GM switch to the
switch on the shifter. If you have a
mechanical interlock cut the wire that
goes from the Start position on the
ignition switch to the solenoid on the
starter. This wire is usually a 10 or 12
gauge purple wire. Run wires from
both ends of the cut wire to the shifter.
Put slip on terminals on the ends of
the lengthened wire. Crimp the termi-

3