Gear Shift Column

[roland]

Hey I have a 99 and I my column is set up in - 1 - D - (D) - N - R - P

do the 96-98 SHO's have a 2nd gear shift on their column or are they setup the same way?

I'm kinda wondering because I was talking to a guy who owned a 97 about racing on a track, and one of his suggestions was "just shift it into 2nd manually with the shifter, and into drive when you hit 6900rpmsr"

 

[SHOZ123]

I believe in '98 this changed? I have the 2nd gear selection in my '97.

FWIW you should just leave it in D for the quarter unless you have changed something to make it worth your while to go higher in rpms.

But that being said you can still hold the tranny in 2nd gear with the later setup.

Start in D; after the car shifts into 2nd move the shifter down to the 1st position. This will hold the car in 2nd until you move the shifter back to D where it will then shift into 3rd.

 

[stephen newberg]

My '98 is also 1, 2, D, N, R, P, plus the OD button for 4th, so the change must hav been at some other time. The only thing not under manual control is the TC lockout.

pax, smn

 

[roland]

My '98 is also 1, 2, D, N, R, P, plus the OD button for 4th, so the change must hav been at some other time.

maybe early model 99's, like around the same time SARC switch dissappeared?

 

[NebraskaSHO]

maybe early model 99's, like around the same time SARC switch dissappeared?

Yes early 99's had the O/D button, later ones do not. Along without SARC. Mine has 1, D, (D), N, R, P

 

[lancSHO]

Start in D; after the car shifts into 2nd move the shifter down to the 1st position. This will hold the car in 2nd until you move the shifter back to D where it will then shift into 3rd.

I dunno Paul, my 99 won't shift out of first if the selector's in the 1 spot; I'm kinda iffy about downshifting back to 1 while being at WOT in 2nd.

 

[SHOZ123]

The PCM will not allow a down shift to first when the speed is over 32 mph, even if the selector is positioned there.

 

[shogansta]

hold on the gen 3s came with a sarc switch? if so which year?

 

[NebraskaSHO]

96-98... where i dunno. Ive always wondered where it was.

 

[stephen newberg]

This is not correct. There is no OEM switch for the SARC system. However, it is pretty easy to put one in, which many people have done.

pax, smn

 

[shogansta]

Yea thats what i thought because i owned a 97 which i had to put a switch into

 

[NebraskaSHO]

My bad, I just don't understand how it's semi-active... I thought there was a switch from the factory to turn it on soft or hard. But now I remember that people just put switches in the cars to have them on full hard most of the time.

So does the SARC switch itself on and off?

 

[2 4shofast]

The SARC doesnt switch on and off. From what I understand they adjust the harder or softer depending on the road surface but it isnt like a on and off setting rather a wide range of firmness or softness. I hope you can understand that....cause I think I lost myself on that explanation...

 

[SHOZ123]

The SARC ride height sensors measure how much the suspension is traveling up and down and the SARC processor times this movement and will turn off the strut(s). The faster the movement the harder the strut. The strut has a two port valve, both open=soft, one open=hard.

 

[avocadoman1]

The PCM will not allow a down shift to first when the speed is over 32 mph, even if the selector is positioned there.

You are correct when in the "stock" mode. That is, start out in D or (D), hold there until until the tranny shifts from 1st to 2nd, then move shifter back to 1st and the tranny will stay in 2nd until you move to D.

However, the FPS X-Cal1 tuner changed all of that for me. That is, if I shift into 1st after it shifts into 2nd, it goes back into an extremely high "high rev" 1st gear. so it's very hard to use 2nd at all with a '99 and the X-Cal 1 as programmed by Doug.
I'm sure that there's an adjustment to make this more like the stock shift, but I haven't inquired with FPS about modifying the program yet.

 

[AG_99_SHO]

This is reffered to as the "1-D-1 shuffle" i would like to know why ford decided to take our overdrive buttons off the 99's! is it just the selector thats different? are the transmissions 'exactly' the same between a 96-98 AND 99?

if u slam it into 1 while going around 40, it will shift into 2nd gear, my mark VII did the same crap.

 

[SHOZ123]

..........
However, the FPS X-Cal1 tuner changed all of that for me. That is, if I shift into 1st after it shifts into 2nd, it goes back into an extremely high "high rev" 1st gear. so it's very hard to use 2nd at all with a '99 and the X-Cal 1 as programmed by Doug.

I don't see how if you have already maxed out 1st gear and are in second, that it could possibly downshift to first from second at WOT.

Now it may down shift 2-1 at closed throttle and under deceleration around 35 mph or less if in the 1st gear indent.

 

[avocadoman1]

i'm only going to address the XCal 1 as programmed by FPS for my '99.
> put in D or [D] and accelerate normally. will auto shift into 2nd at about 30mph.
> now shift back into 1st at 32-35mph as you are accelerating in 2nd and it goes back into 1st.
> i need to be at about 40 for it to stay in 2nd
> but if i have my shift lever in 1st while in 2nd and the speed is reduced to below 40, the tranny shifts into 1st at about 3500 RPMs.
> it's not good for the tranny, and not good for me based on the way i drive.

now...i know why Doug programmed it that way, because you can maximize your output in each gear.
however, for a '99 without a 2nd gear location on the shifter, it sucks for me.

i'll contact him and see what i need to do to change it.

 

[SHOZ123]

He can set the manual down shift speed at a lower value. Perhaps 30 would be better. Or even 25.

 

[avocadoman1]

i'm thinking less than that.
the stock mode manual downshift speed is about 8-10mph.
they do that for a reason...so you won't do something stupid and harm the trans, which is what i'm doing now with the XCal 1.

i emailed him today.
i'll probably have to download the XCal software and do it myself after he sends me the file.