5sp owners..ever unscrewed shift knob? Mine is stuck.

[nyvram]

I don't know how the hell they put this thing on but its murder to get off.

I'm unscrewing counterclockwise but so far all i've managed to do is make the knob head go in circles and when i put a death grip on it, i succeeded in ripping the leather off and now my shifter knob is a gluey gooey mess.

i guess the next step is to hit it with a heat gun to see if I can loosen it up when i get home. wtf did they put this thing on with?

 

[seoulstice]

My shifter knob screws on and off really easily...

 

[nyvram]

its a 98 (built 9/97) and i'm guessing this is the first time anyone has attempted to remove it. maybe they put some type of locktite on it at the factory.

 

[davemw]

I've heard a hair dryer can help since the knob is a plastic material. I'll be pulling mine soon to replace it and have been doing some research on the subject as well.

 

[javendan]

i've removed the shift knob on our 2000 4runner several times...

the first time was a b!tch, though.

i thought it was going to tear also but it held together.

there was no thread lock material after inspection.

try the heat... tap the base of the knob with a hammer...

good luck!!!

joel

 

[nyvram]

OK, so after attacking this thing with a heat gun..taking a box cutter to the remaining knob material so all i was left with was a little plastic ball on the end...i had to use a pair of channel locks to get the stupid thing off.

Good thing I'm not planning on using the original knob again.

Here's the end result. I love the Land Rover shifter knob! Kudos to the T4R member who recommended it.

 

[javendan]

that looks great!

joel

 

[TheDurk]

I had to swap one on an old SAAB that I had to dremel a vertical slot into. Then I bashed a chisel into it and twisted the chisel with a big ChannelLock. It just flew apart with a big "CRAACK!" That was the only way to get that one off. I haven't had to pull my original 4Runner knob yet.