W55- GEARLEVER

The W55 is a great gearbox, but one problem is that the gearstick doesn't line up in the same spot as the original T50.

The W55 is typically used in Supra's and came out with 4 known lever positions which are 18, 19, 20 and 20.5 inches (measured from the front of the gearbox to the lever). The one that came with the 3T GTE is 18 inch and it still sits too far back for a TA22 Celica.

Just when I thought it wasn't possible to complete a genuine Toyota mod, I discovered that there is actually another position available if you use a retainer and housing from a pick up truck used in the USA. It is a straight swap enough though the parts are not from a W55. The pic below shows the old retainer (on the right) and the new one which moves the gearstick in a perfect spot to suit a TA22. As you can see it moves the lever about 2 inches further forward.

See the pics below of the new housing and retainer. The only problem was I couldn't find the part that holds the gearstick inside the retainer. So I made one myself out of a piece of bronze. The gearstick at the top is the standard Celica stick and the one laying on the retainer is the base of the original W55 gearstick.

I did this mod with the gearbox in position. There's not much room under my TA22 now, but it was only a matter of removing the rear section of the gearbox so I could fit the new housing. My first attempt at fixing the position was by putting a large offset in the gear lever. But I didn't like the look of it in a Celica of such a high standard.

Although the parts for this mod aren't cheap, it does work out very well and makes it all look very genuine.

I'm very happy with this setup.