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Redline Shift Boot Install

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So I got my E-brake and Shift boots from Redline in and decided to install them today. Figured I do a little write up for people so they know what they're getting into before hand. It's really not that hard, probably took me an hour or so start to finish.

First thing you need to do is remove the shift knob and then remove the center console. Open the center storage and just pull up on the cupholder, there are two clips under the radio that slide back. Then unplug the TC/Trunk button thing from the bottom. After that it will just come right off. No screws very simple. The E-brake will just pull up from the back side and slide off.

To get the stock boot off you need to turn it over and unhook these silver clips from the bottom as you pull it out. Pretty straight forward.
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The Redline boots do not come with the plastic surrounds for either boot since they're custom made. As you can see on the stock one, it's glued and then crimped all the way around. You have to pull the boot off of the plastic surround. Get started with small pliers and then you can reach from the inside and just work it all the way around. Know that since they crimped it so thin on the stock one, it's going to rip and your stock boots will be ruined.

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After you get the old ones off you just need to glue the Redline boots on there somehow. I used a 2 part epoxy that sets up in 60 seconds. I mixed enough for one side of the square, glued it on and let it set. Then repeat for all sides. They fit on nice and easy. Be sure to pay attention to the orientation of the stock boots. They have a shorter and longer side so you need to remember which end goes on what side of the plastic part.

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Once dry just install in reverse and put back into car. My custom ones are Black Alcantara with light green quad stitching to match the GHIG.

Pay no attention to the MGW knob, my EPCO GHIG one hasn't come in the mail yet, so it'll match much better after that.
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Great write-up! Here is mine for support. Originally posted on my blog here: http://www.jimmypribble.com/blog/2011/09/ch-6-first-boss-mods/

3. Alcantara* Shift Boot

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In every other sports car that has ever been equipped with an Alcantara-covered steering wheel, at a minimum, the shift boot has also been Alcantara. For the Boss, Ford has the steering wheel covered in fake suede, the shift boot made out of fake leather, and the parking brake boot made out of some other kind of fake leather. Look, the collar should match the cuffs. It’s as simple as that. It isn’t as if any of this were actual leather, it is just three different kinds of fake leather. Why couldn’t they be the same? Was there a cost savings somewhere? Are there really grades of polyvinyl chloride fake leather?

Anyway, this bugged me, so I ordered a new shift boot and parking brake boot from www.redlinegoods.com, a Polish company. That’s right, to get a proper shift boot for my American car, I had to have one shipped from Poland. Well, good on them, because I am very pleased with their service and with the quality of their work. Instructions for installation are here, but I have added larger photos and a few extra comments here.

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1. Remove the shift knob by rotating it counter clockwise. That’s all that Redline tells you, but you need to know something about that shift knob, or you are likely to get a hernia. It’s held on with blue Loctite. That’s right, Ford fitted this car with a Chinese transmission made from the melted-down pots and pans of dead dissidents and it’s almost certainly destined to fall apart faster than a student protest. But by God they don’t want that shift knob falling off. No sir.

Check the forums for ideas on how to remove the shift knob. You might get a musclehead friend or somebody on PCP who doesn’t feel pain. You also might try applying heat to break the Loctite bond. A rubber-strap oil filter wrench might work, too. I’m not going to tell you what I did, but let’s just say that now I have to order a new shift knob.

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2. Open the storage compartment and then pull the center console trim piece by pulling up here. It will unclip easily. Unplug the traction control/hazard/trunk release connector and remove the trim piece, sliding the boot over the gear change lever.

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3. Remove the shift boot by unclipping the plastic mounting ring from the indicated clips.

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4. Once the shift boot has been removed from the center console trim, use a putty knife, gasket scraper, or flathead screwdriver to remove to separate the shift boot from the plastic mounting ring.

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5. I used a hot glue gun to glue the new boots to the plastic mounting rings. Because hot glue guns are dangerous, I had a safety officer present.

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6. Detail. This is from the parking brake boot. In this area, the fitment can be very tight. In my case, the fabric was pulled so tightly at the bottom that it began to curl and it would not adhere. So, I made a 2-3mm cut in the fabric at the bottom, which was just enough to alleviate the tension and allow the fabric to lay flat and adhere to the plastic ring.

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7. I used binder clips to clamp the boot to the plastic ring after I had applied the hot glue. They worked perfectly.

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8. The finished boots!

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I am very pleased with the quality of these pieces, but I have to say that the change is so subtle, that most will find this mod not worth the trouble. Also, the boots do not exactly match the color of the steering wheel. The boots are closer to black, while the steering wheel is a charcoal grey. In fact, to my eye, there is even a little bit of almost purple tint to the steering wheel cover. Anal retentive detail oriented people might try to wash or fade the material to get a closer match and folks with serious issues could just send the company a spare steering wheel and have them find the dye lot with the closest match. The original pieces didn’t match in color either, so I’m just happy that the material looks the same. The difference is subtle, but pleasing to me.

* I am using Alcantara generically, because it is easier than saying faux suede. Alcantara is a brand name and only the faux suede on the Recaro seats is actually Alcantara. Neither the steering wheel cover nor the boots provided by Redline Automotive Accessories Corp. are made from Alcantara.

Cost: $78
 
KBBoss302 said:
Can you guys please explain how the E-brake boot comes off? Any pics?

I'll be darned. I checked my archives and found that I had taken photos, but they didn't make it into the how-to. Maybe I will update it. Anyway, parking brake boot could not be easier.

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Pull-up on the back to pop it out.

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The parking brake boots are elasticized to go around the handle, which is not designed to be easily removed.

Hope this helps.
 
Man Jimmy, if you already had this write up made and you're on this forum, I wish you would have posted it. I could have saved myself a lot of time and just posted completed pictures. 8)
 

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