CGT shifter problems

[J. Lyons]

Hello all,

Last night while driving home, the shifter in my CGT turbo became loose in
my hand, leaving me unable to shift gears.

Upon getting under the car, I discovered that the support rod (which
connects the shifter side plate to the tranny via a rubber bushing over a
ball socket)  had popped off the ball leaving no pivot point for the
shifter.

A friend of mine was kind enough to drive his jack out to me so that I could
reconnect this bushing and continue home.

I have ordered a new bushing this morning (even though mine appears fine,
for $2 it seemed like cheap insurance)  but my question is - has anyone had
this problem before? A new bushing will probably help, but doesn't strike me
as a bulletproof solution.

Looking at the current setup, it occurs to me that a cotter pin or something
should have been put at this connection from the factory. Any BTDT with
this? Can't seem to find anything specific in the archives, and definitely
don't want to deal with this again - especially on a long trip!

Thanks in advance,
J. Lyons
84 CGT turbo
86 4KCSQ
79 5KS