I have a 4 speed with a bench seat.Today I was ordering a new shifter boot, and the mounting ring for it.The guy at NOS said that he could not confirm if there was a retaining ring which would go on top of the carpet and seal the boot to the floor.Has anyone seen a ring on top,or does it go under the carpet? Im just wondering what seals the carpet to the floor? Thanks For Your HELP!! David

The retaining ring seals the boot to the floor, under the carpet. Originally there was a rubber carpet grommet that went around the carpet opening, but they are hard to find and are not being reproduced for Chevelles. The grommets are color matched to the carpet.

Here is a photo of what the grommet looks like (upper right):
http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/data/500/bootsandgrommet.jpg
The retaining ring is in the upper left. An original boot is in the lower right and a currently available boot is in the lower left.
Bruce

Thanks for the pics. and info. I am missing that rubber grommet on my carpet. Can you tell me what i can replace that with?

I have a few ideas but none of them will look correct. Some might look better than others.

The Novas use a carpet grommet but it is more square (too square in my opinion). You could use the boot retaining ring on top of the carpet, but make sure to seal the boot to the floor good so it doesn't leak. You could put an edging on the carpet; either stitch some vinyl or loop heavy yarn around the opening.

I've seen some expensive cars on eBay that have used the retaining ring on top of the carpet, but I guess the trick is to trim the edge so it doesn't show. You could chrome the retainer or paint it to match the carpet.

If your car is a hot rod it doesn't matter if it is correct. If you are using an aftermarket shifter anyway, use an aftermarket boot over the bottom boot.

Bruce

Thanks again! That gives me some good ideas.My car is correct for the most part.Im missing a few little parts,but not many.In my search for this carpet grommet,is there any other car that would have used the same part?