Here is a set of directions I found way back from 2000:

"Look at the seam in the back of the chrome shaft and separate and remove it carefully. Now, put a baggy over the knob to contain flying parts. Put a crescent wrench under the knob and pound up, tapping it with a hammer. The knob will pop off."

This is the original thread: http://www.brickboard.com/RWD/index.htm?id=319141

Not much else I can find. Bentley has nothing on the automatic lever removal.

Does anyone have anything to add to this procedure before I go prying delicate chrome pieces off?
At what point would I disconnect the OD relay switch wire? After getting the chrome off and before before the "tapping on knob with hammer?"

UM, no. Bad advice. Leave the chrome thingy alone. FIRST, pry out the OD button surround and disconnect the button. Once that's gone, push the wires back into the knob head. Next use a screw driver to pop out the middle shifter button and remove the spring behind it. THEN pull straight up on the knob, use a wrench if you must, but I never have. From what you've quoted, you're laible to break something.

Good luck,
Sean
--
'93 244: 'A' cam 4 deg. advanced, 25/22 sways, custom heim endlinks, poly bushings, and a lot more styling customization than I care to recount.

Sean, you da man. Sage advice.

My experiences on this silly project:

Took me about 45 minutes...I was hesitant to use the screw driver with much leverage on the button. I watched as the hard foam of the knob stretched and deformed. I got it off- finally because I loosened the bottom of the knob up and off the chrome plastic about 1/4". There is a recess in the knob foam that will slide up and away from the chrome. Then after making sure the OD wires were clear, I used a little leverage downwards on the bottom of the steel shifter itself and at the same time pulled the knob off...whhiingggg!! the button and spring came off, shifter cover off, cleaned stuff up, put sexy NEW shifter cover on, reversed installation.

I fished the wires back into the knob, then pushed the knob back down onto the chrome and steel arm, installed the OD switch, put the spring back in, button back on....darn it. I put the button on backwards. Let me say that putting my flat screwdriver in there the second time and prying, the button came off in 2 seconds!

FOR THOSE DOING THIS SILLY THING THE FIRST TIME: The foam is way stronger than you think. Put your driver underneath the 6-oclock position of the button. In other words, your driver points towards 12 and your prying underneath the portion of the button that points towards the rear of the car. So get that flathead down underneath the whole button (it's about 3/4" deep), don't worry about twinging the spring-- its beefy, you won't hurt it, and pry that button off with a little force. The knob foam will smush like crazy, but trust me, it will go back into its original shape no problem.

My '89 gold 245 is starting to come around both cosmetically and mechanically thanks to y'all...

~Jason Repko(valev)

Nice to know this now. I used the crescent wrench and hammer method that was being bandied around as the way to do it. That was the reasoning behind my posting earlier. I finally found all the parts (too dumb to use the plastic bag). Broke the console when I dropped the hammer on it while trying to catch the pieces. It wasn't a happy place. Glad you found a better way.

Is there a good reason to take the knob off? I did this last year, and it is not something that I would want to do every weekend.

...my old cover is cracked in half and the whole thing looks like crap, so I need to slip this new one on/over/under/around somehow!

You removed your auto shifter knob last year you said? I'm still wondering if you would add anything to the procedure I found/posted?