4 speed shifter problems need help here

Ok guys, we finally got back home from the funeral in Mississippi. But not without problems. Funeral went fine but on the way down, I blew a rack and pinion on my 2006 Grand Caravan in Athens, Alabama. Did not want to chance it so I got it to the Huntsville International Airport and rented a car to make the rest of the trip. The only garage open I could find on sat. afternoon in Athens to look at it was Pep Boys. He told me he could fix it for $1000.00. I told him to set it back down and I left. Put some STP p/s and stop leak in it and made it home without a problem. Now, I have to change the rack and pinion this weekend. $87.00 out of pocket. Had a few minutes to look at this tranny and some of the comments. do you think the first step would be to change the adapter plate. the one on mine does not look like the one that is in the pic above and also the one that PassomPerformance sells for late 68-76 abody for a Hurst shifter.. If that plate is wrong it would have a bearing on how the rods hook up. let me know if I am going in the right direction here. I think I have a pic of the one Passonperformance shows as the right one. It looks like that plate would have the shifter going more forward as some of you guys said. let me know what you think here and I will get the right plate in. If that is what I need to do. Bill