I have a 96 Civic and the threads on the shifter snapped off. So while trying to replace the shifter the rusted nuts that are attached to the studs that hold the shifter in completely rounded out. has anyone else had this happen and what did you do to get those out?

 

Go back inside the vehicle and drill out the studs.

 

I remember changing the shifter on one of my civics and it was a terrible job. What shpuld have been a cable driven system was a finicky bracket that you could never get the correct angle on, to remove or tighten the studs.

 

I use nut extractors.

A set similar to this:

 

Grind the heads off and replace them.