Shifter cable replacement*pics of damage* new problem?

I dont have a pic of the original install.
The person I bought it from had a motor built by Koffel but didnt take the time to insulate the trans cable or some of the spark plug wires. He used some Hooker competition headers and the rear drivers side spark plug wires are touching the header, so thats the next fix I have to take care of.
The cable came down through a hole made in the trans tunnel (originally the car was column shifter), ran forward about mid way to the front of the block and held in place with a clamp bolted to the block, then ran to the trans. It was a 5 ft cable.
It has a B&M reverse manual valve body on a 727, so I dont know about looping and running it around, I'd have to crawl back under and look.

After looking at the cable and thinking about it at work I came to the conclusion that with the exposed copper wire that it didnt have the reinforcement there to keep the cable from popping out of what was left of exterior sheathing.

I plan on using a heat shielding tube from Summit, parts will run just under $100.



Sorry for any dumb questions, this is my first rodeo with old mopars, always a fan, first time owner