Installing the B&M Short Shifter - By markiii

[markiii]

When it comes to improving the user experience with computers, it's often the tactile parts that are overlooked. How many people buy more memory or bigger processors on their computer and rarely give a thought to the keyboard, mouse, or monitor. Yet these are the most used components that have the biggest day to day interaction with the user.

Likewise in the world of automobiles, usually people change wheels, tyres, exhaust, or try to get more power. Often little thought is given to the tactile parts of the car that you interact with on a regular basis. These kinds of things include the seats, the steering wheel, and the gearshift.

Granted seats are a very expensive proposition, and steering wheels in these days of airbags everywhere, are becoming much more difficult to customise to your liking.

One area that can however is the Gearshift. Gear knobs have now almost become a compulsory thing to change in the Max Muppet world of wannabe Nova boys we now seem to live in. A far more satisfactory improvement can be obtained by changing the shifter, and this isn't as difficult as it sounds.

At the present time there are a number of options for improving (subjective as that is) the shifter response of the Roadster. Before we look at them let us take a look at what exactly we are trying to improve.

In the case of the Roadster the gear lever pulls or pushes a series of cables which are attached to the gearbox, which in turn changes the gears. Improvements to the feel of the gear lever can encompass, reducing the throw, reducing the slop, and reducing or increasing the length of the gearshift shaft.

Let us take these one at a time.


Reducing the Throw

This is often though to be the same thing as reducing the length of the shaft. While a solution to the former may result in the latter this is not so clear cut.

A lotus Elise for example has a very long shaft but a very short throw.

A gear stick or to give it a more accurate term gear lever operates on some very simple Physics. It is a lever with a pivot so far down it that is mounted on a cage and allows the box to be changed with a minimum of effort by the user

Shortening the amount of shaft below the pivot will reduce the throw. The longer the shaft above the pivot the less effort is needed to change gear. In the case of the Elise the stick is quite tall, but has the benefit that keeping it close to the steering wheel reduces the time spent with one hand on the wheel.

With the Roadster the stick while quite tall is not close enough to the wheel to help in this respect.


Reducing the slop.

While rubber bushes can and do help with a nice comfortable shift they do so at the expense of feel. Sloppiness in the shift can be reduced by the fitment of replacement metal bushings. In the case of the Roadster the bushings in question sit beneath the 4 corners of the shifter cage.


Reducing or increasing the throw.

In theory either shortening or lengthening the gear stick itself can improve the shifting experience. Accepted practice seems to favour the former with a short switch like action as close to that of the Mazda MX5 being the ultimate in success.


The options for your Roadster.

At the time of writing there are only 2 major alternatives the TRD short shifter and the B&M Short shifter. Numerous cheaper clones of the B&M exist though as we aren't talking great wedges of cash for any of the options the question must be asked why go for the clone if the original is almost the same price?

In addition there are a number homemade alternatives that go someway toward achieving the experience.

The first of these is to attack your standard gear stick with a hacksaw/dermal, and cut it down to the desired height. As this will remove the threaded part, you would need to either rethread the remaining shaft or change to an aftermarket Knob that utilises a grub screw to secure itself.

The advantages of this mod are mainly cosmetic. While the shift will appear shorter the fact that the pivot point of has not changed limits the improvements that can be achieved.

The second is to replace the stock rubber bushing with metal ones such as those supplied by Kumosport.



This will tighten up the shift action and remove some of the sloppiness found in the OEM configuration. Reference to the B&M installation guide later on will reveal where these bushings go.

The TRD Short shifter.



The TRD scores well for ease of installation as it is supplied complete with replacement cage. Making installation a simple case of removing one and installing the other.


The B&M Short shifter

The B&M is the one I chose. It is arguably a less complete kit than the TRD as it does not include the plastic cage. However it does have a shorter notchier shift.

While the pros and cons of a shorter notchier shift will be down to personal preference, the straight shaft offsets the lever to the left. Making 5th look like 3rd and so on. While our US cousins may prefer this as it places the shifter closer to the driver, on a RHD car you may not feel the same.

Suffice to say in usage you quickly stop noticing this.


Installing the B&M shifter

The B&M shifter can be purchased from the likes of Demon Tweaks in the UK for around £160. I purchased mine for $130 from No Limit Motor sports in New York. Wherever you source it from you may often not find it listed against the MR2 Roadster. The item is exactly the same item as for the 2000 onwards Celica which should make it easier to source.

But for now here's how I did it.

As supplied the B&M shifter includes an aluminium B&M engraved gear knob, 4 blue metal bushings, a tube of grease and of course the actual shifter itself. The black o ring is part of the knob assembly, and the plastic bag has a few other bits and pieces.



A few basic hand tools consisting of pliers hammer, sockets and screwdrivers will be all you need for installation.

Before you start it is advisable to ensure that you're in neutral and the handbrake is on.

The first step is to unscrew the OEM gear knob. This unscrews counter clockwise and is as you'd expect simply a matter of gripping firmly with both hands and turning. I didn't need to resort to this but have been reliably informed that and old towel and a pair of mole grips will help should it decide to be stubborn.



The next thing we need to do is to remove the centre console. This is secured by a total of 4 screws. 2 each side. Unfortunately the 2 at the rear of the console are obstructed by the seats. While an L shaped screwdriver could be used, I preferred to remove the seats. This isn't as drastic as it sounds. Each seat is secured by 4 bolts simply slide the seat all the way back and remove the front 2, then all the way forward and remove the back 2. Now unplug the wire from the bottom of the seat and lift it clear. Easy.

With the seats out this allows easy access to remove the console and has the advantage that you won't mark the leather with tools or by kneeling on it.

Don't forget the electric window switches are still connected to the wiring loom so the console will not lift completely free. You should have enough clearance to lye it down to the side.

With the console lifted clear this is what you will see.

And yes I know the seats are still in, this picture isn't of my car.



In order to remove the shifter we need to remove the plastic at the top of the cage, to do this we need to remove the pin as shown in the pictures below. A replacement is supplied with the kit in case you're a little ham fisted.



A tap using a screwdriver or centre punch and a hammer should allow you to push this out sufficiently to get a grip with your pliers.
 


Next we need to prise off the rear bolt cap.



Again don't worry if you damage it (you probably will) as a spare is supplied.





Once done, remove the slider assembly and lift off the plastic
 


Now lift of the plastic 'o' ring





At this point we are almost ready to remove the gear lever. First we need to detach the base from the shifter cables.

Remove the U shaped spring that holds the assembly together and keep this safe as you will need it later



Now you should be able to lift the gear lever. out. It will be very greasy so be careful where you put it.

Here we can see the stock shifter next to the B&M. This is an old picture. The B&M now ships with the plastic caps shown on the stock shifter. Also note that that in addition to being shorter the B&M lacks the kink in the shaft of the original as discussed earlier.



Remove the white clip that supports the shift boot and store this for later as you will need to reuse it.



Remove the 4 bolts that hold the plastic cage in place.



We are going to remove the 4 rubber bushes that the cage sits on and replace them with the blue metal ones supplied with the kit.





Make sure that you place these with the flat side down. The raised part of the ring is used to locate on the holes in the plastic cage.


The B&M comes with a replacement set of longer bolts. Using these re-bolt the cage to the floor.



Now for the messy part. Using the tube of grease supplied liberally coat the blue ball of the B&M shifter;



Make sure to do this thoroughly as the how well you do this will determine how smooth the shift action is.

Place the shifter into the cage and be sure to grease the top of the ball as well.



Now replace the plastic pieces we removed earlier
 






Re-attach the bottom cable and secure with the u shaped spring we put aside earlier

Replace the metal assembly and secure with the bolt



Once the bolt is back through we need to secure it with the replacement for the cap we took off earlier





This is fiddly. Take your time; a gentle tap with a hammer will help.

Remember this pin we removed earlier?



We now need to replace it. If you damaged it too much a replacement is supplied with the kit. Either way a gentle tap with a hammer will assist this to go back in.

Now replace the plastic shift knob bracket and the rubber washer that sits on top.





Replace the centre console and look we're back where we started



The choice is yours as to whether you want to use the stock knob or the B&M aluminium. If the latter then attach the shift knob bracket a little higher when performing the previous step.

Here's a picture showing what the stock shifter looks like compared to the B&M with aluminium knob installed.





Make sure the shifter is operating smoothly and that you can hear the gears being engaged. If all is well, put back the securing screws for the centre console, and replace the seats.

That's it your done.

So what's it like on the road?

Well only you will know if you happy but for my part I'm very happy and consider it a worthwhile improvement. The shifts are tighter and more mechanical feeling and the throw is a lot shorter.

Going back to the stock shifter now seems lie stirring a bowl of porridge in comparison.

As for the lean to the left (remember we took the kink out of the shaft) it's noticeable certainly, it puts 3rd where first was and 4th where neutral was but give yourself a week and stop noticing this completely.

Buy one you won't be disappointed.


Disclaimer

The pictures contained in this article are copyrighted to  w www.spydermagazine.com w  and are reproduced with the kind permission of Jim Bledsoe and the original authors. My original installation was completed with the help of those articles and so I neglected to take my own pictures at the time.

Reproduction of these pictures must be only with their prior permission.