Question about short shifters.
 

i was talking to one of my friends that works at a local speed shop. anyways we got to talking about short shifters and how i was planning on getting one and he told me that they are a bad idea. he started getting into how it makes your syncros work much harder much quicker. can anyone give me some more information on this?

Well, they ofcourse reduce your throw, not sure about syncro damage, but when you decide to speed shift and it breaks, it wont matter hehe. Some people do really well with Short shifters, I have never heard of them hurting syncros in a tranny before, I don't doubt that they do though. There are better mods to put your money into however :) If you do get a short shifter, Neuspeed is known for making the longest lasting ones.

i had a dc sports short shifter in my crx and i diddnt have any problems with that one thats kinda why i was wondering. anyways nuespeed dont make em for the p5 do they?

I wasn't aware that short shifters were made for these cars, I was just stating in general ;) DC sports and Neuspeed make great products no doubt.

B&M, Pacesetter, and TriPoint have short shifters avialable for the 3rd gen Proteges. They can contribute to synchro damage if they are poorly designed. If the lever isn't balanced, or the throw is too short, it can contribute to you missing shifts, which can damage synchros eventually. I've had the B&M short shifter installed for over a year without any problems at all. It still has more to do with how well you shift (match engine speed to gear speed) than anything else, but a well designed short shifter won't make it any harder for you to shift well.

agreed....I too have the B&M in my car....for the last 6 months....its great....and NO problems at all.

Whoa....you haven't even been here for 6 months Nuke. I remember you asking about the shifter too.;)

Oops, did he say months? He meant weeks... :laugh:

i have a B&M short shifter for about 2 months and no problems here either

okay, I stand corrected....its been 4 months and one day....I installed the shifter on feb 22nd. none the less....its been trouble free, and I tend to DRIVE my car...not just ride in it. :{D

its not the Short Shifters that kill trannys... Its the people that kill trannys. :D

We've finished our short shifter for the Mazda and have it avalable. We also produce shifter bushings that will work with any shifter setup.
thanks


Tom@kartboy.com
www.kartboy.com

No more exagerating Nuke!!!!;)

hey give me a break....my memory isn't what it use to be...I am an OLD guy....lol and I am inflicted with CRS.

Some short shifters can contribute to syncro loss but this is mainly found in the Mustang and Camaro's short shifter kits that I know of. I haven't heard of many FWD cars with syncro problems from short shifters if properly designed.

I've had the Kartboy short shifter for about 2 weeks now.

I'm a "wrist-fingertip" shifter, not a "forearm-grip" shifter, so I found it takes considerable more effort to shift. I'm still getting used to it.

The quality of the product is very good. For my personal preference, I wish the distance between the pivot ball and the linkage is slightly shorter, perhaps by 0.25". But to me, the throw feels less awkward than a B&M, which I had to return. The throw was too short and I could feel myself pushing the synchro a lo~ng way in before the collar dogteeth connect with the gear.

I used to be relaxed when shifting to accelerate fast, but now I put a lot of stress on my forearm to shift. There is less distance to move, but more effort is required. It's your choice.

Wishful Thinking: I wish someone would make a tranny upgrade using small mass, hi-strength layshafts and gears so shifting with a short shifter would be butter smooth, short and relaxed, or with a wider diameter synchro kit (same as upgrading brakes).

The note about shortshifters damaging synchros is ridiculous. As Tom at Kartboy says, if you shift wrong or too hard, that will kill your synchro, not the shortshifter.