Pelican Parts Forums - small project - improving shifting on a 915 transmission

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- - small project - improving shifting on a 915 transmission (http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/1069152-small-project-improving-shifting-915-transmission.html)

Quote:

Originally Posted by freeform911 (Post 10988134)

Pjm..
The wires for my 86 were kinda melted into the floor when I removed the console...
There should be enough slacking the wires for you to remove yours...

As another poster said. You can disconnect everything from the back..but it's a pain in the butt...

Good luck

Thanks a lot, Freeform! I'll try to see if I can get that slack - should be back at the car this weekend. Thank you!

Quote:

Originally Posted by archstanton (Post 10988255)

There also are connectors within at least some of those harness bundles leading to the console. So you could try disconnecting them.

Thanks, Archstanton!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Funracer (Post 10988291)

I was never able to get mine up over the shifter either for the same reason, because of short wires behind the console.

I ended up getting it up off the floor vertically high enough to prop it up there with a block of wood and bungee cords so it was tilted over towards the drivers seat. then unbolted the shifter from the floor and slid it out underneath the console.

Not as pretty as getting the console over the top of the shifter but it worked.

Ah, ok - good idea. I was able to lift the console up some, too. I hadn't thought about trying to get the shifter out from underneath it as it's pretty tight (as it sounds like you know! :) ). But that's a good idea. Thanks a lot, funracer!

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnTucker (Post 10989487)

If I missed this in the thread, apologies...but first and foremost...do a proper clutch-cable adjustment. Make sure it's properly adjusted per spec. I have:
-rebuilt my pedal box with bronze bushings
-installed a new clutch cable
-installed bronze bushings into my stock shift-linkage.
-installed a short-shifter with all new bushings

All that was good...but for me and my car, simply !!!! adjusting the clutch cable !!!! properly (mine was not) was 95% of the difference/improvement for me. It's crazy simple to do and will take you, maybe, a half hour + some fiddling. Just make sure you add that to the list of to-do's. You'll thank yourself a million times. For me it was like a got a new car. 915's are GREAT when adjusted properly.

Great idea, John - thank you! I'll definitely do a clutch cable adjustment. Yeah, you're right how sometimes the simplest things can make the biggest difference. I'll try that out this weekend. Thanks for the good advice!

John Tucker mentioned "new" clutch cable. If yours is original a new one will make a difference, correctly adjusted, of course.

When I bought my 85 911 11 years ago I was sure the 915 needed a rebuild!! It felt horrible! Until I learned to drive it. The only thing I replaced was the coupler . Then I learned to pause between shifts and sometimes double clutch going to first. A 915 will never shift like a Honda Civic SI or a Mustang GT. But it can shift very nice if you take your time. True story. Surprised no one has pointed this out.

Working on this project now. Remove all screws from the console and the passenger side foot rest (1 screw) then lift the Leather shifter boot and rubber donut up onto the shifter rod, pull and place the console on the passenger side floor board. Not the easiest job but be patient.

I also replace the motor and transmission mount first which made a huge difference. Bushings and coupler due to arrive today. Good luck.

Quote:

Originally Posted by KNS (Post 10989820)

John Tucker mentioned "new" clutch cable. If yours is original a new one will make a difference, correctly adjusted, of course.

Thanks, KNS - I'll take a look!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nick Triesch (Post 10990123)

Really good point, Nick. This is my first 911 and so I bet there is a large element of me learning the 915 and how to shift it properly. Thanks for pointing this out!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ken Mikos (Post 10990178)

Thanks, Ken. Using all of you guys ideas, we were able to get the console off this evening so that's great news. Thanks, everyone! I'll post some pictures shortly.

shifter upgrade progress

Thanks to all of you for your good advice! Using a combination of methods mentioned, we were able to get the console off of the shifter this evening which we were very happy about. Here's a pic:
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1597803205.jpg

We then removed the shifter. We struggled a little getting it out from under the carpet but it all worked out ok. So now the shifter is out.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1597803388.jpg

We took out the old ball cup shifter bushing and the shifter rod bushing. Here they are compared to the new parts that will be going on. They don't look all that bad, I think. It seems the shift coupler that we replaced this past weekend was in worse shape. Oh - the shifter rod bushing looks bad in this picture but that's more because we damaged it while trying to get it off of the bracket it was installed in.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1597803525.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1597803553.jpg

Hopefully this weekend we will get to install the new bushings. I'm also really excited to install the Karsten spring.

Thanks for all of the good ideas - I'll post you guys once more progress is made. Thanks!

Completed my project.
1. New Motor and Transmission mounts
2. New Shifter and Rod bushings
3. New Stomski Coupler

RESULT.... It shifts like a NEW CAR. I am very happy with the results. Thanks Pelican for this forum and prompt shipping of components

Quote:

Originally Posted by pjm1 (Post 10991108)

The ball cup bushing and the shifter rod bushing can be a PITA to install; I heat up some water in a coffee cup (not boiling; about a minute in my microwave is about right - YMMV) and drop the new bushings in and let them warm up. Makes them just a little bit more pliable and much easier to install.

Dale

Thanks, Dale! That's a good idea - because, yeah, you're right - those bushings do not want to go in easy! :)

shifter project update

Hi guys,
We finished up our shifter improvement project thanks to all of your help! We installed the new ball cup bushing and the shifter rod bushing. As Dale mentioned, those guys weren't easy to get on but eventually we succeeded. We also installed the Karsten spring to bring the shifter back to the 3rd/4th gear position when in neutral. Took the car out for a spin and I like it a lot. I'd say the thing that I like the most is the Karsten spring - it just feels better and tighter without the shifter freely swinging between 1/2 and 3/4 position when in neutral. Also helps me better feel where I am when shifting.

Thanks a lot, everyone for all of your help! This is a nice improvement to our 911 and we couldn't have done it without you guys.

I just installed the spring, and attempting to put back the shifter.
However, I forgot if the back of the shift rod collar slides above (against the shifter base) or below the tunnel?:(

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexandervdr (Post 11007905)

I just installed the spring, and attempting to put back the shifter.
However, I forgot if the back of the shift rod collar slides above (against the shifter base) or below the tunnel?:(

Hi Alexander,
I'm no expert at all so I defer to everyone else but, if I remember correctly, I think the back of the bracket holding the shifter rod bushing went above the tunnel and directly into the shifter. If that's not right, others please feel free to chime in.
Thanks!