Short-shifter made easy

[MichiganMat]

I've always hated the feel of the 915 shifter, always. I love the car, but I hate the transmission. It shifts like a tractor and its taken me months to figure out how to shift properly to avoid grinding the syncros. Argh. When I first got the car, the bushings were completely worn out and new bushings made a dramatic difference in the feel of the car. The play in the shifter was nearly gone and the shift action was much more precise. Me likey. That was 5 months ago and I've slowly grown frustrated with the feel of the shifter again. I've considered shelling out for a factory short-shift or a Weltmeister kit, and I've heard nothing but good things about the Wevo setup, but Im a cheap-skate and I only spend money when I have to. 500 for the Wevo? Ha!

Its that attitude of brute frugality that led me to take a hack-saw to my shifter arm this weekend and I couldn't be happier with the results. I cut the arm at the notch point about 3 inches in, the place where I assume some kind of insert thingy attaches to hold the shift nob in place??? My nob is old and cracked so I don't have the insert thingy. Anyway, I took off about 3 inches from the arm with the saw and reattached the nob. The resulting shift action is _much_ more precise, so much so that the car feels completely different. It was hands-down the best 10 minutes of work I've ever on my car. No more mis-shifts, no more syncro grinds, no more shifter that looks like it belongs on a big-rig or on some Rat-Fink 1950's roadster with a skull for a shift nob.



I've also hated the spring action in the shifter when shifting into 5th or reverse. Call me strange, but I don't think I should have to fight with the car to change gears, period. Im always afraid that I won't battle bravely enough when going into 5 and my timidity will send me down into 1st, and I don't like thoughts like those. To compliment my newly chopped shifter I popped the top off the housing, removed the springs, and cut an inch off of each one. There is still tension the shift action, but its not nearly as strong, or annoying, as it was before.

I've heard some arguments that the short-shift kits can cause heavy wear on the tranny and I can believe that. Do some research, some have had some ugly results. By removing a few inches from the shift arm though I think the shift action has ergonomically improved so much that I feel like Im treating the tranny better than before. I could never be precise in the shifts because the arm was too long. Also, the arm length gave way too much leverage on the shifts which made it far too easy to overpower the tranny. The reduced throw and tighter action has made a real difference in the performance of the tranny.

So, lets total up the costs of this expensive, complicated, and exclusive procedure.
- 1 Porsche stock 915 shifter
- 1 hack saw
- 1 monkey wrench
- 1 tin-snip / clipper-thingy (for the springs)
- 1 rag to wipe up.
- 15 minutes (time is money,right?)

Total Cost: Monster Garage style: "freebie, zip, zero, nodda". Me likey
Payoff: My baby doesn't drive like a Peterbuilt and I don't hate the 915 so much. In a word, "priceless".

(this is a Peterbuilt)

[jchatfield]

Did you cut the top or the bottom of the shifter arm?

Sounds like a great project to me - anybody see anyrisks or reasons NOT to do this?

[MichiganMat]

I cut from the top of the arm, about 3 inches worth. Basically, take off you shift nob and look for a deep groove in the shift arm about 3 inches down and thats where I cut.

[masraum]

But, do I understand correctly that you no longer have a shift knob, or did you mean that you wrap tape around the shift rod to hold the knob on?

[Elombard]

Wow I will look very closely at this!!

[MichiganMat]

Steve-

My shift nob is old and cracked and no longer stays on the shift arm by itself. So, I wrapped just a small amount of masking tape around the arm before putting the nob on. The tape is gummy and takes up the space between the nob and arm enough that the nob doesn't twist or feel like its going to come off in my hand. I used the tape method for awhile but Ive since started using a business card wrapped around the arm. Its cleaner Im not so cheap as to use a giant ball of tape as a shift nob...not yet atleast.

[raceman]

well,what you`ve done is create a "shorter shifter",not a short shift mod.The problem with this(and l took an inch off my fully factory short /Seine gate shift modded assy) is that you`ve placed the shift knob where you don`t want it- farther from the steering wheel.You may have better"feel" but you also have increased effort due to the decreased mechanical advantage of the shorter shifter arm.l don`t know how often you track your car but the spring mod you performed is very risky,did you consider the reason for the springs?.The science of optimizing the 915 tranny`s shifting mechanics has been fully covered and the products that really work well cost $$$.There`s a reason free mods are free...usually they`re worth ...Zero,zip,nada...

[MichiganMat]

I respectfully disagree:

- By shortening the shifter it is far more ergonomical for my arm length than before. Im 6'1" and my arms are plenty long to reach it. The arm is now only one foot tall rather than one and some change! The reduced throw in the shift-action is worth reaching down a few extra inches.

- I consider the springs a huge risk to the activity of my driving. I haven't liked them from the time I bought the car, they've only caused fear of misshifts into 3 for me. Besides, I didn't remove them, I only cut an inch out of them. There is still tension in the shift action, its just not as powerful.

- Good, bad, not worth much to you? _My_ car feels a million times better and I encourage others to try it for themselves.

m.

[Milu]

Shortening the stick was a standard modification on tuned Fiat 500s 30 years ago (rear engined, aircooled and no syncromesh, slow but hilarious fun ) Typically we used to remove about six inches so all that was left was a little stub between the seats. Some accessory shops offered a fancy knob fitted to a drilled alluminium tube for those that removed a little too much. Feel and precision improved dramatically as did the time to shift up and down.

Now add a Momo gear knob (I'd suggest round, leather and oversize) to add a bit more feel and improve the looks.

[raceman]

hey Mat,l`m glad it`s working for you,l`ve done the same mod on other cars where a kit wasn`t available and something had to be done with the "bus shifter".l respect your initiative and Mcgyverness about the whole process,l do the same thing with my cars all the time.ln fact l made my first real short shift kit patterened after the Weltmeister.A 3/4 inch spacer placed below the forward shifter rod hanger and a corresponding extension on the "cut" shifter arm (placed between the fulcrum hole and end ball )gets you about 20% shorter throw.lt`s a FREEBE with simple hand tools...and a welder.

[911ctS]

I hear ya Mat. I recently took an inch off the top of mine, installed the Weltmeister SS kit, and moved the whole shifter assembly back 2 inches. It is a hell of a lot better now. I hated the Peterbuilt style shifter action. I was suffering form JSJ (Japanese shifter jelousy) before I did the modification.

[arerrac]

I have the FACTORY short shifter in my '88. All the FACTORY did was cut off some at the top. Nothing else.
-W

[cowtown]

Interesting. I'm running an OEM short shift kit on my '75 915 and am fairly happy with it. I don't think I'd want my reach to be any longer (6'2" here) but maybe with your race seats, things are set up differently.

I'd also be careful about eliminating the spring action, though. In the heat of battle (say at a DE) you might shift into reverse instead of fourth.

[Elombard]

Hey CTS what is involved in moving the assembly back?

[911pcars]

"I have the FACTORY short shifter in my '88. All the FACTORY did was cut off some at the top. Nothing else."

arerrac,
'88 uses the G50 gearbox so I can't speak for your comparison with a 915 shifter which was used from '73-'86.

The factory short shifter option in '85-'86 lengthens the shift lever (type B below) under the pivot point to reduce the throw distance.

The 901 shift housing in 911cts' '70 911 is different than a 915 shift housing. It doesn't have a specific gate for reverse like the 915 and may have enough range to accommodate moving the entire shifter toward the rear 2 inches w/o further mods. Not so easy on a 915 w/o shortening the shift tube (in the tunnel) an equivalent amount. Because of the the lockout pawl, the shift lever needs to be in a certain position for reverse (more specifically, the 915 shift lever should be vertical in neutral wherever the shift housing is located/relocated).


A = stock 915 lever
B = Factory short shift lever
C = Weltmeister short shift lever

As raceman suggested, by shortening the top of the stock lever (type A), you have essentially created a pseudo short-shifter by reducing the throw distance between gears. That's all and well if the increased shifting effort and the reach to the knob is acceptable. Sounds like it is. There's more than one way to skin a cat.

Sherwood

[MichiganMat]

Thanks for the excellent writeup Sherwood.

[911ctS]

Originally posted by Elombard
Hey CTS what is involved in moving the assembly back?

Its kind of a mission to do...

First you've got to remove the shifter assembly, then drill all 3 holes 2" back and elongate the slot another 2". After that you have got to remove the shift linkage tube inside the tunnel and cut 2" out of it and re-weld. In order to do this you have to remove the eng./trans. and thats not really practical for just this job alone. but its not that difficult if your gonna have them out anyway and its soooooo much better shifting into 4th (for my 911 box).
Here is a pic of the car in neutral w/ ebrake up. Comes close ehh.

Here is one with the car in 4th.


Also to add: Sherwood was right I have the 911 box not the 915 so some of this may or may not be applicable to the 915.

[Oh Haha]

COOL!!
I did something similiar over the winter to mine. It's a combination of short shift kit and my own handle. I love it! it suits me perfectly. i am 5'7" so I was constantly reaching for my shifter.
I patterned mine after the B&M Ripper I had in my Z28. I even found a generic shift knob inthe clearance bin at Meijer with the shift pattern embossed.
I know, I know, my steering wheel isn't a MOMO but it was free from a ricer customer who tired of it.
See ya,
Wayne [img] In process http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploads2/shifter mod prototype 11084839724.jpg[/img] Done.

[Oh Haha]

Sorry. Here is the first mock up.