Not another "which shifter" thread...

[NIKwoaC]

OK, it kinda is.

Went to the track last night, got 4 runs in, and of those 4 runs, I missed a gear on 3 of them. In order: missed 3rd, did OK, missed 3rd, missed 2nd.

Now, I've been driving this car for almost 10 years, so I have a hard time believing that my driving just really sucks that bad. But maybe it does, who knows. All I know is that shifting it at full tilt seems to be the bane of my existence.

Anyway, the car currently has an old BBK shifter in it that I've had for years. The function on this thing is questionable, I've had to change the springs on it at least once to get it to center itself properly in neutral. Other than that, though, driving around town it does not give me any trouble.

SO, the question is, would it be worth it for me to look into getting something like a Pro5.0 or a MGW? Or is it more likely my driving just sucks, and a new shifter would be just pissing away money?

Thoughts? Be brutally honest here.

Yours truly,
Nik withouta C

 

[srtthis]

im very happy with my pro5.0... hopefully i time to finish machining my handle so i can REALLY beat on it again.

also something to look into is the knob you use... i had a steeda knob for awhile and while it didnt give me issues it left my hands black from the rubber grip on it. so i went back to the stock knob and i missed 2nd a few times from my hand coming off the shifter and 3rd a lot. went to a hurst pistol grip and never miss now. but ive broken the handle...

so before getting a new shifter WHY are you missing gears? hand coming off shifter? timing between hand and foot off? just not going in gear?

 

[90lxcoupe]

Are you powershifting? Hows the clutch adjustment? What shifter knob are you using?

Im running the pro5.0, tri ax handle and a stock shifter knob. Ive tried 3 different ones, and the stock shifter knob is the best by far. The bigger and bulkier the shifter knob, the more i would miss gears. I bought one that was the 5 speed pattern on a 03 cobra knob and that one was by far the worst.

 

[SteedaGT9150]

I have had a steeda in both my cars and love it. Ran the mach 1 knob in the fox and currently a termi knob in the sn95.

 

[4rdnut]

The 3.35:1 first gear ratio is one problem with the 5 speed transmission trying to power shift to second and of course having 5th gear next to third gear when power shifting you always hit a brick wall. Get a 4 speed manual transmission with a real shifter or get a c4 transmission and click, click with the accelerator pedal on the floor.

 

[NIKwoaC]

hand coming off shifter?

Nope.

timing between hand and foot off?

Missing 2nd is very rare for me, though it did happen once last night. NEVER have missed 3-4 (knock on wood). 99.9999% of the time it's the 2-3 shift. If my timing was off, I would think that id be randomly missing any gears.

just not going in gear?

Yes. Either grinding or just not going.

Are you powershifting?

No. Granny. Well, a fast granny.

Hows the clutch adjustment?

2ish inches off the carpet. About what it's supposed to be.

What shifter knob are you using?

A custom titanium one I made years ago. You can see it in this pic. I don't remember the dimensions, but it's not big.

The 3.35:1 first gear ratio is one problem with the 5 speed transmission trying to power shift to second and of course having 5th gear next to third gear when power shifting you always hit a brick wall. Get a 4 speed manual transmission with a real shifter or get a c4 transmission and click, click with the accelerator pedal on the floor.

Yeaaaaa... None of those are happening, haha.

 

[4rdnut]

So much for the experts. LOL.

 

[TwoToneHatch]

You would be happy with a steeda tri-ax mine works flawlessly , feels great with the stock handle , and throws itself infront of 3rd everytime .My dad had a Pro 5.0 shifter in his '04 GT and it has real short throws and felt good so it comes down to preference personally I like the Pro 5.0 alittle more than the Steeda.

 

[90lxcoupe]

2 inches off the carpet seems pretty low to me, you want it so the clutch has about an inch of free play up top, which should get the clutch releasing towards the top of the travel. That may be the problem

 

[NIKwoaC]

2 inches off the carpet seems pretty low to me, you want it so the clutch has about an inch of free play up top, which should get the clutch releasing towards the top of the travel. That may be the problem

Hmmm, so I may need a little more disengaged travel at the bottom? This would open my window to shift, correct?

 

[srtthis]

sounds like your hand is moving faster then your foot to me...

 

[VibrantRedGT]

I had a Steed Tri-Ax in my 94 but people have been raving about MGW being the best shifter out there right now. That's IF the shifter is really your problem, learn how to drive man (j/k).

 

[90lxcoupe]

Hmmm, so I may need a little more disengaged travel at the bottom? This would open my window to shift, correct?

In my opinion yes, you dont want to have to push the clutch all the way in to shift a gear, you should only be pushing the clutch in 30-50% when you are racing it. With my faceplated trans you push the clutch peddle just enough to release the clutch, then bang the gear. You are wasting a lot of time between gears if you put the clutch to the floor every shift.

and being smooth with the car on the street and hammering gears at the track are two very different things. You have to get yourself out of your comfort zone and not treat it like street driving to get a good timeslip.

 

[NIKwoaC]

sounds like your hand is moving faster then your foot to me...

Could very well be... Or vice-versa.

Learn how to drive man (j/k).

Haha, you don't need to "J/K". I've been driving this car for a long time, but I'm still a noob when it comes to racing it, and I'll be the first to admit that.

In my opinion yes, you dont want to have to push the clutch all the way in to shift a gear, you should only be pushing the clutch in 30-50% when you are racing it. With my faceplated trans you push the clutch peddle just enough to release the clutch, then bang the gear. You are wasting a lot of time between gears if you put the clutch to the floor every shift.

and being smooth with the car on the street and hammering gears at the track are two very different things. You have to get yourself out of your comfort zone and not treat it like street driving to get a good timeslip.

Hmm, I've always pushed the clutch to the carpet when I shift, so learning to do it any other way will take some serious muscle memory reprogramming. I'll have to play with the clutch engagement thing and see what it does for my shifting.

 

[90lxcoupe]

just start powershifting it

 

[srtthis]

just start powershifting it

wait... people lift when they shift?

 

[1991notchbackLX]

On the stock clutch and trans in my '91, I remember only having to put the pedal to the floor to get the car to roll into first from a complete stop. After that, I'd only have to push the clutch down maybe 1/3 of the way to shift. When banging gears, I'd really only tap the clutch slightly to get the gear to engage.

 

[Beasty306GT]

i love my pro 5.0 shifter

 

[Mr. Rustypwnz]

mgw, or tri-ax. or just let me drive it, ill give you $300 upfront for a newish t5. basically anything is better than a stock shifter, but the mgw is the best BY FAR.

I only saw your first and your last run last night.

 

[LarsD]

I love the MGW on my TKO. Well, when the TKO is in the car.