Thread: Making a short shifter out of the stock one?

Put it the shifter on a vice clamping the ball not the metal. Heat up the ball with a torch or a heatgun. Give it a few good wacks, then let the ball cool down. I threw on some epoxy and made sure the ball stayed put (this wasn't nessicary but i did it anyway). Cut the rod to the desired height with a hack saw. Replaced the shifter bushing(might as well since ur already there). put it all back together. Put an after market knob on (since you won't have anymore threads most aftermarket knobs something to attach it to the shifter i.e. bushings w/small screw, or just a set of different threads)

i also cut the stock shiftboot because it was WAAAY too long after the install.

All in all I'm pleased with the outcome. If there werte something I'd do differently it's leaving a few inches on the height of the shifter. As it sits it's a bit notchy but still good.

I might eventually upgrade to something a bit more sturdy and less flexible than the stock shifter but for now it'll be fine.

I did it on my car. Basically put it in a vice, no heat is necessary you just need to whack the **** out of it. Screw on two nuts and back them into each other to give you a nice spot to aim for. I like mine short so I had to remove the heatshield there was some rubbing.

This needs a write up. All the years I have owned this car this is the first time Ive heard this.

Ok, my next question is...how far should I move the ball? Obviously I don't want to move it too much or too little...I won't know how it feels until I install it back into the car.

Removing the shifter was a lot of work...I don't want to do it again because I didn't move the pivot ball the right amount.

I want the shifts to be pretty short. Move the ball 1/2 inch? 1 inch?

This is not 100% true.You do need to move the fulcrum point(ball)to truly shorten the throw.
What you have done by hacking the shifter off is shorten the distance the top of the shifter(and your hand) goes.The part below the ball is still travelling the same distance.

I have done the stock short shifter.IT works great.You do need to do the vice/BFH trick to move the ball .
You also need to take the heatshield off and beat on it to reshape it for clearance since the shifter will be sticking down further.
Heres a pic from my build that shows how to reshape the heatshield.I was installing a pacesetter shifter though.

How far up the stock shifter did you move the pivot ball?

What were your shifts like afterwards?

Now that's a nice reshape job!!

heres one from the darkside
How To: Short shifter from OEM - SR20 Forum

Move it as far as possible for the shortest throw...I have since gone to a pacesetter adjustable throw,at its shortest....see my sig link to my build.

My car shifts better than new now,and I love it

Great. That link is basically what I was looking for.