Unfortunately I wanted to remove mine as well, but could not. I was just trying to replace the shift boot with a newer one with proper clips. I spent 10 minutes using all the force in my hands, then went to pliers, then realized it was starting to damage it. So in the end I had to cut the old one a little bit with a knife and pull it up and over the knob, and do the same to get the new one over it. Then I curled up the top of the boot fabric about 1/4" and put a zip tie under it, tight against the shifter bushing
Kinda ghetto, but worked