ebay short shifter

[biglar]

I know its not the greatest quality and so on....BUT, Im trying to keep my budget beater - budget.  Its either this or spend $150-$200 on a known brand name short shifter.



http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BMW-92-98-E36-318IS-325IS-328IS-RACING-SHORT-SHIFTER-93_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33736QQihZ017QQitemZ270108801537



What do you think?  anyone have experience with this sucker?  thanks

[jajou318]

I wouldn't get it. Spend some more money and get this http://www.bmaparts.com/item.wws?cookieID=2250Z0LO92250Z1ORO&trackingID=&event=ResetAll&sku=SHORTSHIFTKIT&mfr=BMA&qty=1&storepk=500142&drillid=6&clientid=bmaparts&

It uses a z3 shifter or z4 I forget which.

[ecpreston]

As little as a short shifter accomplishes, and as much as it can potentially screw up the feel or leave you stranded with a broken link, I wouldn't even consider a cheapo one unless you know it to be a proven part. The BMA one OTOH seems like a good idea since it's factory parts and all the washers and such you'll need.

[D. Clay]

You can actually just swap the levers and reuse all the clips and washers. In a salvage yard you can remove the shift lever from inside the car. Use a screwdriver to rotate the plastic piece and the lever comes up enough to pop the retainer off the shift rod.

[AL GReeNeRy]

i purchased the z4 3.0 shift lever and a new nylon cup and that was it.  cost me about $70 shipped from pelicanparts all together.  best upgrade ive done to my car EVER! no mistakes, no broken pieces. its as reliable as the first day i installed it and is smoother now that it has broken in..

[jajou318]

Yeap it's a really simple install. (I even managed to fuck up the install a bit by 'accidentaly' installing the nylon cup by itself. shh....)

And 318's don't have to mess with bending the selector rod like the m20 guys.

[bullmand]

Search on eBay for a seller named Turboracerx. He sells a B&M copy that's awesome. I think it was $35 including shipping. It's been it the car for a few months now. Very smooth with a nice satisfying click when it engages.

[EducatedFool]

Search on eBay for a seller named Turboracerx. He sells a B&M copy that's awesome. I think it was $35 including shipping. It's been it the car for a few months now. Very smooth with a nice satisfying click when it engages.

GREAT INFO!! Thanks for your input.

[christophbmw]

my vote is with using a bmw shifter from a newer Z4 or Z3, like D. Clay said.
personally though, my opinion of getting a short shifter is for lack of shifting ability (on our cars at least), if your a decent shifter the stock unit is far superior to any other shifter because the engineers at BMW designed that lever for our transmision, and if it was better and more sportier to get a short shifter they would have put a shorter shifter in there at the factory. just my 2 cents.

save your money, just change all the bushings in the linkage.

[D. Clay]

I know its not the greatest quality and so on....BUT, Im trying to keep my budget beater - budget.  Its either this or spend $150-$200 on a known brand name short shifter.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BMW-92-98-E36-318IS-325IS-328IS-RACING-SHORT-SHIFTER-93_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ33736QQihZ017QQitemZ270108801537

What do you think?  anyone have experience with this sucker?  thanks

I bought this part some time backfrom ebay seller Option Racing. There are two rubber o-rings that fit in the grooves and a snap ring that holds it in the BMW housing. The overall diameter of the part that sticks through the bottom of the housing with the snap ring groove was just slightly too large to go through the housing. In addition there were no o-rings or snap ring included. On top of that, the seller took an attitude. They said I needed to have it installed by a professional, implying that the problem was me. I then asked for instructions. They sent an e-mail referring me to this website:
http://www.e46fanatics.com/howto/howtodetail.php?howto_id=4
The instructions there were for a shifter that installed with setscrews. They also responded on ebay with a snarky little message that started, "OMG! seller needs instructions!" I finally got a refund after agreeing to withdraw my negative feedback.

[EducatedFool]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BMW-Z3-Short-Shifter-325-328-M3-E36_W0QQitemZ250103012670QQihZ015QQcategoryZ33736QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

there you go, buy that and the bushings and you're set. if i had the money it'd be mine

[zav3n]

i bought this and it broke the 2nd day, when i was going from 2nd to 3rd it is crap go with a oem z3 shifter. it isnt as short but it feels much more  sturdy!!

[AL GReeNeRy]

my vote is with using a bmw shifter from a newer Z4 or Z3, like D. Clay said.
personally though, my opinion of getting a short shifter is for lack of shifting ability (on our cars at least), if your a decent shifter the stock unit is far superior to any other shifter because the engineers at BMW designed that lever for our transmision, and if it was better and more sportier to get a short shifter they would have put a shorter shifter in there at the factory. just my 2 cents.

save your money, just change all the bushings in the linkage.

true, BMW does have their engineering down. everything on a BMW is on point and fits perfectly. however, as our cars get older, technology gets better.  the reason we use the new z4 or z3 shifters IS because they are NEW.  they just came out and people just figured out they fit perfectly with our trannys, and it is an OEM part.  

remember this the next time you think about buying some cheap ebay part for our cars, you get what you pay for and youre driving a BMW for a reason... it aint no damn HONDA!

[Teaguer]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BMW-Z3-Short-Shifter-325-328-M3-E36_W0QQitemZ250103012670QQihZ015QQcategoryZ33736QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
there you go, buy that and the bushings and you're set. if i had the money it'd be mine

Haha , that is My buddy Franklin selling that lever .
He just dropped off a M50 Vanos head and some spacer this weekend and I thought about the lever but decided against as my two personal cars already have one .

I will vouch 100% for him and would tell anyone not to hesitate when buying from him .
Plus that is a good deal on that lever .