GRP Short Shifter Install Notes and My thoughts

[seriously]

@MAX FPS reasonable take. I've had the short shifter for such a long time now, that I almost forgot what the OEM felt like. I remember OEM felt positive, bolt action slotting into gear. But it was long. It was a positive clunk clunk into gear, clunk clunk into the next gear. Not totally negative, just quirky.

You make a good observation about the short shifter impacting only N-S and not W-E. Come to think of it I agree. I find the short shifter works better when you work with the natural motion. As in, you kind of exaggerate the W-E movement and it drives quite smoothly. 3-2 takes some intentionality to be smooth.

The shifter takes more effort to push into gear, but is quite short and positive. The OEM felt more truck like. Solidly built, but "clunk"y. The short shifter when driven in rage feels genuinely more race car when I'm slamming into gears. Try really pushing the car and shifting rapidly. You might like it in a different way.

 

[kitkat]

It's impossible for the short shifter to affect the crossgate (what you call W-E) cable actuation, they're two entirely different cables and this short shifter only fits to one cable. I wouldn't want the crossgate cable actuation to be altered -- this would mess with your reverse lockout plate and you'd shift into reverse instead of first.

 

[MAX FPS]

It's impossible for the short shifter to affect the crossgate (what you call W-E) cable actuation, they're two entirely different cables and this short shifter only fits to one cable. I wouldn't want the crossgate cable actuation to be altered -- this would mess with your reverse lockout plate and you'd shift into reverse instead of first.

That makes total sense, thanks. It's just something I hadn't thought of when installing this short shifter kit. On my son's WRX we had a Subaru OEM short shifter installed after purchase, and it was the entire shifter assembly. I was surprised the GRP was such a tiny mod in comparison, but it makes sense now what it's doing.

 

[MAX FPS]

@MAX FPS
The shifter takes more effort to push into gear, but is quite short and positive. The OEM felt more truck like. Solidly built, but "clunk"y. The short shifter when driven in rage feels genuinely more race car when I'm slamming into gears. Try really pushing the car and shifting rapidly. You might like it in a different way.

I agree with everything you said here about the OEM feeling "truck like" and clunky, as evidently the shifter is the same taken from a Toyota truck?

I don't think I've ever been able to "slam" into gears with the OEM shifter. One of the Emira owners on EveryDay Driver's YT channel's comments on this car was "you can't rush the shifter", and that has been good advice for me to drive it smoothly. The "slots" for the gears to notch into on 3-4 with the short shifter are now so tiny I think "driving in rage" is even less possible. But 3-4 are at least now always where you left them, which is an improvement! In now seems to take sniper-like accuracy to hit a 2-3 shift quickly and smoothly, but maybe with some more practice I'll get good at it. The clutch's bite point being so short also makes shifting fast so much harder.

 

[seriously]

you definitely can't rush the OEM shifter. The throw is too long and notchy so it's difficult to rev match quickly. It's a more deliberate shift. When driving fast I felt like throttle was on, then off to shift, then back on the throttle once in gear. With the short shifter I can really stay on throttle and get back on throttle pretty quickly. 3-4 is probably the easiest since it is straight down.