B&M Shifter Review.

[assassin7420]

I have seen a couple of posts questioning the B&M shifter for the KA/SR. I could never see why anyone wouldnt like such a great product. Wile the cost is a little on the high side its WELL worth it. Wile its been in my car for a while now I dont have any install walk threw. However the install is pretty straight forward, And every kit comes with a set of directions.

Ill start with looks, The knob that comes with the kit doesnt look too bad. Its not my favorite but it gets the job done. It is a metal shift knob so as you know it gets cold in the winter and hot in the summer. When I say hot I mean it. With my car sitting in the sun and not having any tint on the driver or pass windows the sun beams down on the knob all day. Its to the point where unless you have something to put over it you cant drive until it cools off. However the knob is interchangeable so if you dont want to deal with that you can just change to a leather or plastic knob. I just keep a set of TEIN gloves in the car. Works for driving and bolt breaking.

As for the shifter it self, Its 100% improvement over stock. Its just what it says, SHORT shifter. I would say from N its 1 to 2 inches to get into gear. All the slop is removed also. Once in gear I get ZERO movement. There is no slop in any gear. I took pictures of going from both sides of N and in each gear.

In, N pulling to driver.

In N pulling to pass

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

Reverse

As you can see it takes out a lot of movement in between gear changes. Its also easier to find gears, Or at least thats how I feel. 5th and reverse can be a little tough to get into but its not bad. Plus from my experience our transmissions just dont like reverse period.

Another concern I hear about is the nose. Wile my car does have some rattles that need to be fixed, None are from the shifter. I guess this would fall back onto the condition of your transmission before you install the shifter. My SR transmission has roughly 86,000 miles. So far its been tip top. I took a video of me running threw some gears to show it in action/the noise issue.

The rattle you will hear is part from the hood prop in the back of the car, The other is the camera and some tools in the back seat. The thud going into reverse is my diff. As for the shuttering when first moving, Its a stage 4 unsprung clutch with a 10lb flywheel. Its not very kind to daily driving.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GHd85w884Q

Good points.One piece design, VS other 2 piece short shifters. MUCH shorter throw.More accurate shifting, Has a helper spring built in to remove the 2nd to 5th problem with stock shifters.Removal of all slop, Zero play in all gears.High quality build.Looks good.

Drawbacks.Metal shift knob is cold during the winter, And is VERY hot in the summer.Reverse and 5th can be a little tough to get into.Depending on condition of transmission might cause a little noise.High price.

Overall im VERY pleased with the product, Even with the high price tag its well worth it. I would recommend it to anyone searching for a new shifter.

[asher4857]

anumeric has one and I must say Im very impressed with it. I was suprised just how short the throws really are... if i had 200 to drop on something and I didnt already need so much other ****, Id get one.

[the a3k]

i was actually gonna start a thread asking if it was a good buy since i have heard both sides but from all the stuff i have read, ill probably buy it

[brandonlgilbert]

I've had mine for about a year now and it was money well spent. Weighted shift knobs feel better than lightweight knobs with the B&M IMO.

[Philipio]

One of the best purchases I've made for my car. Highly recommended.

My shifter didn't even come with the knob, I was confused haha. I think the thing feels absolutely amazing with my lightweight knob. I can't wait to buy a weighted one.

[brandonlgilbert]

My B&M didn't come with a knob either.

That just gave me another reason to get the GReddy counterweighted knob.

[assassin7420]

I guess I kinda lucked out with mine then

[Scuffed_ChukiCoupe]

who else makes short shifters for ka's? I dont see alot of competition in that department... idk about the weighted knob, i like unweighted better, so i guess its up to the driver as far as that goes.

[assassin7420]

Theres a couple of them, Megan, Circuit Sports, Nismo, Fidanza... B&M is just the best you can buy hands down.

I've had mine for about a year now and it was money well spent. Weighted shift knobs feel better than lightweight knobs with the B&M IMO.

Yeah, Everyone tells me this. I think once i get some money and start working on my interior, Ill be getting the ARC ball. Heh, I want to fix my interior now as you can see it needs the work, But I have bigger issues with the front end.

[brandonlgilbert]

Dude my interior looks like a family of pissed off badgers were loosed in there. My project has a long way to go.

[Scuffed_ChukiCoupe]

Dude my interior looks like a family of pissed off badgers were loosed in there. My project has a long way to go.

u mean like that toyota corolla commerical where the kid was locked in the car with ferocious sleeping badgers.... that woke up lol

[brandonlgilbert]

LOL. Exactly! That commercial is ownage.

[motoman399]

im making my own with a little cutting, welding, and some 3/8 plastic sheet. when i finish ill post it up

[mchkc240]

B&M is the best compare to other short throw shifter. Yea they are REALLY expensive but it's worth it. My B&M didnt come with knob either. Oh well I am glad that I got myself a knob before that.

[94_240sx]

I'm extremely picky person, but I'm really happy with B&M. Feel is great, I don't think it can't get better than that. Only complain is their customer service sucks. Most people over there are bishez and a-holes. There's only one good person over there. His name is DREW. If you need to call them for any reason, ask for him.

[moulton712]

if you like to launch your car occasionally you'll love a short throw. the only reason why not to get on is if you baby you car.

[assassin7420]

You can still baby your car with a short throw. I get 28mpg city out of my car, Provided I can stay out of boost.

[sideslider]

the b&m shifter is really good but i have the megan racing shifter and its just as good, i know this because my buddy has one and we compared and we both agree that they felt exactly the same. so if you want the feel of the b&m shifter but want to save some money i suggest u buy the megan racing shifter its almost 100 bucks cheaper and just as good as the b&m.

[Ekinchheng]

the b&m shifter is really good but i have the megan racing shifter and its just as good, i know this because my buddy has one and we compared and we both agree that they felt exactly the same. so if you want the feel of the b&m shifter but want to save some money i suggest u buy the megan racing shifter its almost 100 bucks cheaper and just as good as the b&m.

Some short shifters feels the same but what you gotta watch out for is how LONG will it last. I'm not trying to say megan is bad or anything, I'm saying this towards other brands in general. I bought me a mookeeh short shifter a while back, now my friend got it. I also research the product and alot of supra owners reconmmended it. The quality was nice and throws was very short and crisp, but long after I kept on using it maybe 4-6 months later the throw was starting to be sloppy and not feeling crisp no more. When you thought you put it in 1st gear it was in 3rd and I stall almost everything time. I'm just saying this in my personal perference. I have not tried B&M but I will be purchasing it later on in a couple more weeks.

[sideslider]

thats true but u just got to do research on what your goin to buy, ive had mines for about a year and it still feels like when i first bought it.

[thefro526]

I have one question about the B&M Shifter, does it make it easier to get into third from a hard launch? My 1st to 2nd is great and my 3rd to 4th and 4th to 5th are fine but I always seem to miss 3rd from 2nd and it's so annoying. And by get into 3rd I mean like slamming it into 3rd.

[assassin7420]

I have one question about the B&M Shifter, does it make it easier to get into third from a hard launch? My 1st to 2nd is great and my 3rd to 4th and 4th to 5th are fine but I always seem to miss 3rd from 2nd and it's so annoying. And by get into 3rd I mean like slamming it into 3rd.

I would say yes, With the B&M shifter you know where every gear is, 2nd to 3rd is very easy to find.

[slingshot532]

hay assassin,

thanks for bringing this up, I am going to be building a KA for my 510 and I heard b&m was the best. is there a copy that would be similar but cheaper?

[assassin7420]

Design wise the B&M is unique. Even if it took 1 or 2 extra paychecks I would wait until you could afford a B&M. Its well worth it.

[Scuffed_ChukiCoupe]

I have one question about the B&M Shifter, does it make it easier to get into third from a hard launch? My 1st to 2nd is great and my 3rd to 4th and 4th to 5th are fine but I always seem to miss 3rd from 2nd and it's so annoying. And by get into 3rd I mean like slamming it into 3rd.

practice when your car is off, just goin through the gears. I do it all the time when im bored. I rarely miss third when i slammin gears. I love it when im bookin and i just hit third so easy and i c ppl strugglin lol.

[cdhtang]

so, how does the B&M compare to the C's. I saw a discussion on another forum about b&m and C's, but just want to see more discussions about them.

[SketchyRollin564]

maybe theirs somthing wrong with you guys' OEM shifters? I have no problem ever missing third, no matter if im shifting fast or slow, but when i shift fast i still shift smooth (i dont slam it to mess up the linkage, but still fast shift)

The only problem i have is somtimes when it stopped, it wont go into reverse, and i have to go into third and 4th a couple times and try going into R again

[motoman399]

there is nothing wrong with my transmission and i hit 5th instead of 3rd sometimes. i know what the problem is you just dont shift fast enough lol

[tramp_drift240]

sweet review, im getting one of these with a 1992 coupe im picking up with a blown motor. would you happen to know if a stock knob will fit on the threads? and would you happen to know how hard it would be to shorten the shifter? (im guessing it involves hacking and tapping new threads).

i drove with it in my friends car a while back before he blew the motor, and it was nice. but its a little tall for my tastes.

and those "quicker" shifts seem pretty pansy-ish to me.

[assassin7420]

Yeah, I don't really have a place to open it up. Speed limits are 45 and i was already doing 80.

If you want to shorten it up more you are going to have to cut and re-thread, But the stock shift knob should have no problem fitting.