The birth of a short shifter ---- TWM Performance
Feb 4, 2011, 01:04 PM
#1
The birth of a short shifter ---- TWM Performance
------TWM Performance and the Evo X short shifter------
As many of you may now know, we released our Mitsubishi Evo X short shifter about 2 years ago. It’s a great product with a simple design that incorporates the TWM Performance touch that turns everything to gold! So I just wanted to make this thread to give you all a little background on how this awesome piece came to be, and why we designed it the way we did.
Like many of our designs, we started by doing research on the EvoX to see exactly what people wanted from their shifter and if there were any weak points to the construction of the OEM piece. What we found was quite surprising; the OEM shifter had some pretty big flaws, so we started to look at why!
Basically we noticed 3 major problems. The first was the location of the shifter. From the factory the Evo X comes with a shifter that is offset towards the passenger. This is both uncomfortable and annoying when trying to go through the gates on your daily drive; it becomes significantly more annoying when you try powering through the gears. The worse part is engaging the 5th gear which finds itself extremely far away from the driver.
The second problem we found with the OEM shifter was the poor build quality. By this, I’m referring to the machining finish of the final product, and the press-fitted pivot point. In essence the OEM Evo X shifter is made of two parts; a steel rod and a round pivot. The center pivot is where all of the stress accumulates when shifting aggressively which leads to a problem; press-fitted center pivots are known to run the risk of rotating or moving on the shaft with time. Obviously, this is something you don’t want.
As for the machining of the stock piece, it leaves a lot to be desired. The center pivot is machined to a very low standard with obvious machining lines and no final polishing or smoothing of the pivot. This has an effect on the feel of the shifter, and on the long-term durability of the metal. We’ll discuss this in more detail in part 2 of this article.
Finally, while the stock Evo X shifter is not the worse we’ve seen in terms of throw length for an OEM shifter, it is begging to be improved! Many people AutoX with their Evo and loosing time in between shifts, or completely missing gates because of its awkward positioning is never a good thing. Also with shifter extensions becoming more and more popular in the racing world, a short shifter is always welcome to bring those shifts back to a reasonable throw.
Even when we look at the aftermarket short shifters currently on the market that were designed before or after the TWM unit, we notice many major problems. The first issue is that some of the aftermarket shifters simply do not correct the poor positioning of the OEM shifter. This makes for a shifter that is even further out of reach than OEM due to the height being reduced and not brought closer to the driver. In some cases there are other issues like horrible packaging resulting in damaged parts, poor machining, and just an overall lack of quality.
With all of this information, off to work we went!
Part 1: OEM vs TWM
First of all, we addressed the issues with the stock shifter. The strange location and offset of the OEM unit was our first concern, so we fixed it by going with a double bend that would keep the shift knob up-right, while bringing the shifter to the center of the shift console. This served two purposes; the first was that it looked MUCH better centered in the console, and the second was the superior positioning of the shifter in relation to the driver. Now we had a shifter that looked better than the OEM one, and functioned far better!
After addressing the shifter location issues, we tackled the next problem; the press fitted center pivot point. Since TWM Performance has been in the industry of making short shifters for over 10 years, this is a problem that we had already encountered when developing other shifters. Therefore we went with one of our proven and strongest methods which was to TIG weld the unit into one piece. As with all TWM Performance products, our TIG welds are the strongest and best looking welds found in any shifter on the market today.
Now for one of the most important parts; the throw! The throw of the Evo X needed a bit of improvement so we provided a 30% throw reduction. How did we come to this number you ask? Well we didn’t pick it out of a hat as some of you may be thinking! This specific short shifter underwent heavy testing like every other TWM Performance product. We developed many prototypes and with the prototypes we also tried different throw reductions ranging from 25% to 40%. Right at 30% is where our test car drivers and customers felt it was perfect!
Finally, we included a few more details in the short shifter kit that we developed for the Evo X to make it go above and beyond the call of duty. With every short shifter kit, we include two new push clips to replace the ones that most people destroy when removing the OEM shifter, and an adjustable aluminum ring to hold up the shift boot. On top of that, we even offer tooling to make the installation easier. Included in every kit is a special tool designed by TWM to help you remove the pivot cups from the OEM shifter and an Allen key to adjust the boot retainer. To top it all off, every TWM Performance short shifter comes with a full detailed instruction manual with pictures! This means that when you install your TWM Performance short shifter, you won’t need to stumble for tools, invent tools, or follow some incomplete DIY guide on a forum!
Part 2: Comparing to the aftermarket...COMING SOON!!!
****PART 2 found on Page 2!!!****
TWM Performance Evo X Short Shifter:
Mitsubishi EvoX Short Shifter
As many of you may now know, we released our Mitsubishi Evo X short shifter about 2 years ago. It’s a great product with a simple design that incorporates the TWM Performance touch that turns everything to gold! So I just wanted to make this thread to give you all a little background on how this awesome piece came to be, and why we designed it the way we did.
Like many of our designs, we started by doing research on the EvoX to see exactly what people wanted from their shifter and if there were any weak points to the construction of the OEM piece. What we found was quite surprising; the OEM shifter had some pretty big flaws, so we started to look at why!
Basically we noticed 3 major problems. The first was the location of the shifter. From the factory the Evo X comes with a shifter that is offset towards the passenger. This is both uncomfortable and annoying when trying to go through the gates on your daily drive; it becomes significantly more annoying when you try powering through the gears. The worse part is engaging the 5th gear which finds itself extremely far away from the driver.
The second problem we found with the OEM shifter was the poor build quality. By this, I’m referring to the machining finish of the final product, and the press-fitted pivot point. In essence the OEM Evo X shifter is made of two parts; a steel rod and a round pivot. The center pivot is where all of the stress accumulates when shifting aggressively which leads to a problem; press-fitted center pivots are known to run the risk of rotating or moving on the shaft with time. Obviously, this is something you don’t want.
As for the machining of the stock piece, it leaves a lot to be desired. The center pivot is machined to a very low standard with obvious machining lines and no final polishing or smoothing of the pivot. This has an effect on the feel of the shifter, and on the long-term durability of the metal. We’ll discuss this in more detail in part 2 of this article.
Finally, while the stock Evo X shifter is not the worse we’ve seen in terms of throw length for an OEM shifter, it is begging to be improved! Many people AutoX with their Evo and loosing time in between shifts, or completely missing gates because of its awkward positioning is never a good thing. Also with shifter extensions becoming more and more popular in the racing world, a short shifter is always welcome to bring those shifts back to a reasonable throw.
Even when we look at the aftermarket short shifters currently on the market that were designed before or after the TWM unit, we notice many major problems. The first issue is that some of the aftermarket shifters simply do not correct the poor positioning of the OEM shifter. This makes for a shifter that is even further out of reach than OEM due to the height being reduced and not brought closer to the driver. In some cases there are other issues like horrible packaging resulting in damaged parts, poor machining, and just an overall lack of quality.
With all of this information, off to work we went!
Part 1: OEM vs TWM
First of all, we addressed the issues with the stock shifter. The strange location and offset of the OEM unit was our first concern, so we fixed it by going with a double bend that would keep the shift knob up-right, while bringing the shifter to the center of the shift console. This served two purposes; the first was that it looked MUCH better centered in the console, and the second was the superior positioning of the shifter in relation to the driver. Now we had a shifter that looked better than the OEM one, and functioned far better!
After addressing the shifter location issues, we tackled the next problem; the press fitted center pivot point. Since TWM Performance has been in the industry of making short shifters for over 10 years, this is a problem that we had already encountered when developing other shifters. Therefore we went with one of our proven and strongest methods which was to TIG weld the unit into one piece. As with all TWM Performance products, our TIG welds are the strongest and best looking welds found in any shifter on the market today.
Now for one of the most important parts; the throw! The throw of the Evo X needed a bit of improvement so we provided a 30% throw reduction. How did we come to this number you ask? Well we didn’t pick it out of a hat as some of you may be thinking! This specific short shifter underwent heavy testing like every other TWM Performance product. We developed many prototypes and with the prototypes we also tried different throw reductions ranging from 25% to 40%. Right at 30% is where our test car drivers and customers felt it was perfect!
Finally, we included a few more details in the short shifter kit that we developed for the Evo X to make it go above and beyond the call of duty. With every short shifter kit, we include two new push clips to replace the ones that most people destroy when removing the OEM shifter, and an adjustable aluminum ring to hold up the shift boot. On top of that, we even offer tooling to make the installation easier. Included in every kit is a special tool designed by TWM to help you remove the pivot cups from the OEM shifter and an Allen key to adjust the boot retainer. To top it all off, every TWM Performance short shifter comes with a full detailed instruction manual with pictures! This means that when you install your TWM Performance short shifter, you won’t need to stumble for tools, invent tools, or follow some incomplete DIY guide on a forum!
Part 2: Comparing to the aftermarket...COMING SOON!!!
****PART 2 found on Page 2!!!****
TWM Performance Evo X Short Shifter:
Mitsubishi EvoX Short Shifter
Last edited by TWM Performance; Mar 28, 2011 at 01:34 PM.
Feb 5, 2011, 10:08 AM
#5
I've read and heard mixed reviews on short shifters, notably how our transmissions don't seem to agree too well with them and how the chances of grinding a synchro are higher with them. Thoughts on this?
Feb 6, 2011, 03:01 PM
#7
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My tranny doesnt object to it. I makes shifting easier. This may not be due to it being shorter, but puts the shifter back in a neutral center position. Unlike the OEM puts an uncomfortable right pitch to the gear selection. it does make the shifting a bit shorter and smoother. if you dont have one, you'd have to drive one and see for your self. alot of people dont like them. I think ryan gates uses an OEM one.
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Feb 7, 2011, 06:26 AM
#8
Thanks,
Frank
Team TWM Performance
Feb 7, 2011, 07:44 AM
#9
^^^ Agreed. I've been doing a ton of research on short shifters, and there's dozens of posts that say they have no problems. Of which many are after several thousand miles.
For me it comes down to either TWM or Works. I considered t1R, but since they dont' respond to emails... they're out.
Frank, I noticed you have excellent install instructions for the shifter and base bushings on your website. Do you have as good of instructions for Cable Bushings?
Also, what's the pros/cons to aluminum vs Urethane bushings? Do you have a urethane option?
For me it comes down to either TWM or Works. I considered t1R, but since they dont' respond to emails... they're out.
Frank, I noticed you have excellent install instructions for the shifter and base bushings on your website. Do you have as good of instructions for Cable Bushings?
Also, what's the pros/cons to aluminum vs Urethane bushings? Do you have a urethane option?
Feb 7, 2011, 09:56 AM
#10
^^^ Agreed. I've been doing a ton of research on short shifters, and there's dozens of posts that say they have no problems. Of which many are after several thousand miles.
For me it comes down to either TWM or Works. I considered t1R, but since they dont' respond to emails... they're out.
Frank, I noticed you have excellent install instructions for the shifter and base bushings on your website. Do you have as good of instructions for Cable Bushings?
Also, what's the pros/cons to aluminum vs Urethane bushings? Do you have a urethane option?
For me it comes down to either TWM or Works. I considered t1R, but since they dont' respond to emails... they're out.
Frank, I noticed you have excellent install instructions for the shifter and base bushings on your website. Do you have as good of instructions for Cable Bushings?
Also, what's the pros/cons to aluminum vs Urethane bushings? Do you have a urethane option?
As for the bushings, we don't have any urethane options for the simple fact that the Bronzoil and aluminum we use works better. For the Base bushings, we chose aluminum, because once the shifter assembly is bolted to the floor, there is no movement. You don't get any excess vibration and all of the play is eliminated. Therefore, no need for urethane. As for the Cable and Transmission arm bushings, the Bronzoil metal alloy we use is self lubricating and once again, the metal is solid. So you eliminate the need to upkeep your urethane bushings, and since there is movement in these bushings, the Bronzoil performance better than aluminum sue to its lubricating properties.
Hope that helps!
I'll try to have Part 2 up for you guys by the end of the week!
Patrick
Team TWM Performance
Feb 8, 2011, 08:34 AM
#12
It's something that could be of interest for us, the more complicated part is that we are in Montreal, Canada and the Evo 9 were never sold here and the government only approved them for importation not even 2 years ago and they are still quite rare. So, finding a local test car to work on is not really easy for us unfortunately!
Frank
Team TWM Performance
Frank
Team TWM Performance
Feb 9, 2011, 08:36 AM
#13
It's something that could be of interest for us, the more complicated part is that we are in Montreal, Canada and the Evo 9 were never sold here and the government only approved them for importation not even 2 years ago and they are still quite rare. So, finding a local test car to work on is not really easy for us unfortunately!
Frank
Team TWM Performance
Frank
Team TWM Performance