Thinking of doing this mod to my car, and reading so many threads on it, people seem to love the bushur and speedsource ones.

however I don't want to go that route as I also have read many saying they need lubricating often enough else they bind. So with that in mind I was looking into the Works poly shifter bushings and also the Kartboy ones...

I prefer the works for the center ring a la stock, compared to the open poly center of the kartboy, but also read that it is a popular one.

But has anyone long term wise suffered problems with using either poly bushing?

Would love to buy the works but stupid international customer card dramas are big limiting factors...

 

LOL
very soon I will be installing the Works under hood and shifter base and will report back on the feel or better yet, when next in Trinidad, make a swing by and drive it for yourself

 

I installed works poly shifter base and under hood bushings and I completely loved them. Installed them about two years ago no issues thus far, they still look to be in great shape. They made a very nice difference in how the shifter and shifting feel. Definatly a worthwhile upgrade.

 

Ok I went with the Works setup:

Had to order another small bushing as the Evo 7 carries two of the same size, as opposed to the large/ small bushings for the evo 8.

Initially I did install the shifter console bushings, which admittedly were a pain to line them up in the manner Works set it in the manual however it was done... But no change in shifter feel.

Finally got the small bushing and proceeded to install them... it wasn't too difficult to remove them but getting them to stay on while trying to secure the washer and clip was a bit difficult.

But for all the effort, I must say that though it still gives me a grind now and again, the shifting is MUCH improved... considering the car is doing 88000 miles and is 9 years old. One of the bushings actually was beginning to tear so it didn't come at a moment too soon...

Now the next thing to probably do it buy the front roll stopper and see how much more improvement I can get.

 

I went with the WORKS shifter bushings for exactly that reason. The bronze/ aluminum ones should be lubricated. The poly ones do not. The Works are just a rebadged KArtboy, its just a question of- do you prefer green or blue? haha. I have had them on for a year, no issues and never needed to lube up.
I also did the WORKS shifter base bushings afterwards. Thats when I really noticed the difference in shifter feel. Although the shifter base bushings are just a bit stiffer than oem, it was noticeable.

 

One thing I did was to check the cable bracket bolts on the big shifter cable on top of the trans. Its the one that has two bolts and a ground wire on one. Make sure those bolts are nice and snug- be really careful not to over tighten as mitsu bolts like to snap easily. I relocated my battery to the trunk and was able to clean up the wiring up front. Something I noticed was that there was alot of wiring loomed really close to the shifter cables. I cleaned all that out of the way so there wouldnt be a chance of rubbing during hard shifts when the engine is vibrating at speed. Just small things I did that seemed to help a bit as well.

 

Yeah I noticed that as well... But I also realised that the washers that were on the cables had too large an opening on the inner diameter... and I figured there was enough play there to cause something.

Did like you and did some cleaning of the wiring there. So far, so good. But I like my battery in front

 

Been running Works bushings since 1500 miles on the odometer. I'm at 18K miles (3 years if that matters) now with now problems. I prefer blue Thanks for starting this thread as it reminded me to check the bushings today.

 

I wouldn't bother with anything except brass bushings for the entire shifting assembly. I installed a complete set (inside and out) back in 2004, and haven't experienced anything since except rifle bolt like precision. The only downside to a metal bushing (anywhere on the car) in theory is potential vibration issues in engine and tranny mounts, etc., but such is not the case with the EVO shifter and cable bushings.

FYI

 

Perhaps, but there are those who have said they had issues with regards to the shifter binding... and I didn't want to consider it bind and damage the cables with time... or at least that was my thought on it.

Gonna get a roll stopper next and that should be it for the shifting stuff... maybe agency power or torque solutions...

 

I got some extra kartboys if anyone wants them to

 

I used both the kartboy and the speedsource bushings and if you ask me I pick speedsource bronze bushings any time they have a better feel if your running alot of power.

 

did you have to lubricate them often?

 

I used anti seize on them at first and hav'nt lubricated them since they have been on for about 5k miles and still shift like new.