Anyone else have problems getting the inner metal part of the bushing off the shaft? Mine is stuck on the shaft of the bigger bushing.

 

Well mine showed up finally (well, it was only 10 days or so but still I wouldn't have expected more than 3 days given ~$20 fedex charge). My order still says "processing" on the website, no tracking number and no shipment email that was promised. No response to the email I sent when my order status had not changed after 8 days either.
As a company, I'm not too impressed.

The parts however look quite nice. Worth ~2-5x what other companies are charging, I'm not sure.

I had some spare time at work (read: didn't feel like working) and went to put my cable bushings on. The shift one was fine, the select one however the bushing would not come off the shift lever. The copper bush was totally seized onto the lever with zero hope for removal. Soaked it in the high octane rust breaker, no help. Vice gripped it, no help. Tried cutting the rubber off for a better grip, no help.

So I ended up removing the shift lever entirely so I could put the thing in a vice. I then used a grinder to cut a slot down the length of the post (cutting laterally so I wouldn't damage the flange on the lever). Once there was a big slot in it I used a drift and a sledge hammer to drive it off. Even with 1/5 or so of the material missing it still took multiple heavy swings to get it off.
I'm glad I removed the lever, there is no way in hell I could have safely gotten that off in the car.

For the select lever, pop the plastic dome cap off at the pivot, then remove the 12mm nut underneath. There is a lock washer and a flat washer, remove them. There will be a nylon-like washer/bush that centers the lever, remove it too.
Lift the pivot portion of the lever up while moving the lever in a "Select" fashion to clear the nub from the nylon shoe hidden under the linkage. This will allow enough room to sneak the lever off.

Not sure about the Shift lever (the bigger one), I would imagine it will be similar though.
Edit: Nope, I forgot that runs the whole shift shaft, you'd really have to work that one out on the car unfortunately. At least it is situated in a way where you can see what you are doing instead of pointing up like the select post.

 

I have the underhood and base bushings. It definitely helped clean up a lot of the slop in the shifting but I still get a third gear grind every now and again. This is after a new clutch, clutch line, and fresh OEM fluids. Debating on whether or not to try the short shifter.

 

I had an extremely light/rare 3rd gear and a consistent 5th gear grind (5th always if over 2500 rpm), and putting the cable bushings in made 3rd a bit more often and 5th no less often but not quite as severe.
I am putting in the short shifter and base bushings today, hopefully it improves some. I was already resigned to a transmission overhaul anyway, but if this clears 5th up I certainly wouldn't complain. Seems like people are half and half with it resolving grinds.

 

Alright I got the shifter and base bushings in and was able to drive it around some.

Definitely a subjective improvement.

I'm one of those people that don't "feel" something just based on the investment. There is never an instance, regardless of dollar amount, where I imagine improvement subconsciously like some people get. I am less than forgiving basically.

And that being said I can tell you that I would surely be just as happy with spending $40 on parts on ebay as opposed to $260 on these. If anything, the 3rd gear occasional anomaly is just more reliable now, not necessarily better or worse. The 5th gear grind is muted a bit (there are no "bad" ones now it seems), but still as reliable as ever.
The shift feel is a bit worse than stock; it is coarse, not nearly as fluid in motion. Similar to when the transmission is cold in the morning and you downshift into first at your first stop sign, etc.... it's like that in more gears now and when warmed up. I guess some people like it being notchy etc, doesn't do anything for me though.
The shift throw is extremely similar to stock...the shift pivot was only extended about 1/4" so I wasn't expecting too much difference anyway, but it is minor enough that if someone didn't drive these every day, you could swap one on somebody not telling them and they would never know the difference. I would say a more aggressive shifter like the older ones that required cutting the frame would be a bit more rewarding.


So over all.... I'm glad I tried them. Especially considering the seized bush on the shift lever, that could have made for an unnecessary emergency if doing a late night clutch etc. So I'm happy I had a chance to resolve that. I'm glad to know the components (bushes) are new and not a concern from a maintenance standpoint for a long time.
As for actual shift feel etc... I wouldn't spend $260 on the stuff again. Cheap ebay stuff, torque solutions, etc... there are plenty of much cheaper alternatives when you are talking about something that doesn't knock your socks off anyway. It would be very difficult for a competitor to not be able to meet these standards.

 

New to me Evo 8 and 3rd gear grinds unless I wait for it to kind of drop into the slot if you know what I'm describing. My current plan is some version of all these mods:

AMS front motor mount
Torque Solution Drive Shaft Carrier Bearing Support Bushings
Beatrush Rear Differential Spacer
Works Grab shift knob for weight
WORKS hybrid shifter cable bushing kit
WORKS Shifter console bushing kit
WORKS Throw 5-speed Short Shifter

Any pointers on the stuff with the clutch line, pill and/or adjustment? I'd have to test it more but I FEEL like when I pressed the clutch in very quickly the problem gets better but it's kind of subjective right now.

Also if there is some order to what should probably be tried first I'm all ears. Thanks,

Casey

 

I still have a third gear "grind". If I shift into third and hold the shifter there for a second it won't grind. If I shift into third and immediately let go, I get a metal grind... Which seems odd to me...

I have:
- WORKS hybrid shifter cable bushing kit
- WORKS Shifter console bushing kit
- WORKS Throw 5-speed Short Shifter
- heavy shift knob

I'm at the point where I want to sell the car.