Here is my short shifter mod.
I (my son and I) came up with this going through the Honda parts CD looking at the different set up's for shifters and their components trying to find a solution for the lack of parts available to restore the original shifter and linkage.
Short Shifter Conversion
A simple solution to a bushing less situation
Here is the deal.
This conversion was done on a 1200 with a 5-speed Transmission. It should also work on the CVCC Models. It may also work on other first generations as well. (But has not been proven yet) One aftermarket 1994-1998 Acura Integra Short Shifter. One new Honda Acura shifter change lever ball seat, bushing like item number 9 in the picture below, Part# 54110-SH3-003. And all the other parts that normally go with the stock shifter. One minor modification is required of sanding down the outside diameter or the shifter ball bushing, it is made of soft plastic and only took 2-3 minutes of sanding to get it down to size to fit. Qty-2 5/16\' bolts with nylon locking nuts, one for the bottom of the shifter and one to replace the worn out pin on the end of the shifter rod. I also put a new spring and clip while I was at it.
The shifter I purchased is bushing less and uses sealed bearings. To attach the shifter to the rod underneath I had to only put some very thin washers on each side of the bearings to take up the minor gap. Works great with very little effort to change gears. Before it was like driving with a limp piece of spaghetti, now its solid and you can really feel you are shifting better and a lot faster too. I have stock OEM exhaust on my car and have no clearance problems at all . The shifter actually sits above the exhaust and to the right a bit, or the exhaust is to the left and just below the bottom of the shifter rod. I hope this helps anyone considering a short shifter conversion.
If Upgrading to 2? Exhaust, consider the placement as it may interfere slightly. Cost of this mod can be as cheap as $50.00 to $150.00 depending on the cost of your short shifter. Parts can also be obtained from your local wrecking yard. Enjoy Please leave feedback on this mod if you have had good or bad news.
Here it is in the stock floor console with a new Honda Red stitch leather shift boot.
- Dsc00215f.jpg (40.59 KiB) Viewed 8063 times
One other area you should consider checking for a shudder or play is underneath. Check the shift rod connection to the transmission. There may be play in there. Mine had a nut and bolt, as you can see there is wear on the outer sleeve is worn bigger. I put in a slightly bigger bolt and had to just do a minor re-drill to oversize the inner shaft.
You may also want to make sure the bushing is still good and solid on the shifter steady rod below.
- picture_057sm_249.jpg (24.37 KiB) Viewed 8063 times
Also inspect the main floor bushing and assembly for any play, Check bolt number 3 make sure it is snug and properly secured. If you are not replacing the shifter to a bushing-less version then you need to also inspect items 4, 5, 6 and 9 below.
- mt_shift_lever.jpg (25.99 KiB) Viewed 8063 times
- adc.jpg (15.11 KiB) Viewed 8063 times
If that's too short for you.
Then you need one of these from Summit Engineering. You can get any length you want.
I found a video on real live shifting of the shifter.
This is with the Summit extension there, Imagine how short the throw would be without it.
