Can anyone define throw for me? What advantage does one shifter provide over another?

I'm having a bit of trouble with my stock shifter, when I shift down to first gear, it has a bit of a tough time getting into position, would this be a problem with the shifter iself or with the bushings? I'm new to manual, but I feel that I've near mastered it, as far as everyday driving goes. I love my neon, I'm now looking for ways to make the experience all that much better.

 

Throw is how far you have to move the shifter to go from gear to gear. The shorter the throw the quicker you can shift. I would suggest that you replace the bushings and the shifter. that should fix all your problems.

 

When are you shifting down into first? Are you moving? If so...how fast are you going? A short throw shifter is a great investment. It makes driving your car a lot more fun and they aren't that expensive. The bushings are a nice improvement as well and they're relatively cheap. The best way I can describe these is you "know" when you're in the gear and when you're not in the gear. Its like it almost "clicks" when you get it in gear with new bushings (boogers are nice). Have fun!

 

I have the clutch all the way in, and I can be at a dead stop by the time I shift into first. It almost feels like there's something stuck in there, like hard cardboard or something. There's no grinding, so I know it's nothing to do with the engine. I'm not sure what's doing it. I'm probably going to be replacing the shifter and bushings. Can I use the stock boot, or does that have to be replaced too?

Any brands you guys might recommend? I've seen past posts on this before, and I know that the B&M only comes with the shaft. What all do I need aside from the shaft, then **** and bushings?

 

I hate to be the one to break it to you, but I think your syncros are bad. If you are at a dead stop with the clutch all the way down and its hard to get the shifter into 1st most likely the 1st gear syncros are going.

 

faulk, what would replacing that involve?

 

Could still just be the stock bushings going bad, same thing happens to a lot of people. The stock units are very soft, very crappy rubber, and they tend to start breaking down well before the 100k mile mark, just like the control arm bushings and motor mounts... There are two cables that connect your shifter to your tranny. There's a rubber bushing on each end of each cable (4 total). You can't just buy replacement bushings from the dealer, they'll only sell you the entire cable at $140+ last I checked. www.boogerracing.com sells replacement delrin bushings for $25 or so for the set in your choice of colors. They really aren't hard to replace, and the difference is night and day, even if your stockers aren't breaking down. You can also get a solid bushing replacement, but that involves cutting the old ends off the cables, not for the faint of heart... and they run $40 or so per pair ($80 for a complete set).

So first thing would be to inspect your current bushings. Just pull the PDC (fuse box behind the battery) out of the way to get a pretty good look at the tranny end, and remove the center console to get a look at the shifter end. They should be black with a bunch of toothpick sized holes aound the edge. If they are falling apart, it should be fairly easy to tell. I'd recommend the Booger bushings, although I'm planning on getting the solid ones at some point.

Most short shifters make the distances between 1-2, 3-4, and 5-R a little shorter. Most do not make the side-to-side throws any shorter. The only 2 I know of that reduce throws in both axes are MadDog (DIY guy) and I forget the name of the other guy offhand... None of the name brand (Mopar, B&M, etc.) do it. And the eBay units are a ripoff (no reduced throw at all, I have one...). With the reduced throw comes increased effort. It may not be a huge amount, but it's there...

If your bushings are in good shape, you might want to check the alignment of the crossover cable before assuming your synchro has gone out. Pick up a Hayne's manual, the procedure in there works as well as the one in the FSM.

Best of luck!