DIY: UUC Short Shifter Install

[psedog]

A couple of weeks ago my short shifter came in and I proceeded to install it. It is suggested to drop the transmission to do it. I didn't feel like taking it to a lift and dropping it, so I did it in my garage instead. No transmission dropping required. It would have helped, but it was not required. The instructions from UUC are for the E series. It helps with some information, but it isn't right for our car. Link

Tools needed.
Jack.
2 Jack stands.
#2 Phillips Head Screwdriver.
Long Flat (slot) Head Screwdriver.
3/8" Ratchet with extension
8mm, 10mm, and 13mm Sockets
Slim Ratchet with 2.5mm Hex bit.
Snap ring plier (they make multiple sizes so make sure it fits before starting).

Optional.
24mm socket for height adjustment.
Scotch tape to hold the 2.5mm hex screw.
Wood.




First thing you'll want to do is to lift the shift boot up and remove the shift knob. To remove the boot, just stick your finger into one of the corners and give a slight tug. It will come up easily. After that, disconnect the light. Unlike most BMW plugs, this one is normal. No clips to figure out. Just pull both sides.



Now you'll have to use some serious muscle to remove the knob. I dropped it into 4th and pulled up as hard as I could. Any other gear or neutral I was afraid of hitting something in the car.




Now it's time to lift the car. I wanted to lift the car from the front center lift point. In order to get the extra clearance needed I rolled the car over some 2x4.



Yes, I know it's not centered. Once I got it high enough to get it on a jack stand, I removed the wood and adjusted the jack.


Next you'll want to get it on jack stands. I only had one adapter and it doesn't seem suitable for jack stands so I used two shorter pieces of wood. This protects the stock lift points from the standard jack stands.

Now remove the center shroud. It will have a triangular hole in it. The other two are labeled L and R, you do not need to remove those.



Next remove all the bolts from the heat shield that is above the exhaust and behind the transmission cross member. Push it as far back as you can. The gap created is all the room you will have to reach up to the top of the transmission.




At the top of this opening you will see a silver metal rod with a metal bushing. It has a clip on the side of it. You need to remove that clip. The kit comes with a spare, but I didn't break mine.



Now, it's time to remove the rubber boot from the shifter. The bottom part has a plastic ring inside of the rubber. This is meant to go down and is another reason why it would be good to drop the transmission.



Now it's time to remove the stock shifter. Supposedly the plastic bushing is suppose to come out by spinning it. I couldn't get that to work. I went both directions a full turn and no go . I even tried pushing in those two points that were missing the bridges. I ended up destroying it with a hammer and screwdriver. It's always a good time when you can use a hammer



Now it's time to put in the metal cup. There is very little clearance to put tools in for the screws. There are six that need to be screwed in. Make sure to use lock tight because you don't want this coming apart... You want to start the screws first before going in with the ratchet. On the driver side I taped the screw to the allen wrench that came with the kit. On the passenger side the clearance is the tightest. I ended up taping the screw to the bit (not in the ratchet). The shallow ratchet was just small enough to get in the gap after I had started the screw by hand.




Install the shifter and insert the snap ring using the snap ring pliers.




Now get under the car and reinstall the clip into the shifter linkage. This will take some serious patience and you will probably have some beat up hands. Ensure you have both bearings installed before you replace the clip.

Get back into the passenger compartment and row the gears. Make sure no binding is going on. Notice how you can actually feel the gates now. Alright. You good now? Re-install the rubber boot. (I did it after so that I could see while installing the bearings and clip). Put everything back together.

The one thing that really irritates me is that the top is crooked. The shifter itself is alighted properly, but the slot for the ball is not correct. I emailed the company and they said it was designed this way. Seems pretty stupid to me









Original Full Size pictures can be found here.

[rubber_ducky]

Great write up.

I had my lever installed by a shop. Twice. The first time I had their "gen 1" lever which had the knob oriented correctly but leaning to the right.

The "gen 2" lever fixed the leaning problem but I had the same rotation issue that you have. I remedied it with an aftermarket knob.

It being "designed that way" is 100% pure bullshit. UUC f*cked up this product, not once, but two times.

It does feel good shifting though. So at least we have that...

[RocketBoots]

Thanks for the write-up. It doesn't sound too bad of a job. I had a couple of questions, if you don't mind:

-How, exactly, did you remove the clip from the coupler rod in the first place?

-How did you remove the rubber boot, without dropping the tranny?

Thanks!

[Sahbatage]

good on you for doing this yourself, i'm sure the shifts feel great but if that's how the install is supposed to look in the end, i wouldn't go for it even it was free and the car shifted itself... looks horrendous.

[IM2C]

Well done. Crooked knob would drive me absolutely nuts.
Total bs.

[psedog]

Originally Posted by RocketBoots

Thanks for the write-up. It doesn't sound too bad of a job. I had a couple of questions, if you don't mind:

-How, exactly, did you remove the clip from the coupler rod in the first place?

-How did you remove the rubber boot, without dropping the tranny?

Thanks!

I took a long flat head screwdriver and pushed the edge of it away while pushing up with my other hand. It was pretty simple. When you look at the replacement clip you can easily tell what needs to be done.

As far as the plastic ring. I ended up snapping an edge to get it to pull out. It went back into place no problem. Doesn't seem like it's going anywhere either.

[psedog]

Originally Posted by Sahbatage

good on you for doing this yourself, i'm sure the shifts feel great but if that's how the install is supposed to look in the end, i wouldn't go for it even it was free and the car shifted itself... looks horrendous.

I had no clue it would be crooked. I tried to slide it on straight and obviously it wouldn't stay. I can twist it a little bit, but not much. In neutral it doesn't look as bad. Honestly, I'd rather have this installed and crooked than to go back to stock. The stock plastic bushing and rubber ball left too much to chance when shifting quickly. I have no doubt which gear I'm in now. It should have come from the factory this way.

I may take a grinder to the top so the ball can sit on there correctly

[mrrm3]

When you are in a gear, for example 1st, can you move the shifter fore and aft a bit ?

I installed a SSK many, many months ago and then was out of town for an extended period. When I drove the car again, I noticed (for the first time) what seemed like a lot of "play" when the shifter is in a drive gear.

When in 1st, I can move the knob something like an inch in either forward or rearward direction w/o any resistance.

Then, when pulling back on it, it will come out of gear.

It is like that for all gears.

Is this just the way it is --perhaps even stock? I just can't recall.

Thanks,
Matthew

[psedog]

I don't notice a lot of play. Stock had more play. With regard to pulling it out of gear. That is normal. All manual transmissions will let you pull it out of gear when the rpms are just right. If you are speeding up or slowing down then it will be difficult to take it out of gear.

[M Town President]

psedog any chance you still have the photos for this; looks like the link to the photos is invalid now. Thanks for the write up; looking to do this in the coming weeks.