daisybump Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Is there a short shift kit available for the 1800 manta gearbox, i know i can cut the gear lever length down but i'm guessing it gets hard to reach from the drivers seat if its too short.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Abbott Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 You have to make your own. I went too short on mine and ended up not liking the feel of it. Basically it involves Raising the pivot point where the selector ball fits into the gearbox lever bit and by splitting the two parts on the selector extension and adding washers and then cutting the bit between the pivot and the roller bearing. Then add about 10mm of bar extra into place then weld into place. There was a write up of it on the forum or mag years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daisybump Posted October 21, 2012 Author Share Posted October 21, 2012 Thanks for the info, i have a spare gearbox so i can mess that one up first..! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
399Road Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Has anyone used BMW 3 series parts on a Manta gear selector before? On BMW E30's you could fit a Z3 lever which acted as a quick shift and B + M do a quick shift kit for BMWs which use a similar Getrag box, only fitted at a slant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mantasrme Posted October 22, 2012 Share Posted October 22, 2012 I don't usually shorten the top at all Normally i just cut the bottom bearing end off with a hacksaw in the middle of the straight connector bit, then weld in a 13mm long piece. Making sure to bevel the ends of all the pieces to get a really good weld penetration The tricky bits are making sure its all aligned correctly and stopping any weld spatter from landing on the machined bearing surface just above the weld. In my rally car the lever is set back a bit more than normal and also across towards me a little as my seat is very low and a long way back. It helps a lot as i'd struggle to get a standard lever in reverse with my harnesses on. 399Road: i#ll look at the 3 series lever later as i have one in a spares box for my mates rally car and report back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mantasrme Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Has anyone used BMW 3 series parts on a Manta gear selector before? On BMW E30's you could fit a Z3 lever which acted as a quick shift and B + M do a quick shift kit for BMWs which use a similar Getrag box, only fitted at a slant. I pulled the spare 325 lever out of storage and compared to a manta one. The pivot ball on the shaft is larger and the outside diameter of the bmw bush is also larger than the manta one so won't fit into the standard housing. The BMW housing is part of an alloy bar that connects to the box so that can't be removed and fitted to the manta bracket. Also the standard bmw lever seems to have the pivot closer to the bottom than the manta original. So its not a straight fit i'm affraid, looks like we'll have to stick with chopping and welding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
399Road Posted November 6, 2012 Share Posted November 6, 2012 Thanks for reporting back, I've been wondering for a while if one of these BMW levers would fit or not. The shift on the standard Getrag 5 speed lever isn't that bad is it? ...Luke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monzta Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 BMW levers should fit in theory as many BMW´s also use the Getrag 240 gearbox. That is especially the E30´s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mantasrme Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 The e30 325i gearlever i tried was from an 1989 car with the M20 engine and will not fit the (as stated above) On the BMW the lever sits much further back and has an alloy bracket from back of gearbox to underneath of transmission tunnel that holds the pivot bush, then a link rod reaching forwards to the gearbox selector rod (the manta lever connects driectly to the rod) This is an aftermarket lever attached to a standard alloy bracket, there are 2 lengths of bracket (for early and late boxes) this is the shorter setup. So that lot won't fit the manta assembly without a load of work. The standard manta lever isn't bad but is a little bit of a long throw compared to most sporty cars and having it a little quicker does improve the feel without making it too hard to select gears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monzta Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 Well that pretty much settles that then Great research though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dom400 Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 Have you seen these? http://www.cae-racing.com/ Not really a short shift kit but if your struggling with your ergonomics you could always fit one of these, and they do look amazing! And might save a couple of grams!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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