Celica Forums General Discussion Exterior Short Shifter Q's

How much harder is it to shift with a short shifter.

I have a GTS and I have to actually use physical strength to put it in reverse.
It's actually kinda hard, like I dont think my gf could easily do it...

So does a short shifter feel just like if you start shifter by holding the stock shifter half way, or nothing like that at all?

are you incredibly week or something? i could put my car in reverse with 1 finger

Well you don't have a GTS, so you wouldn't know how hard it sometimes is to get it into reverse. They made it that way so people wouldn't reverse instead of going into first.

oh

If you are using that much force either A) There is something seriously wrong with you transmission or B) You have not learned that a manual Celica is difficult in reverse and C) You need to work on it and be gentile. A short shifter will not help in those circumstances. Don't let this detract you from a short shifter. Just don't rely on a SS fixing a problem that many manual Celica owners have.

i find it a lot easier to shift with my b&m shortshifter than i had with stock ('00 gts).

i also had to use force with my stock shifter, the '00 gts' had tranny problems (tight shiftgates, gridning shifts, rough shifts) that were fixed in the following years.

but it wasnt comfortable to shift using less than my whole hand (it wasnt a LOT of force that i needed, but it was enough to make it uncomfortable with 1 finger)

Only problem with a short shifter will be shifting into reverse and pinching your hand. That is, if you shift with your hand on the shifter, rather than puting it on top.

i've never had this problem. i usually shift with my hand on top but even when i don't it's fine (b&m...don't know about twm or trd)

TRD is taller, so it will extend towards the E-Brake more.

OKAY now that I have the answers for the first question, i kinda have another one ahahah... SO, is everyone else's clucth impossible to press on too?

I'm only asking these crazy questions because I'm used to my gts, but I drove a Jetta yesterday, and found out that I dont have to have a full workout to go from point A to B.
I know that it's a sports car, but I think that my car may be a lil to hard... I bought it used, so I dont know how it drove knew, nor do I have access to another GTS to compare. PEACE THANKS!

ah, i see now

I just got a new clutch, and it is as easy as the throttle to push down. Your clutch is most likely worn.

i learned how to drive a manual on my celica and i thought the way the shifting felt was normal. i drove a few other cars though and i found out how easy shifting could be.

the celica has very rough shifting and is harder than any other manual vehicle i've ever driven. it's jus the way it is and something toyota needs to work on.

however, this is normal, so don't worry about it

He's talking about clutch pedal pressure, not shifting ease I believe.

I don't think that's it. The reverse in our cars is difficult and this has been covered many times. I even posted straight from the manual before about difficulty in reverse. I think it has to do with the spacing in reverse in Celicas. Even to this day, I still sometimes have trouble with reverse (74,000 miles). Damn, on the phone for a minute, and look what happens. Thanks all.

i used to grind in reverse. ever since i got my ss i don't, though. i guess it has something to do with the cables.

Who knows.

I always thought that the 7th gen Celica's gear box was rather good, not great, but good. I've driven better and I hate to say, but some of you will know. But what gets me about Toyota other than the reverse is that they have almost the feel I'm looking for. That mechanical feel, a snicker snack. I wish I knew about the TSB for stiffer springs when I was under warranty with my early 2000 Celica. I would be in heaven. I don't want to shift like a hot knife through butter not knowing for sure where I shifted or what gear.

yeah the celicas shifting isnt as smooth as a honda(know from experience), when i put my TWM ss in i can shift with one finger, i dont even have to move my hand to do it, also would you rather have to use force to get it in reverse,or risk hitting reverse instead of 4th(gt), to me i can use a little elbow grease which i kinda like cause it tells me in going in the right spot(idk why but mine really isnt that hard to shift if i have my clutch fully depressed)instead of mis-shifting and ruining my drivetrain

oh dont get me wrong. I do love how it feels, I do love how it drives. But I have to admit that sometimes I kinda get tired of having to press such a hard clutch all the way down to shift.
I live on the beach, and when im coming back from parties and stuff really late at night, with no one to race i wish i could have a little softer clutch.

PS. As I was thinking about how sporty the celi is, I just remembered how my grandma freaked out when I took her for a ride. She also freaked out even more when I turned on my system...

If you get a short shifter get the TWM it is the shortest one out for the GTS and shifting from first to second takes only a mere flick of the wrist and IMO it is of all my perfomance mods the best mod for the money. You will especially like it when you are in traffic.

The TWM is indeed the shortest one, but the B&M has a shorter throw, even though it's longer...

See that is why I love ECelica learn something new everyday!

Always good to scare the units with some good ol' fashioned musak. I use to scare mine with my driving. That's just me. The clutch on a Toyota Celica shouldn't be hard to press down. How many miles on your car? First owner? If so drove it like you stole it? You might need a new clutch. I don't know. If it's that hard to push down and you are having other transmission problems, you need some dire help. A hard clutch need a new clutch. Go to Toyota if/or not under warranty and explain the problems of your Celica. They will be the best to help in diagnosing the problem. Maybe not the best money wise to fix it, but to at least point you in some direction. Expect to pay $80+ for each area you need checking. Even under warranty. If there is a problem under warranty Toyota will fix it and won't charge for the original $80+ fee. If your dealership is good that is. A short shifter will not help in these areas explained. Some people are confused here. It sounds normal, maybe a problem, but a SS won't help or be a fix to an underlining problem.

Won't they revamp your shift gates though?

Hmmm...I have no problem with clutch or shifting into reverse with my GTS. My wife is only 4'10" weights about 90lbs (she's small) and she has no problme getting into reverse with stock shifter nor stock clutch. I also have 00 jetta with different clutch. I have no problem with either car but my wife can't drive the jetta cause clutch is longer than celica.

About it being difficult to shift into reverse... When I first starting driving my gts, I thought it was difficult to shift into reverse. I soon learned to push the brake pettle in all the way. This made it a lot easier for me to shift into reverse and I've been doing it ever since without a problem.

I find it a hell of a lot easier shifting into reverse on a GTS because the motion isn't as ackward as on the GT.

Unlike most people I love the real tight close spacing of the original 2000 transmission. I don't want the remanufactored or whatever you call it transmission. I never had any problems with mis-shifts.

i have a obx ss on my gts and LOVE IT took a lil to get used to gears are a tad bit harder then before but thats just physics there got a shorter moment arm therefor to do same amount of work requires a little more force

im so smrt i mean smart

I've had both, and trust me, the newer style gates make the shifts smooth like butter.

The old one isn't any faster, and the grinding/tough shifting gets realy old.

on my twm my girlfriend have problems with reverse and 1 gear she juse 2 hand to reverse (she did it sometimes with the stock shifter to)
and in 1 i fhink she misses a little or somfhing since she press it very hard then it looks like it just pops in to 1 .
i have no problem with it my self my be somtimes from netrual to 2.
is this normal? or have i done somfhing wrong?

Ps: i just some wered greas the gas sttion worker gave to me.

hehe..dumb question, but who knows.. is the short shifter completely different from the stock or is it just shorter on top? basically, would it be possible to cut it from the top the way you want it?

all they short shifters do is make it easier to shift, it is a "shorter" throw into each gear, I would recomend it highly if you are hating your stock shift...

its shorter ont the bottom too, you can cut your bar but that would increase the strength to move it and also...

it actually does make the shifter a little stiffer, it replaces the rubber mounts on the shifter assembly with aluminum so there isnt any play in it

it is a little harder to push, but a hell of a lot harder to misshift, because you can feel exactly where every gear is

shortshifters make teh top shorter and the bottom longer.

teh bushings are to also raise the houseing alil so teh rd does not rub teh floorwell.

it takes more effort to shift into gear but not much.but a much shorter throw is the result(simple physics)

IMO there as absolutely nothing i miss about the stock shifter