bmwe21.net forums

Yh theres no rubber/foam pad at all and it seems to flop about on the gearbox shaft ,
On removal the pin does move inside the knuckle - should it be a tight/friction fit?

mcjjordan wrote:Yh theres no rubber/foam pad at all

That's your problem. The pad disintegrates with age. Buy a new one & you'll find it a struggle to compress it enough to get the roll pin in. See my previous posts on how I got it sorted.

I took it all out which was easy without removing prop or exhaust.
I filled down enough to fit washers onto pins behind e clips ( they were 20mm but i had some were 20.5mm )
Then i welded the gearlever so it doesnt rotate anymore .
The knuckle i fitted a rubber grommet in the end ( by the way i had 2 and both were different lengths )
Pushed it on hard and rammed pin in and now no more slop.

Also was going to add another part to bottom to make it short shift but i dont theres enough room between lever & prop. Probably about 8mm in total

So satisfied now?

Yes but such a bad design

Mwoah 40 years later

mcjjordan wrote:Yes but such a bad design

That same design lasted all through the E30 & I believe the E36 & E46. It works. It just needs a refresh every 100-150k miles then it's good to go another 150k.

You can cut down the gear lever or get a shortened gear knob from Stormwerks if you want to play boy-racer. Note that only the late E21's had the E30 type gear knob. Early ones were '02 style.

mcjjordan wrote:I took it all out which was easy without removing prop or exhaust.
I filled down enough to fit washers onto pins behind e clips ( they were 20mm but i had some were 20.5mm )
Then i welded the gearlever so it doesnt rotate anymore .
The knuckle i fitted a rubber grommet in the end ( by the way i had 2 and both were different lengths )
Pushed it on hard and rammed pin in and now no more slop.

Also was going to add another part to bottom to make it short shift but i dont theres enough room between lever & prop. Probably about 8mm in total

Any pictures of the process? I'm experiencing the same issues

Well the slop is back… i have video but no idea how to upload them.
Thinking i may tigerseal the bloody thing on & try a larger diameter pin .
Gearbox is coming out this year anyway

Check UwBuurman's restauration topic ; you can find all detailed information on how to fix a sloppy gear mechanism. It was also done on my own car in the exact same way and it changes gear like a brand new car.

Good luck!

Greetz,
Walter.

Link doesn't seem to work, Walter.

Maybe this one will?

Thanks for the fixed link, UwBuurman!

Grtz,
Walter.

mcjjordan wrote: Tue Feb 18, 2025 9:19 pm Well the slop is back

8 years later !

Some mechanical sympathy whist changing gear will help.
See you in another 8 years