bmwe21.net forums

what other shifters fit the e21 as id like a really short shift

if im not mistaken i think Z3 . I think i read on this forum its been done

cobbler2u wrote:if im not mistaken i think Z3 . I think i read on this forum its been done

Yep that's the one. You can get all the parts reasonably from the stealers. Around £45 if I remember correctly.

2.8 is short, 2.9 shorter. I have one fitted to mine and shortens the gear throw nicely

will the z4 one fit or do you think it will be too short

Not sure to be honest. I think I might have heard it does, but honestly the Z3 is a big improvement from the standard shift. Mind you a lot of it is due to new washers etc that will be probably not have been changed during the lifetime of the car.

Ireland Engineering sell a short shift kit for e21 for about $170
Just another option...

And I think Schmiedmann sell a couple as well

Z3 one is the best / cheapest solution. If you search all Jimmy/Alpinas posts he put up a comparison of all the different alternatives.

z3 1.8 complete sifter and bushes about £40 from the dealers

Jason

Thought I would share our experience of short shifters etc

Got a Z3 one (new ) from Fritz Bits

en route to Final Manx Test found I could only just get into 2 gear as it was fouling the gear lever surround. Was this because of the special Gertrag gearbox Herman has I don't know?

there was no room to move the surround further back lest it fouled the hbrake, but instead of reverting to standard- all was resolved by turning lever around 180 degrees!

now all 100%

last point on this I should make (having driven Herman to work this morning as it was dry) is that the shortshift shortens the East-West plane as well as the North-South Plane (if you get my drift) and thus this makes Reverse very close to first - you have to go into second before selecting first- for fear of running into the bus behind!

Very similar to the horrid Jaguar Moss gearbox in the early Jaguars- which was almost designed to confuse first and reverse!

Why oh why do European car makers have first in such an absurd position? Far better is the Japanese position being down and to the right (at 5 o Clock)

last point on this I should make (having driven Herman to work this morning as it was dry) is that the shortshift shortens the East-West plane as well as the North-South Plane (if you get my drift) and thus this makes Reverse very close to first - you have to go into second before selecting first- for fear of running into the bus behind!

Very similar to the horrid Jaguar Moss gearbox in the early Jaguars- which was almost designed to confuse first and reverse!

Why oh why do European car makers have first in such an absurd position? Far better is the Japanese position being down and to the right (at 5 o Clock)

I have no such issues with MIBs gearchange. In fact, it couldn't be more precise if it tried! The same goes for my e30 box too. I just think it has to be a bit of trial & error when set-up initially but can be done.

I've done it twice in two years with the standard shifter, thankfully I've realised my error both times before reversing into the car behind me. Is there anything more embarassing to do at traffic lights?

[edit] PS has anyone got a list of part numbers for this conversion? Also, can anyone confirm if it works on a 4-cyl?

On my Mrs 2002tii we just altered the standard linkage. It was pretty straight forward and no difference to a 4 pot e21.