instructions for the mechanically challenged:
installing the "dieselgeek.com short shift kit"


today, we are going to install the "dieselgeek.com short shift
kit".  it helps to reduce the front to back and side to side
shifting motion.  the shifter claims to be a 30% reduction, but
in the beginning it will feel more like 70%.  and now that the front
to back motion doesnt take so long the car feels much quicker.  silly,
i know, but thats the way it seems.

though this is by far and away the most difficult of my installs,
its only difficult because it involves tight places and cutting
into perfectly good metal and carpet.  though the metal and
carpet are out of sight and will not impact the quality or
structure of your car in the least.  all changes are invisible.

and no doubt about it, this is the single best modification
i have done to my car.  better than everything else, including
sway bars and shocks and springs.  i would do this first.  well,
second, after getting rid of the daytime running lights - no car
should have those.

disclaimer:

as with my other instructions, these instructions are applicable
for MY 1996 - if your car has fifteen of everything that i tell
you to look for dont blame me.  this is a FYI only.  though i
would be more than happy to answer any questions about unclear
instructions.  read all the instructions before doing anything,
as screwing this up will leave your car undriveable.


i in no way shape or form condone or encourage IKEA.


history:
i have not tried any other short shifters.  i decided to try the
"dieselgeek.com short shift kit" because
1. the directions seemed relatively easy
2. the whole car didnt need to be pulled apart
3. several other sellers of short shift kits wouldnt answer my questions


i poured over the excellent instructions supplied by the dieselgeek
website more times than i can count.  i even cut and copied and
pasted my own instructions so i wouldnt be distracted by the
universality of the directions.  so if your car isnt a 1996
gti vr6, then perhaps you should go read the original page.

i thought about having a motor-head friend do it for me, but
decided that i would give it a go when i came home from work
and found it waiting on my doorstep.  i did the install in the
dark, on my own, with no help from anyone, using a few tools.



tools you need:

13mm wrench (or pliers if you are cheap)
10mm wrench (or pliers if you are cheap - or IKEA wrench)
phillips screw driver
dremel
razor blade
needle nosed pliers
vacuum cleaner (if you want)
towels to keep your hands and car clean (if you want)



directions:

gently pull up the plastic housing that the shift boot
is connected to.  then unscrew the shift knob.  place
somewhere clean.

use the phillips to unscrew the one screw by the
drivers feet on the floor, and the two screws on
the passenger side by the floor (next to the little
hole).  place somewhere safe.


grab the cup holders and gently pull upward and
toward the rear of the car.  they should pop out
without fuss.

move the seats forward.  locate the round plugs on
either side of the center console under the trunk
release switch behind the emergency brake.  pop off
these covers.  use the phillips to remove the screws.
place somewhere safe.


gently pull up on the rear of the center console behind
the emergency brake.

look down on the floor inbetween the rear center
console piece (that you gently pulled up on in the
last step) and the front center console piece.
under the emergency brake handle you will notice a
plastic 10mm nut.  remove the nut.  this is easily the
second most difficult part of the install.  i used
the IKEA wrench.  it seems to take forever.  but
be careful, as the nut is plastic.  place somewhere
safe.



looking down on the exposed shifter you will see
two more plastic nuts in the southern position
(towards the back of the car).  use the 10mm and
remove these.  place somewhere safe.



if you lift up the front center console (it doesnt
need to be removed completely, but if you can figure
out how it could make things easier) you will notice
another bolt that isnt really apart of the shift
area/mechanism.  immediately south of the bolt is
a lip area that runs around the whole shift area.
(more on the lip in a moment.)



looking down on the exposed shifter you will see
a 13mm bolt in the northeast corner.  remove this
bolt.  place somewhere safe.


to the left of that bolt you will see an arm (that
moves a springy thing) when you move the shifter
side to side.  the bolt is 13mm and points from
the front of the car to the back.  remove this
bolt.  place somewhere safe.



the arm that the bolt was screwed into (that is
kinda connected to the springy thing) comes out.
if you will notice, it runs long the north
part of the arm and connects to a pin that runs
from the front to the back of the shifter.  wiggle
the arm loose from the springy thing and wiggle
it out of the shifter to the north.  notice how
it bumps into that lip.



this is the hardest part of the install:

wiggle the arm back into place.  get the dremel.
you are going to need to lift the front center
console enough that you can get the dremel in and
cut away enough of the lip that you can remove the
arm.  this took me quite awhile, only because ive
never used a dremel before and i kept breaking blades.



when you can get the arm past the lip i would take
the time to vacuum up all the dust.

when you get the arm past the lip you will notice
that the carpet is in the way.  you will need to
cut away enough carpet and sound deadening material
to remove the arm completely.  remove the arm.  place
somewhere safe.

the hard part is over.


gently wiggle/lift the whole mechanism up.  notice
that the shifter is connected to a cable within the
box.  the cable is connected held to the shifter with
a cotter pin.  use the needle nose piers to
firmly grab the cotter pin and remove.  store in
a safe place.  the new shift kit has an extra cotter
pin if you lose it.  disconnect the cable from the
shifter and gently remove from the shift box.
place the shifter somewhere where it wont get
anything messy.  you are done with the old shifter.


this is the home stretch.  everything is easy, as
everything goes back where you took it out.


get the new shifter and gently put in place it
into the shift box.  reattach the shift cable.
reattach the cotter pin with the needle nosed
pliers.  make sure to get a firm grip on the
cotter pin.  gently wiggle the new shifter into
place.


get the arm you removed earlier and gently wiggle
it back into place, sliding it all the way through
the shifter.  wiggle the arm back into the springy
things.

grab the 13mm bolt and screw it back into the arm.

grab the other 13mm bolt and screw it back into
the hole in the northeast corner.


take a moment and gently engage all the gears.
they should go pretty easy.  there are some fine
tuning steps to be done under the hood if things
are gears are hard to get into.  if it is really
difficult, try starting the engine and going
through the motions.  if something is really
wrong, retrace the steps and make sure you
didnt forget something.


gently put the front center console back in place.
grab the two 10mm plastic nuts and screw them into
place in the south part of the shift box.

replace the three phillips screws near the foot
position on either side of the center console.

grab the 10mm plastic nut and put it back in place
in front of the emergency brake.

gently put the rear center console back in place.
it may take some wiggling.  use the phillips
to replace the screws on either side of the
rear console.  replace the caps.

grab the shift knob and boot and screw it back
onto the shifter.  my threads didnt match up
quite right, so the last quarter turn to get
the shift knob aligned was a bit tough.  i have
no idea what happens if you twist too much.


all done.


slowly drive the car to make sure the shifter
works fine.


(and yes, i realize that the artwork sucks, but
i think that the simple pictures are easier to
understand than photos sometimes.)


be well, go well..

2002.155
2002.171: simplified