We constantly strive to bring the best products to the market and try to innovate where we see a need or development potential.
Regarding the PDI short shifter, we are very pleased with the result with function, but have realised one area of the design that could be improved. The shifter works by raising the upper pivot (fulcrum) point to change the throw of the shifter significantly. This required a reducing in the ball diameter and we were able to change from the H150 gearbox box bushing to the smaller R151 bushing, which itself gave design challenges and a thinner wall thickness over the upper section of the inner sleeve. The pins located in the side of the upper section are designed to stop the stick from rotating so the greater the bend in the stick (and aggressiveness of the shifts), the more side load is placed on the pins. For a few customers a pin as sheared off and has resulted in a sloppy stick and for a couple people the pins have made it past the bushing into the gearbox.
NOTE: When removing the sticker where you may suspect the pins to be broken, we suggest keeping the stick in place while rotating and lifting the outer sleeve to disengage. Either remove the pins before lifting the stick off the bushing or remove the inner sleeve together with the stick itself.
The thought of metal parts freely moving in the gearbox sounds really bad, but there are many, many stories of dropped bolts and broken teeth in the bottom of the manual gearbox which have resulted in no further damage over many thousands of km driven. That said, if you do drop something into the gearbox, using magnets and other tools to try remove is advised.
The upgraded inner sleeve is made of stronger steel and we have been able to more than double the wall thickness in the area supporting the pins, which means we are no longer relying on the quality of the weld (only) to keep the pins in place. Additionally we have been able to tighten some of the tolerances to make the stick feel more solid. This is a recommended upgrade for all those running our short shifter so please make contact with us to request the replacement part. Equally if you have sold the vehicle or installed it for a customer then please assist us in making contact with the relevant owner.
This replacement part is offered free to those who have a PDI short shifter purchased before June 2022 and will be sent out in the mail upon confirmation and request.