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Thread: Does a Miata NEED a short shifter?

  1. #1
    Idling - Listen to it purr... Trizvi96's Avatar
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    Does a Miata NEED a short shifter?

    Im curious if I should even bother with a short shifter at all since the shifts already seem very crisp and smooth. Does anyone recommend investing in the mod?

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  3. #2
    5,000 rpm - there be torque here! Greasemonkey2000's Avatar
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    Yes.
    '01 NB2 aka MisF1re: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....218#post207218
    '97 M aka Warbird, gone but not forgotten: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....B&goto=newpost
    Instagram: @greasemonkey2000

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  5. #3
    2,000 rpm - light wheelspin, no bog here! Ctsquid's Avatar
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    TJ, do yourself a favor and hop on over to MiataRoadster and order one of Bills sweet sweet shifters. There absolutely no way you'll regret that.

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  7. #4
    3,000 rpm - starting to feel the power MLambert19's Avatar
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    "Need"? No.

    That said, there are an awful lot of positive reviews and lots of hype around Bill's kits. A regular boots and bushing rebuild is something like $75. The MiataRoadster kits are $350 ($300 on sale for black Friday), and include all the parts you'd get for a rebuild. Making the cost of the "short shift" components $225-$275.

    I've spent more money on less consequential things for the car. It's the same argument when some people can't wrap their head around a name brand steering wheel. It's one of the items you handle every single time you drive, why wouldn't you spend the money on a good one?

    -Matt

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  9. #5
    4,000 rpm - entering the fun zone Paul B's Avatar
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    The MR shifter is sooooooo good.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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  11. #6
    6,000 rpm - mere mortals would shift oldgrayleather's Avatar
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    It's the one tactile upgrade I appreciate the most each and every single time I'm behind the wheel. (The one aesthetic upgrade are my RevLimiter gauges.)

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  13. #7
    2,000 rpm - light wheelspin, no bog here! benpopham's Avatar
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    Tricky one.

    My car when it was imported from Japan came with a short shifter, it felt overly tight and not very nice to use, I felt like I was really forcing it into gears. After a few months of ownership, it actually broke the top half off of the shifter, not because of force but poor build quality. Because I had never driven an MX5 before, I didnt know this was a short shifter, so I brought a stock shifter and bushes and swapped it all over and threw the short shifter away. First drive after doing this, I was like 'wow this moves a long way' and kept punching the headunit lol but after a few minutes of getting use to it, it felt much better.

    I have stuck with the OEM shifter and love it. The throw has always felt spot on to me, and the thought of going back to a shorter one does not appeal. Now, certainly not all short shifters are like this, but I feel Mazda got this just right from factory, so no need to mess with it.

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  15. #8
    4,000 rpm - entering the fun zone Slampen's Avatar
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    Need: No!
    I love the oem shifter.

    At the moment I have a Mazdaspeed shortshifter with a 4" shift extender from Garagestar.
    I grin like a stupid each time I change gear.

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  17. #9
    6,000 rpm - mere mortals would shift Demon I Am's Avatar
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    not *needed* but worth the coin.

    The stock shifter feels great after a fresh rebuild, though. It's almost a yearly maintenance kind of thing.

  18. #10
    Idling - Listen to it purr... Trizvi96's Avatar
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    This is sort of why I'm contemplating this lol

    I've heard some say "Yeah just get a rebuild its fine" but then people say "Yeah check out Bill's Shift kit," so.... I think I'm gonna probably research a bit more into it, but wanted some opinions

  19. #11
    6,000 rpm - mere mortals would shift oldgrayleather's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Trizvi96 View Post
    This is sort of why I'm contemplating this lol

    I've heard some say "Yeah just get a rebuild its fine" but then people say "Yeah check out Bill's Shift kit," so.... I think I'm gonna probably research a bit more into it, but wanted some opinions
    RevLimiter's blog made a strong case for what an impact this had but what ultimately convinced me was a friend letting me try his out. If you can I'd highly recommend that so you know what it will feel like.

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  21. #12
    Super Moderator tsingson's Avatar
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    Bought mine after trying one out. Felt great. Highly recommend the Miataroadster one!

  22. #13
    Admin / Pit Boss / Miataholic Phatmiata's Avatar
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    Yes ...... get a MiataRoadster, Neilex, C's, or Mazdaspeed Japan shifter, anything else is meh

  23. #14
    5,000 rpm - there be torque here! Greasemonkey2000's Avatar
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    Oh an actual explanation was wanted? I just answered the single question posed in the original post.

    So to answer the question/title of the thread.... necessity is dictated by many number of factors that do not apply to every miata owner so simply put no a short throw shifter isn't needed for your average miata enthusiast.

    On the other hand if you are tracking/autox/etc. and want to minimize every variable that reduces the time between putting the power to the ground then yes I would say it is necessary.

    The miata is known for how good of a oem shifter it has but those same individuals would be hard pressed to deny the difference a quality sts like MiataRoadster's sts makes because once you have one you will think the oem shifter is mediocre, imo.

    I had two different versions of the MR sts, a standard height...
    004_zps3d9cd5bf.jpg

    ....which I later added a tall angled extension to(don't recommend an aluminum shift extender as I bent two different ones)....
    008_zpsede3922c.jpg

    .....and then a tall angled version.
    003_zpsi9dejd02.jpg

    Loved them both but the tall angled was the better of the two since it was that much closer to the steering wheel.

    Another new option, IRP sts, which I'm REALLY considering can be found here:
    http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....-throw-shifter
    '01 NB2 aka MisF1re: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....218#post207218
    '97 M aka Warbird, gone but not forgotten: http://mazdaroadster.net/showthread....B&goto=newpost
    Instagram: @greasemonkey2000

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  25. #15
    4,000 rpm - entering the fun zone Paul B's Avatar
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    And This is custom height.


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