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Shorty's Short Shifter + Clutch Stop Review

RudyH

Go Kart Champion
Location
Kitchener, ON
Also must mention off the bat, the 42 Design Shifter Bushings / Shifter Relay Lever Bushings, as they added to the big grin on my face...

No, this is not a manual vs automatic comparison thread, it also isn't a comparison between short shifter kits available on the market....rather it is a props to some great work by 'Shorty' that made me immediately fall in love with this car. Let me explain.

When I was researching the car, I saw the MK7 Golf R complaints about the 6MT. At the time owning a DCT S4, I truly loved the speed / consistency of the transmission. Knowing my fiance had never driven a manual transmission before, I was very close to going with the DSG Golf R. The end of the era of the manual transmission is upon us, I knew my fiance would be able to learn manual (and she has been doing great so far...on my brothers old BMW lol), I will compromise on the performance in favor of the experience...and research how to make the experience of owning potentially my last 6MT the best one yet.

There were many options I was looking at, but I settled on Shorty's Short Shifter's for VW : https://www.facebook.com/ShortysShifters4VW/
I never actually had it on my list, but I sold some parts from my S4 to a friend of Shorty's, and I thought, why not give it a shot based off the recommendation.

What's in the package (please note the 42 Design Shifter Bushings / Shifter Relay Lever Bushings are sold separate, I bought them locally: GermanOEM http://germanoem.ca/) :


What you might notice is there is a LOT of metal here. The shifter, side to side, on the MK7.5 anyway is plastic, which annoyed me. The shifter bushings as everyone is well aware of is plastic and rubber. All of this is gone and replaced with much more solid components.
This shifter is also an OEM+ piece from the S3 I *believe*, but you will notice it has been modified for a shorter throw then OEM+. The shifter is not adjustable though, but I feel like 'Shorty' picked the perfect setting, and personally even if I did buy the adjustable, I would NEVER adjust it. The shifter side to side has not been modified from OEM+, the side to side stock seems perfect already to me.

The VW Bug? It does not help at all with the install, but it's little trinket that was a nice touch.

How it looks like after the install :




So what does this all help do?

Let me start with the clutch stop actually. I have only owned the car for approximately 5 months, but I found the clutch throw is very long. I was having a hard time finding that perfect spot to have the clutch out and shift during the travel, but keeping it consistent and not jamming / grinding during a hard launch. This enforces the 'on / off position' and it gives back those few 1/10ths of a second when rowing through the gears - adding a higher degree of consistency.

Shorty's Short Shifter, provided that perfect throw with the snap of a wrist from 1-2nd. The 2nd-3rd is fine, and it gives me the piece of mind knowing a 5th or 6th to 4th won't accidentally turn into a 'money shift' by going too short side to side. It does feel a tad longer then it should, but I would again prefer getting use to it, then creating an expensive accident.

42 Design Shifter Bushings / Shifter Relay Lever Bushings, I must say I did everything all at once so I can't say where did benefits come in from each part. If I had to guess, all the slop and mess of the rubber bushings, gone. That feeling of 'cutting' into each gear actually seems to create a bit of excitement as you power through the gears.

I took the car out, and the German blood in me doesn't race very well with excitement, but I must say this had a nice big grin on my face in the back country roads. I hated in the city going from 4th to 6th while coasting, but I don't even think about it now. If I had to do it again, this all would be my set-up again and again.

If I had to give anyone advice for their set-up, I would say 42 Design Shifter Bushings / Shifter Relay Lever Bushings + Shorty's (or BMS for that matter) Short Clutch Stops would be on the top of the list if you aren't considering a short shifter kit. Also it is budget friendly for smiles / miles. However, if you are looking to add a short shifter kit to your set-up, make sure you are spending that extra money to replace the bushings above, and grabbing a clutch stop (especially for the price). I also would advise of adding Shorty's modified OEM+ short shifter in your comparison when shopping for the right kit.

 
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