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280ZX Short throw shifter


nbesheer

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Shorts shifters for the nissan trannies has been discussed in length.

 

The final realization is that the only way to TRULY reduce the actual ANGLE of the shift is to raise the pivot point, so you'd need to modify the mounting point for the shifter, probably needing to weld new tabs to mount from, and then extending the piece from the mount downwards to make up for the lost length (could be gained by starting with a truck shifter, which is longer on the bottom portion).

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Well it's an interesting piece that I'm curious about, because it doesn't look like any of the nissan shifters I've seen.

 

I like that they're not actually advertising it as a true short throw, and mention it being "shorter" and thus "shorter throw" but by no means is it going to be decresing the amount of angle the shifter must change, just the distance.

 

In my mind I simply don't think it's possible to achieve a shorter shift angle by modifying the shifter ALONE. Modification must be done on the transmission as well. I'll make up some MS drawing to demonstrate. Give me 10-15 minutes.

 

EDIT: Sorry, work picked up. Can't make a picture right now. The basics: If you lower the contact point it quickly starts to interfere with the shifting performance of the transmission. If you raise the pivot point and keep the contact in the same location you'll gain more throw beneith the pivot point without causing problems with shifting.

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Any of the datsun trucks with the same tranny series. So any datsun truck with a L series motor. This shifter has a much longer section bellow the pivot point, so if you drill a new hole for the pivot point it'll still make contact and be able to shift, giving you a pretty short throw.

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Thanks Gollum,

Sounds very interesting to me, but I have a question.

I am in Australia, we use different terminology down here.

 

What do you call a truck? :?

Are you refering to a 1980's MQ Patrol? I used to have one, they have an L28 with a 4 speed gearbox. Or a later MK Patrol, which had a 5 speed box. I wouldn't really call them trucks though.

 

I'm not being patronizing, just unsure and after clarification.

We get very different cars here.

 

Also you say a pretty short throw.....is it going to be worth the hassle??

 

Thanks,

Simon

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Aren't the T5's in our cars the same as a Mustang? Won't a Foxbody short shifter work? Just a thought because Summit and Jegs sells them regularly..

It has the same mounting points for the shifter. I've owned a Fox and it seems to be the same tranny..

shifters.jpg

Nissan ------------------Ford

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.S. This one looks AWESOME!

mustang_shifter_3650.jpg

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We call a truck a truck...lol

Ok seriously, I don't think we got the Patrol here. The shifters we're referring to are from the 620 Pickups. At least I think they were 620s..Anyhow, the point is they were actual trucks, not SUVs. Now I'm sure the Patrol probably has the same shifter in it though.

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Aren't the T5's in our cars the same as a Mustang? Won't a Foxbody short shifter work? Just a thought because Summit and Jegs sells them regularly..

It has the same mounting points for the shifter. I've owned a Fox and it seems to be the same tranny..

shifters.jpg

Nissan ------------------Ford

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.S. This one looks AWESOME!

mustang_shifter_3650.jpg

Yes with the T5 you can use the Ford short throw. The rest of the trannies though need a different kit.

MSA sells short throw shifters and they're real short throws. They come with two ears that bolt to the transmission and a shifter with a longer lower pivot. This gives you a shifter the same height as the original with a shorter throw between shifts.

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Thanks Gollum,

Sounds very interesting to me, but I have a question.

I am in Australia, we use different terminology down here.

 

What do you call a truck? :?

Are you refering to a 1980's MQ Patrol? I used to have one, they have an L28 with a 4 speed gearbox. Or a later MK Patrol, which had a 5 speed box. I wouldn't really call them trucks though.

 

I'm not being patronizing, just unsure and after clarification.

We get very different cars here.

 

Also you say a pretty short throw.....is it going to be worth the hassle??

 

Thanks,

Simon

 

Datsun pickup =

 

84720318_0e31f9c6f9.jpg

 

The truck I found one in looked just like that. I have one of these truck shifters sitting in my garage. I just never got around to putting it in my ZX since I started the engine swap and it was "going" to have a T5 in it. Still not sure I'll ever used. Maybe someday.

 

It's not had to see if the shifter would work. First clue will be that the upper portion is really long. In the datsun trucks your entire butt was above the transmission, not next to, so the shifter reaches a lot farther to get to you. They used a "short shifter" so to speak to reduce the throw a little bit so you weren't swinging your arm through the window.

 

Take one of those, cut it down to normal size, weld it, then drill a new hole in shifter ears that's higher up and voila, super short shift.

 

I havn't done it myself, so I can't testify how "worth it" it is, but if you're looking for a shorter shift I think it's well worth it, as it WILL make a significant difference. I just can't give you measurements of how much.

 

The hardest part of the job would be drilling the new holes in the mount ears. I don't think you can really get at it with the tranmission still in the car, unless you want to hack up your tranny tunnel. It might be possible to just take off the tranny mount and then jack the tranny up a bit so it sticks out of the tunnel just enough, but that doesn't sound very safe.

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Thanks for the clarification Gollum.

We would call that a ute (short for utility). A truck is bigger to us.

I don't think we got the 620 here, we got the 720. Would it be the same shifter? Maybe, its something I will look into in the future when I drop the box out.

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  • 1 year later...
Yes with the T5 you can use the Ford short throw. The rest of the trannies though need a different kit.

MSA sells short throw shifters and they're real short throws. They come with two ears that bolt to the transmission and a shifter with a longer lower pivot. This gives you a shifter the same height as the original with a shorter throw between shifts.

 

so any fox body short throw shift kit will work? :weird:

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