DNA Motoring Short Shifter Kit

[Manic]

Has anyone had any experience with this kit?
http://speed-daddy.com/short-shifter...s_productnotes

I was pretty dead set on the the TRD Quickshifter, but the price (for what is essentially just and extension/adapter) and the threading issues have given me pause. I stumbled upon this short shift kit during my usual online window shopping rounds, but I haven't been able to find any more information about it. I've seen some threads about DNA's J2 catback, and they appear to be pretty decent. I'm wondering if this thing is also a good deal.

The product itself looks to be manufactured well and the throws look decently reduced in their installation video.

Anyone care to chime in on this? I might just bite the bullet and go for it.

[Sportsguy83]

Don't get the TRD SS, the design is flawed and the bolt that holds it in place below will eventually come undone.

I'd be wary of a $78 short shifter, I hope you can find real life great reviews on it.

[Manic]

That's what the general consensus seems to be about the TRD quick shifter. Some have said that using red loctite instead of blue will solve the problem with the bolt backing out, but I'd rather not rely on glue for something like that. Shifteck and Kartboy are obvious alternatives, but at a third the price, this one is extremely tempting.

[Sportsguy83]

Originally Posted by Manic

That's what the general consensus seems to be about the TRD quick shifter. Some have said that using red loctite instead of blue will solve the problem with the bolt backing out, but I'd rather not rely on glue for something like that. Shifteck and Kartboy are obvious alternatives, but at a third the price, this one is extremely tempting.

I've had the Kartboy for 2+ years and really like it, no issues.

$78 is not much money and it even comes with the shifter bushing, so it may be worth to pull the trigger and try it out.

[Manic]

My curiosity got the better of me.



The kit looks decent enough. The reverse lockout probably needs some light sanding/polishing. It's a soft-ish plastic, not quite like the stock rubbery plastic. I'll try to install this weekend and give it a bit of a shake down.

[Calum]

Wow, that's some pretty quick shipping...

[Manic]

Originally Posted by Calum

Wow, that's some pretty quick shipping...

They were 15 mins away, I just went and picked it up.

[Manic]

Pretty resounding success. Throws are definitely shorter and the shifter feels solid. Install went smoothly except for trying to get the shift linkage pin back in. Although, this was primarily because we added a washer to eliminate any slop in the shifter and it's spot on. With the included transmission bushing, shifts are snappy and crisp.

It's gonna take a bit to adjust to the shorter throws, but so far it's pretty amazing. Fantastic value for $80 bucks, let's just see if it'll hold up. Huge shout out to @continuecrushing for helping with (doing about 90% of) the install. He's also taken some photos of the maximum distance forward and backwards and will be taking photos of his kartboy kit for comparison. From what it sounds like, the throws are close. I'm pretty surprised no one's heard of these kits before.

[Ultramaroon]

This could be the next thing. You're a pioneer.

[Manic]

Someone's gotta be the brave first penguin. Now, obviously people shouldn't just pick up parts based on price alone. That's how we get people swapping out exhausts or wheels left and right because they realize later on that it's not what they wanted or there was a reason something was so cheap.

Hopefully that doesn't turn out to be the case for me, but expectations and hopes are high, especially after the successful install.

[Ultramaroon]

The shifter is a busy little assembly. 80 bucks is about as low as it can reasonably get.

Fingers crossed for you.

[swarb]

@Manic Did the white plastics look like delrin? Many cheap short shifters on other cars cheap out and use lesser(brittle) plastics.
Is it just me or the weld at the bottom of the unit looks off center? Is it supposed to be like that?

I hope it works out! Please keep us updated if it has any rattles etc.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by swarb

Is it just me or the weld at the bottom of the unit looks off center? Is it supposed to be like that?

Stock one has the same offset. Normal.

[Manic]

Originally Posted by swarb

@Manic Did the white plastics look like delrin? Many cheap short shifters on other cars cheap out and use lesser(brittle) plastics.

I hope it works out! Please keep us updated if it has any rattles etc.

It appears to be delrin; it didn't feel brittle or overly light. That was probably the most surprising thing about this kit, everything felt substantial. Granted, the reverse lockout didn't have the best finished, looks to be made out of some really sturdy ABS or something, but even that was passable.

No rattles so far with about 50 miles in. According to @continuecrushing, it might not develop the kartboy rattle seeing as how snug the reverse lockout was.