Manual Tranny???

[Supercharged Vipermad]

I have been driving a stick for about 15 years, I'm not here to say that I am a wizard on the shifting but I'm darn good at it..Whats the deal with third gear on the Viper..I seem to be always getting myself in trouble when I go into it..At quick shifts it seems it doesnt want to get in the slot..I know alot of you guys told me to get a shorter shifter but will that make a big difference in this problem I'm having???

 

[SapphireGTS]

That is one of the few complaints I have about the viper. I put a new shifter on the car and it actually made it worse. The stock shifter is very long but the entire thing comes off, knob, shaft and all. You can play around with different knobs until you find one you like. Thats what I did. I have been driving stick for quite some time and find that a car not going into the right gear can really throw a wrench into things. Like a mustang not going into reverse, a ferrari 308-328-348 not going into second. Mazda rx7 not going into first.

Cars are weird and they all seem like they have a different characteristic.

So . . . its the car. . . not you.

But play around with different shifters and you'll get on you like and remove that stupid Looooong shaft. I forget who makes it but I have a shifter on mine that eliminates the shifter pole and the new shifter screws right into the tranny where the long post originally screws into. Its made by some metal fab company and has a viper stamped into the top. The shifter was like 80 bucks and makes the shifter feels like a short shifter was installed.

Man. . . Im long winded today. Maybe because I drove the viper to work.

Good Day

Gar

 

[Rich Detert]

I make a replacement shifter shaft for the Viper.
Here's a link to one of my post about it with a few responses from people who have them.

Post on Shifter Shaft

I'm in the process of building a new web-site for all my online stuff (shifter parts, Viper stuff, Pics, etc.). I hope to have the new site up and running this week.
My olds site was a free one and now it's no longer available.

Here are pics of the stock shifter shaft and my replacement shafts which are $25 each including shipping.

Feel free to E-Mail me with any questions you have @ [email protected] .
Stock Shifter Shaft.

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Replacement Shifter Shafts.

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I've got some of the pages on my new site working now, but it's a long way from finished.

 

[SapphireGTS]

This is THE best mod I have done to any car
http://www.mgwltd.com/images/va-satin.gif

 

[scottgf]

I also installed one of Rich's shifters...It was very easy and cheap, just like me.
I would recommend it!!
Cheers,
Scott

 

[Ron]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">To those that have installed Rich's solid shifter shaft, how noticeable is the lack of flex vs. stock?</FONT f>

 

[scottgf]

Ron,
The shifter feels much more precise then the stock one.
I don't notice any vibrations coming through the shaft, which I would suppose was the reason the stock one had the rubber insulator on it.

 

[BigsViper]

Regarding these shorter shafts... Has anyone noticed a problem with heat? I know you only touch the shifter long enough to execute the shift, but I notice the shaft of my stock shifter gets pretty warm near the boot, and I wondered if the short ones felt any hotter. Thanks

 

[SapphireGTS]

The shifter I posted above had a significantly less amount of heat coming through it. I used to be cautious when grabbing the shifter. Now I dont even think about it. . . I agree with above. Everything about the shifter is day and night difference compared to the stock. Iill say ti again. If you are using the stock shifter the new shifter i posted above with be the best mod/for the money you will ever do.

:

 

[Russ M]

Blkvenom,

I had the same problem with my viper the shifts were horible, especialy the 2-3. I got the B&M short shifter and MGW's shorter knob, and that made it a night and day difference. Hope this helps.........

 

[Ron]

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS">After reading the positive comments on Rich's solid shifter shaft, I decided to install the stock length one I purchased from him a while back and was too lazy to install.

Rich's directions were pretty close, but for a GEN II I noticed two variances. One, I see no way you can bend back the leather boot tabs from underneath the console. I found gently prying the upper edge of the boot bezel accomplished the same task, without risking cracking the console. Second, the inner rubber boot is sized for the larger diameter stock isolator and will not seal against the new thinner solid shaft. Unless you like road noise and extra heat, you'll need to seal the area. I used a 2 1/4 inch or so diameter foam plug to fill the gap.

Lastly, I'd note where the spring clips (four light green ovals on the picture, plus two not visable which are above the radio) are mounted on the radio bezel and direct your prying effort there. Pulling in the wrong area perhaps will crack the bezel and create business for Jon B.

Now that it's installed and tested, I concur with the other positive posts. Feels more like the old Cuda shifters, very solid with nice tactile feedback. That plus the MGW Gripper shifter knob is the ticket for me.</FONT f>

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[Sean Roe]

LARoadster and all,

The replacement clutch link is for 1996 and newer Vipers with adjustable pedals only (this excludes '96 RT/10's). We looked at the linkage on the Gen 1 car and there's no practical way to lower the pedal, as the clutch master cylinder rod attaches directly to the pedal.

LARoadster, did you install the replacement link, or take a measurement of the one in your car (with it installed) and compare it to the one we sent you? Only if you took your stock one out and put it up against ours would you see the difference (I've been down this road before). Try putting the link in your car, it will drop the clutch pedal to the same, or near same, height as the brake, instead of being an inch and a quarter higher. If not, this will be a first. If you don't want your clutch pedal to be lower, send the link back for a refund or credit. It will only cost about $1 for US mail.

Regarding the shifting, I'll pass along the tip we used at the Justin Bell School when we had the Vipers. When you grab the shifter, point your elbow (as much as is comfortable) toward the passengers seat, then shift. Because of the seating position in the Viper, the drivers elbow is typically pointed toward his/her body, which causes you to shift at an angle, missing shifts. We used to go through this all the time on the first day of schools. Try it, it works.

Oh yeah, the shorter shift knobs and rods, as mentioned above, do work well in the Vipers. I have one in my GTS with a stock shifter.