Stiffen your Mazda 3, Mazdaspeed 3 shifter for FREE

[Babyface13]

I did mine today. It seems alot better so far!

 

[xxxmonoxidechil]

if i didnt allrealy have the fusionsport solid bushings installed, id be all over this. (note, the fusion sport bushings are ALOTA cheaper then the TWM one's, and are the same thing. i only spent $25 shipped)

but im gonna do the shifter mod for sure! somehow, i had totally missed that thread and had no idea!

 

[FMOS Racing]

In my opinion, replacing the factory hardware with some decent 8.8 or 10.9 fasteners from your local hardware store should be considered a mandatory part of this mod.

It's a matter of shear luck if you were able to get the fasteners in and the rubber bushings completely compressed without stripping or shearing the junk factory hardware.

So, spend the $1.50 it costs and make a run to Lowes/Home Depot/TSC/OSH and get some 6mmx1.0 fasteners of the correct length, throw some washers on them, and use that.

Between this mod and a Delrin dogbone (I ordered poly, got Delrin and just installed it anyway), I missed one 2-3 powershift in 9 tries. The one I missed is because my hand slipped off the shifter.

 

[navyagspeed3]

So after a week of trying everthing to get the stripped bolt out I still have had no luck. I took it to the dealership and they were going to charge me $189. So i said heck no. Any body have any ideas that might help me get this dang bolt out?

 

[ericrapp]

PB blaster and soak the remaining bolt bit. If there is nothing left to grab on bolt shaft with you will need to do a bit more work !89 is absurd. if you can grab a bit of bolt head remains, try to rotate. Gently tighten! then gently loosen. again and again. It will barely move as a thread has broken. Spray with penetrating oil again. repeat with patience. till someone is about to get hurt. Then try this. use a prick or center punch to mark the center of the bolt and use a very small drill bit to create room for an easy out This can be done by you or another mechanic. Unless it gets ugly, which it can, should be no more than half an hour. Feel free to pm for more details or questions

 

[FMOS Racing]

I had enough of a stub left that I was able to get a stud extractor (Sears/Craftsman) on it and get it out. $20 in tools that you can keep.

I was nervous, though, because there wasn't much left to work with, but I managed to get enough grip on it to get it out.

 

[dkswim]

going to do this today

 

[Sims]

Did this today with washers. Need to do the front two bushings next. Feels pretty good so far

 

[Chaz243]

I also did this mod this morning... Two thick flat washers slipped over each insert and tightened them back until the inserts seated... This method will help alleviate the broken bolt syndrome... I think that the guys breaking bolts are not getting a good "tight" feel because they are squeezing the rubber and not seating the insert... Just MHO...

Oh yea... The shifter feels great... Best 15 minute mod to date... Thanks man!!!!

 

[NiteRunner]

+1 for adding washers,
.99c for a bag of four, (1/8").
I just did this in about 5 min.

Just make sure you put them in first on top of the rubber before the sleeve, as another poster said.

 

[Ante]

Here is another way to do a Free Stiffen... bit more time consuming and you need machinery available

- Lathe with Parting tool
- Centering Drill
- 6mm Drill Bit
- Vernier Caliper
- Some 27mm ish rod available Plastic Steel Alloy what ever!

Make your Own shifter bushes like i did for $00.00





I bought Stainless 316

- 4 (M6 x 30mm) bolts
- 4 (M6 small) Washers
- 4 (M6 large) washers

Much better had some Plastic rod lying around at the workshop...

you might be able to get offcuts for cheap or free from someone..

 

[Wurf]

I was going to mention why don't you whip out a few dozen sets of these and sell them in the marketplace, but you're way down in the land of the Kiwi's!

 

[meicalnissyen]

While removing my shifter to bend the lever forward and left to better suit my reach, I noticed it would be very easy to stiffen the shifter base mounting points by simply shortening the isolator sleeves. Here is what I did.

Expose the shifter assembly by removing the shift knob and snapping the panels upward starting at the front of the rear console compartment - 3 minutes, tops.

Remove the two rear screws with a 10mm socket and extension. You will have to flex the left side of the console out a little, but easily done.

Remove the isolator sleeves. You will have to work them back and forth a little.

Mark 1/8" from the bottom of the isolator sleeve and remove this material. I used a grinder, but a hacksaw and vise would work if you do not squeeze the isolator sleeve excessively. This picture is after shortening the sleeve.

Reassemble. The isolators will now be compressed practically solid.

Note: You can do all four mounts in this manner if you wish, but you will get 90% of the effect by doing the two rear mounts which are very simple to reach.

-enganear

Good mod
If you want to spend a few cents, a trip to the hardware store will yeild a stack of washers which can be used to mimic the "bushing" mod quite well.

as the OP states 2 or 3 outta 4 is way gutentite

 

[SingleFin1969]

Just did this, both rear and front right bushings (too lazy to mess with the front left). Added two washers to each bolt to help prevent bolt breakage. Really nice and easy to do. Used 1/4 drive tools, which really helped. Shifting is much more positive now.

 

[pt109]

Thanks to enganear

I'm a relatively new Mazda 3 owner, and I just registered so I could thank
the OP for this efficient, and easy do do mod. (hi)

 

[FreddyMS3]

MS3 MGM 09 owner here. Just thought I'd post a thank to the OP for the great idea. Shifts are much better now. Second to third gear was the worst. I used the method of leaving the inserts the same height but adding washers to slip the inserts into and then mounting them with high grade stainless steel M6 M6 1.0mm 30mm bolts rather than using the cheap OEM bolts.

 

[5-4-fighting]

Installed my E4 Performance Short Shifter along with the supplied bushings and washers to 3 of the 4 bolts. Stiffened things up real nice. Between the two mods the shifting is very crisp. I also have the TRZ Tranny and Motor Mounts installed. That coupled with the Cobb SRI and TIP, the car is scary fast. I can light up the tires in second gear all the way to red line.

Great job Enganear on the idea.

 

[PakmanMP5]

If somebody made a video that would be awesome because I can't visualize the process in my head for some reason with the washers and bolts.....

 

[drewgie]

What exactly will this mod do for my shifting? I have a '10 mazda 3 2.0 and I noticed sometimes when I accel hard and I shift from 1st to 2nd that the gears will grind, even though I'm shifting to the correct spot and the clutch is pushed all the way.. I see people say it stiffens up the shifting, and that it makes it less mushy.. Would it just make it easier to shift when RPM's are high?