VERY HAPPY with vintage speed shifter.. one week from Taiwan to Boise ID. This is a very high quality part and worth the money. Packaging like opening an iPhone! Install a snap. Reduced throw and precise shifts. Was reluctant and so glad I pulled trigger. Keith
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It's what everyone says.
I love the 2 vintage speed shifters I have bought. One in my Speedster and one in my Puma. I agree with what has been said. I highly recommend them, huge improvement over all other shifters especially a stock shifter. I bought a Sebring exhaust from Vintage Speed as well and it was a work of art.
Jimmy, if you installed the Sebring exhaust on a speedster, sure would like to see pics of install. Would be concerned about it hanging down too low like so many do... Keith
So any of the one's in the link will work? If so, does anyone have a size they'd recommend. Is it something that is easy to install, or would it be best for a shop to do it?
I have no clue how to do install it, but it doesn't mean I'm not willing to try. (unless this is a job that is known to be tricky). The vague shifter is something I'd like to improve on. Thanks for any advice.
Bill
Sslowshoes: You will want to choose a length shifter as long as the one you have or a tad longer it is all to your taste of how it feels to you when seated in the drivers seat. The shifter isn't all that hard to install, a 15 min or less job for someone that can turn a wrench. If you buy one have someone like me face time you through the install.
Bubbasev: I ordered a 45mm tube size which is a custom build for them. They contacted me to send them measurements and pictures of my Speedster to build the system to fit and have the tip a half inch under the bumper. It fit very nice. I am not sure about buying their in stock sebring exhaust. Mine took 6 weeks to build but it was a wonderfully built product.
Thanks for the reply Jimmy, and the offer of help should I buy one - very much appreciated. (I'm confident I'll at least need advice).
This is probably a dumb question, but I'm curious what makes the standard VS shifter feel so vague. Without knowing a thing about them, it just seems like something that could be adjusted and dialed in by someone who knew what they were doing. What did Vintage Speed do with their shifter to make it more precise?
Bill
The stock shifter is made inexpensively and was designed to shift from one gear to another and not be sporty. It does the job but over the years the ball at the end gets sloppy as well as the bushings of the shift tube and coupler. The Vintage Speed shifter has its own machined base to stabilize the shifter and it is designed to use a raised leverage point to make the distance between gears shorter. It is a very well thought out redesign of the VW shifter and worth every cent of what they cost.
I've been holding out. This post my have gotten be off my arse to buy the shifter. Now I just need to find a cool wooden knob.
@Bubbasev, @Jimmy V., @jncspyder (and anyone else that owns a Vintage Speed shifter)- does any of you remember the landed cost of your shifters once it was in your hands?
Gene Berg Ent. makes a great shifter as well, and it's made in the USA so you're not sending your money overseas-
I have owned both the Berg and the Vintage Speed and the Vintage is in my opinion a better shifter. Of course this is only my humble opinion take it for what it is worth.
@slowshoes @Jimmy V. i have the updated PORSCHE bushing model ...along with having replaced the plastic shift bushing in the hanger with the (EV4U)
BRASS one and a brand new SHIFT ROD since john steele/JPS (aka DR JEKYLL/MR HYDE) in his infinite wisdom thought it was OK to leave a 50 year old WORN OUT part in my $40K car....(which is an entirely different OPRAH)....those things have dialed in the shifting of my car for the life of the car
@thedak posted:
While there's no doubt the wood Porsche knob is a beauty, this is the one I'll be getting. I have the white banjo wheel with ivory knobs on everything else, so this one will look better with my car. That's a beauty Dak, very elegant looking - thanks for posting.
Bill
GASP!!!
I am shocked. SHOCKED, I say, that Mr. Steele would use anything that was not absolutely top-rate in any of his builds.
SHOCKED!!!
I may need another Hot Tody, just to calm down.
And just to be honest here, I have the Berg "T" handle shifter. I like it, having nothing else to compare it to, but if I had my druthers I would opt for something with an ivory ball or mushroom cap. Not that I don't like my "T" (it perfectly fits my hand), but Dak's ivory shift ball is really nice.
Before my Vintage Speed shifter, I had a CSP shifter which is also very nice and worth investigating.
The one thing that bothers me about the Vintage Speed shifter is that the boot is not attached at the bottom. I tried a couple of alternatives - the top part of a 911 boot and part of a generic CV joint boot. Finally, I had a leather boot made by a little shop in Poland. I see that jncspyder also has a leather boot. It bothers me a little bit that the leather boot hides the attractive base of the shifter.
I replace the Vintage knob with a 356A knob. It was an expensive piece of plastic.
I, too, have a Vintage Speed shifter. I can’t compare it to a Berg, or EMPI, or any other aftermarket shifter.
I can, however, say that the short throw and crisp gear selection is hands down FAR superior to the stock one I replaced.
You know how sometimes something works so well and so seamlessly that it disappears from your mind?
You flush the toilet and never think about the miles of pipe and centuries of civilization working together to carry your unmentionables away so that you don't have to deal with them ever again. You flip on the lights and sit in luminescence until 3 in the morning, escaping or inverting the circadian rhythm that has defined humanity since the dawn of history. We eat fresh strawberries in January and fresh seafood in Omaha. We sit in 70* homes all winter and summer, whether we live in Fairbanks, Alaska or Phoenix, Arizona.
We transport ourselves in cocoons, replete with stability control, lane departure warnings, heads up displays, brake-by-wire, and an engine that lasts 200,000 miles with minimal maintenance. Tires last 80,000 miles. Batteries last 10 years or more. It is possible to drive across entire time-zones without ever stopping for anything-- the limits being human and biological, not mechanical or anything having to do with the roadway itself.
We don't think about any one of 10,000 things that occupied the vast bulk of our great grandparents' existence-- laundry, clean water, heat, lights, getting to town.
The Vintage Speedster shifter is like that.
It takes something impossible to ignore (how bad the stock shifter is, and how vague), and transforms it into... the background. After a week or two of marveling at how well it works (this thing is AWESOME!!!), you just kind of forget it. It slips into the gear you mean it to slip into. It can be rowed hard or gently nudged-- it works the same either way. From an aesthetic standpoint, it looks serious but not out of place. It doesn't draw attention to itself like a Berg "T" handle shifter or EMPI trigger shifter, both of which look like they are trying really hard to do a weird impersonation of a '69 'cuda.
It just blends into the background, working seamlessly like a good furnace or computer or mechanical pencil.
I can think of no higher praise to give something like this. It works perfectly. It isn't stupid looking or frustrating or quirky. You'd never realize what a miracle that is, unless of course you tried anything else (which we all have). It's the Mazda Miata (or Porsche 911, if you will) of VW shifters-- quietly stepping up to the plate and hitting a towering grand-slam home run out of the park, over the sidewalk, and bouncing down the street-- utterly and finally and definitively showing everybody else how it ought to be done after everybody else has been trying (and failing, mostly) to get it done for 50 years.
Buy what you like. I'm never thinking about a shifter again.
@Stan Galat bravo! mr president!...you sure have an EXCELLENT speech writer there in STANISTAN!
You getting a commission from Vintage Stan, lol - nicely said.
Bill
Are most guys with a VS going with the 10 inch then? The shifter in my car is measuring 9 inches - I'm concerned going with the 11.5 inch might cause unforeseen clearance issues.
Bill
@slowshoes posted:Are most guys with a VS going with the 10 inch then? The shifter in my car is measuring 9 inches - I'm concerned going with the 11.5 inch might cause unforeseen clearance issues.
Bill
Maybe this magic VS shifter will make forget about the all of the things I want to upgrade on my Speedster
All of the above.^
Just remember to swap out the old worn down nylon shift rod bushing. Once that goes away it doesn't matter what shifter mechanism you have.
I installed a bronze shift rod bushing. I will never have to replace it again.
Currently out of stock at http://www.ev4unow.com/VWShiftRodBushing.html
@edsnova you are correct sir!.....it's a big job....more so with a subaru with A/C condenser & radiator....but replace the shift rod (if worn/egg shaped ) & replace the nylon part with the EV4U brass shift rod bushing....it will be good for the life of the car....voice of experience talking
The installation kit seems grossly overpriced for what you get but I wouldn't attempt the job without it.
@Michael McKelvey again, you are correct sir!....the video shows how to install.... the kit is not hard to duplicate....i paid a hotrod mechanic to do the job since i don't have a lift....really didn't want to attempt it under jack stands..a wise man once said "save your DOUGH, & hire a PRO"
Is there any adjustment that has to be made when installing? If so, how is it done?
Move the shifter and the plate under the base.
@slowshoes : I purchased a Vintage Speed shifter about a year ago. Mine is identical to the one posted by @thedak but with chrome shaft and black handle (SKU 155-795-52200). It claims to be 12” but there are zero clearance issues with it in my 2003 VS.
@Stan Galat : that was some fine writing you posted. If I ever sell any of my toys can I hire you to write the advert.?
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@slowshoes posted:Are most guys with a VS going with the 10 inch then? The shifter in my car is measuring 9 inches - I'm concerned going with the 11.5 inch might cause unforeseen clearance issues.
Bill
Here's how the standard 11.5 inch looks in my VS.
If you order directly from Vintage Speed, they will make the shaft practically any custom length you want and they'll also adjust the bend to suit, too.
But, this size seems perfect to me and there are no clearance issues (although I don't have a radio under the dash). In the photos, the shifter is in first gear, so as far forward as it will go.
Adjustment can be a little fiddly, but it just takes some patience. There's a stop plate underneath (which limits the travel of the shifter). The positioning of both the main housing AND the stop plate will determine alignment.
Part of the shifter's precision comes from how tight that stop plate is cut out, so there's just one position that will let you catch all the gears smoothly. It takes a while to find the sweet spot, but once you do, you're home.
Also, this is the older model that requires you lift the whole shift lever for reverse lockout. The new ones have a collar for that.
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Mitch, that looks like 1st and 3rd may be a reach, but maybe its jus the photo.
@Marty Grzynkowicz posted:Mitch, that looks like 1st and 3rd may be a reach, but maybe its jus the photo.
... and 5th. Don't forget that Mitch has a 5-speed.
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I don't like to talk about it much, but one of the reasons for getting the five-speed is that reaching for fifth is a good toning exercise. It works the pecs and helps keep me lithe.
People just expect more of you when you have five forward speeds.
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Thanks for those photos Mitch - as Marty said, it does look like a bit of a reach. I'm going to take a look at the standard shift in my car from those same angles and see how it compares.
I've read in an older thread that the carpet needs to be trimmed from under the base to keep the plate from moving out of position. Did you find this to be the case for you?
Bill
@Sacto Mitch wrote:
"I don't like to talk about it much, but one of the reasons for getting the five-speed is that reaching for fifth is a good toning exercise. It works the pecs and helps keep me lithe.
People just expect more of you when you have five forward speeds."
You know, since you got that 5-speed installed I've noticed that your typing font looked a little more "Buff". I can only conclude that they're related. Kind-a like learning how to cook better during Covid and watching your waistline expand.
Or something like that....... 
I bought the 10” quick shifter (with nylon bushing) that was only slightly longer than stock to minimize throw. Glad I did. The carpet was so flat beneath old shifter that I did not trim. I put trans in neutral, dropped it in, snugged bolts slightly, shifted through gears, and tightened it. Done. Much less fore/aft and side-to-side adjustment with these making install a snap.
Isn't it amazing how people with 5 speeds seem to be just a little better looking?
@Bubbasev posted:I bought the 10” quick shifter (with nylon bushing) that was only slightly longer than stock to minimize throw. Glad I did. The carpet was so flat beneath old shifter that I did not trim. I put trans in neutral, dropped it in, snugged bolts slightly, shifted through gears, and tightened it. Done. Much less fore/aft and side-to-side adjustment with these making install a snap.
That's what I'm hoping for as far an install goes. I've never really found myself thinking I wish I had a taller shift lever when driving - a tighter, more precise shifter, for sure. That's why I'm kind of leaning toward getting the 10 inch one.
Bill
Yeah.......
And give them a 6-speed and they suddenly become TV actors:
I wonder what show Mitch is gonna be on?
Why..... "Fifth Gear", of course!
@Sacto Mitch said "I don't like to talk about it much, but one of the reasons for getting the five-speed is that reaching for fifth is a good toning exercise. It works the pecs and helps keep me lithe."
But, it only develops the pecs on the right side resulting in a strange-looking chest. Maybe a falsie will be needed on the left side.
"And give them a 6-speed and they suddenly become TV actors:"
I wonder if I can get @chines1 to put a 6-speed in my Coupe?
@Michael McKelvey posted:@Sacto Mitch said "I don't like to talk about it much, but one of the reasons for getting the five-speed is that reaching for fifth is a good toning exercise. It works the pecs and helps keep me lithe."
But, it only develops the pecs on the right side resulting in a strange-looking chest. Maybe a falsie will be needed on the left side.
Michael- did you ever get your shifting issue sorted out?
@ALB posted:Isn't it amazing how people with 5 speeds seem to be just a little better looking?
Thanks, Al! 
@ALB, yes. I moved the bottom plate a bit.
@Bob: IM S6 posted:Thanks, Al!
Very good Bob! A quick wit as well as looks...
Hey! You Canadians get a room! 
That's really hurtful, Danny.
EDIT: Where did Danny's reply go? I was only kidding. 
@ALB posted:Isn't it amazing how people with 5 speeds seem to be just a little better looking?
3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13 & 18 speed shifters.... I'm center fold material
Trouble-maker Lane wrote: “I wonder if I can get @chines1 to put a 6-speed in my Coupe?”
Sure, but you’ll need the TV actor job to pay for it and the only show I can think of that might take you is “Wheel of Fortune”.
You know my wife has been pushing me to try out for “Wheel of Fortune”. We watch it after the news and I seem to be pretty good at it.
My lack of mechanical skill is legendary but I put a Vintage Speed Shifter in the wife's Thing. It's really nice and made me realize how bad mine is.
I just can't get the wife to understand you don't have to slam a short shifter into gear. I had to go back and tighten/adjust it a month or so later. All easy.
p.s. I read Stan's post and envisioned him in a log cabin, sipping a hot steaming cup of coffee. You know, if the commercial is made.
@Lane Anderson posted:You know my wife has been pushing me to try out for “Wheel of Fortune”. We watch it after the news and I seem to be pretty good at it.
Everyone is pretty good at it while they're sitting at home without any pressure on them and nothing at stake if you get it wrong. LOL
Tru dat!
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@slowshoes posted:Thanks for those photos Mitch - as Marty said, it does look like a bit of a reach. I'm going to take a look at the standard shift in my car from those same angles and see how it compares.
I've read in an older thread that the carpet needs to be trimmed from under the base to keep the plate from moving out of position. Did you find this to be the case for you?
Bill
Bill, despite how it may look, it's not a long reach - I don't have to lean forward off the seat back. One of the things that's sometimes overlooked in placing a shifter is how close or far the knob ends up from the steering wheel - and this seems to be perfect.
Or, for me, at least. I'm only 5'10", so keep the seat a little more forward than if I were over six feet.
The Alfa's of the sixties had this really strange looking shifter that came out of the base of the dash and seemed too long - until you actually drove the car. Then it all made sense. The knob ended up just a few inches from the wheel and was just right. The same thing is true here.
Also, that old thread about trimming the carpet may have been mine - that's exactly what we had to do. We couldn't get the 1-2 and 3-4 gates to work at the same time until the carpet was trimmed and the base of the shifter sat directly on the metal of the tunnel.
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The Vintage Speed stuff is very good quality. I have one of their stainless steel exhaust systems. Those shifters look great and solid; I wish Gene Berg manufactured their unit but vintage styled with the knob and shape. That would be awesome. With respect to Vintage Speed I believe aircooled.net are dealers. If you like their Facebook page you used to get a really nice discount percentage on your first order (not sure if the offer is still on).
My JPS Speedster came with the chrome tube and black knob. Just ordered from VS a polished stainless knob.
Love the sporty feel of the shifter and the Speedster.
