GRP Short Shift Kit

[oneflyguy325]

Ever since I got the Emira, one of my peeves has been with the shifter feel. I had previously test-driven the press vehicles that Lotus brought over and toured through the country, and I do recall the press cars also feeling as if they just slightly missed the mark. Though I brushed it off at the time, thinking that it was probably due to the fact that so many people test drive those cars, and were probably woefully used by folks that weren’t all that great at driving manuals. Coming from a highly modified supercharged Exige with one of the best shifter kits and adjustable cables that money can buy for the platform, my Emira simply felt lacking; especially for such an expensive new car.
So I decided to give the GRP short throw shifter kit a try. I just finished installing it myself in my own garage with minimal tools. Took me about 45 minutes or so, and I immediately went out for a test drive thereafter. For about $100, this little reinforcement device not only reduced the shifter throw, but also helped improve the directness of shifts into each gate. It now feels closer to that of a Honda S2K for those that have driven those before. Their shifter feel is like a benchmark among enthusiast sports cars, and there are often attempts to mimick the feel of the S2K shifter.
According to GRP website description for the product, this kit can shorten the shifter throw by between 45% and 60%. I left it at the 45% adjustment mark and feel like it's perfect for me. For those that are on the fence, I highly recommend getting a kit through GRP!
Thanks Greg Thiessen for the fast shipping on this kit (along with some other goodies

)!
Edit: One other thing that bothered me with my Emira from the factory was that sometimes it has trouble going into Reverse gear. So far, with this GRP shifter reinforcer, I am finding Reverse much easier. I will be doing further testing to see how it performs as time goes on, but so far I'm extremely satisfied with the outcome, for only $100!

GRP Short Throw Shifter Kit for Lotus Evora, Evora S, 400, 410,430, GT, Exige V6 Cars & Emira

The Lotus Evora has had some improvements to its shifter over the years and the Emira gained the latest iteration of that from Lotus but there is always room for even more improvement! The gear shift is just one of those areas, the feel of the shift has a sporty feel however it is let down by...

www.gregsraceparts.com

 

[seriously]

Curious to know how the shifter feels over time and if the shifting effort is significantly more or not.

My main issue with the shifter is the effort to move gears. It’s a lot more than expected. The throw precision and directness is very good on mine.

 

[KCDarkV]

Mine feels pretty dang good after 6,000 miles. I feel like it took a while to smooth out and get where it is now. I’d be interested to see how the GRP feels but I don’t feel inclined to make any changes yet.

 

[oneflyguy325]

Curious to know how the shifter feels over time and if the shifting effort is significantly more or not.

My main issue with the shifter is the effort to move gears. It’s a lot more than expected. The throw precision and directness is very good on mine.

It does require a little bit more effort to enter each gate; but I feel that the tradeoff in directness and shorter throw is well worth it. But yes, time will tell.

 

[seriously]

Just installed GRP short shifter today and went driving for a bit.

I experimented with 45% and 60% and am on 60% currently.

Observations:

1. The shifts are quite short now. Surprisingly so. Note: Shorter is not always better for me.

2. 1st is so short that I'm still getting used to it and think I'm in still neutral.

3. It's easier to shift quickly. Maybe this is obvious, but my feeling that the Emira doesn't like to be rushed is being challenged. With the short shifter I can indeed shift faster = more seamless power and less interruption or deliberate shifting as before. This along with the extremely short shift distance almost reminded me of driving a DCT where a short click immediately puts you into the next gear.

4. There is a bit more effort but it is only really noticed when shifting from neutral to 1st. All other shifts up and down are so short that any increased effort is kind of minimized by the shortness of the throw.

5. Shifts are generally more direct. Stock, the shifting action always felt like 2 snicks - 1 into neutral and 1 into next gear. 4-5 in particular was long - I had to make a deliberate up, over, and up pattern to cleanly shift into 5th. It never worked to shift diagonally from 4-5. Now I can shift diagonally 2-3, 4-5. 3-4, 5-6 and back up are single action, not two. 1-2 can be single action, but usually prefers two.

6. Heel toeing in general is easier, especially the critical 3-2. The shortness of the throw really makes it easier to execute the heel toe rev match. Pleasant surprise.

Overall I enjoy it and feel that it better compliments everything else in the Emira. for a quick and nimble car I always thought it was strange that you had to shift deliberately and kind of slowly. This short shift kit is changing the way I engage with the car. I will continue driving and experimenting with it.

 

[morphious]

I can't say enough about the GRP short shifter, glad I installed it and not looking back.

 

[Gprodigy]

I can't say enough about the GRP short shifter, glad I installed it and not looking back.

Ahh Mann I might have to get this as well. How’s shifting from 1st to 2nd?

 

[morphious]

Ahh Mann I might have to get this as well. How’s shifting from 1st to 2nd?

I set mine right in the middle so my guess is it is at about 52-53% and for me the shifts are perfect. All gears are smooth and precise, reverse might take a tad more effort but not having the longer throw you really don't notice it. For me going from 1-6 and back down from 6-1 is a no brainer, it just feels natural. This is about the best I can explain it and for under $100 best bang for the buck IMHO. Plus, by chance if you don't like it, it is fully reversible with no impact.

 

[Jjrho]

Just installed mine.... have some pearls to share....

1. Definitely remove the air hose... idk how some one can work with that in the way....
2. Put a little shop towel under neath the area.... that way. If you drop any thing....it's caught ...
3. My grp unit was kinda tight n I could not shove it down n I saw the point/anodized what ever that was scraping off from my attemp to shove it down so.... had to Dremel it a bit to let it seat itself...
4. I put some painters tape on my arm to keep from getting cut by the plastic stuff in the way.... ( yah,yah.... lol)
5. About to go test drive but.... the throw distance was about 3.5" at 1 n 2 gears & after install at the stock/ 45% setting, it's about 2" throw.... more than enough for me .... btw, there is no change in the lateral travel distance , neutral row, that I can tell.... maybe I'm wrong but ?

Here's some pictures

 

[Blackthought_]

It took me about 10 minutes to remove the air box and and install the GRP short shifter and afterwards I realized I pushed the cable while installing it and it moved my neutral position. Whoops! Went back and fixed right quick and took it for a spin.

I must see when I first used it I wasn’t a huge fan given how it was a bit more effort to change gears compared to stock but after driving around I started to get use to it and really started to like it. It is far more direct and precise. I used to spend far too much time going from 3 to 2 but not anymore!

It really changes the engagement of the car for such a low price point. Good stuff

 

[Jjrho]

Uh...does it matter re the gear selected at the cockpit vs what the position of the gear select at the gear box side, when installing the short shifter kit? I had the car placed on 1st gear in the car but when I was installing it.... the lever was moved back n forth, all over, many times... as I was struggling to install the new one... ??!??


I took it for a short drive... it definitely was short throw....I'd probably like a 33% decrease vs the 45% that it was set at... it definitely needed ac bit more effort.... I may need to break it in more....car has 2100 miles... the 1st gear felt a bit more notchy initially to me.... the 3-2 or 2-3 definitely better....

I like it... it works well with the short travel clutch of my car...

 

[seriously]

Just installed mine.... have some pearls to share....

1. Definitely remove the air hose... idk how some one can work with that in the way....
2. Put a little shop towel under neath the area.... that way. If you drop any thing....it's caught ...
3. My grp unit was kinda tight n I could not shove it down n I saw the point/anodized what ever that was scraping off from my attemp to shove it down so.... had to Dremel it a bit to let it seat itself...
4. I put some painters tape on my arm to keep from getting cut by the plastic stuff in the way.... ( yah,yah.... lol)
5. About to go test drive but.... the throw distance was about 3.5" at 1 n 2 gears & after install at the stock/ 45% setting, it's about 2" throw.... more than enough for me .... btw, there is no change in the lateral travel distance , neutral row, that I can tell.... maybe I'm wrong but ?

Here's some picturesView attachment 54895View attachment 54896View attachment 54897View attachment 54898

Amazing tip on the shop towel. I actually lost my clip and had to buy another one

Anyways, adding a few more tips.

1. Shift into 1st gear to give you more room to reach the unit. All the play in the cable, what gear, etc doesn't affect the install. When it's all tightened up it will be pulled into the right position. I needlessly worried about that.

2. Instead of taking the pin out first and then separating the nut from the end link, loosen the nut from the end link first while it is still attached. This is MUCH easier and actually the hardest part of the install if trying to separate the nut while the unit is flopping about. After you loosen the nut, then you pull the pin and separate the existing unit. Opposite for install.

3. IMHO, the length of the cable/end link unit AND the Reverse Plate adjustment that KitKat posted affect how smooth the shifting action is in 1-2 and R. It should be smooth and open, not blocked and requiring multiple shifts to get in. The first end link I got did not screw into the cable as far as my OEM unit and introduced some shifting resistance I didn't have before. I got a replacement end link that screwed on all the way and it was gone. I think this is why these mechanism exist. Each gearbox will be slightly different in terms of the cable lengths and that Reverse Plate allows you to adjust for any variation to achieve clean and open shifting gates. I believe the overall length of the cable to the shift pivot point impact this.

Last, I would experiment with a shorter setting that you might have planned for. I was surprised how much I liked the GRP shifted at the most extreme short setting. I ended up backing off from the shortest setting just a bit and it's perfect for me. Once installed, it's super easy to adjust the bolt that changes the length.

It really feels like quite a different gearbox now. I actually liked the stock gearbox which caused me to hesitate on this mod. While it was longish, it was rifle bolt and precise feeling. The short shifter makes the shifter feel even more direct and just overall a quicker more hardcore experience. In a good way.