Thanks Jewc75! MGW shifter installed...1st impressions.

[VTXFrank]

So when jewc75 mentioned in a thread he was selling his MGW shifter for the MT82 trans, with heat shield, I decided to jump on it. I was second in line and was quite happy when the first person dropped off the deal.

I got the box VERY quickly and since I wasn't having too good of a day on Thursday, decided to watch the install videos and install it the next day, Friday.

Now I've never really had any issues out of my stock shifter. I still think it's one of the best ones Ford has put in a Mustang GT, but I have always put short shifters in my cars and wanted to get rid of the slop in the OEM shifter.

So yesterday morning, I set to work. Getting the install done took me longer than I thought it would since I was in my driveway on jackstands. Having big hands doesn't help either, so it was a bit of a PITA. I used blue locktite on every single nut and bolt. About three hours after beginning, I was done and ready to test drive.

I absolutely LOVE the shifter. It's precise, well balanced and the throw reduction is perfect. It "snicks" into each gear and gear selection is instant and without the drama of typical downshifts with the OEM unit. No more selecting the wrong gear when downshifting. From speed-shifting to full on power shifts, it gets into each gear with little fanfare and a precise engagement.

Initially, I thought the throw reduction wasn't going to be enough, but that I would be happy with any reduction in throw and most important, a more stable, solid feeling shifter. But that 20% reduction in throw is quite noticeable and VERY tight while remaining smooth and positive. Reverse works great as does my rear camera. Nothing you replace has anything to do with the reverse lights or rear camera activation.

Now this shifter is noisier than the OEM unit. It isn't the shifter that noisier, rather, it's the new rigidity of the shifter transmitting more noise. This will likely be largely cured when I get some Dynamat or like material for sound deadening.

Thanks to jewc75 for the shifter!

 

[JEWC_Motorsports]

Tom,

Im glad your enjoying the shifter! I couldnt have said it better myself.

 

[UltraKla$$ic]

Yup, James has been an excellent friend and offered LOTS of car info to me as well!!!! He's the reason I'm in debt for a Race Red '13!!!

I'd like him more if he sold me those Corsa's for $100 shipped but I can only dream.

LOL!!! j/k James! You're an asset to this community my friend!!!!


And Congrats on the shifter Tom. I've been debating on this shifter since I've entertained the idea of a new car with a stick.

 

[sleepy88]

Good to hear feedback on the MGW. Im planning on doing one as well, was gonna try to wait til i destroy the clutch first. Im fairly happy with the stock shifter in comparison to the other cars Ive owned, always used pro 5.0 and steeda before. The noise never bothered me because i couldnt hear it over the exhaust. These new mustangs are so much more refined that I actually want a quiet shifter..(or im getting older). Thanks for the info!

 

[VTXFrank]

Tom,

Im glad your enjoying the shifter! I couldnt have said it better myself.

Thanks for the deal man. I had been saving and saving to get the shifter. The last time I had money for it, my daughters car needed tires badly and I spent the money on that instead. I was up to $350, expecting one more month to have the $450 to get the MGW from their website. Now all I need to do is buy one of their shift knobs. I never did care too much for the stock one even though it is comfortable.

Yup, James has been an excellent friend and offered LOTS of car info to me as well!!!! He's the reason I'm in debt for a Race Red '13!!!

I'd like him more if he sold me those Corsa's for $100 shipped but I can only dream.

LOL!!! j/k James! You're an asset to this community my friend!!!!


And Congrats on the shifter Tom. I've been debating on this shifter since I've entertained the idea of a new car with a stick.

Dude, do it! Just make sure you get the Dynamat option from them. I've got a local Stereo Install shop who I've bought a lot of things from to work on others people's cars/trucks and Jeeps. He will give me his cost on the Dynamat. I just need to get down there and get it from him.

Good to hear feedback on the MGW. Im planning on doing one as well, was gonna try to wait til i destroy the clutch first. Im fairly happy with the stock shifter in comparison to the other cars Ive owned, always used pro 5.0 and steeda before. The noise never bothered me because i couldnt hear it over the exhaust. These new mustangs are so much more refined that I actually want a quiet shifter..(or im getting older). Thanks for the info!

When I'm riding around with my windows down, I can't hear it either due to my exhaust. But with the windows up and the A/C on, I can hear some noise. It isn't really loud or anything like that, but I just don't want to hear it coming through. If I left it like it is, whenever my wife was in the car she would be commenting about it. She LOVES my Mustang and especially loves how comfortable and smooth it rides. She knows my penchant for exhaust systems, so she's used to that. But the noise transmitted to the cabin of the car is noticeable with the windows up and the A/C on medium.

I drove a '71 Nova SS for a few years when we were first married. It was a frikkin loud ass ride with everything I had done to it. 23 years later, I tend to like my car to be quiet when I want it to be. Which is why when I change out the 5x7's in the doors and rear deck, I plan on lining the doors with dynamat as well as the trunk.

 

[VTXFrank]

Cliff's Notes: I am happy to announce that I bought and installed some Dynamat Extreme from Bestbuy yesterday. I just got the $25 two speakers pack. Took all of 20 minutes to install around the base of the shifter and now, 97% of the noise is gone.

Longer Version: Once you install the MGW shifter, there is a space open between the base of the shifter and the underside of the car. This space was there with the OEM shifter as well, but since the OEM shifter has so much built in slop to it, the noise isn't transmitted to the cabin very much. I mean to tell you, the plate on the OEM shifter that connects to the shifter box is thin as hell! With how I've shifted my car, I'm surprised there wasn't more deformation to it. I can't imagine this OEM shifter plate lasting over the lifetime of the car without some issues.

Anyway, the first thing I did was use MAF cleaner and paper towels to clean the surfaces around the shifter. Then I used Gorilla tape to cover the area around the shifter base that I wanted to apply the Dynamat to. This way, the Dynamat would have have something to stick too up close to the shifter and from prior experience, I can tell you, that Gorilla tape isn't going anywhere.

Around the base of the MGW shifter is a "lip" machined into the base. This is so the boot that comes with the MGW shifter can be stretched around the base of the shifter and locked into place. I taped, then did the same with the Dynamat, right up to the base of the shifter. The machined lip area is just high enough on the base so that the Dynamat doesn't interfere with the installation of the boot.

I took this opportunity to apply Dynamat over all the painted surfaces that I could by peeling back some of the carpeting and sliding the Dynamat underneath the edge of the carpet. I also cut pieces of the mat to fit up under the area where the forward part of the center console attaches to the vertical part of center stack. I only ended up using one sheet of Dynamat for this and still have some of that single sheet left.

The difference is night and day. Without the Dynamat, you can hear this MT82 transmission gear noise especially loud in 3rd and 4th. It wasn't extremely loud, but you could sure tell the difference between this and the OEM shifter. And it gets annoying to the point where you're shifting into 5th as quick as possible. Now, with the Dynamat installed, it has removed 97% of the noise. It's now quieter than the OEM unit was.

 

[Phuck Phace]

3 Hour install for a shifter, damn!

 

[SS KILLR]

Frank, Do you have any pics of the install?

 

[cgibs89]

3 Hour install for a shifter, damn!

The shifter is worth every second of it.

11000 miles on my car and I've had the shifter on since 3000. That sloppy, limp dick OEM shifter should be an example of what NOT to put on to a manual transmission.

 

[Phuck Phace]

The shifter is worth every second of it.

11000 miles on my car and I've had the shifter on since 3000. That sloppy, limp dick OEM shifter should be an example of what NOT to put on to a manual transmission.

Yeah mine finally comes in today and I wanted to install it tonight, hopefully an extra pair of hands will cut that time down.

 

[cgibs89]

It honestly isn't that bad with only yourself. The only part that sucks ass is finessing the clam shell around the shifter linkage.

 

[VTXFrank]

It honestly isn't that bad with only yourself. The only part that sucks ass is finessing the clam shell around the shifter linkage.

This is very true. And if you have big hands, it makes it very difficult. If you have a helper, it will be much easier and really cut the time down.

SSKiller, I don't. But there are youtube videos that tell you everything you have to do. There are three videos that explain the install and then there is one video explaining how to mount the heat shield.

I hope that anyone who did not order the dynamat with the shifter will go out and buy some before they do this. It really makes a huge difference in the noise level.

Speaking of the heat shield, I can tell a decent difference in the temps of my cup holders. Not that I can use them....

After spending some time behind the wheel today, I've got that satisfied, "why the hell didn't I do this sooner" feeling I always get when driving with an aftermarket shifter. This thing is fucking art in motion.