Huh...funny thing I brought home the MS3 tonight and.....

A

Andrade08

Member
:
MazdaSpeed3 2008 Cosmic Blue
I am ordering a short throw shifter right after I am done typing this. Maybe it is from all my years driving T5s and Tremec TKOs in stangs with Pro-50 shifters in them but man.......this stock shifter is tall and a little squishy.
**BUT** That really is my one and only gripe. The car handles real nice. Steering is fantastic. Seats are real comfortable and supportive. Clutch is nice and tight and the car is real quick. I am glad I bought it.

Shifter...I am going to order that TWM unit but I DO NOT like the aluminum weighted shift knobs. I do LOVE the stock shift knob but have read that some guys with the short shifters do not like how tight it is after the install and I live up north were the temps will be at -10*-30* soon. Now, I read and dang thread some place about some weight under the hood that I can try taking off to see how I like the shifting but I can't fricken find it now. What are opinions on this? I am ordering the shifter/bushings tonight though. LOL!! 77 miles on a new car and I am swapping the shifter already. LOL!
 
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I don't care for the factory shifter either.... now about the shift counter weight, take out the bottom of the factory airbox (look at an intake how-to is u don't know) and its right there, kind of a crescent shape silver weight with 2 bolts holding it on. I haven't taken mine off yet, but I also dont have an STS yet

While you have the airbox out (and credit card in hand) order the cobb SRI
 
welcome to the club andrade08!!! you will thank me for this one:
Thread

its my thread, enjoy!!!
 
damnit!!! nevermind, the forum wont let me link to the ***********!!!1
 
damnit!!! nevermind, the forum wont let me link to the mazda 3 forum!!!
 
i will give you a clue:
it is on the 5th page of the mazda 3 forum .com in the mazdaspeed 3/modifications section at the very top. the name of the thread is "results from removing counter weight ( free mod)!

you will enjoy this one, it really helped out the shifter feel a ton...hope you can find it
 
After driving my Miata for a year or so, when my wife bought her (brand-new) P5, we immediately ordered a B&M SS for it. The car wasn't a month old before we had that on there with a Voodoo shift knob. :)
 
i absolutely love the stock shift knob on the ms3, i think its very ergonomic and grippy...

http://www.mazda3 forums.com/index.php?topic=89006.0

put those 2 ^^^ pieces of text together in your address bar and you have the counter weight mod thread (naughty) (wink)
 
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I was driving my focus yesterday and today and noticed how easy it is to locate gears just like in my Mustang (that more so due to the aftermarket shifter). The Mazda's does leave quite a bit to be desired. I can't hammer through gears as I'd like to either.
 
removing the factory shift counterweight makes the car shift like an Allis-Chalmers D15 tractor. That's not a good thing. (I used to drive one growing up)

People in the VW world used to spend MONEY on counter weighted shift rods for A1 and A2 cars. Now that the factory catches on and weights them for us we take them off! haha
It only took me a minute to remove my factory counterweight and 11 seconds to realize it needed to go back on.
 
SwampAss said:
removing the factory shift counterweight makes the car shift like an Allis-Chalmers D15 tractor. That's not a good thing. (I used to drive one growing up)

People in the VW world used to spend MONEY on counter weighted shift rods for A1 and A2 cars. Now that the factory catches on and weights them for us we take them off! haha
It only took me a minute to remove my factory counterweight and 11 seconds to realize it needed to go back on.
Click to expand...

Thats exactly what I did.I took it off and tried it for 1 day and put it back on.Im not a fan of this mod.I would like to try and add some more weight to the counter weight itself and see how it feels but havent dont it yet.
 
It seems that a lot of "mods" are merely to make a car different than stock. Dude look! I modded my MS3 to have 6 lug hubs!
 
whatever floats your guys boats...i enjoy my shifter, isnt that all that matters??? i would get more synchro grindage in the early morning cold driving with the counter weight on because it was harder to "feel" the gears. i like how in tune the stick is now with the gears, i can tell exactly how much pressure i should apply cold shifting. if this makes any sense to anyone good, if you dont like it, dont do it...isnt a forum about sharing ideas??
 
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