Garagistic Self-Centering Shifter Adjustment Guide

Overview

A self-centering shifter is a mechanism commonly used in manual transmission vehicles to help guide the gear lever back to a centered position when not actively being shifted into a gear by the driver. This feature aids in preventing accidental gear engagement and facilitates smoother, more intuitive gear shifting. The mechanism typically involves a combination of springs and other mechanical elements that exert a centering force on the shifter. When the driver releases the gear lever, these components work together to return it to the centered neutral position making it easier to find and engage the desired gear, especially during rapid or high-pressure driving situations such as wheel-to-wheel racing, drifting, and autocross.

Enter Garagistic's Pro Self-Centering Shifter, one of the best self-centering shifters you can find on the market. Our perfectly tuned torsion spring, which provides just the right amount of self-centering force, is at the heart of all our self-centering shifters. Our shifters also have two separate points that allow you to tune both front-to-back fine adjustment, and the all-too-common BMW shifter lean. Below, we will explain how these two separate mechanisms are used when putting the final touches on the installation of your Garagistic Pro Self-Centering Shifter.

Front-To-Back Shift Gate Distance Adjustment

After confirming that your vehicle has been equipped with the correct-length DSSR and selector joint (contact us at [e-mail] with the last 7 digits of your VIN# if you have any fitment questions), you will need to ensure that your shifter is centered in neutral and an even amount of movement/effort is required to shift between the forward (1st, 3rd, 5th) and rearward (2nd, 4th, 6th) gears. To achieve this, simply loosen the three Allen bolts that mount the shifter base, and use the slots on the shifter to either slide the shifter forward towards the dash, which will decrease the throw distance to rearward gears 2nd, 4th, 6th, or pull the shifter towards the rear of the car, which will decrease the distance to forward gears 1st, 3rd, 5th. Once the shifter throw distance is equal between forward and rearward gears, make sure to tighten down the three mounting bolts to ensure your shifter stays firmly mounted in place.

(see photo below)

If your shifter still does not seem to be fully engaging gears with the amount of adjustment the slots in the shifter base allow, then you will likely need a different-length selector joint or DSSR to correct the geometry of your shifter setup. However, you can also try the method below as a final resort to induce a little bit more adjustment. If you are simply looking to correct side-to-side shifter lean, please see below:

Side-to-Side Shifter Lean Adjustment

On the front of the base of the self-centering shifter (towards the front of the car), there is a 5mm Allen bolt that will allow you to adjust the side-to-side shifter lean, which can be found directly beneath the large nut that holds the tension spring in place.

(see photo below)

Once the shifter is fully installed and properly in the correct mounting position, begin to slightly loosen the lower 5mm Allen bolt (Warning: Make sure to be careful as you do not want the bolt to fall out of place.) This adjustment holds a dowel that the bottom of the tension spring wraps around and will allow you to "center" your shifter rod.

With the Allen bolt loose, begin to shift from 3rd to 4th a few times to center the assembly. Once centered, re-tighten the Allen bolt while being sure to not apply any pressure to the shifter rod/knob in the process. Your shifter should now be centered.

If you find that further adjustment is necessary, make sure to repeat the steps above. If you have any additional questions, please contact us at [e-mail]