Shifter Upgrades and Components for BMW E46 M3 S54 (1999-2005)

The ULTIMATE shifter upgrade for your BMW! Experience more precise throws, less shift lever travel, and an all-around transformation in your shifting experience.

For dozens of years, enthusiasts have critiqued the imprecise and vague feeling of BMW manual transmissions. Plagued with long throws, fore and aft play in gear, and a generally loose feeling, your OEM BMW shifter leaves much to be desired. While most standard carrier-mount short throw shifter kits will aid in reducing throw length and eliminating side-to-side play in gear, some enthusiasts long for a hardcore, race-inspired shifter that completely removes play and excessive throw length. At Turner Motorsport we share the same desire and set out to offer the ULTIMATE upgrade with this Performance Chassis Mount Short Shifter.

WHY UPGRADE?

Factory BMW shifter assemblies are complex by nature. The main component of this assembly is the shift carrier, a cast aluminum piece positioned inside the transmission tunnel that incorporates bushings at both ends for mounting. Like most factory parts, these bushings are designed to reduce NVH (noise, vibration, and harshness) transmission to the cabin. To the spirited driver, however, these bushings translate to flex and vagueness in the shift lever. Moreover, because this carrier is mounted to both the transmission and the body, the entire shifter assembly will "float" with the driveline, further increasing the vague and imprecise feeling of your shifter.

Our Performance Chassis Mount Short Shifter removes the shift carrier assembly entirely—removing any prospect of flex caused by bushings or driveline movement. By contrast, this chassis mount shifter offers a drastic reduction in shift lever travel, vagueness, and side-to-side play. An elevated base allows for moving the fulcrum point upwards, resulting in a much shorter and more precise throw. Shift times are further reduced by a tall, "rally style" shift lever, used to aid in leverage while also bringing the lever closer to the steering wheel. Our design incorporates a proprietary centering spring design, which is adjustable for increasing or decreasing self-centering force. In short, this design eliminates all the drawbacks of your factory BMW shifter, translating to more control, greater precision, shorter throws, and faster shift times.

FEATURES & BENEFITS

Reduced Throw: Modified shifter geometry and heightened fulcrum point translate to a shorter shift lever throw
Improved Shifter Feel: Eliminating the shift carrier and associated bushings drastically reduces "slop" and side-to-side play in the shift lever
Increased Precision: Mounting the shifter to the chassis allows for little to no variation in gear selection
Universal Fitment: Fits many BMW chassis with the provided base plate and hardware (see "Fits These Cars" for exact fitment information)
DESIGN

6061 aluminum, 4130 steel, and 316 stainless steel construction
A type-II black anodized finish
Adjustable self-centering spring
"Rally Style" shift lever
Spherical bearing pivot with maintenance-free brass insert
Product Development:

Our Chassis Mount Shifters are designed, engineered, tested and quality inspected by our Research and Development team at Turner. Nothing but the highest level of precision and quality through leading-edge product development technology including FARO laser scanning for reverse engineering and quality inspection, SolidWorks 3D CAD modeling, rapid prototyping utilizing our in-house 3D printer and rigorous long term product testing.

Elevate your BMW's shifting dynamics with this all-inclusive upgrade kit meticulously designed to counteract the wear and tear commonly found in stock rubber bushings and plastic inserts. Over time, these parts tend to degrade, resulting in a diminished shifter feel that compromises the driving experience.

This comprehensive upgrade package comprises top-tier components, notably the ECS Tuning Teflon Oval Shifter Bushings, Turner Motorsport Poly Shifter Arm Bushing, and Turner Motorsport DSSR. Collaboratively, these components target and eliminate the undesirable play and imprecision in the shifter mechanism, ensuring a more responsive, precise, and enjoyable shifting experience.

Key Benefits:

• Comprehensive kit replacing worn-out stock rubber bushings and plastic inserts.
• Enhances shifter precision and tactile feedback for a more engaging driving experience.
• Eliminates slop and play in the shifter mechanism, ensuring crisper, more precise shifts.
• Includes all necessary components and hardware for a complete and thorough shifter overhaul.

• 20-25% shorter shifts
• Counterbalanced for great shift feel
• Stainless steel & aluminum construction
• Rubber isolated for reduced NVH
• Maintains stock shift feel with uprated stock-type bushings

The Dinan short shifter provides shorter shift throws with a crisper and more precise feel than a stock shifter. Instead of retrofitting a stock BMW lever, with all of its deficiencies, Dinan has engineered this billet aluminum shifting system. Special features engineered into this unit include a two piece fully isolated stick assembly, exclusive integrated and dampened pivot cup with self lubricating pivot ball, counter balanced to reduce effort and exclusive polymer "Iglide" T-500 lower pivot bushings that are impervious to contamination. Featuring an adjustable pivot, which allows this shifter to fit both standard and M Series applications. All of this combined with a simple straightforward installation provides a professional level shifter. Provides a 25% throw reduction in E36s, E39s and E46s and a 20% throw reduction in M3 and M5 applications.

For over 35 years, Dinan has been America's premier tuning company, pioneering advancements in BMW modification while retaining a focus on balanced performance that preserves the original character and driving feel that a BMW offers. When you install a Dinan part on your car, know that it's not only carefully developed and tested, but that Dinan stands behind it with a four year, 50,000-mile warranty.

One of the most satisfying upgrades you can make to your BMW is to its factory shifter mechanism. By reducing the shifter's throw, you can give your manual transmission BMW a sportier, more precise feel. However, with so many different "short shift kits" out there, how can you be sure you're making the right decision? With the introduction of the Rogue Engineering OCTANE short shift kit, the choice is now crystal clear!

Rogue Engineering refuses to compromise with "lever substitution" as a method of short shift kit development. Rather than using actual test vehicles for their products, some companies actually dig through OEM factory parts diagrams to determine which factory levers can be substituted with others. This "lever substitution" method of introducing product is unacceptable. These shift kits have been developed and perfected through years of experience in proven short shifter technology, by Co-Founder, Ben Liaw. As longtime BMW enthusiasts know, Ben was single-handedly responsible for introducing and developing the idea of affordable, BMW factory-like, short shift kits for late model BMWs (BL/SS for those young enough to remember!). 

Rogue Engineering idea of a short shift kit is not substituting levers in place of factory ones just because "they fit". Throughout the 80s until recently, BMW was notorious for using only a few specific shifter levers for their manual transmission vehicles. For other companies, making just a few "replacement levers" and offering them in place of those factory part numbers was an easy way of calling it a short shift kit. Unfortunately, for those companies, BMW started using many different part numbers making it more difficult to just "swap in a lever".

Rogue Engineering only develops it's short shift kit with test vehicles in their facility, testing numerous prototypes, offering others to test it before settling on its final design. They feel that this old school, real world testing is the best way when modifying OEM ergonomic, sensory-based controls.

Shifter slop is a common complaint among all BMW models. Some of that play comes from the bushings where the shifter carrier mounts to the transmission. The original rubber carrier bushings don't last very long and when they get too soft the shifter flops around. These Teflon bushings are not as stiff as Delrin so they won't transmit as much vibration and buzz in the shifter. Yet Teflon will last much longer than the factory rubber, giving you precise shifting for many years.

Note: this is only one part of the shift linkage and there may be other components that need replacing to improve shifting feel.

We advise getting a replacement bushing carrier pin as well. If the original rubber bushings are worn the pin will have wear too and you will still have slop in the shifter, even with the new bushings.

These are the OVAL shifter carrier bushings (some BMW models have round bushings).

This item fits the following BMWs:
1992-1998 E36 BMW 328i 328is 328ic M3
1999-2002 E46 BMW 328i 328ci 330i 330ci
2001-2006 E46 BMW M3
1997-2003 E39 BMW 540i M5
1997-2002 Z3 BMW Z3 1.9 Z3 2.3 Z3 2.5i Z3 2.8 Z3 3.0i M Roadster M Roadster
1999-2003 E52 BMW Z8

A sloppy shifter can make your driving experience miserable. Luckily these Genuine BMW shifter rebuild kits are available to restore the crisp feel of a brand new shifter. This kit includes all of the Genuine BMW components that normally wear down and cause issues such as the bushings, clips, and dowel pin.

See all of the included components below!