The Official Forbidden Short Shifter Reviews - Honda Prelude Forum

Zimmlude · 12-02-2002, 06:53 PM

Hey guys,

I figured I'd start another thread for this so everyone can leave their comments. Here is mine:

I just received the shifter today in the mail. It was packaged very well. My first impressions were of the color, The pictures online do no justice. It looks more like a gunmetal grey than bronze, very palitable in any case. The welds are excellent and the whole shifter feels solid.

The install:

The install for this is pretty straight forward. I did not have any instructions and they really aren't needed. If you have the parts diagram from the Helms manual you are set.

If you have ever changed out your radio you know how to at least get the shifter plate out. I took the liberty of re-greasing the bushings while I was in there and I highly reccommend this if during the install. The entire install took about an hour and a half and I only got one bloody knuckel

After the install I was anxious to see about how far over to the right the shifter sat. To be honest with you I would not have seen any difference had I not been told about it. In all honestly the tiny bit it does sit over actually puts the shifter in a more comfortable position.

The Test Drive:

I used to have a Neuspeed adapter and I would first like to say, there is no comparison. With the adapter I had to fight with the shifter to get it into first but now it just slides into place.
On easy shifts it feels just like stock only shorter. When you want to speed shift this puppy really shines. It is completely smooth and there is next to no resistance. It is soooooooo much better than the adapter.

Overall the shifter is a godsend to those who don't want to pay the excessive amount of money to get a C's imported. Since I have never used a C's I can't say if it is better or not but it is great.

Thanks alot 4bidden!!!

92H22A · 12-02-2002, 07:03 PM

See...told ya guys it was that good.

4bidden · 12-04-2002, 04:23 PM

Alright guys, post ALL of your reviews in this thread so we can keep track

here is one that was posted by slowlude of Honda-T*ch

"I just threw mine on and holy **** is it nice. Very solid feel, very short throw, very smooth. I set it up in the center hole and had to trim a bit of plastic to make it work, but it was no big deal. I am very satisfied."

That's the first I've heard of trimming a bit of plastic, but it seems like it was barely hitting, I'm going to PM him and make sure he doesn't have anything weird done to his console area.

red92si · 12-05-2002, 12:40 PM

Just installed mine after having it sitting in my backseat for over a week. All I can say is this shifter is amazing. It feels way more solid than the stock shifter, and when shifting (especially 2-3) the shifter feels as if it wants to go into the gear instead of you forcing it there. Also, every shift is ended with a very satisfying click into gear. This shifter is top quality... never have I been so happy shifting gears.

I did have to shave about 1/4 inch of plastic off of the underside of the console, but it was no big deal. I melted the plastic with a lighter, and then just scraped it off with a screwdriver. If I had a dremel it would have taken no more than 10 seconds. I did however trim it enough so that the top setting doesnt hit the console either. So now it is very easy to go from stock, to C's, to Race.

Thanks so much 4Bidden!

4bidden · 12-05-2002, 02:53 PM

This console thing is interesting though....check your PM's

red92si · 12-05-2002, 03:26 PM

Here is a diagram I drew up... Maybe something new for the FAQ.

Zimmlude · 12-05-2002, 04:24 PM

Yeah the console thing is common to most short shifters. For example I had to trim to accomodate my neuspeed adapter (for sale by the way

). It really is not a big deal.

prelude2005 · 12-07-2002, 07:54 AM

awsome, hope you have more by this friday...i get paid, and you will get my money

how much was it again?

sushi · 12-07-2002, 02:13 PM

i finally installed mine after looking at it in my room for about a week. I love it! I wish i could drive my car hard, but without an exhaust i only drive to the auto shop and back... it's about .25 miles from where i park

euforik · 12-07-2002, 02:27 PM

i just installed mine today as well. the install was very simple, took less than an hour. i used the instructions that 4bidden provided. the quality of the shifter is outstanding. my initial thoughts after a 10-mile test drive was:

its amazing, it certainly cleaned up the sloppy-ness that was there before with the stock shifter. i would definitely recommend purchasing this shifter to any prelude driver that has never been completely satisfied with the oem shifter or if you like to drive hard. if you guys have any more questions on the shifter, or the install feel free to contact me.

edit: i set mine to the middle position, which is identical to c's

FGarcia1 · 12-07-2002, 02:37 PM

Wow, this sounds like a good mod to do; so it does feel cleaner into the shifts? If it does, I'm definitely interested in buying one of these.

4bidden · 12-07-2002, 07:02 PM

Glad to see you guys are enjoying them!!

I have less than 10 left so whoever wants them had better hurry! After I run out, it will probably be at least a month, if not longer before more are made. Hustle!!!

Monas · 12-09-2002, 11:29 AM

If you havent gottan one yet, Order soon. I finally got mine in Saturday, after having it sitting at my parents house for a week. Had one of my friends (he has a MKIV Jetta 1.8T) come over and take some pics of the install. Very easy to do by the way. Anyway after we got it installed (have it set on the top spot) I let him drive it. he told me that on his way home he wished he could get one for his car

. I cant get over how easy the 2nd-3rd shift is, all you have to do is push straight fwd with your palm and it slips right over into 3rd. There is also a solid feel when it goes into gear. you'll know what i am talking about if you drive with one of these

i ll post a write up on the install with some pics for anyone who wants it, later on this week (after finals).
Thanks 4Bidden this shifter ROCKS!!!!

Chris

4bidden · 12-09-2002, 11:34 AM

Glad to hear you are enjoying it! Did you try the middle hole also to see how it is compared to the top? I'd like to hear some peoples opinions on that. PM me if you try it out.

Monas · 12-09-2002, 11:38 AM

we messed with it while it was in the garage, but ran out of time. I have to yank the center console off this weekend to hook a ground back up, i will try it then and let you know. but while sitting there with the car off just moving thru the gears, i COULD feel a differance between the two.

FGarcia1 · 12-09-2002, 12:34 PM

Ordered mine today, let's see if it lives up to the hype...

obos · 12-11-2002, 11:29 AM

Well got mine installed last Thursday. The throw is shorter and the shift is smoother. Unfortunately I broke that square metal piece that sits around the ball joint. But even without that installed I can still notice the differences. So it's pretty good...Now, I just need to replace that square piece and it'll be all good. I don't know about the trimming thing yet since I have not put the console back on, but from what everyone says, should not be a problem. Good work 4bidden......

4bidden · 12-11-2002, 12:19 PM

Wow, never heard of someone breaking that thing. How the HECK are you shifting without it? It has to be very sloppy without it?

Glad to hear you like it but get that metal piece asap, it'll make a big difference!

Monas · 12-11-2002, 01:03 PM

oh yea, forgot to mention that i had to trim a bit as well i have pics of it, i can post (need to figure out how first tho

)

FGarcia1 · 12-14-2002, 01:40 PM

Got it today, installed it a few minutes ago.

It took me about an hour, only because the nuts attached to the bolts on the shifter wouldn't turn independently of the bolts themselves, so I had to hold the bolt down with another wrench while I turned the nut...

Other than that, though, it was fairly simple; I stopped looking at the instructions once I had the console off. Pretty good for me, since I'm not all that mechanically inclined.

I tried it out on all three settings; there's definitely a decrease in length in the shifts. The shortest setting (or the highest hole on the shifter) does need to have that piece trimmed, no doubt. The second doesn't need it, though, much less the first.

I took the car out for a quick spin, I'll write down my thoughts after I drive it some more. For now, though, the shifts feel very solid. I do notice some resistance going into first, but I feel that may have existed before I installed the shifter; that resistance is now more noticeable (bad synchros?). After that, it's pretty damn slick.

The odd thing, as has been mentioned, is that, despite the shifter leaning towards the right when in neutral, pressing straight up on the stick puts it square in third gear; there's no ****ling around the gates or anything like that.

All in all, I like it; I'm not a racing enthusiast by any means (in fact, I just happened to have $100 to spare and thought I'd go for it). Given that, I enjoy the feel that the shifter's brought to the car. I'll edit this post with more thoughts after I take the car out a few more times.

Thanks, 4bidden!