I received a notice in the mail yesterday stating that my order (that had been placed in February) had been cancelled either at my request or because of manufacturer unavailability. Well, since I didn't cancel the order it had to be the latter. When I called Summit they again said that Hurst was having quality issues and did not have any planned ship date. I told the Customer Service rep that I had re-ordered the part online and he said that it would automatically be cancelled as all orders would be.

This truly sucks.

cc

 

Yeah, I know. Me too. Mine on order with them since March 8th. I tried to get hold of zrchris to see if he could shed any light on a possible completion/ship date, but no luck. zrchris, you out there? :confused:

 

Yeah, it's a beotch working with the Chinese on speed parts for the US market!

 

I sent Chris an E-mail and here is his reply:

I don't know what's wrong there, I'd call Barnett Performance at 800-533-1320 or tell Summit to try again- there are 150 on the shelf at Hurst, since about 2 weeks ago.

Chris

At 12:13 AM 8/12/01 -0500, you wrote:
>Chris, Summit just sent me a cancellation notice for my Hurst shifter
>due to unavailability from the manufacturer. What gives?
>
>cc
>
>

Guess, I'll give them (Barnett) a call tomorrow and see if I have any better luck with them. I've had it with Summit.

cc

 

Is he talking about 150 C-4 shifters or C-5? The reason I ask is because it was my understanding that Hurst was late getting the C-4 shifters out too and just recently got that problem resolved and was now still in the process of getting the C-5 units finished. :confused:

 

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=131577

 

My Kirban will ship tomorrow courtesy of this forum and Exit28. Thanks Corvetteforum and Exit28. Maybe Summit has not had it with Hurst but I have. When I bought my 1993 Trans Am, I didn't have to wait an exhorbitant amount of time for a Hurst shifter. I don't understand why this is different. In fact, by 1995 you could order them from the factory as an RPO.

Considering how long the C4 guys had to wait, like until after their model was out of production for 4 years, maybe I'll just check back in 4 years and see if it's released yet. Until then, the Kirban will have to do because I really didn't care for the Ripper.

 

CCrane00, I think you will be happy with the Kirban. Nice solid feel, very minimal vibration (if any), and cheaper than the Ripper. I like mine! :yesnod: Post what you think when you get it installed. :chevy

 

I just drove a friends car yesterday with a Kirban and was very impressed. I have seen in past posts that a lot of people preferred the Ripper - I have not driven one yet. Any comments again?

 

The Ripper is a little more precise, but requires more effort as compared to the Kirban. The ripper seems to be a little bit quieter than the Kirban but the ripper comes with a rubber boot that covers the shifter base, the Kirban does not. I would say the ripper is geared towards the hard core racer guys(or the younger crowd)and the Kirban for the(older,more mature) easy shiftin guys. No flames please!
The throws are similar but the ripper has a 5 percent shorter throw over the Kirban. I cannot tell the difference. I have used both on my car and like both. They both sell very well but the Ripper out sells the Kirban 2 to 1. I dont think you can go wrong with either one.

Nate

 

I have the Ripper and love it! I wish the Hurst would get to market, but until then....Go with the Ripper!

 

I have the Kirban and have been very pleased with it.

 

Interesting.

I spoke with the Hurst product manager for Dana last week about their shifter. They're going to send a unit to CorvetteDreams next month for testing and review.

If anyone is on the fence, you might want to wait. After we recieve the Hurst, we'll have info on all three (the Ripper we already reviewed and we're testing the Kirban right now).

Take care!

Mike

 

I would not knock Hurst too much. They are doing the right thing by not shipping a product that may be deficient. With automotive products, problems are usually not related design, but how to manufacture them efficiently so as to make a profit. Trouble is, design is usually linked to the manufacturing methods, and some beancounter with authority picks the cheapest method.

 

Great! I cancelled my Summit order about a month ago, due to such an indefinite wait. I am waiting for the reviews, etc. til I get excited again. For now the `ol stock shifter will do.

 

Hi guys-

When I receive emails that don't reference the shifter model, I easily get confused. Yes, there are 150 C4 shifters in stock, the C5 shifters are not yet assembled.

Summit and other retailers typically cancels orders when they're on backorder for so long with no response to the computer. I believe at Jeg's you have to call every 3 weeks to maintain order status.

As stated before, the shifter is in process and I wouldn't expect delivery at this point until September. We are attending to some details to ensure a smooth and quiet installation. Production assembly should occur the week of 8/27, possibly ready for delivery by the week of 9/3 or 9/10.

There are far too many theories and incorrect assumptions flying around about this shifter. It's entirely made in the US, it's a very precision made piece, the components are already made, and I can tell you the "beancounters" are no where to be found. The delay in assembly is to try to eliminate vibration, not to "maximize profit"...

We believe the shifter was initially quieter than the B&M, but we are trying to eliminate as much vibration as possible. I don't consider this a quality issue in the way people are probably viewing it. Much of the design of this shifter is used in other applications, without vibration problems. The problem is the car- the C5's rear transmission design is the cause of the vibration that is travelling up the long gearshift rod. The factory's rubber coupler gets rid of this, but solid sticks have a tough time with it.

We have made significant reductions in vibration noise, process details are all but finalized. I believe the schedule stated above will be followed.

The C4 shifter is great piece, with attention to detail that makes it a perfect drop-in component. Though that design never had a vibration problem, much of its success is due to the last few months of sorting out details the others ignored. The C5 shifter has been all but ready to assemble since June- would you rather have us throw something together like B&M or take the time to make it better?

Chris




[Modified by zrchris, 11:26 AM 8/14/2001]

 

Chris, I think I can speak for most everyone interested in the Hurst shifter when I say that we certainly are interested in purchasing a high quality piece such as you describe. However, we would like some straighforward answers on when we can expect our orders to be filled. We have been told a date two weeks into the future since February when six months later there is no possibility that it could have ever come out in two weeks or even eight weeks.

I have to assume that the information we are getting from our retailers is being given to them by their Dana representative so if it is wrong, you need to do some in house cleaning up.

If you want to squelch the rumors, give us an honest-to-God, realistic due date. Then, if you miss it by a couple (read no more than three) weeks, we can overlook it. You should never dangle it like a carrot on a stick because even a rabbit gets tired of not getting the carrot.

Thanks,

cc

 

cc I understand what you're saying, but things aren't as simple as giving a delivery date. Hurst tries to make the best estimate they can of when it should be delivered. A month can seem like a long time. Recent changes at Hurst due to the sale by Dana, have made it difficult to give estimates previously more reasonable. The C4 shifter, which was in a similar delay situation, was finally released two weeks ago. The C5 is truly in the final stages. I think by the end of September is a good estimate- early October at the latest. There's not a whole lot left to do at this point, just powdercoat and assembly. My end of this will be sorted out by next week. Believe me, if I had a little more control over this, both would have been done long ago- but I'm just an outside man providing assistance.

Chris

 

Chris,
Thank you for your update. I have been waiting to see the Hurst.
Mike

 

Got my Kirban today and I love it! Reminds me very much of how my Hurst felt in the Ram Air T/A. Very precise shifts, nice short throw and easy to engage into gear. That was always the thing I didn't like about the Ripper is that it seemed like I needed more leverage to get it into gear. I didn't have a problem with the sideways movement but getting it to click that last quarter inch into gear was killing my arm. The Kirban goes right in with minimal effort.

And slamming the gears is fanstastic! I'm ready to go racing now (well, soon as I update my sig, and the track re-opens). :D

I was very surprised to see how small of a box the Kirban came in. I couldn't imagine how they could have fit a shifter in there. even one that bolts together like the old fashioned Hursts. You don't realize how close the shifter mounting point is until you take the factory one out.
cc


[Modified by CCrane00, 8:18 PM 8/17/2001]