I installed the hurst in my 99 coupe yesterday. It seems really stiff. Will it wear in a little?

 

mine feels very stiff too. I took all the springs out all together and i still dont like the feel of it!! Im ready to go back to my stocker..

dave

 

I agree with you. I am willing to give it a little time. Anyone else care to chime in? How long does it take?

 

Try changing the springs to the lighter ones. You can even go with just the outside springs if you want - it is a BIG difference over teh stock one - it takes some getting used to , but it is WAY MORE positive feel.

 

:iagree: I love it. The positive feel of it is fantastic, but it does require a little more muscle to work it. That doesn't bother me, I love the throw distance, and being able to hit the gears with such precision.

But, again, it is a personal decision. May not be for everyone, so that is a choice up to you.

One other than you may want to do is change out the fluids. This should be done as part of regular maintenance, and can assist in taking some of the notchi-ness out of it.

 

I don't think it will "break in". I've had mine for a couple of years now and I don't think its really changed. You are more likely to get used to it than for any "break in" of the parts to occur. I found I liked the strong centering action, especially when on the track. As others have said, you can swap to lighter springs.

- Mark

 

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Are you still using the leather shifter that came with the car? You might want to try a taller shifter which will give you better leverage.

 

I have the softest springs and love the feel. It took about 500 miles of driving to break in a bit and getting use to the shift. :cheers:

 

got mine to loosen up. just kept shifting through the gears at stop lights. 5 to 6 still a lil stiff, but ill get it.

 

There's no "break-in".

If you installed the shifter right out of the box:

1. Change to 1 set of the lightest springs. Adjust set screws to spec.

With this change, the centering mechanism will be much better than OE. You won't miss a shift w/ the Hurst, and your shift times will be quicker.

 

The Hurst will always feel stiff when compared to the stock shifter. Remember the Hurst has centering springs. Takes some forearm muscle to get used to, especially for reverse. But as others said, put the lightest springs in. Also remove the shifter shaft stops. They aren't needed in the C5, the trans has internal stops. Not sure why Hurst included them on the C5 design.


[Modified by Shylor, 4:06 PM 4/21/2004]

 

heard bad things about taking the stops out...i will try to find the post

 

This is from another vette site wont post a link cause it prob against the rulz...

It seems the shifter stops are indeed needed per the following post on another forum:

PROBLEM
If you use a shifter with no shifter stops, then you are relying on the guide plate inside the transmission to limit your throw into each gear. Normally, this would not be a problem. You can take each slider and put it in every gear as far as possible (until it rests against the gear), and the keys stay in, and everything is hunky dory. HOWEVER, if you take the slider and try to put it into 4th gear as far as possible, you will notice that the keys will try and pop out. When they pop out, they pop out twords 3rd gear, and actually get locked on the 3rd gear blocking ring, and cause it to semi "engage" 3rd at the same time. Once this happens, and you have two gears engaged at the same time, the weakest part goes, being the syncro keys in this case. They shred in half. When this happens, it makes it almost impossible to get it out of 4th gear, as the half sheared keys left act like a wall and catch on the slider.
NOW, the reason this doesn't happen to everyone, and usually takes a while to happen is simple. The ball on the guide for the gears actually stops on the tranny case for 2nd, 4th, and 6th. It is the case that stops you from going "too far" into 4th. What happens is simple, after many hard shifts into 4th, you begin to dent the aluminum case, which allows it to go into 4th "too far". Like I said before, you can't go "too far" into ANY gear and cause a problem EXCEPT for 4th. The reason 4th is this way is because of the design of the gear and the distance between the input shaft and output shaft.

SOLUTION
The solution is VERY simple, use a shifter with stops, and adjust them correctly!! I know, sounds simple, but often the hardest problems require the most simple solutions! After 4 rebuilds of getting 50 miles each rebuild before getting stuck in 4th, I discovered this, and adjusted my shifter stops correctly. Guess what?!? 10K miles now!!

I have rebuilt over 50 T56's here locally. I have run into two other T56's so far with this exact same problem. Each time using a shifter with stops has solved it.
__________________
Jennings Engineering
"Your Standard Transmission Specialist"

 

Funny how the stock shifter doesn't have them. And since the C5 has internal stops, the reason to have stops on the shifter is pointless. Using stops dents into the shifter shaft. Meaning they would need adjusting periodically as the dent gets deeper into the shaft. Where did you get this information?

I do know GM used to use transmissions with Aluminum shift forks (which are prone to bending), in 2003 they went to steel forks.

 

I have B&M, but it might help. B&M was stiff like hell, and I waited for 500 miles to loosen up a bit as someone said. No, it never happened after 500 miles. I now have it for 3 mos w/ 2000 miles, and finally it got smoother. give it a little more time, and observe.

 

I think you are right. It might just be that it is different. I will give it time.

 

Yes.

I felt mine was too stiff when it went in. It has loosened up progressively since then, and is now a nice light, precise action. I was even running a taller shift **** for a week or so to try and gain back some mechanical advantage, since the shift effort was pretty high.

I backed the adjustment screws out one turn when I was doing my post-install double-check a week later, and now, with a few hundred miles worth of shifts, and that one change, it's literally perfect for me.

-Jake

 

Thanks for the heads-up Jake-I would hate to tell my wife I made a $165.00 mistake. Walt :nono: :cuss

 

NP :)

When I first got the shifter, it was so stiff, that my fiance drove it around all day in town one day in 3rd gear, because she wasnt pushing hard enough to get it into first!

Last time she drove it, a few days ago at my last autocross, she thought I had put the stock one back in, because the effort is sooo much lower now. It'll loosen up a bunch, and if it's still not enough, don't forget the lighter springs.

I'll never take this one out - the improved shift feel is wonderful. I love this car!

-Jake

 

I don't remember how long it took for mine to soften, but it's more than bearable with the softest springs. It used to be bad enough that my elbow would hurt after a long drive. :lol:

*edit* I also had the shift **** higher to give me more leverage earlier on. Now it's soft enough that I have the **** threaded all the way in.


[Modified by wireless, 1:30 PM 4/20/2004]