I have an 08 Pace car with the 6M, and am surprised and disappointed at the balkiness of the shifter, particularly 1-2 and 2-3 shifts. I hoped it was only a problem of cold fluid, but it really doesn't seem to matter, with continuing rough shifting long after the fluid has warmed up fully. It's not just a notchiness; I learned to love that in my many Mustangs (sorry, guys). It's a reluctance to move smoothly into the next gear, with occasional grinding (particularly if I try to hurry things along at all). Has no one else experienced this in a C6? One of the reasons I was so pleased to buy this car was that I read the shifter had been improved for 08. But it is clearly the worst thing about the car, and negatively affects the driving experience. BTW, I have installed the CAGS bypass.

 

Wow, I think this might be the first time I've heard someone say the shifting is the worst part about their 08, seeing as it was revised and improved. My 1-2 shift has a slight, slight grind when cold, but after it warms up, its like butter.

Maybe try changing your tranny fluid? I just ordered an MGW shifter, you can do that as well and will probably never want to STOP driving after that!

 

I'd love to hear about your experience with the aftermarket shifter, after you've had it for a few weeks. I've wondered about this option, but worried about causing myself new (unforeseen) problems. Thanks for the tip.

 

I should be receiving it soon and have heard nothing but good things from vette owners. The only experience I have with MGW was with my friends 2003 cobra, and that was an amazing shifter. Had it on the car for 3 years, never had any problems, always felt amazing.

 

I've run the MGW shifter for over a year. Precise, shorter throw, never hit 2-5 again.
As for the balky shifting, you say it still does when warm? How long are you giving it to warm up. In 35 degree temps, mine takes over 15 minutes in traffic to warm up. During that time, I get a stiff 1-2 shift. I just shift 1-3 until warm.

 

Sounds like the cold. Like others have said, my 1-2 and 2-3 when it is below 50* can be notchy until the car has some miles on it. The key is actual miles driven in gear. Coasting and ideling don't really add heat

How many total miles on it? Does the clutch fluid look like crap?

 

Sounds like your problem is the transmission, NOT the shifter, which appears to be exactly like previous C6 shifters. Mine is like butter. Some have notchiness when cold but this disappears when the transmission warms. The '08 shifting is very good IMO and better than the previous years with the old trans..

 

Shifting in my '08 is pretty much my only dislike as well. Even with the MGW it is randomly notchy. Sometimes buttery smooth and other times not, in all cases the tranny is fully warmed up so thats not it. Its really irritating. My Y2K didn't do this.

 

Had an 05 and now an 09. The major difference between the 05 and 09 is how smooth and low effort the shifting is. And how easy it goes into 1st at a stop light. When it's cold it won't go into 2nd smoothly. Until the trans warms up, I just shift from 1st to 3rd (skip shift elimiated). Very smooth.

 

Had my clutch and pressure plate replaced and now my 5th shift is like hunting for something in wide open spaces

 

I was hoping that when i get the mgw that i would'nt have to deal with the notchy feel any more.

 

 

In my '05, I found that the MGW shifter was a big improvement over the stock shifter... but when I had the OEM fluid changed to synthetic (Red Line) the improvement was huge! My "cold" notchiness (and high effort required to shift) has completely gone away.

Heck, it's worth a try!

 

The effort you are feeling comes from the great synchronizers not doing their job quickly enough; despite what you will hear here, no shifter in the world is going to help you with something that is happening inside the transmission; that would be like me telling you that if you put a different steering wheel on a car that is out of alignment it will stop pulling to the right all the time.
Synchro issues usually happen because the transmission was abused and the synchros were damaged, or because the oil is not doing its job; transmission oil has to balance between offering lubrication for the gears and bearings, but still allowing enough friction for the synchros to work effectively; you will notice that the car is always hardest to shift when cold; mine was pretty noticeable in winter.

The best thing you can do to alleviate the problem is run a better gear oil; I've had very good luck with Royal Purple Synchromax on previous vehicles, and it worked VERY well on my C6, greatly reducing the notchiness of the transmission, even when cold. Others report similar results with Amsoil oils; I'm sure either one is good. A transmission oil change is not expensive, so my recommendation to you would be to change the transmission oil before you buy any parts that are not adressing the problem you are trying to solve If that doesn't solve it, you may want to have the dealer take a better look at it.
By the way, a short throw shifter does wonders to the precision and feel of finding your gears, but it will also increase shifting effort (simple physics; a smaller shift lever has less of a moment arm to transfer force to the shifter fork), so if it is hard to get the car into gear now, it won't be any easier with a shorter shifter.