Short shift Z3 3.0 shifter rubs on driveshaft

[Bmwdrivere30]

Help please I've read all the forums and thought I did plenty of research but I installed my short shifter from a z3 3.0 I got from bma and it runs drive shaft I did kinda expect it reading all the chat about shifters but after bending my selector rod it still grinds on the shaft please let me know what to do I do love the throw of the shifter and wanna keep it but I'm thinking of going a size smaller I think it was the 2.5 or something

[mitchlikesbikes]

is it rubbing on the big harmonic balancer on the driveshaft? if so you can drop the driveshaft, knock the studs out, remove the balancer, hammer the studs back in and be merrily on your way with your nice new shifter. the harmonic balancer basically doesn't do anything but add weight. many early models didn't even come with one as far as i know (as well as almost every other RWD car ever). also on an unrelated note get your self new shifter bushings and a double shear selector rod to go with your z3 lever. it will make it even better.

here is a photo of the thing you wanna get rid of if that is in fact what the shifter is rubbing on:

[Bmwdrivere30]

No its directly on the drive shaft the shifter I have is straight and it's just a little long so it rubs the drive shaft I thought by bending the selector rod it would pull it out of the way enough to clear cuz if I pull up on the shifter it doesn't rub

[Bmwdrivere30]

I did get new bushings and thought about the dssr but felt if I had to bend it it might not be worth it if I can find the propped bend I might have my buddy fabricate one since he does that for a living but for now I just need it to stop hitting the drive shatf

[Yungbimmer]

No its directly on the drive shaft the shifter I have is straight and it's just a little long so it rubs the drive shaft I thought by bending the selector rod it would pull it out of the way enough to clear cuz if I pull up on the shifter it doesn't rub

Thats really odd. Have you checked your tranny mounts? Make sure they're in good condition, if not they'll cause your tranny to move around and could be the reason why your shifter is rubbing on your DS. Also, does it only rub while you're driving or does it rub while stationary as well?

[mitchlikesbikes]

after looking at this again i remembered that the z3 3.0 lever is a bit longer than what is ideal. i have the 2.5 lever and everything clears fine without the balancer, and the throw is really nice. if you haven't replaced the cup bushing try that as a fresh one will hold the shifter a little higher and may help with clearance. otherwise i would consider selling that 3.0 lever and getting a z3 1.9 or z4 2.5 one.

[Bmwdrivere30]

I appreciate the reponses there are people who have said they have used this shifter so I would hope to get it to work I'm trying to upload a pic but for some reason I can't everything I put in is new the shifter the cup the bushings not sure how my granny mounts are I think they are good and the grinding is only while moving in 1 3 and 5 is real bad and neutral is not so great

[mitchlikesbikes]

I appreciate the reponses there are people who have said they have used this shifter so I would hope to get it to work I'm trying to upload a pic but for some reason I can't everything I put in is new the shifter the cup the bushings not sure how my granny mounts are I think they are good and the grinding is only while moving in 1 3 and 5 is real bad and neutral is not so great

those symptoms make it sound like it could be a trans/engine mount issue.

[Big_sohc]

This is common when doing the z3 short shifter. I did it and it rubbed not the balancer when shifting into second. The only way i could fix it was to slightly bend the shift linkage up in the middle. IT WORKED! read up some more its a common solution to the install of this shifter.

[SkiFree]

Your describing a common issue using the Z3 lever. Some guys are just embarrassed to talk about it for some reason.

As mentioned you can bend the lever slightly or simply run a different lever.