Post installation, the feel of changing gears has changed entirely. The effort required is much lesser and the feel is excellent.
BHPian saket77 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.
Gear Knob Change:
I was looking for changing the gear knob for some time now. The original leather wrapped ball-type knob is good for those who want to keep stuff original in their car but I wanted something more meaty to hold and for better gear shift feel. Also, I have experienced that a bigger knob with a longer neck gives a better leverage while shifting and hence lesser effort is required. In this quest, I was also looking at OE knobs from other manufacturers for replacement as well which would be suitable for the City but somehow didn’t get too many options.
Finally found a nice knob on Amazon which was something I was looking for. This leather wrapped one cost me 900/- bucks but is heavy and feels premium. The finish is very good. I would have preferred black stitches on it but that wasn’t an option.
This comes with all the hardware required for installation. Fitting isn’t exactly straightforward as it is a universal product which can be used with all cars with one of the suitable adapters supplied with it. Also comes with 3 gear position templates which you can choose as per your car.
The OE knob comes out by unscrewing it but first the leather cover needs to be detached by pulling down the silver ring. To fit the new knob, choose a proper fitting rubber bush adapter as per the size of the gear rod thread and then secure the adapter to the knob with the screws and allen key provided with it. Fix the suitable gear orientation template on the knob with the double sided tape provided.
Post installation, the feel of changing gears has changed entirely. The effort required is much lesser and the feel is excellent. The knob feels very good to hold and I am happy with how it looks. The only downside is that the position of reverse gear on the template provided doesn’t match the actual position of the gear. But that is okay with me and I am enjoying the better gear shifting experience more than the small disappointment.
In terms of running, the car is closing in 1900 kms and the good thing to report is that there is a marked improvement in the engine manners which has changed especially post clocking 1500 kms on the odo. I think the drivability is getting better as the engine is clocking more kilometers. Definitely drives better than when it was brand new.
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