sexylegacy Posted August 7, 2007 Share Posted August 7, 2007 Hey All, Just put the new AVO Short Shifter in this afternoon and then took the wagon for a few miles of fun. The install took about 45 minutes or so and that's with not taking the O-ring out where the ball joint on the end of the AVO rod locks into the ball socket at the base of the assembly. This was probably the toughest part, but I had a great piece of advice from Sean. He told me to take a good heavy single-jack (small sledgehammer) and give the rod a god solid thwack and the ball would seat right in. It did exactly that. Be sure when putting it in do lube it up good with some industrial grease. The rest of the install is simple and straightforward. You just pop up the bezel surrounding the shifter from the center console towards the HVAC controls, unscrew the shift knob and pull that whole thing out. Just leave the little harness for the lighter on and hang the thing over the side. Then unscrew 2 white plastic screws on opposing corners of the shifter and pull up the rubber surrounding the stock rod. Then you unbolt the linkage from the stock shifter (#12 metric), rotate the shifter 180 degrees, and pull it towards the center console. It will wedge up against the steel surrounding the ball socket and you can use that leverage to pop out the whole rod. This requires some effort, but is not impossible. Otherwise, follow the instructions exactly and use the special O-ring pliers to remove the O-ring and pull out that entire assembly. That's it. No fuss, no muss. The new one goes in the exact opposite. Be sure to put the bushings for the linkage into the AVO rod from the stock rod. Also adjust your desired height of the ball joint below the pivot point. It really helps to have a metric tape measure. AVO recommends 67mm from the center of the pivot point to the center of the ball. All of this is obvious anyway when you are actually doing it. The end result is a shifter with significantly shorter shifts and an overall shorter rod. From the pictures you can tell that even with the stock shift knob, the overall height has reduced by about 1.5inches or so. What's excellent is that it doesn't feel notchy or too tight. It's a little stiffer, but in a good way, and you can row through the gears much more effectively. It always seemed to me that the stock throw was like shifting a pickup or something. Overall I'm extremely pleased and I feel like I have a very high quality product that will last the life of the car. It's absolutely worth the 99 bucks. http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb263/djlibal/AVOShortShifter001.jpg http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb263/djlibal/AVOShortShifter002.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two-Five Sti-L Posted September 19, 2007 Share Posted September 19, 2007 How do you like the short shifter now after using it for awhile? Does it require more effort to shift? Is reverse more difficult to get into? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexylegacy Posted September 19, 2007 Author Share Posted September 19, 2007 There is very little extra effort required and all gears including reverse are just as easy to engage. The gears lock in and are crisp with every shift. The car just clicks into each gear perfectly and I never miss. Overall I think it is a great upgrade. I've been totally happy with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
08Flo Rida Posted September 19, 2007 Share Posted September 19, 2007 Were did you order your sts from? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexylegacy Posted September 19, 2007 Author Share Posted September 19, 2007 Got it from Sean at Rallitek. They pretty much carry every AVO item from the STS, to a simple panel filter, to full AVO turbo setups. He can be difficult to reach personally, but he's just great to deal with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
08Flo Rida Posted September 22, 2007 Share Posted September 22, 2007 Thanks I will be getting at him soon, I need an sts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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