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KartBoy STS & front bushings install.


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Got the Kartboy STS, but the part number on it is different than the other sources I've seen in their pictures and on other vendor sites:

 

KB016224

 

Can someone confirm this is the right shifter for 05 Legacy?

 

Thanks...

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  • 2 weeks later...
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^ Yes and no.

 

Yes - if you've got something loose in the shifter assembly: be it a loose set-screw for your aftermarket shift knob or a trim ring, you'll quickly know it.

 

No, in that during normal driving, unless there's something loose, there should not be any noticeable increase in the "noise" component of NVH. Heck, if you've got a cat-back or even just some louder tires, that'll easily drown out any potential small noise. :)

<-- I love Winky, my "periwinkle" (ABP) LGT! - Allen / Usual Suspect "DumboRAT" / One of the Three Stooges

'16 Outback, '16 WRX, 7th Subaru Family

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Just installed my Kartboy shifter and everything went well. Now I get an audible rattle that seems to be coming from inside the shift knob. Almost like the shifter rod is vibrating in the shift knob and rattling. Thoughts?
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The only time that I get a rattle (OEM short-throw, with Kartboy bushings all-around) is when the collar to my shift knob (MOMO aftermarket piece) has worked itself loose (I keep thinking I should throw a wrap of plumber's tape around the thread, but I keep forgetting :redface:).

 

IIRC, the factory knob was a threaded "screw-on" type....if it's tight, that shouldn't be the part that's rattling/vibrating, right?

 

(Just saw that there was a post before mine - which brought up a good point.)

<-- I love Winky, my "periwinkle" (ABP) LGT! - Allen / Usual Suspect "DumboRAT" / One of the Three Stooges

'16 Outback, '16 WRX, 7th Subaru Family

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Mine rattles with both the stock and STI Duracon knob, with and without plumbers tape.

 

It only does it >4k RPM so I'm just living with it for now and leaving my hand on the knob in that rpm range to stop the noise. But I will listen to any remedy ideas.

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Yes, mine vibrates. I have the Kartboy STS and the aluminum OEM MOMO knob. The leather OEM knob made less noise. If you're wondering if the knob makes a difference, I can say for certain that YES, it does. Take the knob off and drive around without it... You'll notice it's much quieter. Now pop it back on. It magnifies the noise coming from the drivetrain.

 

Wrapping teflon tape around the threads of the shifter before screwing the knob back on helps... it'll dampen the noise a bit. But you need a good amount of tape to make a difference, so it'll be hard to turn the knob back in.

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Very interesting!

 

How about using a rubber "plug" at the top/tip of the shifter rod -kinda like what's used as a spacer/adapter for MOMO's aftermarket non-screw-on knobs- before reassembling any screw-on type knobs?

<-- I love Winky, my "periwinkle" (ABP) LGT! - Allen / Usual Suspect "DumboRAT" / One of the Three Stooges

'16 Outback, '16 WRX, 7th Subaru Family

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Just installed my Kartboy shifter and everything went well. Now I get an audible rattle that seems to be coming from inside the shift knob. Almost like the shifter rod is vibrating in the shift knob and rattling. Thoughts?

 

My kartboy sts used to do this in gear sometimes. It turned out to be that the shifter was rubbing on the metal plate under the shift boot. Ground it down just alittle problem fixed! Idk if thats what you are experienceing but thought i would put in my input. ;) Also with the sts i noticed more vibration especially with the shifter bushings i installed.

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  • 2 months later...

Hi MUD,

 

First, I want to thank you for putting this walk-through together. It's only after I installed my STS using your instructions that I understand how patient you must have been to perform the swap and document it so well. I even copied this thread to my desktop and converted it to PDF so I can view it off-line. After my install I would like to make a few commnents/observations.

 

I installed the Cobb double adjustable STS a couple of days ago. Everything went as adverised except, of course, making the adjustments to the shifter (Kartboy vs. Cobb). The retaining ring was a PITA and tedious to take out and put back. Even with a good droplight it was hard to see the holes. Luckily I bought Channel Lock's adjustable retaining clip pliers. This is a neat tool which has a switch to go from external c-clips to internal c-clips. It also has removable points for different size holes in the c-clips.

 

Instead of using two box wrenches I used 1-12mm box wrench and a 1/4" drive rachet w/a 12mm socket. This worked great and there was more than enough room for the rachet to fit.

 

Then came the adjustment to the throw and height of the Cobb DA STS. Since this is my first STS I really didn't know what I wanted or what would be comfortable, so it took awhile to find that sweet spot. My goal was to have the shortest throw w/o binding the linkage against the rubber tunnel. To get the gap as tight as possible I used the paper insert to my new Channel Lock retaining clip pliers and slid it back and forth between the linkage and the rubber tunnel and tighted up the allen bolt at the bottom.

 

As far as the height is concerned, m sprank told me he adjusted his so his hand rested on the emergency brake, so I went with that initially. It's very comforatable and to shift I don't have to move my arm from my side. My observations after driving it, however, is it may be too short for the rubber boot under the console and the leather boot. The material seems to bunch up when going into 2nd and 4th, but 1st, 3rd and 5th feel awesome. That would indicate that the linkage isn't binding on the rubber tunnel, I would guess. Either I increase the heigth or get a shorter leather boot. Are there any other options I didn't think of?

 

As far as the heavy metal braket, I can't see for the life of me how one can possibley rotate this bracket 180 degress. The braket is not semetrical, so rotating it does not yield the same hole pattern and there is a bracket that screws into the console near the heated seat adjustments. Anyway, I cut the corner piece out with a dremel tool and ground off the ruff edges. Worked great.

 

As far as the vibration, I don't get any. I waited on the bushings to see if I would get any vibration or rattle, but since I don't have any I will do this upgrade in the near future (using this walk-through, of course).

 

Thanks again, MUD, for taking the time to put this together. It was an invaluable tool to making my STS swap a complete success.

 

Best Regards, JohnnyT

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  • 4 months later...

I installed my COBB STS about 1year and a half ago or so. I absolutely love it! I wouldn't have been able to do it without this write-up.

 

Anyways, recently I have been given the opportunity to purchase the shifter bushings from kartboy:

http://www2.kartboy.com/x4/product.php?productid=16139&cat=264&bestseller=Y

 

Now in the write-up I noticed that you changed the "round" bushing however in the picture from Kartboy their is another diamonded shape bushing. Where does it go?

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  • 1 month later...

Oh My God ! This shit was s painful !

 

I installed my Cobb sts a few days before installing my T.S. front and rear bushings. Biggest mistake of my life, lol. I should have waited and install both of them at the same time becuase the best way to install is to literally take everything apart and do everything at once.

 

I tried to install both bushings while the shifter was still installed, but I really recommend removing the shifter, unbolt everything, and take that gold shift linkage out to install the bushings. This is how I ended up doing it after hours of cursing.

 

 

 

So now I have a few questions :

 

What is that outside plate on the front bushings for ?

 

&

 

Just like the guy above me, I can't shift into 2nd or 3rd with that rubber/ foam boot re-installed . Any solution to this ?

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  • 2 weeks later...
I just did this without snap ring pliers... what a PITA!!! lol

Current: 16 Crosstrek Premium w/ Eyesight & 05 Outback XT 5MT

Past Subies: 14 FXT Premium, 14 WRX hatch, 06 Legacy 2.5i SE 5MT, 98 Outback wagon

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Great guide! I installed the Kartboy STS last night and I noticed that on higher revs 4k+ on my 2.5i that I'm getting a vibration rattle in the shifter. Anyone else experience this?

Current: 16 Crosstrek Premium w/ Eyesight & 05 Outback XT 5MT

Past Subies: 14 FXT Premium, 14 WRX hatch, 06 Legacy 2.5i SE 5MT, 98 Outback wagon

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...
And I thought everything felt fine after the STS install................well I just changed out the stock(spongy)rubber bushing for an Agency Power(hard plastic)bushing. Holy crap!!!! Totally new driving experience. Only took about 30 minutes from the time I put it up on the ramps till completion. Once again great write up!!
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  • 1 month later...

Can anyone who changed front bushings, and then later did rears, comment on how much of an improvement the rears were? I have the tranny out atm, so they should both be easy, but I won't bother with the rear if it doesn't make much difference...

 

Thx,

Andy

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Can anyone who changed front bushings, and then later did rears, comment on how much of an improvement the rears were? I have the tranny out atm, so they should both be easy, but I won't bother with the rear if it doesn't make much difference...

 

Thx,

Andy

 

As long as the tranny is dropped it should be pretty easy to replace all the bushings so do that now. Otherwise you'll wonder how much better it could have been... Get TIC's kit with the linkage bushings and call it good.

Current: 16 Crosstrek Premium w/ Eyesight & 05 Outback XT 5MT

Past Subies: 14 FXT Premium, 14 WRX hatch, 06 Legacy 2.5i SE 5MT, 98 Outback wagon

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  • 2 weeks later...

installed the kartboy sts. so now i have the sts and rallitek bushings. the throws are shorter and the shifter is shorter, the shifter feels more precise but the play is there and its not notchy at all.

 

what did i do wrong?

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