So I was shifting into second gear in rush hour traffic and suddenly my shifter became a floppy wet noodle. Lucky for me it was in second gear so I was able to continue home which was only about 2 miles away when this unfortunate experience happened. Jacked the 996 up and crawled under the car thinking that the shift cable had popped off but it was not so. I removed the center console only to discover the bottom half of the shifter had broken. Being that it is 303 stainless, I tig welded it back together and added a little shoulder to move the stress point away from the break and then clearanced the housing to make room for the shoulder thickness. I will be looking for a new shifter as I am now gun shy of this B&M shifter. Any suggestions?

 

I was always a bit leery of aftermarket shifters for exactly this reason - though I would have thought that an original B&M would be ok. The Chinese knock-offs like the agency power shifter or the many floating around eBay would have me worried (is yours really an original B&M?).

A shifter breaking if you are shifting hard or power shifting.... Type 2 over revs... Not a nice thought.

There are numerous threads on different shifters used throughout the 996/7 platform. The 997 shifter is supposed to offer somewhat shorter throws and the GT3 version is reinforced over the regular version.

Search here and on Rennlist for "shifter upgrade 996 997".

 

numeric shifter and forget about it

 

No on the over revs and yes on a true B&M. My Father is a retired welding inspector/ mechanical engineer. He said that the break was due to a flaw in the grain or something of that nature, not due to abuse. He starts talking and its over my head as I am just an old retired infantry Marine. How to fill sandbags and dig fighting holes, that I understand. lol. I will check out the Numeric shifter and Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Great and bummer.

I understood your description as to mean no over revs (I assume you would have mentioned them!). I was just saying: imagine if.... You could grenade the motor on a cheap shifter. Scary poop. And when you see how far the shifter shaft is tapered... That is why I have been leery of Chinese B&M copies. Bummer that now not even the original can be trusted.

 

i didnt even think of that. I really would have been upset(understatement). That Numeric shifter is like a piece of art. I would have to make a new center console as I wouldnt want the shifter covered up.

 

Exactly. I have witnessed a few B&M shifters break and had 1 break in a personal car years ago.

 

You do realize the shifters in 996TT are made by B&M...When you say witnessed, you mean you watched them break? There are a number of factors that can affect the forces the shifter sees...installation being one of them. I would caution premature generalization based on the data of 1 or a couple of shifters...but I'm a statistician so what do I know...LOL

 

I was in the car when they broke - 2.

 

Porsche sold the B&M short shifter as an accessory. The stock shifter is not by B&M.

Still, that is why I find it disconcerting that original B&M shifter(s) break...

The Numeric shifter is pretty. Pretty expensive as well, tho. Then again, using a GT3 shifter will not shorten the throws significantly as the GT3 has different shift levers in the trans that provide a much shorter throw. Then add something like the Function First slop elimination kit into the equation. Lots of choices...

 

Who did Porsche buy their shifters from?

 

I'll see if I can check further into it - but will guarantee it is not a relatively small American aftermarket manufacturer. I was quite surprised Porsche had B&M as their short shifter supplier.