Changed gear knob makes a difference

[puppypilgrim]

INTRODUCTION
First, let me say I don't intend to offend any Alpina purists here. However I was looking for a way to improve the driver's feel or interaction with my Bi-Turbo. My car comes with the standard Alpina logoed wood gear knob. It feels light, a tad long for my driving preference and the 2nd gear after feels a little notchy unless I shift at 4,500 rpm to 5,000 rpm - the shift is then pretty seamless. I was looking for a smoother shifting experience by utilizing a gear knob with a little heavier weight and a shorter mounted height and a bit better ergonomic feel for my driving preference compared to the wood Alpina knob.


THE EXPERIMENT
So this weekend I experimented with a Momo gear knob selected for a heavier knob weight than the Alpina wood and when mounted, is a bit shorter than the Alpina knob. You can see a picture of the Momo knob below:




REMOVING OLD AND INSTALLING NEW
Although the picture doesn't reflect it well, the metal portion is in fact chromed stainless steel that makes it heavy. Removing the Alpina knob was just a matter of pulling it straight up. I wore yellow rubber gloves for better traction being careful to avoid hitting myself in the face as some have experience. The Alpina knob came off with far easier effort than I expected. No danger of hitting myself there. I carefully carefully packed the Alpina knob away for future reference. No, I won't be selling it on Ebay.

The Momo knob fits perfectly. It comes with several sized rod caps to fit almost any shift lever. There are also two sets of Allen wrench style flush fitting screws of varying lengths. There are 3 screws to position and fix the knob.

After fitting the knob, I went on a test drive. Subsequently made fine adjustments to the position to fit my hand and the angle of my wrist through all the gears.


CONCLUSION
The shorter and slightly heavier gear knob has improved the shifting feel for me. The shifts are smoother and the notchy 2nd gear has also been toned down although not eliminated. The ergonomic position of my wrist angle and grasp of the knob is also improved. This is not strictly a "performance" upgrade for the car although it is a performance upgrade of sorts for the driver's interface with the car.


POST SCRIPT
There are some who advocate a heavy gear knob - as much as 400 grams for the knob - improves driver feel and reduces shift effort by using the mass of the knob to smooth shifting. I worry about excessive wear on the shift lever bushings and shift linkage with that heavy a knob. I had previously thought that changing gear knobs was a strictly cosmetic exercise but now realize that is not true. Gear knob shape, design and weight changes the driver's interface with the car. Just my 2 cents.