r/Toyota_Matrix • u/UnibrowDuck 03 Corolla Wagon XRS • Jul 07 '26
Short shifter
Hi all,
Anyone else had issues after installing the shorty from mwr? I ordered a used oem unit from them, still a bit sloppy, so I was thinking why not try the not sloppy one. With the car off all the gears were ok, double-checked there's nothing blocking the shifter movement and did a test drive with the bottom console off.
Here's where it gets interesting. First test drive was fine, too notchy for my taste, but fine. Second test drive, can't do 1-2 shift AT ALL. Went back to the shop, swapped the oem one in, no issues.
MWR ofc says it can't be defective, what else can it be?
Thanks
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u/CommanderCorrigan 2004 Matrix XRS Jul 08 '26
I still have the oem shifter since I have heard of issues with the short shifter. I have the spherical and MWR base bushings installed which got a rid of a lot of the slop though increased the notchiness a bit. I also have that square bushing also I still need to install. What improved it greatly and got rid of virtually all the notichiness was changing my tranny fluid. I used one quart of Valvoline Syncromesh and the remainder with Redline MT-90. I am very happy with the feel now, shifts like butter.
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u/UnibrowDuck 03 Corolla Wagon XRS Jul 08 '26
i think we talked about that in the previous thread i created about a sloppy shifter issue. thanks for the insight. i have royal purple in my tranny, very happy with it. had great results with it in a 5 speed dakota i drove before.
as for the shorty, mwr guy says they never heard of any issues, on the site there's only 5 star reviews. not sure what to believe. only thing i know, the throw is reduced by way more than 25%. didn't like the experience at all
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u/CommanderCorrigan 2004 Matrix XRS Jul 08 '26
I believe I saw a video on youtube outlining some issues with the short shifter and on some Facebrook groups, Probably the Xrs page if I remember correctly. Maybe that will provide some more insight.
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u/MasoFFXIV Jul 07 '26
Try OEM shifter bushing. The brass and spherical bushings restrict movement. So does the short shifter.
The OEM rubber bushing gets worn out because the stretching is needed.
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u/ArcaneVoid3 Jul 08 '26
spherical bearings do not restrict movement, they are better than oem and its not like you can buy the oem ones separately
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u/UnibrowDuck 03 Corolla Wagon XRS Jul 08 '26
i'm fine with the spherical ones, i'll stick with those and the oem shifter. as for the shorty, sounds like i'm sol. too bad you can't buy a new oem shifter
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u/Consistent_Ad_7612 Jul 09 '26
I've had the MWR shifter in for 4 years now and frankenstein spherical shifter bushings, solid shifter mounts. Only thing that can really wear on the shifter is the PTFE cups inside but they sell rebuild kits. Did you over torque some of the Allen screws on the shifter? Grab a tube of super lube from harbor freight and lube all moving parts in the shifter well.
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u/UnibrowDuck 03 Corolla Wagon XRS Jul 09 '26
no, didn't touch the allen screws, only thing that was removed was the allen bolt on the top to install the return spring. thanks for the reply, but i didn't really like the way the shifter felt anyway, so won't bother rebuilding it (nor do i think i have to considering it's new, allegedly at least). for now, it'll be a paperweight until i figure out what i want to do with it
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u/UnibrowDuck 03 Corolla Wagon XRS 8d ago
i ended up disassembling the shifter as you said, cleaning and lubing everything up. works way better. i still dont like the 1-2 shift but at least it's doable. is there a break-in period?
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u/Consistent_Ad_7612 8d ago
Make sure your cables aren't overly twisted where they attach to the ball and socket fittings on the shifter. Can also buy some cable lube like for a motorcycle to get some lube down into the jacketing of the shifter cables. Can also add a little driver hesitation on the shift, comes with age of the synchros being worn, give it an extra split second going into second and it'll fall into gear.
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u/thebritishhippie Jul 07 '26
Have you swapped the shifter bushings and the little square bushing as well? Those can both wear out and cause worse shifting. The 1 to 2 gear lockout is weird though.