The Honda Civic and its multitude of variants have become favorites of the import enthusiast community, and for good reason. Close inspection reveals clever engineering and mechanical systems that lend themselves well to upgrades.
The shift mechanism of the Civic family is a perfect example. Whereas other compact cars employ a cable-actuated shift mechanism, Honda chose to stick with a proven and sturdy rod linkage. This set-up has several advantages over a cable system. During aggressive use, cable-actuated shifters sometimes bind up, causing missed shifts or requiring the driver to double-clutch to get the car into gear. Though newer cable systems are less prone to this, rod linkages still have an edge in this area.The other advantage is shift feel. Rod linkages have a delightfully direct, mechanical feel. At idle, the shifter will often quiver slightly, a sign that it is positively connected to the powertrain. In contrast, cable linkages transmit almost no vibration or feedback through the shifter, the knob standing absolutely still at idle. In the fanatical zeal to rid modern cars of "noise, vibration and harshness," many OEMs have chosen cable mechanisms to isolate the cabin and driver from this feedback. More often than not, they do not consult the enthusiast community on these decisions.
Taking full advantage of the performance-oriented design of the Honda shifter mechanism, B&M Racing Products has produced a short-shift mechanism and shift stabilizer system designed to work with all Honda Civic variants from 1988 to 2000 models. The modular design allows the owner to select from three degrees of throw reduction: Street/Race, Race and Pro Race. This is accomplished through multiple snap ring indentations allowing the driver to locate the pivot point according to intended use and preference. The shift stabilizer system adds the option of three different shift lever placements, forward of the stock position, aft or right in the middle. Installation is straightforward, though you will need to be able to raise the car at least two feet and be able to safely maneuver underneath the car.
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Unscrew the stock shift knob, then raise the vehicle just enough to have access to the und
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Unhook the exhaust section from the rubber hangers around the catalytic converter and move
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Once you have the exhaust out of the way, use a 12 mm socket and hand wrench to remove the
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Using a 12 mm socket, remove the two bolts fastening the stock (rubber) rear lateral stabi
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Next, remove the 12 mm bolt holding the change extension to the transmission. Carefully re
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This will allow you to remove the change extension and shift lever as a unit.
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Place the change extension and shift lever on a clean, flat surface. Remove the change bal
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Since we were also installing the B&M shift stabilizer system, we removed the rubber bushi
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Remove the shift lever from the change extension.
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To install the shift stabilizer, trim the flare off the end of the change extension with a
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Lightly lubricate the rear of the change extension and slide the replacement polyurethane
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Clean the inner shift socket area of the change extension and lightly lubricate. When inst
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Insert the short-throw shift lever into the change extension socket. Re-install the two ch
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Choose desired shift lever position according to the diagram and set eccentrics. Torque to
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Re-install change extension and shift lever in vehicle. Be careful not to tear the dust se
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Re-install front of change extension to transmission. Torque to 16 ft-lbs.
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Line up position of rear lateral stabilizer on end of change extension to its correspondin
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Line up change rod with bottom of shift lever and insert the bolt. Torque both nut and bol
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Lower vehicle and re-install shift knob. With clutch depressed, run shifter through the ga