MT82 short throw for S550

[doulos4jc]

So just about all reviews rave about the transmission and its short throws. I'm thinking Ford did a good job of tweeking the tranny for the 2015. Did the S197 ever get such high praise?

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[Grimace427]

That's a whole can-o-worms you might wish you never opened. Some people love it, come people believe it to be the mechanical Devil incarnate. Mine is awesome, but also modded.

 

[doulos4jc]

One review said the old transmission was like a "twig and a rubberband". I was curious, having no personal experience with S197, because of all the postitive reviews of the 2015.

 

[Tony Alonso]

The shifting on the T3650-equipped V8 cars between 2005 and 2010 probably saw their biggest improvement in 2008. I had a 2007 GT and noticed an improvement in the positive feel in my 2010. In both cases, however, many people liked to switch out to another shifter to shorten the throws and get a more positive feel. The GT power levels at the time didn't expose the twisting of the shifter mechanism, which was the cause of missed shifts that was more prominent in the 2011 V8s.

In 2011, what many experienced was not only the missed shifts and difficulty getting into gear but less positive engagement because of the rubber "bushing" to damp out noise and vibration. Of course, there was a new transmission now too - the MT-82. As Grimace mentions, he has a good experience because he modified his configuration. People switched out the entire mechanism or got a bracket to better hold the shifter in place. I've felt the shifter in the 2015 now, and I can safely say it is improved over the earlier mechanism for the 4.6L V8 cars. I suspect compared to stock 5.0L V8 cars, there should be a noticeable change for the good.

Before anyone goes ripping it out, I suggest trying it. The teltale tests, I think, are as follows -

1) ease of finding each gate
2) not having difficulty engaging the shifter when the engine RPMs are on the high end
3) the degree of mechanical feel (does it "click"?) when going into each gate

Based on my short time with it back in August, I think there was solid engineering such that an aftermarket shifter really might only bring you a shorter throw, if that's your thing. Your experience may vary, depending on how much you like to slam the shifter into gear.

PS - The MT-82 got a reputation when there were some early troubles with noise levels, the clutch return spring that sometimes caused the pedals to sit on the floor when trying to shift near engine redline, and the "squshiness" from the shifter mechanism torquing and the bushing being so rubbery. I think those times are past us - at least I believe they will be, based on the improvements that have been mentioned.

 

[blue]

The shifting on the T3650-equipped V8 cars between 2005 and 2010 probably saw their biggest improvement in 2008. I had a 2007 GT and noticed an improvement in the positive feel in my 2010. In both cases, however, many people liked to switch out to another shifter to shorten the throws and get a more positive feel. The GT power levels at the time didn't expose the twisting of the shifter mechanism, which was the cause of missed shifts that was more prominent in the 2011 V8s.

In 2011, what many experienced was not only the missed shifts and difficulty getting into gear but less positive engagement because of the rubber "bushing" to damp out noise and vibration. Of course, there was a new transmission now too - the MT-82. As Grimace mentions, he has a good experience because he modified his configuration. People switched out the entire mechanism or got a bracket to better hold the shifter in place. I've felt the shifter in the 2015 now, and I can safely say it is improved over the earlier mechanism for the 4.6L V8 cars. I suspect compared to stock 5.0L V8 cars, there should be a noticeable change for the good.

Before anyone goes ripping it out, I suggest trying it. The teltale tests, I think, are as follows -

1) ease of finding each gate
2) not having difficulty engaging the shifter when the engine RPMs are on the high end
3) the degree of mechanical feel (does it "click"?) when going into each gate

Based on my short time with it back in August, I think there was solid engineering such that an aftermarket shifter really might only bring you a shorter throw, if that's your thing. Your experience may vary, depending on how much you like to slam the shifter into gear.

PS - The MT-82 got a reputation when there were some early troubles with noise levels, the clutch return spring that sometimes caused the pedals to sit on the floor when trying to shift near engine redline, and the "squshiness" from the shifter mechanism torquing and the bushing being so rubbery. I think those times are past us - at least I believe they will be, based on the improvements that have been mentioned.

Man, I hope you're right. I'm not wanting to install an aftermarket shifter in my '15. lol :clap2:

 

[USPSALIMITED]

So just about all reviews rave about the transmission and its short throws. I'm thinking Ford did a good job of tweeking the tranny for the 2015. Did the S197 ever get such high praise?

That is what I read to, but after driving for 800 miles or so I'm anxious to see what the after market comes out with. I'm wondering a bit if there is a quality control thing & some of the shifters are better than others. Mine is just ok otherwise and the 4 - 5 journey is long and just meh feeling.

Need to find the vendor thread about performance shifter development & eat some crow (and find out how they are coming along).

 

[minicobra]

The shifting on the T3650-equipped V8 cars between 2005 and 2010 probably saw their biggest improvement in 2008. I had a 2007 GT and noticed an improvement in the positive feel in my 2010. In both cases, however, many people liked to switch out to another shifter to shorten the throws and get a more positive feel. The GT power levels at the time didn't expose the twisting of the shifter mechanism, which was the cause of missed shifts that was more prominent in the 2011 V8s.

In 2011, what many experienced was not only the missed shifts and difficulty getting into gear but less positive engagement because of the rubber "bushing" to damp out noise and vibration. Of course, there was a new transmission now too - the MT-82. As Grimace mentions, he has a good experience because he modified his configuration. People switched out the entire mechanism or got a bracket to better hold the shifter in place. I've felt the shifter in the 2015 now, and I can safely say it is improved over the earlier mechanism for the 4.6L V8 cars. I suspect compared to stock 5.0L V8 cars, there should be a noticeable change for the good.

Before anyone goes ripping it out, I suggest trying it. The teltale tests, I think, are as follows -

1) ease of finding each gate
2) not having difficulty engaging the shifter when the engine RPMs are on the high end
3) the degree of mechanical feel (does it "click"?) when going into each gate

Based on my short time with it back in August, I think there was solid engineering such that an aftermarket shifter really might only bring you a shorter throw, if that's your thing. Your experience may vary, depending on how much you like to slam the shifter into gear.

PS - The MT-82 got a reputation when there were some early troubles with noise levels, the clutch return spring that sometimes caused the pedals to sit on the floor when trying to shift near engine redline, and the "squshiness" from the shifter mechanism torquing and the bushing being so rubbery. I think those times are past us - at least I believe they will be, based on the improvements that have been mentioned.

Thanks for the nice write up

So, I wonder then if the FRPP short shifter they are showing is only going to shorten the distance, or will it have more positive (click) engagement also.

One thing that I really want to avoid is NVH buzz if going to a different aftermarket shifter. I've had this in the past, I like a positive shifter, but without the buzzzzzz.

 

[Renaultfool]

I just traded in my 2008 V6 manual and never did like the way it shifted, although I drove it 160,000 miles and during that time it was reliable and the shifting never changed. It seemed notchy and difficult to get quickly between gears, even in the same gate, like 1st to 2nd, or 3rd to 4th. I always suspected that the syncros were not up to the task for quick shifts.
When I picked up my new 2015 V6 I noticed that it shifted much better right out of the box. Big improvement over the 2008.

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