I previously owned a B7 A4 6MT, and I had installed a JHM short shifter kit onto it, so any thoughts and opinions are compared to my experience with that setup on that car. That JHM kit does also happen to be the exact same one they sell for the B8 platform, just FYI.
So let's start off with the product. The small piece basically extends the bottom of the shifter. The large piece replaces the oem plastic surround that can get worn down and cause notchy behavior. They are beautifully crafted and anodized. High quality design and build all around. Much fewer parts than a typical short shift kit, but also about half the price.
Here you can see on the oem plate where the area on the guides is beginning to wear down.
As far as the install goes, I'm no mechanic, and i don't even really enjoy working on my car. Iirc, it took me 3-4 hours to install the JHM kit on my A4. Biggest issue was it required completely disconnecting the linkage, and it was a bitch to get back together for me.
Installing the JXB kit took me a little over an hour, in poor lighting, taking my sweet time. The best part about this kit is that it retains the stock rod/lever mechanism, so you do not have to disconnect the linkage. In fact I never even had to loosen the linkage at all. I was able to manipulate everything I needed to without touching the linkage at all. Huge plus. I never dropped anything into the abyss. Was pretty smooth honestly, with Jay's YT video to guide me. After I got it all back together, tested all gears, they were all right where I left them, no adjustment needed.
Test driving is where I thought I'd see a negative difference from the more expensive kit. Nope. Each gear clicks in and feels more solid than ever before. In fact, I like this setup MORE. Biggest advantage for me, maybe not everyone will agree, is again, that it retains the stock shift rod. The JHM kit has you replace this with a shorter rod. In the end, this reduces the amount of leverage you have on the shifter itself, as well as hinders you from properly shifting when you have a cup in the cup holder or similar. I love having the oem length rod with all the same leverage as before, just a shorter throw between gears. I don't know if the exact % decrease in throw has been measured, but it's at least 17% more fun to shift now.
Customer service has been awesome. I was lucky enough to hop on some pre order specials. One part was delayed due to first run defects, and a new revision had to be made. Jay was quick to notify of this and no worries were had by me. I also got an unexpected refund when the price to manufacture these parts went down and Jay passed these savings along to his pre order customers.
All in all, great products, great service, would recommend 100%. Not to mention the extended rod slave also sold by JXB Performance that has solved a plethora of other shifting issues for me. Thanks @jbullin2 !
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Originally Posted by Brother Owl
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