997 shifter upgrade is a must do!
 

After reading a bunch on the 997/987 shifter I found one on Ebay that was in almost new condition. I think I stole it for $76 and it had been sitting in the seller's garage since 2009. The guy included the receipt from when he bought his short shifter to prove it. I had it put in on Saturday and it was like getting a new car. The throws are shorter and a lot firmer than the tired old 986 shifter that had over 134,000 miles on it. If you are considering a short shifter but don't want to spend top dollar for the Porsche short shifter or deal with installing a short shifter on the old 986 shifter then this is the way to go. Plus you can find them on Ebay for between $70 and a $125 used as a fair share of them are from people upgrading to the short shift kit and have low miles on them as opposed to paying $200+ for a new one.

Have to agree with this. Going from my 986 to my mom's 987, the shifting is much crisper overall. Definitely want to get this done as well.

Was install easy? I just ordered one from suncoast.

I agree too. I swapped mine for a 997 shifter from a 2011 997 GTS with 6,000 miles on it; $100 shipped off of eBay.

I did the swap myself after Googling how to do it. There are a lot of posting and some have step by step with photos. Takes some time, but it is pretty straight forward. The most time consuming is removing the console.

The difference between my 986 shifter with 21,000 miles and this one was night and day.

Got my 997 shifter via eBay for 100. Worth it!

Where are you guys searching on eBay? I'm not seeing them on there for that price. Did you buy a used one? I payed 215 for a new one from suncoast

Just do a search for "997 shifter," "987 shifter," or "cayman shifter" on Ebay. Here is one I found this morning.

Porsche 997 Shifter Assembly Complete | eBay

Glad you guys enjoy his mod. But please clear up some confusion in my head...997/987 shifters are not short shifters right? Just a overall better shifter than the 986?

Randy, I believe it reduces the throw by approximately 15% as noted on Suncoast's site. The "short shifters" generally say around 35% reduction. Here's a link to Suncoast:

997 Shift Console Upgrade:Porsche Parts & Porsche Accessories - Wholesale Porsche Parts & Tequipment - Cayman Panamera Cayenn

Absolutely a better shifter. It does shorten the throw a bit, probably not as much as a B&M or a Schnell but really easy to install & I noticed the cold shift operation is much improved especially the first to second gear shift.

Thanks for the link Bruce.n Bryan. Picking one of these up slightly used is a steal!

Any links to install docs ?

Here is one for a short shift console installation. It is the same for the 997 console. It is time consuming, but easier than it looks. The center console removal is the most time consuming part.

http://www.maxspeed-motorsports.com/pdf%20forms/shortshifterinstallation.pdf

so it gets rid of that loud "clunky" sound when you first shift into second after a cold start?
I hate that...

I don't mind the long throw at all. I had a miata and loathed the notchyness of a cold gear box. Which is why I have never done the SSK.

The thing I don't like about the 986 shifter is that shifting from 4th to 5th sometimes feels a little vague, like "am I going back to 3rd by mistake? No I think its 5th....".
or maybe I'm thinking of downshifts too.. well mushy is the point... definitely not bolt actiony like.

Why are they showing a pic of a 997 GT3 shifter if they're selling a standard 997 shifter?

They are showing both. The GT3 is $385. The second picture has them side by side.

FYI - Suncoast just sent me an sale email with the 997 SSK for $354. Their normal price is $429 so if anyone was thinking about upgrading, now may be the time. I just ordered mine.
I know their are aftermarket options that are less expensive but I have read only good reviews about this option and the installation is supposed to be foolproof since you are replacing the whole shift console rather than just the shifter.

OK, I have to ask. Does the 997 shofter work for 1999 Boxsters with a 5 speed transmission? I saw a couple on ebay, but they were all of 6 speed transmissions. I'm curious to find out if any 997 shifter will work or just specific models (i.e. 5 speed to 5 speed).

Thanks

Yes the 997 shifter will work in your car. I have an '01 5 speed and this is the best way to get a much improved shift feel. Well worth the money IMHO.

Thanks for letting me know. Guess I'll have to add it to the must have mods at a reasonable price list. :) Although, I may have my transmission looked at by a professional first. It shifts well. particulalry for a car with 70K on the clock, but I have noticed that on a high speed stop I need to give the transmission a short time to spin down or a shift in to first will grind. Well not grind really. That's too harsh. More like a click/clunk/rrrrr depending on speed. I thought it might be a worn syncronizer gear or similar.