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      12-31-2016, 08:13 PM   #1
inTgr8r
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CAE Ultra Shifter

CAE Ultra Shifter
I first became aware of this type of shifter after seeing it in several cars at the track. (primarily P-cars)

This type of shifter has been on my hit list for a while now, due to an ongoing frustration with our OE setup.
I run at a high speed track that requires 5th gear up the back straight and I hate the downshift back to 4th at the end of it.
I’m very aware of NOT catching a money shift to 2nd, so I sometimes end up in 6th due to the vague feel of things.
I also hate that I have to spend mental energy on the shift, when it should be a completely subconscious act.

Fast forward to crfine88 fantastic photo blog of the amazing work that he’s doing on his car.
There I find that Chris has already installed a CAE racing style shifter

After a little more research, it quickly became a must have item!!!!

I saw from Chris’s thread, that space to install one of these meant that the center console required modification.
The CAE website also stipulates that it was intended for cars w/o interiors.
But, with Chris leading the way I was game to jump into the deep end.
Not wanting to cut up my OE carbon leather trim I picked up a trim off eBay with plans to paint it after fitment mods.

About that time, the CAE arrived and since I had already removed my AutoSolution SSK, there was a gaping hole waiting to be filled.
I plunked the CAE down, the only way it would sit in the opening…… which happened to be backwards from the way it was designed to work.

……and that was the inspiration needed to look at re-designing this shifter to fit the Z4 boot opening.

re-design notes
1. The operation of shifter is completely symmetrical, regardless of orientation.
2. The CAE uses set screws to limit travel for moving from the ‘home’ 3-4 position to select 5-6 or 1-2 gears (and rev). By flipping the CAE 180° the set screw assignments were no longer correct.
3. After a little head scratching, it was determined that the 5-6 adj. screw could function as the rev. set screw. (and rev became 5-6)
3-4 was unchanged as it was in the center ‘home’ position either way.
The set screw that posed a problem was the 1-2 screw.
4. Solution for 1-2 set screw; drill and tap a new hole.
5. The other issue was the fitment of the CAE base to the Z4 tunnel.
The tunnel narrows as it goes further back and there was insufficient room for the base to sit flat.
6. Solution was to dig out an auto body dolly and mallet to reshape some steel


Now for the shift rod….
The OE shift rod works fine if you’re OK with its single sided pin design.
Personally after going this far, I wanted a shift rod that was designed with clevis style connection.
This led me to AKG where I found a clevis style rod with a Z4 bend to clear the guibo.
Chris also jumped on the same rod and after several back and forth discussions re fitment issues, we discovered the OE shift rod pins are not at the same angle with respect to each other, whereas the AKG were on the same angle.
= fitment issues.
Solution…..
heat up the AKG and put a twist into the shaft to modify the angle to the same as OE.

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Last edited by inTgr8r; 01-01-2017 at 10:03 AM..
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      12-31-2016, 08:14 PM   #2
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pics

This 1st pic is the kit that comes from CAE / HARD Motorsport.
It comes in two flavors, raw aluminum and black.
I was lucky when I ordered as they had just received a few limited edition units in anodized titanium.



as shipped



underside works....



some of my design scrawlings....



after disassembly; piece to be drilled & tapped



The tunnel body work (minor)


In this one you can see a string line below that I used to help line things up.




AKG shift rod angle adjustment

...used an ole skool angle gauge.
with all-thread rod as a pointer




Reverse cable re-routed


down below.....


Stage 1 fitment w/o base plate to confirm alignment and mark holes.


And all bolted up




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      12-31-2016, 08:15 PM   #3
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installation details

CAE 180° Install Notes

Disassembly
  • when removing the shifter arm from the clevis, there are two metal foil shim washers.
    Be careful not to damage them.
    I had one that was damaged by CAE during factory assembly, it was tough to deal with when reassembling.
  • Balance of disassembly is straight forward.
Layout for new M5 x 0.8 tapped hole for 1-2 adjuster set screw.
  • see the pic with my bench notes on dimensions, but you can pretty much eye ball it.
  • Accuracy is not critical for function, but for aesthetics you want to have things lined up with the other holes.

Drill & tap
  • Drill Bit 4.2mm, 135 Degree Point; recommend shallow point due to softness of aluminum.
  • Highly recommend using a drill press to keep hole square.
    My neighbor has one that I use, but he was away & I did mine by hand.
    Its OK, but not perfect.
  • Use a taper tap (M5 x 0.8) and do not pass it all the way through.
    You want to have some taper to the threads so that the set screw is firm to screw in. (like originals)

Reassembly
  • The hardest part is dealing with the shift arm shim washers at the clevis. They slide in with a little lube on them (very little).
    You need to wiggle the shift arm while GENTLY feeding the shim into place.
    Once the shim was partly across the hole, I used a small screw driver to continue feeding it into place.
    After the 1st one is in place, insert the clevis pin part way to keep it in place while you do the other side. (repeat procedure)
  • The other thing I did was run the Reverse lockout cable through the middle of the shifter for a cleaner look (personal preference).
    It was very straight forward.
    The only reason I can think of for keeping it on the outside is so that it doesn’t interfere with shifter operation.
    ….seemed to be OK from my initial test.

AKG Shift rod clevis angle
  • The OE shift rod can be used as is if desired.
  • The AKG shift rod needs to be modified to match the clevis pin angles of the OE shift rod.
    I had thought of adding slightly more angle, to cant he shifter towards the steering wheel more.
    I decided against it in order to have max adjustment capabilities.
  • See pics re home made angle gauge. Very simplistic.
    Tape on the wall beside vise with original (square) mark.
    2nd target mark taken from BMW shift rod.
    I used a short length of all thread mounted in the clevis as a pointer.
  • I don’t have the welding equipment & acetylene torches that I once had.
    I made do with a simple propane torch to heat up the shift rod shaft.
    I heated it up for about 10min. and it was fairly easy to change the angle.
    Not seen in the pic is a pipe sleeve that I used over the end of the crescent wrench handle.
  • Upon examination after cooling down, I can see no signs of any metal fatigue or stress. Heat seemed to be sufficient

Last edited by inTgr8r; 01-02-2017 at 09:48 PM..
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      12-31-2016, 09:02 PM   #4
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I still have to finish trimming the boot area, I'll add to this when I get done.



...also, if it wasn't obvious in the pics, I removed the drive shaft to make things easier.
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      12-31-2016, 09:03 PM   #5
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Nice job Ian!
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      01-01-2017, 01:15 PM   #6
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This is pure genius Ian, killer work!
I will be pulling mine apart and following you lead on this!
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      01-01-2017, 01:34 PM   #7
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Great writeup and install
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      01-01-2017, 02:24 PM   #8
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Smile

Positively beautiful. How's it feel?


Also...I might as well warn you that when we meet again in person, I'm going to ask for the opportunity to feel it for myself

*no homo
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      01-01-2017, 02:42 PM   #9
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Thanks guys, this has been a fun project.

Unfortunately, I'll have to wait a few months for the car to come out of hibernation to see what it feels like on the road.
Static in the garage it already feels incredible!
Very short and concise movement with the precision feel of a scalpel.
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      01-01-2017, 03:05 PM   #10
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Subbed! This is a cool mod.
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      01-01-2017, 06:27 PM   #11
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Wowie - incredible re-engineering!
For the unlearned....presuming this is a sequential shifter where upshifting occurs by pulling back and downshifting occurs by pushing forward....correct? Help me understand if the clutch needs to be pushed in for each up or down shift. If not, does it actuate the clutch for up and down shifting? If yes, is the car launched from a static position using the traditional clutch?

Thank you for answering these fundamental questions.

Would it be possible to purchase this system already retrofitted?
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      01-01-2017, 06:34 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by racerbruce View Post
For the unlearned....presuming this is a sequential shifter where upshifting occurs by pulling back and downshifting occurs by pushing forward....correct?
No, this is a short shifter (well, more like short shifter˛ ). For a sequential setup you need a new gearbox (from like hewland or quaife).

Nice bit of kit. Sadly not very cheap.
I can imagine it to be very comfortable/quick on the track, having the lever so close to the steering wheel.
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Last edited by GuidoK; 01-01-2017 at 06:39 PM..
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      01-01-2017, 06:40 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by racerbruce View Post
Wowie - incredible re-engineering!
For the unlearned....presuming this is a sequential shifter where upshifting occurs by pulling back and downshifting occurs by pushing forward....correct? Help me understand if the clutch needs to be pushed in for each up or down shift. If not, does it actuate the clutch for up and down shifting? If yes, is the car launched from a static position using the traditional clutch?

Thank you for answering these fundamental questions.

Would it be possible to purchase this system already retrofitted?
I know what you're talking about and that would be amazing to do, but that's not what this is.

It's still the same manual pattern as OE, but with extreme precision.
It's not a shaft with ball joint as all the others.
The articulation comes from multi axis shafts that are precision machined.
The selection for the gear sets is also adjusted (with the set screws) to eliminate all the slack travel.
You really have to feel it to understand how amazing it feels.
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      01-01-2017, 06:40 PM   #14
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Seattle USA thanks the Netherlands (:
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      01-02-2017, 01:38 AM   #15
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Cool mod and well executed! I went for a simpler design for my Z3 as BMW gear boxes have an internal reverse gear stop, thus no need for an external stop. A lot cheaper also.

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      01-02-2017, 11:19 AM   #16
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Good grief, that's awesome!
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      01-02-2017, 01:56 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Westersund View Post
Cool mod and well executed! I went for a simpler design for my Z3 as BMW gear boxes have an internal reverse gear stop, thus no need for an external stop. A lot cheaper also.

Awesome - went to the their website but did not see a product selection for the Z4M; can you assist - thank you.
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      01-02-2017, 03:02 PM   #18
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i love this.. really love it....

but i could never install as i couldnt bend the tunnel with a lump hammer. minor to many I'm sure, but my OCD is on overdrive with that.
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      01-02-2017, 09:10 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by racerbruce View Post
Awesome - went to the their website but did not see a product selection for the Z4M; can you assist - thank you.
It's a generic precision shifter that you adapt to your car. It's not brand or model specific.

The shifter that InTgr8r is installing is also a generic shifter, but it has adjustable stops for each gear selection where the TXR only has precision movement.
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      01-03-2017, 10:59 AM   #20
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Nice rod. Lol
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      01-03-2017, 11:25 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dc_wright View Post
It's a generic precision shifter that you adapt to your car. It's not brand or model specific.

The shifter that InTgr8r is installing is also a generic shifter, but it has adjustable stops for each gear selection where the TXR only has precision movement.
Sort of, but not quite generic; CAE makes several different types for different makes.

This one is BMW specific and listed as a BMW E46 model but it works for several different BMW tannies.

CAE Hard motorsport
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      01-03-2017, 11:34 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Westersund View Post
Cool mod and well executed! I went for a simpler design for my Z3 as BMW gear boxes have an internal reverse gear stop, thus no need for an external stop. A lot cheaper also.
Yes, BMW has a spring for reverse, but its not an actual lockout stop.

I could live without the lockout stop, but it's the adjustments for the other gears with a spring return to 3-4 home position that really makes the CAE so nice.
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