Gear knob change
This one is a common question about changing the gear knob on manual Jimnys. The stock one is very well attached, so removal takes a bit of effort.
If you want to know the factory procedure for the gear knob removal then it is covered in the instructions for the factory optional gear knob. I’ll basically be following this method, though some people report some success using heat to loosen the factory knob’s glue.
If you are sourcing your own gear knob then the thread looks like it is M10-1.25. Note if you are installing a knob without a shift pattern on it then you (marginally) risk a defect by an annoying police officer; in Australia, gear shift patterns need to be on or near the gear knob. Fortunately you can buy aftermarket shift pattern stickers designed for putting on a gear knob or sticking nearby.
To do this properly you’ll want:
- Some tape to protect the shaft (and maybe a rag to protect the stock gear knob which gets pretty trashed otherwise)
- A couple of large adjustable pliers/multigrips: one grips the shaft and one unscrews the knob
- Isopropyl alcohol to clean the threads of the shaft
- Blue loctite or something similar to act as a glue for the new one (officially Suzuki say to use their 99000-32030-THR thread locker, which is Threebond 1303B ‘high strength’ threadlocker, but that feels excessive and is why the stock one is so awful to get off)
- Ruler if you want to verify the exact installation depth for the replacement knob
Onto the removal and refit job at hand.
Start with your stock gear knob, just standing there all innocent and unaware of what’s to come.
First step is to peel back the gearshift boot. If you’re careful you can do this without any issues to the carpet. You need to get a little bit of movement in one corner and get the bit that underlays the carpet up and over, and then you need to get the inner part of the boot that hooks onto some metal over that bit of metal. There’s a bit of metal that holds it at each corner, and in the middle of each side.
(Knowing how to do this is the secret to removing a manual transmission without stripping the entire interior to take the carpet out, which is the factory procedure to remove a gearbox. If you’re prepared to risk a minor bit of carpet damage in one corner of the cutout for the shift lever that you’ll never ever notice, you can save several hours of labour. This is super useful for gearbox warranty jobs: the dealership will make money getting paid the full rate for doing the job, and they’ll have a much easier time of the removal and refit if they don’t have to screw with the interior.)
With the boot released from all of the corners you can then lift it up, exposing the lower shaft to the gear lever.
Wrap some masking tape around the thickest part of the upper part of the shaft (the black bit, not the more silvery-grey part of the shaft)
The masking tape is to protect the shaft as you’ll use this part to grip with a large pair of multigrip pliers or similar and hold the shaft still when you undo the knob.
The knob itself is then turned with another large set of multigrip pliers. The longer the better.
I did this on a warmish day with the car parked outside and it came undone fairly undramatically, but I think using giant multigrips makes a huge difference here.
You then need to clean off the old glue/locking compound off the thread on the shaft.
I used some alcohol on a rag and a pick, then a quick little run around with a wire wheel on a drill. After it’s clean you need to add some locking compound or glue to keep the knob in place.
You then put the knob on and press down quite firmly, and twist it on.
The instructions say it needs 11 full rotations to be fully on, and you know what? Exactly right. Get it lined up straight as you twist it on; the last turn will pretty tight but I didn’t find it too hard to do by hand.
Make some pretend exhaust noises, make sure it all feels good and it’s lined up how you want when you sit in the drivers seat, and you’re basically done.
Just time to refit the gearshift boot underneath the carpet and you’re good. Not nearly as fiddly as removing it from the carpet, but a little trim removal tool can help here if you are struggling.
… and all done!
The factory knob is still more or less usable, with only a couple of marks from the multigrips.
