... and the result is AWESOME! I wonder why Z4 does not come from factory with it! Shifts are short and crisp - completely different feeling from the stock setup.

The install was a little bitch though, I would not recommend this to anyone without mechanical skills and very manoeuvre capable fingers - inspite of what install instructions say the shifter holder must not be taken out for the installation of the extension ring which has to be installed and secured with 6 screws through the little opening... UUC should make Z4 specific instructions and not give out generic 3-serioes instructions.

All manual tranny owners - give yourself a favor and get SSK, it's VERY worth it. Cheers!

Ssk ?

Short Shifter Kit :-)

I have the Evo3 sitting on my office floor, waiting for my exhaust to come so I can do it at the same time.

Thanks for your review.

Glad you like it!

We're coming out with a few more major performance components for the Z4 in the very near future... to be notified of new Z4 product releases, please sign up for our FREE Z4 mailing list (all information kept 100% secure, never distributed, cancel at any time):

http://www.nexternal.com/uuc/Product589

... and the result is AWESOME! I wonder why Z4 does not come from factory with it! Shifts are short and crisp - completely different feeling from the stock setup.

The install was a little bitch though, I would not recommend this to anyone without mechanical skills and very manoeuvre capable fingers - inspite of what install instructions say the shifter holder must not be taken out for the installation of the extension ring which has to be installed and secured with 6 screws through the little opening... UUC should make Z4 specific instructions and not give out generic 3-serioes instructions.

All manual tranny owners - give yourself a favor and get SSK, it's VERY worth it. Cheers!

Interesting....
Care to elaborate a little more, I have one one ordered.
I'm not sure how the Z4 would be any different.

Interesting....
Care to elaborate a little more, I have one one ordered.
I'm not sure how the Z4 would be any different.

Z4 shifter carrier arm is different from the regular 3 series.

Z4:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/i/f/153.png

3 series:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/a/n/202.png

If you notice, the Z4 uses 2 separate "b*tch clips" to secure the carrier (part number 1 in the Z4 diagram) to the transmission, while the 3 series use 1. Those clips were impossible to remove on the 3 series and is the majority of the install time, with 2 clips...good luck.

The cup CAN be installed without removing the shift carrier arm, although it require a very small and dexterous hand. It mostly depends on how you want to spend your time, be it remove the carrier arm or struggle with putting the cup in the carrier arm.

Not the most pleasant part of the installation but I'm making it sound a lot more difficult than it really is. The "clip" sometimes needs to be broken to remove, although on the Z4 the release is suppose to face outside away from the transmission tunnel, therefore making removal a little bit easier.

Thanks...
hmmmm 2 of them... sounds like fun

Glad you like it!

We're coming out with a few more major performance components for the Z4 in the very near future... to be notified of new Z4 product releases, please sign up for our FREE Z4 mailing list (all information kept 100% secure, never distributed, cancel at any time):

http://www.nexternal.com/uuc/Product589

Hey Rob, when are you guys going to make a TSE3 for the Z4 3.0i??? I had one on my E46 and I am SOOOO craving that sound on my Z, sans top.

This SSK is fantastic :buttrock

Uh, it does come stock with a short shifter. Not short compared to an S2K, but short compared to any other BMW.

I have no problem shifting my roadster or my coupe but this UCC ssk looks like a nice piece.

Have you driven a roadster or a coupe with the UCC ssk installed and in your opinion is the trouble and the expense worth the effort?

The expense doesn't bother me much but the install looks tough even for a bmw technician, and if the install isn't perfect (i.e. a problem with the clips) maybe there would be a problem down the road?? Do you see any problems like this??

The install isn't that difficult. A BMW technician would have access to drop the transmission for a clean install. It's when you don't have the proper tools do you need to "hack" the installation. I've done the UUC shifter in multiple cars and it's never taken me more than an hour to complete and I'm by no means a BMW technician.

I've never driven a Z4 with the UUC kit so I can't comment on that, but see SilverBeam's response above. The Z4's throw is already shorter than the typical BMW shifters. How much shorter of a throw is the UUC kit, Rob can probably chime in with the technical detail.

As for the difference between UUC shifters and BMW factory shifters, the difference is night and day. Obviously with a "shorter" throw shifter the effort to put the shifter into each gear is increased, but the feel of precision is increased as well. You get a nice mechanical shift into gear and almost all "slop" in gears are gone, replaced by a firm, short motion typical of a well built short shift kit.

Not to say there aren't negatives. You really should drive a car equipped with the short shift kit before you buy. There will be increased effort in getting the car into each gear. There *may* be increased noise and vibration through the shifter. However, in my opinion, the benefits out-weight the negatives by a wide margin.

The Z4's throw is already shorter than the typical BMW shifters. How much shorter of a throw is the UUC kit, Rob can probably chime in with the technical detail.

BMW tailors the OE shifter in each model to go with the "flavor" of the car. By that, I mean that not all BMWs have the same shifter travel. The sportier models, going back many years, have had a shorter shifter travel than the mainstream models. This is true even for cars that share the same powetrain components. A good example of this is comparing the E39 540i to the M5; these cars have the identical transmission, yet the shifter components are different, resulting in a shorter travel in the M5. M5 owners, I suppose the reasoning goes, expect a "sportier" feel. Likewise, the Z models (Z3 and Z4) that share the exact same engine/transmission combination with other models (E46 325i and Z4 2.5, or MZ3 and E36 M3 as examples), typically have a shorter-travel OE shifter. How much the difference is will vary, sometimes as little as 8%, sometimes as much as 35%.

Nevertheless, this is not to say the change is "sufficient" for some drivers, which is why an even shorter-travel shifter is preferred. This is principally a personal preference, and may not be right for everybody. This is why, for some models, UUC offers a "stock travel" shifter that does not reduce travel significantly at all, but is designed with all of our other precision-enhancing goodies to make the shifter simply feel better and more precise. Alternately, we also offer custom shifter travel reduction exceeding our standard 3o%-35% recommended reduction. Again, as it's a personal preference item, some people do indeed want an extreme reduction.

But what's more important to this question is not "how much shorter"... but "what else?" What we feel the primary advantages of the UUC Evo3 shifter are have to do with the level of precision and smoothness that we achieve, far in excess of the sloppy OE shifter and other alternatives. Our website discusses this extensively... to read more about it and the unique technology we employ, please see:

http://www.uucmotorwerks.com/html_product/bmw_shifters/shifter_nav.htm

Thank you for your helpful replies.

I will order a UUC ssk for my roadster and if I like it I will order another for my coupe. I will have a BMW technician do the install. I ran the roadster in the Targa Newfoundland last year and will be running the coupe (more protection) this year. Smoother, faster, more precise 1-2-3 shifts will be huge. When I get it in I will let you know what I think.

Before I order is the improved DSSR rod available for the MZ4's yet, and if not how long will the wait be?

Before I order is the improved DSSR rod available for the MZ4's yet, and if not how long will the wait be?

Not available yet, but should be within Q1 '08. If we offer an introductory special on it, it will be retroactive to any Z4 SSK purchase from UUC.

- Rob

Hey Rob, when are you guys going to make a TSE3 for the Z4 3.0i???
I've been harassing Arjun and Rob about that every since I bought our Z4 3.0i three years ago. I think Stromung may beat them to the punch on the Z4 exhaust though... especially if there's anyone around Huntington Beach, CA that would allow their Z4 to be used for a test fitment in the next few weeks :devillook

I just installed the Evo 3 in my MZ4, what an improvement. A little shorter but SO much more precise. Rob even answered a late night installation question over IM so the customer service is as good as the product ;)

I have a installation write-up here for those that want to see what is involved:
http://www.billswebspace.com/MZ4UUCEvo3DIY.htm