Nice polished aluminum pistol-style shift knob.
Perfect fit & installation. Won't go back to stock knob.
Worth the $32 from Serious Auto.
Under 5 minutes to remove
Applicable to '90 - '97 '99 +
I got the polished aluminum version for my 10AE.
Obviously it was very easy to install and can be reversed in a heartbeat. All the talk about hot in the summer sun and cold in the winter nights is all true, but who cares? If it's too hot wear driving gloves (wouldn't be a bad idea anyway), and I don't really mind the cold. IT's kind of invigorating to touch it first thing in the morning. Besides after a few minutes the tranny will warm it up just fine. Probably the best feature of it is the price $30! Who can beat that! I will warn you though that changing the shift knob tends to severly alter your car's character (not a bad thing, mostly dependant on your personal tastes.) In mine (and in most I believe) it gives it a more classic look and feel to the interior. Oh yes, I'd also like to add that it definately changes the way your car feels to shift taking it from a more padded feel (obviously my 10AE came w/ the Nardi one) to feeling more like a switch. That alone makes it worth it IMHO.
I would reccomend also getting the collar for the Voodoo knobs. I thought that maybe I wouldnt' need it, but I can see I do and besides it's only like $10. I would also reccomend having it engraved w/ your shift pattern by the Knobmeister (but that's a personal choice).
Under 5 minutes to remove
This is a poilished piece, similar to a voodoo knob, but longer, and more like, well, a 'pistol' handle.
I was saying to a friend of mine, how with the short shifter I have installed, and my old voodoo knob, the throws are almost too short in my car now. I had been considering buying a momo shift knob, or something similar, but those are close to $100, and didn't really seem worth it. So I was browsing around on the web, and decided to check out the team voodoo web pages, to see if they had any thing new out. Much to my surprise, they did; in the form of the voodoo pistol grip shifter. I ordered one up from PBC right away (who I highly recommend). The box arrived a few days later via UPS. They put it in a huge box, for such a small shifter. But that wasn't a big deal (after the initial fear that they may have forgotten to put one in there!). Of course, I immediatly ran out to the car to install it. Kissing my good old voodoo knob goodbye, I spun on my brand new voodoo grip. This thing is beautiful! I love how it looks in the car, and hopefully I'll be able to keep this one a bit cleaner!
The problem with this knob, and my old one is when its cold out, that thing gets cold! Not really a problem, as I've taken to wearing gloves when I touch it so as not to mar its beautiful surface. I think if you don't have a short shifter, it won't be too much different from stock, but I haven't had the stock knob on for so long, I can't really remember. I may throw it back on just to test. The material and looks are what really do it for me though. With a short throw shift kit (I also got mine from PBC) its really great. Just like that AC/DC song, 'Flick of the switch', it looks like a switch, and when you shift from 1st to 2nd for that first time, it really is just like flicking a switch.
Overall: A great product, worthy of the 'voodoo' moniker
Highs: Great looks, Nicely made, good material
Lows: Cold to the touch on cold mornings, hot if left in the sun with the top down
A new pistol-grip knob from Team Voodoo.
Despite all the purported advantages of the Voodoo Knob, apparently ranging from the mundane to the supernatural, I stuck with the stock knob because I shift with a "pistol-grip" style. I learned to shift this way on an MG over 30 years ago and I'm not about to change my shifting style to accomodate a spherical shift knob. I have tried a couple of wood knobs that weren't spherical. The original MCA cherry-wood knob was very thin, but I got used to it and liked it OK until the threads stripped out. I tried another wood one patterned after the stock knob but didn't really like the shape. Well, Voodoo Bob has finally come out with a proper-shaped knob for those of us who know how to shift! Made from the same material as the original, it has a shape that fits extremely well into the palm of the hand, following the natural curve of the palm, allowing comfortable "thumbs-up" shifting. The top is rounder than the stock knob, which also gives it a more natural feel. I doubt it has the mass of the original but it has a better feel than the stock knob and shifts seem much more positive. I've had no problem with heat (except when it's baked in the Sun in a parking lot for a few hours) or cold, and there's no vibration from the transmission. I can't compare it to the original because I've never used one, but there's no going back to the stock knob for me. I'm still waiting to see if it improves my life in all the ways the original's supposed to, though.
| Back to Product Reviews | 15 April, 2001 |