Paul,
I think I know what you mean about the feel of the shifter but might I suggest some of the problem is your particular car? The reason I say this is because I recently drove a '85 Euro spec 190E 16V. The shift lever in that car was considerably longer (no idea why) with much longer throws than my car. More than that, the shift action was very sloppy. The owner of that car couldn't believe the difference when he drove my car. While it does "sproing" out of first gear, I don't think the fore/aft movement it too bad. I owned a Porsche with the same shift pattern for many years so maybe I'm more accustomed to it. Having said that, the 16V shift action IS less than ideal. For instance, the shifter in my nephew's Integra GS-R is smoother and quicker.

I've never driven an E28 M5, but my brother has an E28 535i that I'm quite familiar with. Maybe the M5 used a different shift linkage but I'd have to say that my 16V shift action is way better then my bro's 5 series, with shorter throws and being more precise...but slightly more notchy.

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Glen Tokuhara
Beauty & the Beast and the wagon that could!