How do I remove the shift knob ?

[Stevenorcal]

Anyone have a simple method to remove shift knob ? thought it came out with some spinning and pulling, looked for torx screws, none. Please tell me I dont need to removed the entire console, please!

[Loren]

If you have the aluminum/leather (carbon fiber) shift knob you need to lift the boot and remove the set screw.

If it is a standard shift knob then try twisting and pulling at the same time - open the sunroof first.

[Stevenorcal]

Thank you Loren

is removing the shift boot covered anywhere? :huh:

[Loren]

Yes just carefully pry the horseshoe piece up from the metal clips.

[logray]

After you get that cover pryed up (you can use a butter knife wrapped in t-shirt to protect trim)...

If it's the standard knob without set screw, don't smack yourself in the chin or face when you are pulling it up. It does take a little bit of force to remove it.

The ones with the set screw seem to be easier to pull off, once you loosen the screw.

[Stevenorcal]

Thank you both.

I will give it a try

[phillipj]

If it's the standard knob without set screw, don't smack yourself in the chin or face when you are pulling it up. It does take a little bit of force to remove it.

This always makes me laugh because I almost knocked my self out doing this ....

[logray]

:) :) :)

[Stevenorcal]

So it is a stock or standard knob. do i still need to remove or pry horshoe piece up as i am not looking for set screws? Do some have set screws stock and some not?

thank you

[logray]

Regardless of type of shift knob...

You need to pry the bottom trim (horseshoe piece) off of the center console. It just snaps off (use a trim pry bar or as I pointed out earlier a butter knife with a t-shirt wrapped around the end).

Then to determine whether you have a set screw just peel the leather up (i.e. just lift the bottom trim up until it stops - it will cover the knob and you'll see the bottom part of the knob (the lever). You'll see more of the shift knob and can see if it has a screw or not.

When you pull the leather up over the shifter if you don't see a set screw then just push the leather back down then grab the knob and pull up (with a little twisting action).

If you have a set screw, then just loosen the screw off (not completely) and then push the leather & trim back down, grab the knob and pull up.

Generally the fatter knobs have a screw, and the thinner ones don't, but it's so easy to check just do it... there's no reason not to check before proceeding and it's pretty blatantly obvious once you pull the trim off and up over the knob (it won't come off completely because it's stitched and glued on just below the top part of the knob).

Edited May 1, 2012 by logray

[Stevenorcal]

Thank you Logray. aprreciate your advice.

[Gcalex]

Had to do this removal, and found that for the non-set-screw knob, it was easiest to take a vice-grip plier and grab them *hard* on to the lever shaft a little below the bottom of the knob, and use the plier as a solid surface to lever the knob off with another set of regular channel-lock pliers.

 

I had to use the channel-locks to "walk" the knob up a quarter-inch at a time (moving the vice-grips up after each quarter-inch move), but after a few repetitions, the knob came right off.

 

No broken mirrors, glasses, or foreheads… :)

[Nickster1953]

It is hard to believe that Porsche just relies on friction to hold the shifter knob in place. It is counter-intuitive to think that you have to twist and pull so hard on the shift knob to remove it. I was sure there was something I was missing, as I'm used to removing set screws or clips to remove accessories. After reading articles assuring me that I just had to twist and pull hard, I found that the shifter knob was extremely tight and I was afraid I was going to damage my shifter assembly.

 

Kudos to Gcalex for coming up with the vice-grip plier suggestion. I used your suggestion of holding the shifter with vice-grips so it would buffer the shifter assembly from the twisting and pulling motion. It worked great! No damage to mirrors, glasses or foreheads either :-) 

[Loren]

9 minutes ago, Nickster1953 said:

It is hard to believe that Porsche just relies on friction to hold the shifter knob in place. It is counter-intuitive to think that you have to twist and pull so hard on the shift knob to remove it. I was sure there was something I was missing, as I'm used to removing set screws or clips to remove accessories. After reading articles assuring me that I just had to twist and pull hard, I found that the shifter knob was extremely tight and I was afraid I was going to damage my shifter assembly.

 

Kudos to Gcalex for coming up with the vice-grip plier suggestion. I used your suggestion of holding the shifter with vice-grips so it would buffer the shifter assembly from the twisting and pulling motion. It worked great! No damage to mirrors, glasses or foreheads either :-) 

 

The option shifter knobs (aluminum and leather) are held on with a set screw. Always look before you try and remove.

If is has a set screw then just loosen it and it will come off easily.

No set screw - then just pull hard.