Why the famous gated metal shifter?

One of our newly hired engineers was brought around to meet all the greybeards, and as usual I got introduced as our sports car guy who owns a Ferrari. So, I had to show my picture collection - and I got asked a question I never had really thought about...

He asked - why do Ferrari's always seem to have that metal shift gate? What does it really do? Is this the only car to have it?

Well, I said - I think I read somewhere that it was thought that this made it absolutely obvious exactly what gear you really are in. Very useful when you want to avoid something like a 5th to 2nd downshift when you really wanted 4th...also, I noted that unlike a Corvette or a Porsche (or just about any other 5 or 6 speed I have driven), a Ferrari did not have a spring loaded lever that pushed itself toward the center slot, so the gate acts as a kind of guide toward the correct gear.

I did point out to him that I did not really think that the lever actually rubs on the gate very much if you are using it right - it is more of a mental guide in my books than an "interference fit device". Also made the point that many early Ferraris did not have this, just a normal lever in a leather boot. Also noted that some Lambo's have it, as well as a number of racing cars - both GT and Formula One in the days before the dreaded sequential shift or paddle automatics.

Now, there being so much BS about cars (and of course I just made this all up on the spur of the moment), have I misled the young lad into a lifetime of urban legendism?

 

I believe they were first put in to slow down the gear shifts.

 

Hmmm, never thought of that.

That would be similar to the reason we have QWERTY keyboards...

 

A number of cars have them. They slow down/prevent speed shifting and also align the shift rod which is a long ways from the gear box in mid engined cars. On some 60ies mid engined race Ferrari's the shifter was sequential to prevent mechanical over revving.

 

Typically, Ferraris with a transaxle (and mid-engine Ferraris) have the gated shifter. So the Daytona and the 275GTB/4 had them, 330GTC and 365GT 2+2 had booted shifters.

 

I also thinks, besides the reasons mentioned above is part styling which I really like

 

I think that Napolis means here that the shifter still had the slots per gear, (not the plain push/down, pull up like todays sequentials) but rather that some mechanism intervened so that you could not skip a gear going either up or down?

I believe that I once read that the Mercedes 300 SLR was also set up this way to prevent bad shifts during those endurance races.

 

Yes. The Gearbox wasn't sequential. The shift mechanism was.

 

Now there is an honest point - I would almost feel cheated if my Ferrari did not have one.

BTW, thanks Napolis - I had forgotten about those gear lockout mechanisms.

 

Funny, I'm introduced the same way. Except for the Engineer part.

Not sure, but I believe that my shifter DOES have some sort of spring loaded device. If the car is in neutral, it resides neatly between 2nd and 3rd. Downshifts from 4th to 3rd are awfully smooth.

 

Every street car transmission has a shift gate. Most are built into the transmission.

I had a '70s Alfetta GT with a front engine, a rear transaxle, and the shift gate in the transaxle. A review described that shifter as "a broomstick in a bathtub", because of the indeterminacy regarding where the gears are at the shift lever, due to the flex in the linkage between the shift lever and the gearbox.

That's not a problem with the gate at the shifter.

I can shift the 328 much quicker than I could shift the Alfetta.

(On the Alfa spider, the gearbox is directly beneath the shifter. Smooth as silk shifts, but not as good for weight distribution.)

 

Well, if I was going to be cynical, I'd say the metal gate is there because Ferrari can't build a decent remote shift! But then, few can - the only really good non-gated remote shift I can remember is the Porsche 928. I loathe the change on 911's.. some feel like a wooden spoon in a boxful of rubber bands.

The problem is that the shift is attached to the body and the gearbox is mounted on rubber; there has to be relative movement available somewhere, which results in slop at the gear lever, especially when it is 5 feet away - the fixed gate gets around this problem, and has become a nice "trademark". I rather like the click-click sound when hurrying!

This is one of the reasons that the majority of front drive cars(with transverse engines) have a not-so-precise change - shifter on the body, gearbox/engine flexibly mounted. Under those design constraints, it would be very difficult to engineer a change as good as, say, a 1970's Ford Escort. Best change I've ever used was on a '60's Honda 800 - just like a flick switch... Some designers have tried cable operated remote changes - anyone remember the change on some of those BMC horrors of the '60's, like the Austin 1800?

Exposed gate changes were common in the '30's, especially on British cars - Bentley, Vauxhall, etc, usually with a RH change. A friend has a 1948 Bentley with a gate change.

My 456 is biased into the 3-4 plane, FWIW.

 

This is from Moss's MM wining car #722. Quite a complex affair, makes the Ferrari gate look simple.... Note: that's the trans at the top center of the picture. Moss drove with one foot on either side. This allowed the engine to be moved rearward for better balance and inboard front brakes.
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My copilot sat in the TR the first time and made the following comment:

What is that? Shifting for Dummies?

 

I LOVE the Ferrari gated shifter!!
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We are all so happy for you in that.

 

Well, I bloody hope so James!

 

Seriously, I really think that this was one of the primary reasons why I wanted the Testarossa so much.

Sort of like the three-spoke classic steering wheel WITH the small yellow/black emblem and WITHOUT the nasty airbag.

 

The gated shifter has been a signature of Ferrari since at least the early 50's. There are various explanations for why it is there, the only one that makes any real sense is that it slows down the shift for those people who have not yet mastered driving one. Ferrari's are not drag cars, and you cant, or shouldnt speed shift one like a Muncie T-10S. The Ferrari is a road/track car and as such needs the touch of someone more adept at driving more professionally.

In addition, the Ferrari is built for endurance almost more so than speed. The gearbox gears and syncros are heavier than you will find in almost any other car, and the shift box is equally robust and overbuilt. It is very difficult to have easy and fast shifting with heavy gears and linkage, and making the driver actually think about where they are poking the lever from gear to gear helps avoid damage and missed shifts.

 

If you love the gate so much why did you modify it? Very clean car by the way.

Who says you can't speed shift a ferrari with the factory gated shifter? Before I came to my senses I was throwing the gears like an F1 and burning rubber with each shift.
I think the real advantage of the design is to avoid a missed downshift, and for the classic look of course.

Dave

 

Oh, and one more thing, I see racers often put a temporary lockout on reverse and first. I wonder if this was a consideration in the design.
dave

 

Which?

¿Que?

 

Indeed, of some sort, and the remote gate allows transmissions to be lighter, as the force vectors are restricted by the gate rather than the internal components.

It's (it was) a racing thing.

 

Asked and answered, I think - the shifter had a mechanical lockout device which prevented skipping shifts (as in 5-3 or 4-2). The transmission itself was not sequential.

For what it is worth, I believe that the first road-going gated shift cars were probably the famous "GTO" or maybe the 250LM? I don't recall that the 275GTB had one.

 

Why then do all sorts of racing cars utilize shifter gates?