I wrote this essay a number of years ago here in Vintage. Now that I'm the assistant editor of my MG club's monthly newsletter I thought I'd update it a bit for that publication. I'm putting it here for anyone who may have missed it the first time around. I hope it brings back some memories. If you have a similar story, please post it here.

The Gearshift Knob

I bought myself a brand new, 1972, British Racing Green, MGB after I graduated from college. I’d been saving my money from the summer jobs and the days I worked after school and Saturdays for a long time. Tuition at the City University of New York was free in those days so I was able to save almost enough for the car. I started working full time after graduation and in a short time I had enough saved to buy my MGB.

I’d been wanting it for a very long time and when I finally got it I knew that the car was perfect in every way but one. The gearshift knob was a small, round black piece of bakelite. Aside from the fact that it was uncomfortable in my hand, it was ugly. How, I wanted to know, could the people at British Leyland design and produce such a magnificent car that was perfect in every way except for this? How could they put this excuse for a gearshift knob in this car?

Back in the day, before the onslaught of Japanese sedans, it was difficult to get foreign car parts. There weren’t a lot of foreign cars around and for most dealerships foreign cars were the orphan child of the group. There weren’t large inventories of parts. As a result, a number of foreign car/sports car shops sprung up. They’d carry typical parts and accessories for foreign cars and sports cars. One Saturday afternoon, after a ½ day of work I took a walk over to The Motoring Shop on 6th Avenue and 18th Street in Manhattan. Much to my delight they had a whole showcase full of wooden gearshift knobs, some with the car’s emblem on top. I was delighted. My MGB would now be completely perfect. I found a wooden knob with the MG emblem on top, bought it, took it home and in a New York minute installed it.

It was perfect. It looked great and felt great in my hand. Better yet as time passed it developed a patina. Driving through some twisties a little too fast my hands would sweat and the knob would absorb it. On a date with a pretty girl my hand would sweat and the knob would absorb it. On a 90 degree day my hand would sweat and the knob would absorb it. Before long, the gearshift knob had so much of my skin oils on it that it became a part of me and my ownership of the car.

Years later my MG was vandalized and I sold it. I wish I could still find the gearshift knob, but I don’t know where I put it.

In 2002, after years of driving Honda Accords and Civics, I bought myself a Honda S2000. Much like my MGB my S2000 was perfect in every way but one. The designers at Honda made the car with a Titanium gearshift knob. I think they thought it looked modern but they didn’t realize that it was very cold in the winter and very hot to the touch in the summer. No, this would never do.

A few years later, while looking at the vendor tables at Britfest, I found a wooden gearshift knob with the MG emblem on top. All of a sudden it occurred to me that this would be perfect for my S2000. I bought it and headed to Sears to find a 150x2 mm tap so that I could make the gearshift knob fit into my S2000.

Most people don’t understand why I have an MG gearshift knob in a Honda S2000, but it makes perfectly good sense to me. You see, in my mind my S2000 is the same as my MGB, the only difference is 30 years. My love of sports cars started with my MGB and evolved to my S2000. The gearshift knob is the link tying the past to the present.

So, if you see my S2000 with the MG gearshift knob please don’t laugh. To you it might look out of place, but to me it is a part of my history.

 

Tiranium.

 

Walnut!

 

Where did you get this knob? I want something different for my S, but not all metal.

Thanks

 

Rob, growing up my Dad had an MG midget that he used as a fun car, he taught me how to drive a standard in it and we took it to the races at Limerock as well as a lot of other father/son drives. Funny thing is he kept the car mostly stock but one thing he did change was the gearshift knob and he bought the exact same one you did. I remember it clearly to this day.

 

TI,here also.
Titanium was discovered in Cornwall, Great Britain, by William Gregor in 1791 and was named by Martin Heinrich Klaproth after the Titans of Greek mythology

 

Good story, Rob. I hope it, and the replies so far, inspires others to post pics of their unusual shift knobs.

 

I didn't stop at the gearshift knob I redid the entire center counsel.....

 

Made it myself. I got tired of a burning hot metal covered knob and all of the alternatives were also metal.

 

Great story, Rob. You have a great way of repeating a point without repeating yourself. I envy that.

I believe the original S2000 gear shift knob was stainless steel with a rubber sleeve. The CR model came with the titanium knob and had a deeper countersunk hole to lower the overall height of the shifter. I bought one when the CR came out and can attest that it is both lighter and sits lower on the shaft. It does get hot on a bright summer’s day. It does not have the rubber sleeve.

I like the idea idea of a wooden knob. I have one in my Austin-Healey as I did in all my British cars. Back in the day they were made by Amco, an aftermarket supplier of shift knobs, floor mats, kick panels, wind wings, side view mirrors, tonneau covers and trunk racks. I worked for a foreign auto parts distributor for a couple of years and enjoyed a nice employee discount so I always had Amco accessories back in those days.