Anyone have a Marlin Crawler Short Throw Shifter R150F?

[la79]

I just got one and installed it. I noticed that it’s really noisy. Maybe it’s because I just installed mine a half hour ago and it’s not lubricated really well yet?

It sounds like a wheezing sound especially in 4 and 5 gears only when I press on the gas.

The OEM was not noisy at all.

 

[phattyduck]

You may just be hearing extra noise from now having a hard shifter seat on the lever, compared to the rubbery factory one...

A similar thing happens when you change the shifter seat on the transfer case (though that only makes noise in 4WD, pretty much).

-Charlie

 

[Team_Jake]

I have one, I noticed no difference in noise between the normal shifter and the short throw shifter.

That being said, when I did the 5-speed swap, I notice the transmission is much louder compared to my old auto, and I do notice it is a little louder in 4th gear under load. I don’t think it’s anything to worry about, I just bought a 3rz Tacoma with a 5-speed (W59) and it makes very similar noises.

 

[HiLife]

When I first installed mines...I liked how tight and notchy the short throw shifter was. It was also noisy with mines on the first drive out.
I can still hear the whine of the gears/bearings with 3k+ miles on the shifter, more so under acceleration, although the shifter is a little looser now from the miles.
Maybe it's the worn gears/bearings noise from my accumulated miles on the truck. I love my short throw shifter!

 

[la79]

Thanks for the advice. I’ll give it some time to set and see how it is. I do think it might be the new plastic bushing.

That said it’s really awesome!

 

[Yoter]

I don't have the short shifter but I would definitely contact Marlin Crawler if you are experiencing new noises, especially since it is only in certain gears.
It could be the 4-5 gear shift fork that is somehow not being placed in the correct location by the short shifter. If the fork is rubbing on something it can really mess up the transmission.

 

[HiLife]

Good point! I would have hopped Marlin Crawler would've correct those issues during R&D'ing the whole short shifter product before going to market with it.

 

[Yoter]

Good point! I would have hopped Marlin Crawler would've correct those issues during R&D'ing the whole short shifter product before going to market with it.

I am sure they have done thorough r&d my concern would just be that maybe this specific part is somehow defective and rule out the possibility of an install issue. With something like a transmission its always better address unusual sounds and hopefully catch the issue before its time for a 2k dollar rebuild (i've learned this the hard way)

 

[photoleif]

i have two. one went into my '95 PU with an R150F, and because i love that one, i got one for the '99 4R, and bang, it's loud. i suspect they made a change to the hardware they use, in the past few years or for this recent production run. the one they sent me also was anything but short. it was so long that i chucked the thing up in a vise and cut 2" off it so it didn't feel like i was driving a 1960s farm truck.

 

[la79]

Ok so I swapped out the Marlin Crawler seat bushing with the oem Toyota stock rubber bushing and it’s not as loud anymore. It also still feels a lot tighter so I may leave it as is.

I also noticed that that shifter is a lot taller how did you cut it down exactly? Did you have to retread to attach it back?

 

[la79]

So I've decided to sell the Marlin Crawler Short Shifter. Didn't like the ride and roughness. Honestly I think its made for lifted trucks which mine was not.

If your interested I've made a post in the Classifieds.

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/for-sale-t4r-items/278897-fs-marlin-crawler-short-throw-shifter-r150f-$300-bethesda-md.html

 

[pinemind]

I just got one and installed it. I noticed that it’s really noisy. Maybe it’s because I just installed mine a half hour ago and it’s not lubricated really well yet?

It sounds like a wheezing sound especially in 4 and 5 gears only when I press on the gas.

The OEM was not noisy at all.

This. I realize I'm in the 3rd gen forum, but I couldn't find another thread commenting on how horrendous the noise is. I have a 1985 4Runner (W56 transmission) and it's black and white between the OEM vs the Marlin. I'm going to try swapping back in the OEM one, as I did do some clutch work but should be unrelated. I even took it to a transmission shop and had the master tech drive it around to ensure something wasn't catastrophically wrong internally. He said it's like this with older domestic cars that put short shifters in and nothing to be concerned about.

Still, windows up it sounds like a dying cat. Such a shame since I love this shifter but I'll go back to tractor throws if it means I can hear myself think again.

 

[la79]

This. I realize I'm in the 3rd gen forum, but I couldn't find another thread commenting on how horrendous the noise is. I have a 1985 4Runner (W56 transmission) and it's black and white between the OEM vs the Marlin. I'm going to try swapping back in the OEM one, as I did do some clutch work but should be unrelated. I even took it to a transmission shop and had the master tech drive it around to ensure something wasn't catastrophically wrong internally. He said it's like this with older domestic cars that put short shifters in and nothing to be concerned about.

Still, windows up it sounds like a dying cat. Such a shame since I love this shifter but I'll go back to tractor throws if it means I can hear myself think again.

Honestly, I ended getting and LCE short shifter. Because it uses the original shifter and hardware. Apparently Toyota insulates their shifters with rubber to sound deaden them. Along with the the original Toyota shift knob which also helps silence the noise.

The oem rubber shifter seat helps somewhat but it didn’t help enough for me. I got so annoyed with it that I just sold it.

 

[JZiggy]

Weird. I got an LCE short shifter for my W59 and it didn’t increase noise levels at all.

 

[la79]

He has a Marlin. I had one also until I put in an LCE. Which is not noisy at all. Just like stock.

Weird. I got an LCE short shifter for my W59 and it didn’t increase noise levels at all.