I recently bought a JCW shifter. I was told it's the same for all MINIs. I attempted to install this...I thought it's just a simple pull and replace. But the neck of the JCW shifter seems too small and won't fit through. Here's the pics:





Am I installing it wrong? Or is it just a different shifter?

 

I believe that the R56 ***** are a different size than the R50/52/53 *****

 

Different how? Can I retrofit it to fit?

 

If you look here: http://http://www.whalenshiftmachine...007-_r56_knobs it explains the difference between the *****. As far as retrofitting one, I'm not sure

 

Sorry, you were told incorrectly. Definitely not the same between 1st Gen & 2nd Gen.

Compare these two pages. Notice the part numbers are completely different for the R53 vs. R56:

RealOEM.com - BMW R53 Cooper S Gear shift ****
RealOEM.com - BMW R56 Cooper S Gear shift ****

Return the **** and ask for the correct one! You can even give them the exact part number from the info on RealOEM.