[oldaccount]

Since BMW has discontinued this knob, I ordered one through another source online.

It came in the mail today, and the leather is rock hard. All the pictures ive seen of these knobs online made them appear squishy - like the e92 M3 steering wheel - although I could be wrong.

Also, the tri-color stripes do not line up with the top of the M, not even close.


Whereas the stripes on my current OEM Mtech knob line up perfectly


The stripes line up with the M on the short knob in the pics in this thread as well, and I know the knobs in this thread are OEM.
http://www.e90post.com/forums/showth...ort+shift+knob

What do you guys think? I know its no biggie, but having a knockoff will just bug the shit out of me.

[oldaccount]

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[phantom330]

looks normal to me, that's the one I have as well. I didn't know it was discontinued, I just ordered one from BMWNA about a month or so ago. The leather is hard, it's not soft really. I've driven a vehicle with the knob you have currently, and I really prefer the e46 zhp one by quite a big margin.

[oldaccount]

Originally Posted by phantom330

looks normal to me, that's the one I have as well. I didn't know it was discontinued, I just ordered one from BMWNA about a month or so ago. The leather is hard, it's not soft really. I've driven a vehicle with the knob you have currently, and I really prefer the e46 zhp one by quite a big margin.

so you ordered the short knob directly from bmw? i thought a standard length knob "superceded" the short knob.

are the stripes and M on your knob crooked like mine?

[phantom330]

Originally Posted by Suareezay

so you ordered the short knob directly from bmw? i thought a standard length knob "superceded" the short knob.

are the stripes and M on your knob crooked like mine?

Yeah, ordered directly from BMW, I heard about the superceded thing as well but had no problems ordering mine and they said the warehouse had many in stock.

Haven't noticed the stripes being crooked, I'll check when I go out to my car and let you know.

[phantom330]

okay, I checked and mine is exactly the same as yours, the stripes don't go up all the way. Never noticed that before to be honest. Sounds like yours is legitimate.

[oldaccount]

Originally Posted by phantom330

okay, I checked and mine is exactly the same as yours, the stripes don't go up all the way. Never noticed that before to be honest. Sounds like yours is legitimate.

well, thats weird, doesnt seem like BMW would produce em like that. Maybe they sent you a knockoff

just kidding. thanks for taking the time to check.

im still curious if they are all came that way or not.

[oldaccount]

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[jvzhp]

yo I think the new ones are made in Eastern Europe somewhere. They are too hard and wear too fast. My original zhp knob leather was softer-the leather had the same tactile qualities as the seats yes I said tactile qualities. My zhp is now owned by my brother in law and he recently bought an "OEM" replacement from a popular BMW OEM distibutor on line. Its too hard and already wearing i'm not saying its not OEM but the quality does not feel like the original. I now assume that BMW OEM means its made by a BMW licensed manufacturer and not a perfect clone of the original.

[oldaccount]

thanks for the comparison of old zhp vs the new ones, jvzhp.

i decided to use it anyway, i like it better than the stock e92 knob, and it matches my m3 wheel, so its a keeper. its oem enough for me i guess.

[scooby9]

I have the E46 shift knob and the stripes are slightly shorter than the 'M' letter. I like this knob way better than stock. Very comfortable!

[retrodrive]

I have it installed with a BMW SSK. Looks so good.