A little more red leather for the interior: illuminated shift knob, brake handle and console box lids. I am very happy with the result. Photos don't do it justice and make the leather look like different shades; they are a perfect match.

A little closer...

and closer...

looks nice......i am definatley going to be ordering the illuminated shift knob and red ebrake handle today....i hadnt thought about the console lids though...they look a lot better than i thought
nice job

andrew

Where did you order the console lid? How much? What do you think of replacing the shift boot to red?

I got the illuminated shift knob and console lids at japanparts.com. I live in the US so it took a while and $$.

I wouldn't do a red leather shift knob and red leather shift boot, but I would do one in black and the other in red to match the other red/black contrasting leather. If you could find matching leather is would be very easy to make a shift boot.

Great pics! How hard is it to install the illuminated shifter knob?

Thanks!

goody now im pised i didnt get leather.. ur interior looks great.. love what u did with it! did u change the rear console lid as well?

Originally posted by garbagedook
Great pics! How hard is it to install the illuminated shifter knob?

Thanks!
Althought I don't read Japenese, it was very easy to install. I actually f'd up part of the installation. When screwing in the new knob I attempted to be careful but the wire leads got wrapped around the shift and eventually tour off. I didn't realize this until I turned on the lights and to my surprise the knob did not light up. I was extremely disappointed, to say the least, when I removed the knob to examine what I had done. Fortunately I was able to solder the leads back on.

The moral of the story. Use the enclosed shift boot, which has a wider neck and button and be very careful when screwing on the new shift knob.

Originally posted by Shocka
goody now im pised i didnt get leather.. ur interior looks great.. love what u did with it! did u change the rear console lid as well?
I went in to my dealer the other day and they had a non-leather RX-8 which had a customer grey/black leather interior. It looked as nice or even nicer than the factory leather. I believe they told me it was $1500.

Could you give us please your provider ??

I really really like the 2 tone parking break. Not as sure about the covers and the shifter. Maybe if they had reversed the colors on the shifter so the red was in front and black was the primary color. I think I'm going to get a black leather illuminated shifter and the 2 tone brake for my red/black interior.

Originally posted by Stephan
Could you give us please your provider ??
japanparts.com

wow
those pieces really look great
all those extras add up quickly in style and PRICE

now, my question is how long did you wait?

Originally posted by mikeb
wow
those pieces really look great
all those extras add up quickly in style and PRICE

now, my question is how long did you wait?
How long did I wait to make the mods or how long did it take the parts to arrive.

I ordered the parts about a month after taking delivery and received the parts about a month after that.

can I get these parts from dealer at a reasonable price
I'll have a hard time waiting a month

Originally posted by mikeb
can I get these parts from dealer at a reasonable price
I'll have a hard time waiting a month
For some reason only the leather brake handle is available throught US dealers. The other stuff: illuminated shift knob and covers have to come from Japan.

I am in Singapore n we do not the SAT NAV option here. Can anyone please tell me what the two rectangular buttons between the SAT NAV control panel and the console box are for as can be seen in the 1st and 2nd pic. Thank u.

I believe they are for the heated seats (butt warmers ;))

You probably won't need those in S'pore :D

How is the illumination on the shift knob @ night? Is it too bright or does it blend perfectly with the rest of the car?

What tools do you need to remove / install the shift knob?

Originally posted by MyRxBad
How is the illumination on the shift knob @ night? Is it too bright or does it blend perfectly with the rest of the car?
Very bright and very cool. It is the same color as the other interior lights but brighter!

Originally posted by meeh
What tools do you need to remove / install the shift knob?
Phillips head screw.

Step 1: Install wire harness
1) unscrew shift knob
2) slide compartment cover back
3) reach in around shift boot and gently remove console cover.
4) if present, remove wire leads from seat warmers and nvigation control
5) remove 2 screws below ashtray
6) remove ashtray holder
7) unplug power supply to ashtray light
8) plug in included hardess to ashtray light and power supply
9) use included ties to secure wire harness

Step 2: Install new shift boot
1) remove 4 screws from shift underside of shift boot
2) remove boot
3) secure new boot
4) replace 4 screws previously removed

Step 3: Install illuminated shift knob
1) feed shift knob wire through boot and insulation
2) screw on shift knob be very care not to tangle the wire lead. I repeat - be careful not to let the wire lead wrap around the shift.
3) once secure attach wire lead to harness.
4) turn on lights to test knob.
5) re-install ashtray holder - 2 screws
6) if present, re-attach seat warmer and navigation control leads
7) re-install console cover - make sure center console compartment cover is open.

Step 4: Take photo and post on RX8CLUB.COM:D