stainless shift plate?
 

does anyone know where i could get a polished stainless steel gated shift plate made for my rx-8 I think they look so much sportirt than the leather shift boots and the leather on all the shifters ihave had experince with crack and loosen around the edges

I am looking for something like this


maybe with the gear numbers and rx-8 logo etched into the face

seeing as how no one has one yet, including you or the aftermarket, it's tough to find parts for a market which doesn't exist yet.

my guess is that you could either have any machinists make one up for you if you drew up the template, or there may yet be something like that from guys like Racing Beat or something, who knows...

are you sure you really want this though?? there's a reason that they were usually reserved only for race cars: their noise dampening qualities are nil (gear whine wouldn't be as bad as in a dog box, but much louder than a thick leather boot), AND when you go to clean out your interior, you have to take that holed-plate off and make sure that gunk doesn't build up in the mechanically bits which would be exposed with a conversion like this.

the leather in the RX-8's interior appears to be very good stuff, and with the right silicone protectants, you could definitely make this boot last. if it's down to style, it's a bit of a "commitment" to convert it like that... but yes, is very cool IMO.

thank you wakeech- I know nothing is yet available but I was hoping someone might have prior experience and be able to either point me in the right direction or tel me why they did it and liked or regretted it.

waaait!!! *slaps forhead a la Quick's smiley*

Aisin makes the tranny for this car, and the Miata, right?? in fact, aren't they the same transmission?? if they're mechanically identical (if... dunno for sure), wouldn't the shift pattern also be identical??

if that's the case, maybe a variation on the Miata shift plate would work. :)

just make sure the gates are deep enough and wide enough so people who hold the shift knob like a baseball bat could get it in

and you might need a few versions for later short shifters?

i've never driven a Ferraris so i have no idea how it "feel" but it might look cool with other polish aluminum pieces on the dash?

I think you are looking for something like this http://www.kgworks.co.jp/eng/4c35.htm