[KunoMochi]

So I finally got around to replacing the shifter knob. The shift boot was certainly a ***** and a half to pry off. lol

I took loads of pictures so that every one can see what's going on underneath the whole thing. There's not much reference pics of the 2021+ K5 (DL3) shift knob and boot out there so I figured I'd chip in.

Had to shimmy a screw driver (tip wrapped with tape to prevent scratching) in between the boot frame and the glossy shell where I felt a clip was located at. Once I got it in clip hole, I pressed down some more to get a good leverage on the boot then pried it until I heard it pop out. I started with the upper right clip. It felt like I might break the frame but it's actually a pretty flexible nylon-reinforced plastic. Still, just give it enough force until it pops, though, and try not to give it way too much force just in case. lol When you get the first clip to pop, the rest pretty much comes out with your standard plastic prying tool,starting with the right clips first, then bottom and top. Pull it out by hand once you feel you've gotten enough purchase. There are 7 clips in all.

The shift knob/handle is in there pretty good so have to really give it a good pull straight up. Don't bother twisting it loose as it's locked into one orientation. I ended up pulling it out with both hands and hitting my head on the rear view mirror... 😅

To take apart the shift knob from the collar, there are 2 clips on either side of the shaft. Get a narrow flat head screw driver in there and depress it as you slowly pull the handle from the boot. Once you get one side unclipped, you do the same to the other side until you see it come apart. Pull out the screwdriver and it should slide apart the rest of the way.

Reversing the boot, you can see the shift boot and collar are just held together with glue, no staples involved. It was just the matter of pulling them apart by applying pressure on the boot away from the collar wall. I did the same for the Veloster N shift boot as well.

After cleaning up the gooey mess from the collar as best I could (used Goo Gone for the glue, then washed it with dish soap), I reversed the boot again so the leather is facing outward and, since the new collar is actually bigger, I pushed it up the boot until the end of the boot wrapped around and over the collar enough so it looked flush with the bottom of the collar. The leather stretched nicely around the collar and there was enough pressure so I didn't need to put on any double sided tape or glue. When I was satisfied with it and got the stitching centered, I popped the knob on until it snapped into place.

The rest is just putting it back in and securing the shift boot clips into place.

Just a note, there are stop notches on the shaft so the shift knob will automatically stop at a certain point when you hammer it down with your hand.

 

[KunoMochi]

Oh btw, here are pics of what the stock shift knob and shift boot looks like when it's all apart. I couldn't upload more than 10 pics in 1 post... lol

There aren't many reference pics of it out there, and the one I found before from an ebay listing is gone due to it probably being the last one to be purchased.

What look like clips on the bottom silver trim are probably just guides to minimize knob wobble, not actual clips.

 

[K5Ghost]

This was tremendous help. I recently placed an order for a SICKSPEED Mint great manual shift knob and automatic adapter. This certainly helped to prepare me for the change over!!

 

[SuddenlyNathan]

This is pretty helpful. I am going to be swapping the plastic T-shifter to the leather wrapped T-shifter, both are for the DL3, so I doubt I will have to remove the glue. I wonder, will I even need to remove the leather boot? I wonder if I will just be able to pop the boot collar and boot down, exposing the shaft, and be able to just swap out the T-handle.

 

[KunoMochi]

This is pretty helpful. I am going to be swapping the plastic T-shifter to the leather wrapped T-shifter, both are for the DL3, so I doubt I will have to remove the glue. I wonder, will I even need to remove the leather boot? I wonder if I will just be able to pop the boot collar and boot down, exposing the shaft, and be able to just swap out the T-handle.

I wouldn't recommend it. As I pointed out above, there are 2 locking tabs that you have to get from the inside of the collar in order to release the shift knob/handle. Otherwise, you risk breaking the locking tabs on the handle and dropping the pieces into the shifter assembly.

You won't have to remove the glue if they both use the same collar design. I only took it out because the stock shift collar wasn't going to sit flush with the knob I was swapping with.