I want my silver shift gate chrome...do any of you guys have this done. I know there are some places in TX that chrome plastic.

 

the '99 TL's have it already under the silver paint, but you do not. so your going to have to have it dipped somewhere. a few 2000-2003 owners have tried painting it or whatever else came to mind but im not aware of anyone that got it done and got it looking good...

 

The 99 chrome shift plate will fit 99-03 tl. The only thing is that 99 was 4 speed and 00-03 was 5 speed... You wont be able to use D1. I have a chrome shift plate on my 03 and it a perfect fit.

Do I search I posted a pic a while back....

 

Thing is, it takes a lot of prep work to make a plastic shift gate look like chrome.

Your money would be better spent buying the metal version and stripping it.

If you really want to keep 1st gear, then be prepared to have the first try be a failure, but I'm sure you'll get it right the second time.

 

Painting the shift gate chrome will never make it look like chrome. So don't even try, I seen a couple and they don't look good.

You can try chrome plating it, but I don't know how well it would bind to plastic.

Best bet is to do what Mr. did. Buy a 99 TL chrome shift plate ($50....call 1888RAYLAKS and talk to Tim, most dealer won't sell it seperately). Use a paint stripper and just remove the silver coat.

Acura planned to have the TL have a chrome shift gate but during test runs, the chrome were blinding some people, so yes prepare to wear sun glasses if you live in really sunny areas. To fix the problem they just painted over the chrome shift gates made for 99 TLs. Since the 00TL 5 speed productions, the whole plate is silver plastic. So if you use paint remover on it, it will just melt it.

Here is my chrome shift gate.

 

how do i take the shiftgate off?

 

Pop off that little piece in the top right of the shift gate, then take a flat head screw driver and carefully pry it up...easy if you just look at it

 

If you knew what you were doing and had the right tools would you be able to rout out or somehow cut the chrome plate so you would be able to move the shifter over into the 1st gear position?

 

It's really easy to scratch the chrome. If you cut it, I doubt it would look good. You just have to live without 1st gear if you put the 99 Chrome plate on the 00+ TLs, not having a 1st gear isn't really a problem unless you like gate shifting often.

 

do i have to take the shift nob off? if so how do i take it off?

 

yes...sorry I forgot about that, just twist it counter clockwise.

 

What do you guys use to strip the paint? I tried soaking it in paint thinner and it didn't seem to help at all.

 

paint thinner won't work. You need paint remover, like a graffiti remover. Also when you use it, keep checking on it because if you leave the stuff on too long, it will melt the plastic.

 

I use aircraft stripper for removing paint...that would probably work well. Its very strong stuff; be sure to follow the safety instructions on the can. You should be able to find it at any automotive shop.