This site has a few photos that you could compare to. Yours seems to look OK still.

https://bimmertips.com/remove-oem-bmw-shift-knob/

I'm not sure how you'd be able to damage it so that it would be crooked. You didn't heat it up or anything that it would have softened up the vulcanized rubber isolator rubber part in the middle?

If it's ratting around or has axial play you could have damaged the plastic ball cup bushing or overworked the lower rubber pivot bushing.

If everything is still nice and tight then you should be fine.

And yeah, that was probably one of the dumber things a PO could do to fix a loose shift knob. :banghead:

 

This site has a few photos that you could compare to. Yours seems to look OK still.

https://bimmertips.com/remove-oem-bmw-shift-knob/

I'm not sure how you'd be able to damage it so that it would be crooked. You didn't heat it up or anything that it would have softened up the vulcanized rubber isolator rubber part in the middle?

If it's ratting around or has axial play you could have damaged the plastic ball cup bushing or overworked the lower rubber pivot bushing.

If everything is still nice and tight then you should be fine.

And yeah, that was probably one of the dumber things a PO could do to fix a loose shift knob. <img src="http://s1.E46Fanatics.com/forum/images/smilies/banghead.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Banging Head" class="inlineimg" />

It is twisted very slightly from me using a vise grip to yank it off i believe...Zero play or anything, feels exactly the same. Gonna try to use the vise to twist it the other way. Whats the vulcanized rubber piece you speak of? I did try to use a hair dryer to heat the plastic insert of the shift knob, the piece with the clips that goes onto the metal shaft to try and melt the glue.

 

I bought one of those cheap chinese ZHP knob replicas and because my cheap chinese knockoff Dinan short shifter makes the knob crooked, I used JB weld. Mine is never coming off.

 

Yeah I bought a fake ZHP knob too...The wood one was all cracked up and didnt feel too great. My friend bought a 335 with an m performance knob and it felt like a totally different world when i drove it.

Take a look at the shaft, shouldnt the notch be lined up horizontal with the window switches? Looks a little crooked to the right

 

Oh yeah, I've had to deal with exactly this problem. It was a real pita.

 

Shame on you for epoxying the shift knob on...5 minute job turned into a 2 hour one, now i have wood dust and shards all over my car. PO epoxied the knob all the way and i had to use a saw, drill, chisel, vise grip, and a hammer to knock this sucker off.

Oh man that’s a funny post. And a sad one too. Shameful to enthusiasts coming across that when fixing people’s cars. Turns a quick repair into having to add hours on a job.

People who do “ghetto fixes” turn their car into a “ghetto car”. :slap:

 

Just an update, just got it installed. Very simple, and i can actually remove it with my hands...(Kind of easy to take off...but i didnt put a lot of downward pressure, and the residual glue and damage to the shaft probably made it a lot less tight of a fit, only time and more pressure will tell.)
Im on the ZHP knob bandwagon even if mine isnt genuine, nice hefty weight to it, shorter, makes the throws feel a lot more precise, love it so far.
Look at it again though, it looks crooked doesnt it? The slit built into the knob is actually also crooked, checked with a flashlight, it's on purpose i suppose.
I dont remember how the old shifter looked but this seems off to me. Some old pictures I had of the interior seem to show that this is how its supposed to be...Didnt have a picture of the shifter from this angle though.

 

first glad you got it all fitted. :thumbup:

as for what appears could be a misfitment, it could be the emblem that's off. or even it's just crappy made in China quality. sorry but often you get what you pay for. :eeps:

Also the last thing you want is the shifter coming off when you're driving and shifting. it can cause you to crash. anyone who has had this happen to them can confirm it can be dangerous!

did you order it with that emblem style or do these knock-offs don't come with the ///M shift emblem?

 

as for posting an ///M 5 speed stubby shift knob, look in "My GARAGE" and in my photos of my 2000 323Ci. i should have it posted. sorry but my other hosted photos in my past build threads from Photobucket don't show anymore. :banghead:

 

Of the few things engineered by BMW that I find annoying, BMW's manual transmission shift knob attachment technique takes first place. On the first two BMWs I owned, an E30 and an E37 (both bought new), the plastic inside the knob eventually cracked and the knob would dislodge every 1st-2nd shift. I solved the issue by swapping to a very nice Momo shift knob. Momo attaches the knob to the shifter shaft using three (3) pin-point set screws. The knob will never come lose.

Momo has a great selection of knobs to choose from.

 

Of the few things engineered by BMW that I find annoying, BMW's manual transmission shift knob attachment technique takes first place. On the first two BMWs I owned, an E30 and an E37 (both bought new), the plastic inside the knob eventually cracked and the knob would dislodge every 1st-2nd shift. I solved the issue by swapping to a very nice Momo shift knob. Momo attaches the knob to the shifter shaft using three (3) pin-point set screws. The knob will never come lose.
Momo has a great selection of knobs to choose from.

Nah it can not only come loose but come off. those tiny pointed allen head set screws are great if you can get good penetration of lever but sometimes it’ll slip. ask any of us who raced GTIs back in dinosaur days about them. we all went to the Motorsport “golfball” screw on design for those threaded shift levers.

I still have a Momo Pininfarina steering wheel and matching knob in a box in my garage somewhere :chase: