Is This Normal?
 

My shift boot is torn so thats why i can lift it up...thats fine...i know i need a new shift boot...but should it be that greasy even if its torn? the shifter gets HELLA hot when im driving...SAFE. and even hotter when im hauling ass...and in the shift boot it looks like and feels like its been burnt...maybe its from a lighter...i dont know. but should grease be coming out of there like that? u can see where its greasy if you look on the top right of the picture.

Wipe the grease off and go for a cruise and see if the grease comes back. I don't think it should be like that. As for the heat, sounds like you need a pair of driving gloves.

The problem, if it continues to leak like Project said, might be the shift lever. If you pull away everything you will see where it is bolted down. There is supposed to be a nice rubber seal around the shifter but many times it will be shot and leak fluid when you shift. The only thing you can do to fix it is get a new shift lever:(

There is also supposed to be some insulation, like the junk under the carpet in the rear, covering the shifter under the boot.

p.s. That looks nasty!:)

I'm not paying for a new shift leaver! Geeze, just go to victoriabritish.com or something and pick up a new seal :p

i just installed the mazdatrix short shifter, and when i pulled my leather boot and trim off thats what the rubber boots looked like, parts were torn, other parts were rock hard and cracks, and others were soft and gooy and covered in oil... replaced all of them, and the shifter, so its all clean now

i think the middle boot kit is like 30 - 40 bucks, and then the shortshifter i bought came with everything else i needed (new shifter inner boot and bushings) and that was 190

but if you dont get a short shifter, you could prolly fix it all for around 100 bucks, tops

that looks very bad im thinkin the new shifter lever, i think it owuld help