Are a shift stop, shift plate, and shifter bushing actually worth it?

Yes, genuinely - and unusually for a modification question, this is not close. The reasoning is simple: you touch the shifter on every gear change of every drive, and the parts that improve it cost less than a tank of fuel. Compare that to peak horsepower, which you experience for a few seconds at a time and which costs a hundred times more per unit of satisfaction. What each part actually does. **Shifter bushings**, roughly $25 to $40, replace the factory rubber bushings in the linkage with solid brass or aluminium. Subaru uses rubber to isolate transmission noise from the cabin, but rubber deflects under load, so part of your hand movement goes into squashing it rather than moving the selector. Removing that deflection is what makes the gate crisp and easy to find. This is the single biggest improvement available and the one to do first. **A shift stop**, roughly $35, is an adjustable limiter that reduces how far the lever travels past the point of engagement. It fixes the loose, trailing-off feeling at the end of each shift so gears engage definitively. Set it conservatively and tighten in small increments - too aggressive and you can prevent full engagement, which is a real problem rather than a feel complaint. **A short shifter or adapter**, roughly $66 to $153, reduces throw distance. This is the one to be cautious about, because shortening the throw increases the effort required - you are changing a lever ratio and physics does not give you the shorter throw for free. On a gearbox that is already slightly notchy when cold, a very short shifter can feel heavy and obstinate rather than sporty. The honest tradeoff across all of them: removing rubber isolation lets more transmission noise and vibration into the cabin. Most owners consider this a welcome increase in mechanical feel. Some find it intrusive on long motorway drives. It is entirely a matter of taste and it is fully reversible. What they will not fix. These parts change the linkage between your hand and the gearbox, not anything inside it. The VB's notchy cold 1-2 shift is a transmission and fluid characteristic, and bushings will make that shift more precise without making it disappear. Grinding or difficulty engaging a gear when warm is a mechanical problem that no linkage part addresses. Recommendation: buy the bushing. If you enjoy the result, add a shift stop. Consider a short shifter only after living with both, because a lot of owners discover the throw length was never the real complaint once the vagueness is gone.