Martin, Mike in Baltimore. I have an early 81 and I too was missing the 5 speed rubber boot....I was told it does help reduce noise and it does appear to do so...and the shifting feels better....I also have the cutaway (I think most cars do) But I also noticed alot of dryrotted foam in that area...I would think you could speak to one of the Delorean parts places but I would guess any kind of replacment foam in the middle console would be a big help.... mike c 2109 [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]