Abstract: A device for controlling a gearbox, in particular for a motor vehicle, comprising a lever pivotably mounted in a fixed support and permanent magnets borne by a components integral with the lever or displaceable by the latter and cooperating by magnetic attraction or repulsion with permanent magnets mounted on the fixed support along the paths covered by the permanent magnets displaced by the lever for defining stable positions of the lever, detent ball forces applied to the lever between the stable positions and forces for restoring the lever towards its stable positions.