Shift Points

[Whos ur dadd]

I\'ve never had a manual tranny before. Can\'t wait to get the car.

There\'s all this talk about poor mileage - which leads me to the Q, what are the most efficient shift points? I guess part of it has to do with how quickly you jab the throttle, but how would you maximize fuel efficiency? Shift at 1500 rpms? Or maybe there\'s not such a rule? All I know is that shifting at the redline won\'t save you much gas... ;)

[david3]

I don\'t think you\'ll have much luck shifting at 1500rpm. You\'ll have hardly any power at rpms that low and I imagine it would put a lot of stress on the engine, which wouldn\'t be good. Just keep it below 3000rpm perhaps?

[MAZDA3_MIKE]

this car is to fun to drive , so i never seem to get good mileage . dam lead foot:D

[car_demon]

I personally went to a professional driving school with an old school Ex-SIS British Armed Forces instructor. Shifting is sort of intuitive, but there are some norms for our types of cars in general, for most 4cyl Japanese cars whether it be V-tech, VVT VVti or less sophisticated engines at their time of production. Weather, traction and road conditions are a factor too. The goal is a nice smooth release without jerkiness or rubberband snapping neck at each change with just enough power and pick-up so the next gear engages flawlessly.

If one wants a good combonation of takeoff power and fuel efficiency you hold 1st gear till around 3000RPM letting out the clutch smoothly. Give or take couple hundred RPM\'s on that number depending on who\'s in your car and what your hauling and traffic conditions. It\'s a matter of listening to the engine sound, approximate speed you have metally selected to change at, and what RPM corresponding with the speed you want to cruise at in traffic is your ultimate determining factor.

I don\'t drive a M3 yet so I couldn\'t tell you.

It\'s a matter of you guys picking the ideal gear for traffic speeds of 40km/hr, 60km/hr, 80km/hr, 100km/hr +; the most posted signs. What gear is appropriate for cruising at a good RPM that is making the engine comfortably jog, run, or sprint. Do you desire passing power by dropping to the next lower gear.

So now class, everyone do some experimenting casually for the next few days or so and establish the smoothest transition points and write it down on a piece of paper and share it.

1st-2nd
2nd-3rd
3rd-4th
4th-5th

and also include what RPM & Speed you shifted at. Then include what was the desired speed you cruised at also.

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Originally posted by car_demon
for most 4cyl Japanese cars whether it be V-tech,

VTech/V-tech makes phones

VTEC is the honda trademark for their Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control technology

[keving]

I usually shift at 3-4k RPM. Lately I\'ve been trying to save gas and shift at 2-2.5k RPM, but this method seems to be really jerky from 1st going into 2nd. I think it\'s cuz of the electronic throttle. Anyways, I\'ve noticed that when I shift at >3.5K rpm, it\'s much smoother going into 2nd. For the rest of the forward gears it doesn\'t really matter what point you shift at, it\'s all pretty easy to shift smoothly. Generally, if you want to save gas, shift before 2.5K rpm. If you want the best mix of gas savings and zoom-zoom, shift at 3-4.5K rpm. If you\'re cruising, generally I like to keep the rpms slightly below 2k, sometimes even lower (1.5K). However, if you\'re cruising at such low rpms, to pass might require you to drop one or even two gears. Also, try not to floor the pedal when you\'re cruising at 1.5k rpm in 5th gear, it seems like that stresses the engine somewhat.

Overall, I\'d say the smoothest shifting is around 3k RPM.
kevin

[rbart4506]

I shift at abour 3000rpm consistently and my mileage is about 30mpg on the 2.0L GS....

[car_demon]

Originally posted by MajesticBlueN



Originally posted by car_demon
for most 4cyl Japanese cars whether it be V-tech,

VTech/V-tech makes phones

VTEC is the honda trademark for their Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control technology

Thanks bud! I was trying from the top of my head to include everyone version and what it\'s called, Ford\'s, Toyota\'s, Mazda\'s, etc.., you know what I mean.:p ;)

[car_demon]

Manual Shifting Techniques (http://www.318ti.org/notebook/shifting/)

Just some additional info to read about!