mikenavy

This is my first manual car, so for all I know this could be common. But first gear is extremely touchy. If you smoothly accelerate its fine. But say if you accelerate a little, and then let off the gas the car will buck. It feels like the car wants to 'GO', I know we're not in first very often, but was curious if its a problem I should have looked at.

djoneill

Hi Mike,

Sounds like it's just an experience/practice issue. Give it a few weeks and see how it is. My one comment is to be smooth (in all the gears); don't stab at the throttle or lift too quickly.

I ride liter bikes where this is especially important if you want to avoid the emergency room.

6+6 Stang

If youn give her more RPMs when taking off that goes away, it's when you try the slow take off, you can start in 2nd, but if you ride clutch a little in 1st takes off smooth, like starting off on a uphill grade.

mikenavy

Thanks guys i appreciate it, I doesnt really only happen when im at low rpms in 1st.

Tylus

that is normal

at low rpm's the motor is trying to find it's idle point (about 750 rpm), but the clutch will fight it.


just be smooth and steady at 1,000 rpm or less.

Tylus

btw, starting off in 2nd gear is a great way to FRY YOUR CLUTCH. only do this if you are in snow/ice and 1st gear is just breaking the tires loose.

If you cannot drive the car in 1st gear in all other situations, you really need to sit down and learn to drive the car.


2nd gear starts are extremely hard on the clutch. There isn't as much gear reduction available, so the clutch has to be "stickier" than normal. if you give it too much gas, the forces applied on the clutch will overcome the friction surfaces and slip

slipping = wear which = earlier clutch failure....same thing when you ride the clutch

mikenavy

It took me a few weeks to be able to smoothly shift from 1st to 2nd. We all have got to learn sometime I guess.

hypersurf1

You should see how touchy it is with 4.10's, real pain in the *** when your trying to be suave.

mikenavy

Hahah, im actually looking to put 4.10's in within the next few weeks.

7up

Curious: what do you have now? 3.31? 3.73? other?

You may want to get some more practice in before switching out the gears.

I was a shoddy manual transmission driver for quite a while at first.

Even now, I sometimes give my passenger a less than smooth sailing ride by popping the clutch a tad too quickly or too early. (I'm comparing "smooth" to what a passenger experiences when in an A/T equipped vehicle.)

It's an almost an "art" to drive a manual like it's an A/T. It does take practice, and some folks are just naturally better than others at it right out of the box, so to speak.

P.S. By the way, heed what poster Tylus said about taking care of your clutch. Good info there.