sdstang

So i'm rusty at driving the ol'manual, with down shifts causing me the most irritation as i'm getting to know my new car, and trying to shake off 20 years of driving automatics. I went from 5th to 2nd today...ouch-chirp the tires and quickly got myself into 4th...That was painfully embarrassing...

I'm trying to find the sweet spot for rev-matched down shifts, primarily, 5-4, 4-3 and 3-2.

My approach has been been Clutch, Shift to Lower Gear, Clutch Still in -Blip Throttle, Let out Clutch, back on the gas (let me know this not good form).

RPM Targets:
5th-4th(60mph) - 2500 RPM seems okay, pretty smooth.
4th-3rd (42-45mph) - Struggling here, 3000 seems like it should be right but i'm getting a bit more jerk than I like 2750 (no good) and 3500 (no good) - suggestions?
3rd -2nd (25-30mph) - 4000 RPM maybe even a touch higher...again I haven't found the sweet spot - would love some feedback from folks who are much more skilled than I in driving a manual.

If this is wrong section, please move - wasnt' sure where to post.

Thanks,
Dan

Black Fire

I find that a 500-750 rpm blip above the current rpm is enough of a rev match for 1 gear drops. Obviously I have a GT and it may be different but timing on clutch release is still key to smooth downshifts. All I can say is keep practicing because you will eventually get the feel of it.

sdstang

Ok, I'll give that a shot, I suspect part of issue is my timing of clutch release and the speed at which I release it as well. I'll keep practicing, I typically either over or under rev and about 25% of time I hit just right...

Norm Peterson

It may take you a little time to really learn exactly where the gears are so you can hit them the first time every time (note that the 6-speed has an extra gate in it vs 5-speeds or 4-speeds). Don't grab the shift **** and pull at it so much as just guide it where you want it to go. Grabbing and pulling at it the same way you'd make a 1-2 shift coming off a green traffic light nearly always means you'll pull it too far to the left, and you already know what happens next.

After that, it's a matter of getting your timing down, and I can't tell from here whether the 'jerks' you note are either forward (from not enough engine revs) or rearward (too many).

Personally I think that focusing on the instrument readings is getting in your way, and it's not like you stare at them when you upshift. Try completely ignoring both the tach and the speedometer and see what happens.


That's an entirely work-able sequence, so you need to work on the timing of the last three items. The point of blipping the throttle is actually more than just bringing the revs up - you really want them to touch a somewhat higher rpm than what the lower gear needs, so that when you lift slightly and the revs fall back you'll have time to get that next lower gear engaged. This part is really no different from an upshift once you get past the blip. If you keep this thought in mind it may come a little easier.

When you're not in any big hurry to get the downshift completed, the other technique is "double-clutching", where you actually operate the clutch twice.

Clutch in, shift to the neutral gate, clutch out (still in neutral), blip throttle, clutch back in, shift to lower gear, clutch out and roll into the throttle. You're probably going to hear a number of comments that "with a synchromesh transmission you don't have to do all that", but it is still kinder to the synchros if you do and there are still a few situations where it works so much better anyway.

About the downshift speeds I told you to ignore earlier - other than trying to downshift at a speed that would drive the engine into over-revving, there isn't anything sacred about what speed to downsift into which gear. Let that be a consequence of both speed and how much more acceleration you want or perhaps need, and try to plan ahead if you can. Corners aren't going to move on you, so you'll know before you get into them that you might want a lower gear. Many times you can see in advance the need for a lower gear as you watch traffic ahead start to slow down but which might not necessarily force you to come to a complete stop, and you can use that to anticipate.

In any sane street driving, you aren't going to force a mechanical over-rev as long as you grab the right gear and not the one that's two lower than that by mistake. Even then you've still got a good chance of being OK with the MT-82's V6 gearing, since most normal street driving is going to be at pretty low revs anyway.


FWIW, I've probably downshifted from 4th to 3rd in my '08 Mustang GT at just about every speed between 30 mph and maybe 80 (with the higher downshift speeds only occurring at road course track days). And from 3rd to 2nd anywhere from somewhere below 20 to at least 45. I seriously doubt that I've ever looked at the instruments while downshifting in any car.


Norm

Derf00

This...the best drivers do it by feel and sound, not by starring at the gauges. Takes a lot of practice but if you can teach yourself to shift by the feel and sound you will be a much more consistent and attentive driver. Staring at your gauges will only lead to frustration and possibly an accident.

The only time I would look at gauges when driving a manual was for rev matching purposes on the down shift if I was downshifting to power out of a tight situation or give myself some extra go vs the current gear I was in (freeway passing).

sdstang

Thanks guy- appreciate the advice. Not focusing on the tach/speedometer and listening instead has helped. I'm good from 5-4, 4-3 is still a crap shoot, still either to hard of a blip or not enough...A. Few more days and I should be good to go..