How fast can you shift?

[skip0110]

How fast can you shift your manual tranny? Do you ever accidentally "beat" the synchros?

When I'm pushing my car, I'll sometimes beat the 2nd gear synchro. I can never shift fast enough though that 2nd-3rd dogleg shape to beat the 3rd gear synchro.

I should really learn rev-matching, so I don't damage my transmission.

 

[DrogoGTO]

1-2 upshift is pretty fast, 2-3 is probably my fastest gearchange just because the synchro is weakest there.

My car doesnt like 5-3 downshifts for some reason.

 

[TS1AWD]

My fastest gear change is probally 3-4. My 1-2 is a hard shift to make due to 1st gear only lasting about 1.8 seconds with the AWD launches.

 

[wana b drifter]

How fast can you shift your manual tranny? Do you ever accidentally "beat" the synchros?

When I'm pushing my car, I'll sometimes beat the 2nd gear synchro. I can never shift fast enough though that 2nd-3rd dogleg shape to beat the 3rd gear synchro.

I should really learn rev-matching, so I don't damage my transmission.

How many miles are on your car? Your 2nd gear synchro is probably going out. 2nd usally goes out first because its gets hit hard more then any other gear. I really don't think you can "beat the synchro". My car has 127k on it and 1st gear synchro is gone, 2nd is very bad, I lose a ton of time when hitting 2nd, and 3td is pretty worn, but no problems up shifting, I do have to double clutch it when down shifting. As far as learning to rev match, thats probably not a very good idea. You take a good chance of ruining your whole tranny well your learning (you'll be grinding a lot of gears, exspecially if your snychros are bad).

 

[skip0110]

My car has bout 80K on it. I don't think that they syncro's are going yet--or at least they a significant bit of life left in them yet. On my old car they were thoroughly shot--1st was completely gone, 2nd was on it's way out, as was 5th--so I know what that "feels" like (or at least I think I do).

In my owner's manual, it specifically says not to "speed shift" because you will damange the sychros, I guess thats what I'm doing when I go as fast as I can from first to 2nd?

Youre probably right about learning to rev-match, though.

 

[///M-Spec]

Rev matching is a good skill to have down pat.

I think I'm pretty fast, though I've never timed it. Maybe in the .3 - .4 second range. 200+ Solo II standing starts will do that to you. An autocross buddy says I'm the one of the fastest shifters he's ever known.

I'm way faster than the gearbox can cope with in my wife's Jetta 1.8T. But none of my BMWs have had any problem with my shifting... except for that one time in the middle of an autocross run when I shifted so hard, the knob came off in my hand.

Most performance cars I've driven are probably capable of much faster than me. Except for some AWD center diff cars, like the Imprezza. Its the econo-boxes that have the weak synchos and crappy linkages.


M

 

[skip0110]

But none of my BMWs have had any problem with my shifting... except for that one time in the middle of an autocross run when I shifted so hard, the knob came off in my hand.

Haha...that reminds me, my old car (also a Civic) had a cable-operated shifter. When I got the car (as a hand-down from my parents, who are 110% ignorant when it comes to anything automotive), I noticed there was a lot of play in the shifter handle. I mean a lot. I could move it 1 inch in any direction and still stay in gear. When I took apart the center console, I found that the levers at the base of the shifter were attached to the cables with plastic bushings (or at least must have been at one time), and these bushing had shattered leaving a lot of free play in the mechanism.

I fixed it ghetto style by cutting up some stiff rubber washers to fit the gaps and put it back together. I still talk to the person who bought the car form me, and I think my cockeyed solution is still holding up.

 

[Delphic Reason]

except for that one time in the middle of an autocross run when I shifted so hard, the knob came off in my hand.

I have done that as well... I laughed my a$$ off...

Everything was going well, then when I went to downshift the knob came right off... I threw the knob in the backseat and kept shifting without the knob...

 

[iceburns288]

150ms... in Sport mode! Pretty fast, if you think about it. 300 for a human is dang good, M-Spec!

 

[MazKid]

Well, my fastest shifting is 3-4, even though 1-2 is fast my clutch can't keep up and slips beyond belief, also it slips in the middle of gears. Damn clutch is so weak, getting a new one this weekend I think.
I've done some fast shifts in new Mazdas, the RX-8 works the best, I tried a regular Miata flat out 1 to 2 and it didn't let me shift fast enough, it just kinda hit a block and I had to let off the gas to shift to 2nd.

 

[///M-Spec]

300 for a human is dang good, M-Spec!

Well, that is just a guess with my fastest 1-2 shift on my familiar BMW Getrag tranny .... and its probably closer to 400ms Dog legged 2-3s are much slower because I'm always nervous about grenading the motor or the gearbox. Maybe I'll shoot myself with the digi-cam when I get a chance and find out for sure.


M

 

[Lethalchem]

Well, that is just a guess with my fastest 1-2 shift on my familiar BMW Getrag tranny .... and its probably closer to 400ms Dog legged 2-3s are much slower because I'm always nervous about grenading the motor or the gearbox. Maybe I'll shoot myself with the digi-cam when I get a chance and find out for sure.


M

1-2 shifts are easy, as are 3-4. As an autocrosser, you're only using 1st and 2nd gears anyway (on average), and powershifting is rarely needed IMHO. Running through the gears at a drag strip is where you'll see how your shifting is. 2-3 is the "make or break" shift, and it seperates the boys from the men. I wouldn't brag too much about shifting ability on an autocross course unless you're talking about heel-toe shifting and left foot braking, then you're definately talking skill (in my book).
👍

 

[///M-Spec]

1-2 shifts are easy, as are 3-4. As an autocrosser, you're only using 1st and 2nd gears anyway (on average), and powershifting is rarely needed IMHO. Running through the gears at a drag strip is where you'll see how your shifting is. 2-3 is the "make or break" shift, and it seperates the boys from the men. I wouldn't brag too much about shifting ability on an autocross course unless you're talking about heel-toe shifting and left foot braking, then you're definately talking skill (in my book).
👍

Gee, I didn't realize answering the question skip asked constituted bragging. Sorry about that. I'll try my best to keep my ego in check next time, because you're right-- it is a little tasteless to spend a post patting yourself on the back... especially when you're putting someone else down while you're at it.


M

 

[Dorifto]

Wa-pshhhhhhhhh.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

4-5 for me (highway racing).

 

[skip0110]

4-5 for me (highway racing).

What car? On all the car's that I have driven, 4-5 is the slowest shift because is goes against the transmission's natural "self centering" behavior towards neutral. Plus, on most trannys 5 is an overdrive, so don't you mean a 5-4 downshift?

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

^ My '92 Integra GS-R [B17A1], since I dont drag race like the most of the people here in GTP, the stock shifter of my GS-R is very narrow but not short. I only push my lower arm sideways and my wrist does the push from 4-5 upshift. Downshifting is different, I just use my fingers and and a flick of my wrist and shift it towards me.

 

[skip0110]

Oh I see. I have seen some people dirve like that, using their fingers to move the gearshift. When I am just crusing around I place my palm on the top of the shifter with my fingers reaching around the front of it. Whenever I drive hard, though, I grab it "sideways"--palm on the right side of the shifter, fingers around the front, and thumb on the upper-left side. (My car--1990 Civic--has a stock roundish knob, not one of those aftermarket "handgrip" style ones.) I cant get a decisive shift with my palm on top, I have to grab it like I am goign to strangle it.

 

[LoudMusic]

I'd say I'm pretty quick. There were people talking about the pro-driver in the S2000 BestMotoring videos being wicked fast and I didn't think much of it. Maybe he is, but I'm not far behind him.

 

[35mm]

Some of Best Motorings drivers sometimes don't even lift their foot off the accelerator when shifting. It doesn't get much faster than that.

And by "sometimes", I mean very few times, because it's not always they can trash a car like that.

 

[CAMAROBOY69]

Some of Best Motorings drivers sometimes don't even lift their foot off the accelerator when shifting. It doesn't get much faster than that.

And by "sometimes", I mean very few times, because it's not always they can trash a car like that.

Hold your foot on the gas and dont let up!!! Just clutch only!
Yup thats the fastest I ever shifted too when I used to go to the drag strip. Thats how I used to drive but it trashed my syncros in the tranny of my 1996 Firebird Formula so I found it pointless to shift that fast unless I was at the dragstrip. Good thing I still had the warranty. 👍 Got a new tranny for only $100.00 deductible. I dont do it any more. I did that for about 3 months straight. A lot of people do the same thing on motorcycles. Shift without letting off the gas. Very hard on a transmission and if you dont have a rev limiter dont even try it.