Avoiding Bad MT habbits

[VTECSAUCE]

This can't be said enough. The F&F really did some bad teaching to a young and impressionable group of future auto enthusiasts

LMAO! I got the reference immediately. :cheers: Apparently either nobody watches these movies or they have zero sense of humor. The terrible one liners in those movies are what makes them so great. "you blew the welds on your intake manifold" (after the floor panels randomly fall off) After that scene, he goes straight to driving the car with no problem. I love it. lol

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[astolt12]

After about a month of driving I can say I have become significantly more proficient in driving this car and it is becoming a blast!

However, I'm not sure if its me or the car but I find that when going up a hill and I try to upshift to the next gear the car lurches when i go to engage the next gear, and this occurs in all gears.

I think they have a rev hold function on the manual cars but perhaps when ascending a hill the car slows faster than the ECU can calculate?

 

[RustedAngel]

After about a month of driving I can say I have become significantly more proficient in driving this car and it is becoming a blast!

However, I'm not sure if its me or the car but I find that when going up a hill and I try to upshift to the next gear the car lurches when i go to engage the next gear, and this occurs in all gears.

I think they have a rev hold function on the manual cars but perhaps when ascending a hill the car slows faster than the ECU can calculate?

You're letting the clutch out too quickly.

 

[astolt12]

You're letting the clutch out too quickly.

Thought so - I need to drop this spring out and see what that does.

 

[RustedAngel]

Thought so - I need to drop this spring out and see what that does.

The spring does suck, but, you just have to learn the engagement point, and really burn it into your leg where that is. Once you've got that committed to muscle memory, simply disengage fully, out of one gear, pause a split second before the gate, slip into gear, start to release the clutch, and when you are approaching the engagement point, pause for just a split more second while adding throttle. You'll feel it take up as you then ease out of the clutch. It's all in that throttle/take up timing right at the engagement point. And it's most easily done by simply training your leg to know so it's not an active thought - it's just instinct.

 

[spitfirered1976]

When you put the car in neutral and coasting to a stop. You no longer have control of the because there is no power to the wheels. Also you are over using your brakes because you are not using the engine to slow down. The best tip is do not ride the clutch will driving. After driving your Stang you will know how it feels and shifting will be no problem. I have 300,000 + on my 97 Nissan Extended cab 4x4 still has original clutch and I use the truck as a truck.

 

[Phlyguy]

Hey all,

I recently purchased a 2015 GT premium PP and am loving it. It's been a little while since i drove a MT but I wanted to post how I drive/shift to see if this group can help me improve the life of my MT and get away from any bad habbits before I have to buy new equipment. Not only will this be helpful to me, but I'm sure many others coming back into the MT realm with the S550.

Currently she has 900miles on her.

Starting Out
Apply enough gas so when the clutch finally engages RPM drops 200ish (generally i am at 1200rpm at clutch bite)

Sometimes i'll start out in second if I'm coming almost to a dead stop and traffic takes off (2-10mph).

Upshifting

I've never "race shifted" as i don't feel comfortable doing that anytime soon.

I generally shift around 3,000-4,500 depressing the clutch all the way to the floor grabbing the next gear and bringing the clutch out fast, but not dumping it. Generally the RPM stays within 500 of that previous gear

Occasionally the car will jerk slightly/thud as if it matching RPMs (not missing gears or chirping tires) is there something I am missing on this concept with the MT-82s such as rev matching on a upshift?

Hand position
1>2 - Hand on top favoring the right side pulling back and toward me.
2>3 - hand on top favoring left side pushing forward, stopping in nuetral briefly to line up for the 3rd gear slot straightly and engaging 3rd
3>4 - hand on top, slight favor to the left side pulling staight back.
4>5 - same as 2>3
5>6 same as 3>4

Downshifting
Generally if I see a redlight ahead I’ll just flip her into neutral then pull my foot off the clutch and glide to the light. At the light/stop sign it’ll remain in neutral foot depressed until I’m read to rock.

From there I may flirt with the engagement point depending on the line of cars/sceanario giving just enough gas to roll forward opting for neutral/clutch out as much as possible.

If needing to reduce gear I will “rev match” the next lower gear...This admittingly I am not too good at yet and find myself with the clutch in taking it about 3,000 to 4,000 in neutral and then engaging it into a lower gear. Is this correct? The car doesn’t lurch but I sometimes am 500-700rpm higher than I need to be for the lower gear.

Reverse
I back into an inclined driveway with a garage at the top. At first I didn’t like the clutch all the way out because it was a rocket. So I’ve been doing the same.
- Get to the engagement point with minimal gas, just to get the car rolling.
- Hit the incline and apply a little more gas (200-300rpm more) to ascend.
- Feather clutch around the engagement point up and into the garage.
- Once inside RPM drop to just enough to scoot her along backwards on a level surface.

Looking for any advice on these techniques and criticism on how to become a better, more proficient MT driver with the MT-82s.

Thanks in advance all!

The Technical aero engineer in me appreciates your post...I find hand/palm position and tactile "feel" critical when shifting regardless of vehicle. :clap2:

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