I've had my S for about 1 month now, and maybe it's just me, but when I shift at slow speeds, the passenger in my car complains of a jerking, I don't really feel it because I'm holding onto the steering wheel. I've driven a stick for only 2 years, and maybe I'm not letting off of the clutch properly, but what kind of things can I change so I shift smoother? What techniques can you guys suggest? Please help me out because my girlfriend is getting pissed.

 

I think the only real words of wisdom that can be told in these types of questions is... practice...practice...practice. I don't know how you drive so it makes it hard to asses what you are doing "wrong". Driving a manual is one of those things that just takes practice, and it's also one of those things that there are people out there that just aren't good at it. No matter how much they drive. I've been driving 8 years, and have been told by many people that I am the smoothest driver they have ever driven with. I know people who have been driving for 20 years, and they still drive a manual like it's their first one. Shifting should be a very smooth fluid movement from the time you let off the gas and press in the clutch, shift gears, and then smoothly let off the clutch and get back on the gas.

 

yeah i agree totally with Euclid. I learned manual on my S in December. It took me just two hours to learn to drive it but to this day I'm still working out all the quirks and bumps. To shift smoother I noticed the easiest way is to let on/off the gas smoothly. When I first started I wanted to pound on the gas as soon as I made my shift. Doing this helped a lot for just cruising.

 

to shift smoothly, make suer the movement required to release the clutch and push the gas are proportionally synchronized. as you slowly let go of the clutch, slowly apply the gas. if you just let go of the clutch without applying the gas pedal just a little bit...your shift will be very jerky.

 

Ive noticed recently that even if you are driving slow it is a lot smoother to shift at around 5500.
I think that with the ratios being a little closer than most cars shifting is a little different and I think that maybe this is to blame for some of the notchiness too.

 

Also, try to have the engine at the correct RPMs as you let the clutch in/out. If the engine is going slower or faster than what the current speed and desired gear require, then you'll get a "jerk" as the road wheels (and car) accelerate or decelerate the engine to the correct rpm. Feathering the clutch, to "ease it in" can compensate somewhat, but nothing beats matching the rpms before releasing the clutch. This is also known as "rev matching".

Most cars (including the S) are designed so that a typical shift up takes about as long as the engine takes to drop to the correct rpm. However, down-shifting works opposite to this, so to rev-match, you have to "blip" the throttle, by applying a bit of gas while the clutch is in. If you can get the engine rpm's to the correct speed before releasing the clutch, you will get very little jerk.

Another issue with good accelerating cars like the S is how fast you apply the power once the clutch is released. Your passengers might be noticing how fast you're slamming on the gas after shifting. The car goes from virtually no acceleration to significant fractions of a G acceleration in the lower gears if you floor it after shifting. My recommendation is to be easy on the gas when passengers are on board, unless you're out to show them an exiting ride. The trouble with this one is that since you know when the gas is being applied, you automatically brace for the acceleration and mentally edit it out. A passenger doesn't know when the gas pedal is being depressed, so there's some lag time before they brace, which usually results in their head slamming backwards. I notice my S's acceleration much more when in the passenger seat, and I think this is why.

I hope this helps!

 

Don't try too hard to be too smooth. That only leads to over cautious release of clutch and an unnatural rhythm.

One thing that helped me initially was to keep my window down a bit and listen to the engine. That somehow helped me give the right amount of gas and smoothed out the gear changes.

Also, tell your girlfriend that she is not riding a limo or an automatic. Her boy friend is piloting a no non-sense sports car and when she sees him shift that little nubbin of a gear shift, boy she better brace!! :-))

 

Rev match and/or slip the clutch.

 

ok , i just leaned manual about a few month ago so can somebody explain to me what rev matching is and how to do it??? Is it revving the engine up when clutch is engaged to a desired rpm level and once reached releasing the clutch. And wouldnt doing this slow down your shifting??? Im a bit confused. Please help

 

When I made the switch from automatics to manual transmissions, I had to teach myself most of what I needed to know about keeping the shifting smooth. I asked my friends questions all the time, but they couldn't articulate any useful answers. They literally didn't know how they were doing it. :^) So I had to observe myself and teach myself.

First I learned how to start the car moving in 1st and Reverse smoothly. That takes a certain speed of clutch / throttle transition. Everyone knows how to do that, since it's the first thing you have to do.

Then I realized that I was doing the clutch/throttle transition too quickly on all the following upshifts. I needed to transition those slightly slower, but obviously not as slow as 1st & Reverse.

Later I realized I only had two speeds of clutch/throttle transition: 1st/Reverse, and every other gear. Therefore, the 1st to 2nd transition was still too fast, and I was getting significant jerkiness on that shift. So I had to come up with a third rate of clutch/throttle transition.

Later I modified my 2nd to 3rd transition, and so on, and so on. Just realize that you have to pay attention to what you're doing, and change or relearn your behavior sometimes, even long after you think you've mastered the basics.

Oh yeah, selecting the right shoes helps too.