If you let the clutch out in the wrong gear (lower than intended) you really run the risk of destroying the engine. This is called a mechanical over rev.

You really need to learn to shift before you get on it hard or you're gonna break something expensive.

When shifting you shouldn't have to force the shift lever in to gear. Eg.: shifting from 3rd to 4th, you just clutch in, hold the shifter lightly against 4th gear and as the engine speed drops, it will slide in to 4th without much pressure. If you're being all ham fisted about it, of course you're going to slam it in to the wrong gear.

Use the centering springs to help guide you, if you want 3rd or 4th, the springs will push the shifter lined up with those gears if you aren't pushing left or right on the shifter. You can tell if you're lined up with 5th and 6th or 1st and 2nd based on if the springs are pushing left/right on the shifter.

Good luck not destroying your car

 

haha, well, I didn't slam it into second . . . I haven't gone from a higher gear to a lower one when I wasn't already slowing down, coming to a stop, etc. So I didn't come close to destroying the engine . . . the revs climbed when the car was in neutral at that point, not because i went into second gear.

I think what happened is that I just pulled on the shifter to the left slightly, and that's why it didn't just slide in. And when it's happened, I just let off the gas, press the clutch back in, and put it into gear, and everything is fine. I don't ride the clutch, etc.

I'm used to driving manual cars with a much longer throw.

I can just hold off on getting on the car full tilt for a bit longer till I really get the hang of it, that's no problem . . . but don't worry, I'm not going to blow my motor

 

I heard that there was an issue with the AP1's and shifting into second at high RPM's. Has anyone else heard of this?

In all honesty, I have missed second a time or two when I am on it real hard and next to the red line I just attributed it to the fact that I have a short Voodoo knob and my right hand seems to be quicker than my left foot. But then again, who knows. This has never happened in any other gear other then second

Like I said though. I has only happened to me a few times and has not happened to me since I decided to shift into second around 8500 RPM's

 

That's not because of no traction control. That sounds like a missed shift into a lower gear. Did the tires squeel at all when you felt it engage? I'm guilty of having done this and what you describe sounds exactly like what happened to me (shift into lower gear instead of higher gear, let clutch out, engine revs really high, clutch catches and makes the rear wheels go slower which totally upsets the car and makes the back end seem squirelly).

 

The 3rd to 2nd "money shift". So called, because it's the easiest way to blow the motor.

How fast were you going when you did this? If it was over 60, then you might have damaged/cracked some retainers.

Learn to shift accurately, before you attempt to shift quickly. There's some good threads here on this topic. But be SURE of the gear before letting the clutch up, even if you have to put the gear shift back into neutral, and shift again. Too expensive not to, especially in an AP1.

 

no, I know it didn't go into second. I think I pulled slightly to the left, so it didn't go smoothly into the gear, the revs only climbed when my foot was on the gas so as soon as I let off which was a fraction of a second after I saw the revs rising, they started to go back down, and I put it into 4th, so when I did get it back into 4th, the revs where higher than they should have been and the car stepped out a bit. If I had gone into second the revs would have gone up w/out my food being on the gas

The tires didn't squeel, and the revs didn't climb when I was in gear. I think I hit the gate and stayed in neutral instead of going into 4th, and the revs climbed in neutral


and the car ran fine after that. No other problems at all.

 

The other 2 times I've missed a gear at high RPM's it was because I missed second near redline . . . never had a problem goin into 4th until last night

 

Unless you're running a substantial amount of boost the car won't "step out" into 4th gear. These cars just squat and go. How much tread is on the rear tires? Was the road conditions ideal or was it raining?

Valve problems don't show up until weeks down the road in some cases.

 

It's the stepping out that makes me think you got it into second. In order to get it to step out in fourth, you're going to need to be going over 100.

EDIT: But either way, slow your shifts way down. Wait until you've been driving the car for a couple-three months before you start thinking about speed shifting. One trick I use when shifting is the feel of the stick. In neutral, it pulls to the center between 3rd and 4th. So for first and second, you have to pull to the left. 5th/6th, push to the right. So for 3rd and 4th, let the springs keep the lever centered. If you can't feel this pull to the center as you shift, you're moving too fast. There's some things you can do with hand position that help alot as well, so do some searching.

 

Well, for 5/6 I tend to move the palm of my hand towards the inside of the knob closest to me, that way when I shift, it naturally pushes towards the right, i do the reverse for 1/2.

And whoever said to pause for a brief second just as you start to go into gear, that was a great tip, I was out driving around doing that and it was very smooth.

The car is only running 7psi. And when it happened, the revs didn't make it to redline either, I got off the gas and onto the brakes, and they went down.

Road conditions were fine. Tire tread is fine. There was a slight curve in the road when it happened, but by no means was it a turn or anything.