Keithb

Has anyone seen any kind of a kit / mod that would give me a "gear selected" indicator display of the currently selected gear for the 6 sp transmission? One of the things I loved about the auto tranny was the current gear indicator display, but, unfortunately, the 6 sp has nothing like that.

As for the question of "why the hell would you want that???" well, I sometimes get a bit lazy and don't always remember what gear I'm in (especially in traffic) plus I sometimes have a hard time seeing the shift knob at night. (Plus, I just think it would be a cool thing to have...)

Any thoughts?

TIA
Keith

levelr123g

i have always owned 5-6 speeds. i knopw whay gear im in by the feel of the stick(position). you should also know what gear you are in by your speed vs rpm.

Lynn

Exactly.

tommy

You should be able to listen to the engine (or just look at the teeny, misplaced, should be single digits tach), and do the quick math in your head for what speed you should be in also, no?

I've never seen such a display. And that's coming from the Honda community, where anything and everything that could be done has.

avlis

I totally agree with this. BUT, I also think it would be nice (though I'm not willing to pay extra for it) to have an indicator. I've found myself losing track on a few occasions. Why? Face it- those gears have very close ratios (especially 5 & 6) and I prefer to not leave my hand on the shifter. I also prefer not to memorize speed vs. RPM tables. It'd be nice to glance at the MFD and see a little number there instead "feeling the shifter". Yeah, I know I'm lazy. I also drive in a lot of traffic. After 3 hours sitting in bumper to bumper, I tend to "zone out" and the brain is so frazzled at this point that even "quick math" is quite impossible.

Keithb

BTW I've beendriving 5-6 spds for over 20 yrs, but get lazy sometimes...

Thanks avlis; that's pretty much my point - zoned out, bumper to bumper, radio going loud etc... Damm traffic, really cuts into my driving enjoyment...

moomeh

sorry can't help myself...... but do you know where the letters on you keyboard is? lol

taylor192

Without looking at the dash I could usually tell in my old car by engine noise. Since the 1.8L is very quiet I sometimes don't notice hitting 5-6K revs while in heavy traffic with either the windows down, sunroof open, or stereo blastin.

What I wish was that the tach was front and centre, or at least on the right side so those of us that drive without left-hands can readily see it.

I'm half-tempted some days to inquire about getting a shift-light due to the tachs position.

moomeh

what really would be nice is indicators on the tact that would inform the driver when the engine is warmed up enough that they can drive at higher rpms. (like in bimmers).

adamrs80

I've wished my car had some sort of indicator as well. My SLK even has the LCD in place where it would be functioning on the auto but just isn't displaying anything. Although it's not necessary at all for driving it would be nice if it said something.

adamrs80

I think the BMW indicator on the tach is a gimick. I could possibly see the need for one light that thurns off as soon as your engine is warm but the way they're spread out along the tach is stupid. Just wait 30 sec. or a minute longer and don't worry about it, or better yet just wait till your temp gauge is in the normal operating range. I can understand why people would think that its a cool idea which im sure is exaclty why BMW puts it on there but I doubt it's necessary. How about they have a sexy voice count down as you car gets warmer letting you know when you can really get on it.

Keithb

Hmmmm... Could I get a sexy voice to announce what gear I'm in??

Outland

Gimmick.

You do realize that your car DOES have a temp gauge in the MFD, right? Besides, the extra RPMs do nothing to help the anemic V6 in the 240...

moomeh

yeah i know. but i'm VERY lazy. i don't feel like pressing buttons

adamrs80

When I had my coupe I used the steering wheel buttons to see my temp gauge every morning...what a shame that they cracked due to over-usage and a sub-40 degree Texas winter. If you're too lazy to push buttons to select the right display it must be hell for you to lisen to the radio, watch tv, and let me guess...you don't get near a keyboard. Your entire lifestyle must be voice activated.

c class 279

The BMW tach thing is a gimmick, but then again, isn't that one of the great things about our cars? I love little gizmos like that from the tire pressure clip to the sunglasses holder in the coupe. :-D

moomeh

i don't watch tv and only occassionally listen to the radio (for those long trips).

tifosiv122

"Ohh your in sixth now baby, punch it"

Yeah, the coupes would be flying out of the dealers...

Erik

mctwin2kman

Well for one you only need look at the tach. If the revs are low and you want to go, then downshift. If the revs are high and you are cruising at a consistent speed then upshift. It is that simple. I have never needed a light or indicator to know if I should upshift or downshift, even in traffic. Another reason for this, is that Manual trannies are mechanical, not computer shifting for you and monitoring it. Therefore you would need a contact6 switch at each gate in the 6 speed tranny, and you would most definetaly need one for reverse as well, since it is there. Switches would wear out quickly and you would be used to the lights and never know what gear you were in. Then what would you do? This just shows the laziness of the people in the world today, to lazy to even put there hand on a shifter for a second to see what gear it is in. That and looking for the light would take just as much time as looking at the shifter, looking at the Tach or feeling the shifter, you would save no time at all. If you want to know what gear you are in via an indicator then please buy an Automatic next time. Then you have it right there.

Matt230K

I agree. I have never found a need for a gear indicator. There have even been instances when I was in one gear for a long time. When I finally grabbed to change gears, it wasn't in the gear I thought it was in (stick was forward instead of back). But I was still able to determine what gear it was in quick enough to move it to the right gear before my left foot came off the clutch.