PoloJCP

Hi,

I have not post anything for a long long time. This weekend I brought a new C320 with manual shift. This is the first time I got a manual shift car. I have one quick question regarding up shift. I seem to have problem doing a smooth up shift. Every time I shift from first to second or second to third or higher I also end up jerking the car a little. I am new to driving a stick shift, so I am a little slow on the clutch, and I did not rev the engine too hight when I shift because it is still breaking in. I usually shift around 2000-2500. I do notice that if I shift around 3000 or a little higher the transition is a lot smoother. I want to know how to shift at a lower rpm, because I don't want to rev my car every time just to get a smooth shift. Any suggestions? Thanks!

moa4r

its definately harder to shift smoothly @ lower rpms, I'd sugggest giving it more gas as you upshift and don't push the clutch all the way in when you change gears

tommy

I'd shift around 4k instead. That's still low enough for break-in, and won't bog you down like you're getting now from your premature shifting.

20FHK02

I normally shift around 3000rpm, still low enough and smoother.

Buellwinkle

For smooth shifting you have to match the revs of the new gear you want to shift to. One way to practice this is to shift without using the clutch. What you do is rest your hand on the shifter with light pressure towards neutral and the car should pop into neutral when you matched RPMs, then do the same into your next gear.

tyro

What he said.

x-tian-230k

you said Premature shifting.....hahaha i do that sometimes! And I don't even drive a stick!

amdeutsch

Nice Carl. Teach the kid the ins and outs. Too many nowadays don't know these little tricks anymore.

tonewheel

Any damage or premature wear concerns, over time, with choppy or unsmooth shifts, or shifting too soon or too late (low/high revs)?

PoloJCP

Please elaborate a little on how to shift without clutch. I am confused about pop into N. For example, if I am in second gear and want to shift into 3. I move the lever toward N the level will pop into N when the rpm is lower? but it still is not in 3rd.
OR
if you mean that when I want to shift to third. I clutch in and move the leveler to N, clutch out and move the lever slightly toward 3rd, and the lever will pop in 3rd?

Confused.....

Please help

mayday

Shifting without using the clutch is a recipe for disaster. I've been driving manual transmission cars since 1971. Use the clutch and keep practicing. You may be letting the clutch out too fast. Try slowing down your shifts and your clutch release.

2002 C230 coupe six speed C7 C5 Bose 36K miles Paprika

Buellwinkle

When I say you don't use the clutch, it means you put your left foot on the floor when you shift. I'll try to explain it better -

There's a point when you are driving and there's no drag on the transmission, you are neither accelerating or decelerating, the transmission is spinning at the same speed as the motor. If you let go of the gas pedal then you are decelerating, if you step on it more you are accelerating. At this point you can shift your car out of gear and into neutral without the clutch. You can feel for this by putting pressure on the shifter towards neutral, when the rpms match the shifter it will feel loser and slide out of gear. Practice makes perfect.

Now to shift into the next gear from neutral, you have to anticipate what the rpm is for that gear for the speed you are going. You do this the same way, when you feel you are close, nudge the shifter into that gear, if you are off it will grind a little, no damage. I don't know if it's necessarily a recipe for disaster, drove my W201 for 200K miles with no trans problems (other than the first week when they replaced the trans because it was defective) and the original clutch lasted 150K miles.

Once you mastered how to shift without a clutch and matching the revs is seconds nature, you will be able to drive your car without anyone knowing you shifted. Also, this came in handy once when my clutch cable gave out on an old Mustang and when the clutch fluid leaked out on an old Triumph, so you never know when this trick will come in handy. If that happens to you, use the starter to get you going in first, then shift clutch free for 2 through 6.

PoloJCP

okay, was out on the road again earlier and tried to shift later 2500 to 3000, the up shift is a lot smoother, but I always feel that I am forcing the lever into gears, only at some rare case that I feel the lever move in the gear smoothly. I always disengage the clutch completely during up shift and lift it back up, but when I do it too slow, the rpm drop way below what is optimum for the higher gear, the synco has to bring the rpm up as if I am doing a down shift(which increase wear i believe).

So I want to know if I shift at 2500+ can I just lift up my clutch quickly and get back on the gas? I guess I am still not too precise on the gas paddle as well, so I sometime give too much gas or too little during shifts. Driving a manual shift is much more difficult than I expected, but it sure is fun!

20FHK02

Talking about cluthless shifts... how do you get the car into gear from a complete stop if the cluth is dead??? I think in this case it's impossible to match rev as the trans speed is zero...

tonewheel

Clutchless shifting. Bad, gimmicky advice. Keep practicing, you'll get it.

I drive a 2004.5 230 Sedan 6MT. Sometimes it just does feel like you're forcing it from one gear to the next. These trans and shifters aren't the smoothest I've ever driven...and certainly not the short throw experience with other vehicles. Mine loosened up after 2,000 miles.

mctwin2kman

Tranny needs to break in before it will glide easily. These are really tight trannies. Also shift higher up towards 4000 RPM for smoother shifts. And hold the gas a hair down so you are not idling during the shift. This is what makes it jumpy. You need to hold the gas down to keep revs up as by the time you let the clutch out the engine is idling and therfore not reved high engough to hold speed, so you let the clutch out and the engine is slowing the car down til you hit the gas. You will learn, it takes time. Go out to an open parking lot and drive around. Get your first to second gear shifts down and the rest will follow. Now this car also has a short first gear which of course requires quicker shifting and sometimes jumpy 1st to 2nd shifts. Myself I run first up to over 4500 before shifting to get in the middle of second and keep the revs up while doing it.

PoloJCP

Yeah, I think my problem is that I did not rev the engine high enought before shifting, I am just "too" babying my car. Does making the car jumpy damage the transmission? I want my car to last... Don't want to end up a bad transmission at 100K Hopfully the German transmission is as good as their Engine.

vadim

By underrevving your engine you are not babying your car, but doing quite the opposite - putting a lot of stress on a new engine. Not sure where you got the idea that you should not exceed 3000 rpm (or whatever your figure is) - the only thing to avoid is flooring it (wide open throttle). During break-in it is highly advisable to make the engine run across the full rpm range, but do stay easy on the gas pedal.

Also, this engine is fairly noisy - just don't be afraid of the revving sound, it is perfectly normal.