New owner with some basic manual transmission questions

[drroc]

Originally Posted by pheerIx

If I wanted a computer to tell me when to shift I woulda just got DCT

meh, I am just trotting along in the Bay area traffic most of the time. At this point, I have more or less memorized the suggested shift points, and I don't really look at the computer. Once the traffic clears out, then I shift in whatever way fits my current mood.

[3liter1]

Congrats on the new car! To provide a summary answer to your question, try keeping the car between 2000 and 4000 RPM when in gear until you get comfortable with using the full power in the short bursts that are accommodated by street driving.

Answers to your questions and much more at the BMW car club. find a local chapter and sign up for something like the car control clinic. They will help you enjoy your new car to its fullest.

https://www.bmwcca.org/events/carcontrol

[JoeFromPA]

Originally Posted by paliknight

Why was the clutch replaced if there was minimal wear?

Interesting. This may not be an apples to apples comparison but the F30s (ZF8) shift into neutral when in eco mode and cruise control is set. They then shift into gear if they need to pick up speed.

The clutch was replaced because I was at the end of warranty and mentioned a slight judder when starting from a stop. So they replaced it for me at no cost. I took pictures and posted them on here about a week ago if you are interested. Very modest wear at 50k miles of daily driving.

[boss2k]

Originally Posted by drroc

I usually shift when the computer says to shift (+2 to 4 mph), and I almost always skip gears. I typically go through the following gears: 1, 2, 4, 6.

All these are big No's

[FC]

Originally Posted by zorrro

+1 unless I am basically crawling or crazy tight uphill hairpin where car will bog in 2nd.

Agreed. I had never done it in my life until I climbed the Edelweissspitze and the Stelvio Pass during ED last month. Definitely needed to downshift into 1st then.

[JackieChiles]

Originally Posted by boss2k

All these are big No's

There is nothing wrong with skipping gears. I’ll go from 3-5 on occasion

[drroc]

Originally Posted by boss2k

All these are big No's

That is not what the manual says.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

Originally Posted by drroc

That is not what the manual says.

don't ever listen to when a car tells you to shift. whats the purpose of driving manual lmao. But if you are shifting when the computer says to the dot. Then i would find it hard pressed to skip gears. But twin-turbo shit its pretty hard to lug this engine

[drroc]

Originally Posted by G35POPPEDMYCHERRY

don't ever listen to when a car tells you to shift. whats the purpose of driving manual lmao. But if you are shifting when the computer says to the dot. Then i would find it hard pressed to skip gears. But twin-turbo shit its pretty hard to lug this engine

As I said, once the traffic is clear and the mood is right, then I shift at whatever point I feel like it. If you read the manual, it effectively says to use the first gear just to get going, and then do most of speed build up in 2nd gear. Then, you can skip a bunch of gears and hit fifth or sixth. The 330 loaner I am driving right now which has a ZF-8 auto does something similar. You can see big RPM build ups in the first two gears, and then it starts to shift in very small increments.

[drroc]

Originally Posted by JackieChiles

There is nothing wrong with skipping gears. I’ll go from 3-5 on occasion

If you ever drive a corvette, it actually has a physical shifter lockout that forces you to shift to fourth gear from fist under most driving conditions. So Chevy thinks its totally fine to force the driver to skip two gears. I have to say that the feature is annoying at times, and a lot of folks disable it.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

Originally Posted by drroc

If you ever drive a corvette, it actually has a physical shifter lockout that forces you to shift to fourth gear from fist under most driving conditions. So Chevy thinks its totally fine to force the driver to skip two gears. I have to say that the feature is annoying at times, and a lot of folks disable it.

Im going to assume you went 1-4 shift?

How can you possibly skip that many for daily driving. regardless shift when you fell lol. Sometimes I shift at 3k 3.5k 4.6k redline. Whatever you feeling at the time

[drroc]

Originally Posted by G35POPPEDMYCHERRY

Im going to assume you went 1-4 shift?

How can you possibly skip that many for daily driving. regardless shift when you fell lol. Sometimes I shift at 3k 3.5k 4.6k redline. Whatever you feeling at the time

I never shift 1-4 in the M3, and even in my vette I found it annoying as the RPM difference was just huge. I am just pointing out that some cars actually come with a skip shifter feature.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

Originally Posted by drroc

I never shift 1-4 in the M3, and even in my vette I found it annoying as the RPM difference was just huge. I am just pointing out that some cars actually come with a skip shifter feature.

Oh thats wild...how does it work? Mechanical gate? I think only 1st gear should have gate and even so over ridable.

[RobbyMack]

I'm still trying to get over the fact that their are two folks on this thread who shift when the dash indicator tells them to.

[Ian1973]

Or need any other person to tell them when to shift. I can bring the rpms up to 3k with very throttle and not make much power.... Or I can give a ton of throttle and shift at 3k. Each gives a different outcome, so what does RPM have to do with it? Just drive the way you want.

[gatorfast]

Originally Posted by Ian1973

Or need any other person to tell them when to shift. I can bring the rpms up to 3k with very throttle and not make much power.... Or I can give a ton of throttle and shift at 3k. Each gives a different outcome, so what does RPM have to do with it? Just drive the way you want.

This. I always find these types of threads strange. It's like asking how far should I press the gas pedal when I drive? Depends how quickly you want to accelerate lol. It's an odd question to ask as it's personal preference and any competent driver can make that decision in any car they drive, F8x or other.

[FatRear08]

Originally Posted by gatorfast

This. I always find these types of threads strange. It's like asking how far should I press the gas pedal when I drive? Depends how quickly you want to accelerate lol. It's an odd question to ask as it's personal preference and any competent driver can make that decision and in any car they drive, F8x or other.

I agree. This isn’t meant to bash anyone, but even a novice manual driver should be able to learn the car quickly and know where it likes to be given different circumstances. Every manual car has sweet spots. Just experiment with it, nothing is going to break just short of a money shift. I do agree with the practice of downshifting and keeping it in gear while coming to a stop for the previously mentioned reasoning that I can accelerate immediately for whatever reason if need be.

[drroc]

Originally Posted by G35POPPEDMYCHERRY

Oh thats wild...how does it work? Mechanical gate? I think only 1st gear should have gate and even so over ridable.

There is a solenoid that mechanically prohibits shifting to 2nd or third when it gets activated.

http://www.complianceparts.com/c5cagsdescription.html

[sunny997]

Originally Posted by FatRear08

I agree. This isn’t meant to bash anyone, but even a novice manual driver should be able to learn the car quickly and know where it likes to be given different circumstances. Every manual car has sweet spots. Just experiment with it, nothing is going to break just short of a money shift. I do agree with the practice of downshifting and keeping it in gear while coming to a stop for the previously mentioned reasoning that I can accelerate immediately for whatever reason if need be.

I understand. It is just that the difference between a 18 yr old car and a brand new high performance car is pretty significant. It is also my first time buying a new car. So while it is easy to say nothing will break, I'm constantly on edge until I get used to it and want to do no wrong

Thanks for all the advice. I feel like me and my M4 have gotten to know each other and are gelling well. Cant wait for the break in to finish.

Cheers!

[Nikolas]

Originally Posted by sunny997

I understand. It is just that the difference between a 18 yr old car and a brand new high performance car is pretty significant. It is also my first time buying a new car. So while it is easy to say nothing will break, I'm constantly on edge until I get used to it and want to do no wrong

Thanks for all the advice. I feel like me and my M4 have gotten to know each other and are gelling well. Cant wait for the break in to finish.

Cheers!

You'd think so, but my 27 year old 964 can downshift into first at 25mph without a hiccup....smooth as butter.

[viva_brasil]

First gear is very long in this car. Most cars I use first just to get the car moving, and can grab second usually as low as 2k rpm. In the M3 I need to stretch it to 3-4k to ensure 2nd is above 1k rpm.

As general best practice you shouldn't coast in neutral. In places where driving manual proficiently is part of a driving test, that's one thing that can cause you to miss points on the test. It helps to slow the car, allows you to quickly accelerate in case of an emergency where you need the power to get you out of a situation, and it saves fuel as the injectors don't inject any fuel with 0 throttle in gear (while in neutral you're using fuel to keep the engine running).

I also like to minimize use of the clutch, so when coming to a stop there's a point when the rpms reach idle that the gear will disengage without the clutch (as there's no pressure on the driveline).

I do track the car so most street use for me is intended to be economical and efficient. There's no "need" to have the car at 3k rpm or higher, just look at the torque curve. But if you like it better like that then there's nothing wrong with it! Part of what makes a manual a more special experience.

[Thescout13]

Originally Posted by viva_brasil

First gear is very long in this car. Most cars I use first just to get the car moving, and can grab second usually as low as 2k rpm. In the M3 I need to stretch it to 3-4k to ensure 2nd is above 1k rpm.

As general best practice you shouldn't coast in neutral. In places where driving manual proficiently is part of a driving test, that's one thing that can cause you to miss points on the test. It helps to slow the car, allows you to quickly accelerate in case of an emergency where you need the power to get you out of a situation, and it saves fuel as the injectors don't inject any fuel with 0 throttle in gear (while in neutral you're using fuel to keep the engine running).

I also like to minimize use of the clutch, so when coming to a stop there's a point when the rpms reach idle that the gear will disengage without the clutch (as there's no pressure on the driveline).

Are you sure on the fuel saving advantages. While I have always thought this as well, the non-M cars all have a coasting feature which actually bumps up your mpg when activated. Maybe this issues has been solved to be more beneficial for modern cars? Not sure though.