SO..I am a beginner learning how to drive stick on a stock 92 SC 5spd. My question is how do you know when is the right time to shift gears smoothly without that little kick u get when you don't shift right?
I know the manual indicated something as follow:
1st. 5-15
2nd. 15-25
3rd. 25-40
4th. 40-55
5th.55-Up

I kept getting that little extra kick when I shift. Especially to 2nd, and what is that clicking feeling you get when you drop it. I tried both dropping to second on high rpm and low. It felt better in low rpm, but I kinda figure that.

I thought it was a worn clutch at first, but I recently had my clutch replaced and the whole car felt different now. It feels faster, but the shifting problem still coming up

Thanks,

 

even till now i still have problems shifting from 1st -> 2nd;
especialy when its cold.

the big is, i feel 2nd gear is NOTCHY at ALL times. is it just me?
i mean, i can make 1st to 2nd gear smooth by stayin on the clutch longer but that just makes more wear.
and the shifter being notchy is kinda annoying. i expected more from a lexus.

 

Legend6spd:

I, too, have problems with 2nd when it's cold. I thought mine was abuse from the previous owners that had damaged the synchronizers, but if other people are having the same problem, it may have a different cause. Are you the first owner of your car? If I'm careful, I can slip it into 2nd even when it's ice cold without any problem, but I really have to pay attention to the RPMs. I have been told that some heavy duty manual trannys are harder to shift in the lower gears because they put more emphasis on the high strength gears and less on easy shifting. This is only my second manual car, so I don't have a lot of experience to draw upon.

LEx-Lvel:

Like I said above, this is only my second manual tranny car, but I hope that my limited experience will be helpful. RPMs are the key to smooth shifting. If you have the engine (and therefore the flywheel) turning at the same RPM as the clutch and tranny (which is governed by vehicle speed), it will slip into gear with no bump at all. Naturally, if you disengage 1st gear at 4000 RPM, 2nd gear is going to want about 2800 - 3000 RPM to engage smoothly. You'll want to let the engine slow down some, but not a lot, between shifts. Let the engine slow down too much and you get a tug to the rear; too little and you get a push forward. No one minds a little neck snap when we're toasting a BMW, but when you're cruising the boulevard with your lady, "smooth" is the word. One training method that I've used is this: learn to shift out of a gear without using the clutch. If you accelerate in one gear and lift off the throttle, once the gears are unloaded, the tranny will easily move to neutral. Don't change anything, but push in the clutch and you're ready for the next gear. Smooooooooth, or grind'em till you find'em. Hell, I still get there.

 

its all about timing

plus your inexperience with a shifter, when you drive it for about another year you'll get good enough where you have already answered your questions

clutch and accelerator control are also key; but for a beginner its very hard to do two different things at the same time with your feet

 

Thanks Guys,

I appreciate the input! but, I can't seem to find the right moment to put into first fast enough even to stay with an automatic (whatever) car on the other lane. In fact, because of this, I felt slower and found myself kept trying to keep up all the time. I want me ride to be a cruiser, but not slow enough that car following behind me had to change lane because I can't drive fast enough from a stop. Living in the city don't help much either...input guys?

Second, OK! I don't know how to do this right yet! but how do you do a peel out? not that I want to...really

Thanks,
LEx-Lvel

 

sounds like you need to practice on your foot work. bring your rpms up and let the clutch out quick with lots of throttle. you don't want to get into the red on your tach though - this is bad for your motor - infact peeling out like that is bad on you clutch and tranny too, not to mention tires. and then there's the tickets from the cops. pissed off people from your rubber and rocks slinging up on their finish -

watch your rear end especially if you do this turning, you'll find yourself facing the wrong direction or worse

anyways, it is always fun to do a little spinning but I refrain from it uless it happens unintentional during hard shifting like in a race - not that I condone racing on the street (ehh) or that it matters. of course there is a burn session during staging while dragging at the track to warm your tires - but after all. That is the track.

 

I've owned 3 manual shift cars before my Lexus SC300 ('76 Pinto, '82 Challenger, '95 Integra). I've also driven a Miata, an Audi S4, and a '93 BMW 325iS, and in my opinion the Lexus takes more skill to learn to shift smoothly. I'm an experienced stick driver and the Lexus is pretty quirky.

The SC300 would be a difficult car to learn stick driving on, in my opinion. Even when you reach the level of skill that would be quite good on any other car, the Lexus will still be tricky and that would be frustrating I think. You might consider practicing on an easier vehicle, like a Honda. That would also save wear and tear on your SC300 transmission, which requires a little TLC.

The SC300 transmission does not seem especially forgiving (the tradeoff being strength I guess?), and it will be hard to tell when you're improving in your shifting skill if you're just learning to drive stick.

Ral

 

Yes, 5 speed transmission on SC300 is definitely not the best manual out there... I drove several 95-96 sc300s and it took some effort to engage 1st gear.... Sometimes, I really have to floor the clutch pedal to put it into 1st or reverse, especially when car is rolling at around 3mph...

 

Actually, the manual is one of the best once you get the hang of it. I've never driven a smoother shifting vehicle and I have a vitek 4 clutch in there.

 

I would never put my car in reverse unless im at a dead stop!

 

I think if you have manual transmission, there are cases when you're rolling back in neutral and want speed up backwards... with auto trans. it is different and I'd agree you would never put it in R unless you're at a stop...

 

... and as for SC300 manual being one of the best transmissions shifting-wise... I don't know about that. Maybe for its time. Nowdays there are much smoother shifting trannies out there.. e.g. S2000, '01 Prelude... to name a few.

 

As I have owned manual (stick) cars for about 20 years before going to autoboxes and driven most european cars I am quite adept at getting the best out of a manual gear change but the only manual Soarer I drove (2.5TT) was a real pig, the stick is too long, has loads of travel and does not like quick changes, the autobox is just superb and befits the class of vehicle just a shame about the "smooth take off circuit" and "power down" gear changes.

 

If I remember correctly, the car should slip into gear w/o the use of the clutch when it hits the correct shift point(gear synch). You have to be off of the gas pedal when you do this though. I'd put it in 2nd gear and bring it up to 3,500-4,000 RPM....then let off the gas and coast while slightly pushing the gear shift towards 3rd gear. The car should slip into gear at the correct shift point. Note what RPM this occured at and you should have the correct shift point b/w 2nd and 3rd gear. Repeat for other gears.

 

the prelude is kinda gummy like most honda shifters... but what do you expect for a transaxle?

the S2000 ain't that great... the best shifters I've used are on a new Miata and a 3rd gen RX-7

my SC300 shifter is great and very smooth... and its quite easy to learn off of...
its not as easy as a honda per se... but then again; thats what you get when you actually make power before 4000rpms low-end grunt makes shifting a bit more difficult on a car... not to mention its got very beefy gears and can be driven until hell freezes over before it breaks (unless you put a big turbo on it of course )... can't say this for trannies of other cars except for the Supra, ZTT, and RX-7...

getting a new shift **** that actually threads all the way up is good too... i've got a greddy **** and i love it; made the car far easier to shift and control...