sportmaned

Hey guys you guys probably remember my earlier post, but its been about a week, and im a pretty decent shifter now, just a few over revs here and there, but i was wondering, because of the new clutch, its really sticky, so i need to know if im shifting correctly. First gear, just right before friction point then gas and go to about 3500 rpm then go to second, this is where im the jerkiest, i dunno y, i put it in second adn release the clutch, this went for like the first three days, so ur supposed to put it in second, and rev up to about 2000 rpms then release right? because i learned on a old car, i was able to always just clutch, second release and gas, but is the right way is to rev up and release?

onemph

You don't have to rev up. Just balance it and release for a smooth shift. New clutches are always grippy.

blackpearlTC

you don't have to always rev up to 3500 rpm's, bascially it'll come from experience, but it helps if you listen to your engine reving too. like if starts to rev too much, you can hear it and that's when you shift. just keep practicing with that old car. you'll get it. i think you might be stepping on the gas too hard though, when you let off the clutch. try easing into the gas pedal.

sportmaned

thx for the tips, unfortunately i dont have an old car to practice on though, but when i let off the clutch, with no gas into 2nd or 3rd, theres a jerk, so i just balance for a smooth shift right, i dont wanna burn my clutch either o and when i say 3500 thats the speed i go up to, not when i release the clutch

onemph

I just noticed your from the bay area as well sportmaned. What city? I'm in Union City.

Its better if you listen to the engine instead of looking at the tach and remember to try to be smooth with the engagements.

You need to give your car the full rpm range at times during breaking. Keeping it at a constant rpm or speed will not give the engine proper sealing.

mahalzkita28

damn... u shift at 3500 from first to second normally? i shift at 2500 hehe

sportmaned

hey onemph i live in san jose, and thx for all your help man uve replied alot to all my posts, i can get a smooth shift, but does a smooth shift equal a good shift? like i can let out the clutch real slow and slowly increase the engine speed, and get a smooth shift, but will i be burning the clutch, or does that just happen when starting in first because the wheels arent moving?

mahalzkita28

hey sportmaned... me and a bunch of buddies are having a meet in san jose on saturday might wanna come check it out there will be a variety of cars... like my tc, bunch of euros and other imports

brownbanana

do you let off the clutch all at once after shifting? if so, try letting it off a little slower...if that doesnt work, just shift faster.

Xonic

shift up below 3000 rpm when going onto 2nd gear as mentioned.

onemph

Actually your clutch is new and part of the reason why your car is jerking when shifting on the upper gears. My Corolla XRS is only 3months old and it drove like that on the 1st couple of weeks. You'll break in the clutch soon and it will get smoother.

sportmaned

thx guys ill give it a try when im heading to school tomorrow, but when im shifting, im always holding up traffic because im shifting slow between 1 and 2 should i speed it up and shift quick so the tach never drops below 1000 because thats whats happening thx and mahal where is the meet?

onemph

yeah shift quicker... your letting it drop to low.

sportmaned

last question i promise, do i only clutch like about 3/4 the way down, not all theway to the floor right? after first?

onemph

always all the way down.......

tcDreamz

u dont need a clutch after 1st :twisted: but first u got learn the right way hehe

eeyoredragon

That's what I started asking myself when I started reading about transmissions and clutches. Smooth does not equal good imo. Smooth is simply a characteristic that a good shift has.

This is generally what happens as I shift from 1st to 2nd (well, any upshift really).
1. let off the gas very quickly

2. push in the clutch pedal very quickly. there's a couple things to notice here: if you're not quick enough in pushing in the clutch pedal after letting off the gas (especially in 1st) you'll get a jerk from engine breaking. a way to compensate for this is to let off the gas just after you start pushing in the clutch pedal. this eliminates the jerk at expense to the clutch and an increase in the wait time in 4. another thing you can do is depress the clutch pedal slowly. as you said, that increases smoothness but isn't really a "good" shift. this also decreases the wait time in 4 due to increased friction.

3. shift into next gear up

4. wait. for me there's a pause from when i actually get it in gear to when i release the clutch pedal. the engine is actually quite slow in reving down imo. obviously you're waiting for the engine to reach the revs it takes in the next gear to move the tires at their current speed. you can either do it by hearing (which i can't do because the sound is different in each gear) or you can do it by glancing at the tac. eventually you'll get a feel for how long you need to wait.

going up a hill increases the wait (and the revs you should shift at because of that) because the tires are slowing down irrespective to the engine meaning you're having to wait for the engine to slow down to an even lower rpm to match the tires speed in the next gear.

going down a hill decreases the wait for the opposite reason.

5. release the clutch pedal and give it gas. there's a couple ways to do this. the "perfect" shift would be one where you drop the clutch as quickly as possible and give it just the right amout of gas needed to keep the engine at that speed in that gear right at the time that the clutch engages. this is also isn't really possible as you can't give it that much gas instantaneously. so, you can:

a. release the clutch a bit more slowly giving it gas as necessary. this will smooth out the shift as you noticed at expense to the clutch.

b. let the rpms fall just below the drop point then release the clutch and give it gas both quickly. i'd say this is about the best approximation you can do. obviously it ever so slightly increases shift time.

keep in mind there will always be some clutch wear. there's nothing you can do about that. also, it's better to wear down the clutch more than to increase the jerk you feel as that is force being put on the transmission. i'd rather replace the clutch than the transmission.

Rivulent

(humming the pop goes the weasel song)

Dun dun dun dun dun... crash goes the tran-ee!!