Hey guys, you know how you can shift manually with our cars to make it accelerate much faster. A friend of myn told me doing this is bad for your tranny since it really isnt made for that, is this true?

Also while shifting manually I notice about a one second delay from the time I change it to the time it does it. Is there supsose to be a delay or do I need to change the tranny fluid or something?

Oh one more thing. Whats the best RPM to switch at while racing? (state with or without one second delay in mind plz)

 

I don't think it would be bad if you upshift the car on your own but I downshifting sounds like it could cause damage. BTW, if you run a 1/4 mile you won't get any real gain by shifting on your own, but you will risk bumping off the rev limiter so it's usually best to keep it in auto . . . . unless you see some cute girls and you wanna keep the car in a low gear so you grab their attention with the engine revs. :-P

 

you can gate shift which can optimize shift points. this means starting from a stop with the shifter in 1, not D. when you want to shift up, just move the lever to 2. doing this allows you choose when the transmission shifts to the next highest gear, which is sorta "manual." ive never had an automatic in any of my cars, but ive driven plenty and done it plenty of times maybe some automatic owners can shed more light on the subject...

 

i do it all the time

 

I have to dissagree I think theres definitly a difference

 

i do that all the time too, its fun pretending my car is manual

 

i hope that was a joke

 

I do it once in a while also. Its just like having SS, but without the gate for the shifter. Its all computerized, so you cant really mess anything up. 2nd gear at 4000rpm is pretty fun, thats the only time you actually feel some power in this thing, but I have a 2.2, so its not much.

 

When i'm driving normal I drive on D4, but when its time to get serious I drop down to D3.

 

I got a 3.0 and it's fun to keep in like 2nd and drive to get your engine slowly up to the mid 3000's (RPMS) and then all of a sudden floor, the car puts your behind into the seat and you take off, and all your passengers swear that your car is fast as f*ck.

 

Hahahahaha



I know what you mean.

 

hahahahah...
damn...alot of manumatic drivers out there...

my friends used to make fun of me when i drove that way...so i stopped

 

hahahahah...
damn...alot of manumatic drivers out there...

my friends used to make fun of me when i drove that way...so i stopped

mind you i did that in a tercel...

 

Hey, automatic drivers gotta have some fun too. I missed out on the 5 speed cause I couldnt find a black one at the time, but next car will most likely be manual.

 

I think it's good to cycle your gears every once in a while, mind you normal driving you should keep in auto, so that it downshifts on its own. But there's no harm in manumatic shifting it up to drive. Your tranny IS made to handle it, just don't beat the piss out of it, our auto trannies are shaky to begin with.

 

yea.. with a clutch the same thing hurts, let off the gas the car will throw you forward and pin it and you get slammed

 

You can shift it yourself when you need to only but, I would never do this all the time. You can run into serious tranny probs if you do this often. I do maybe once a week when I need to stay in gear longer for higher RPMs.

 

u should always drive in d3...

 

I agree, I just reccently started using D3 all the time, except on highway driving. It helps a lot, my tranny seems a lot happier.

 

I go with what the owners manual says, and it says for regular driving
use D4 but if you are going to be in traffic use D3. D3 changes gears
at HIGH RPM's. Why would you want that?

 

...so you use D4 on the highway?

 

That is how I have been driving the past 2 years. D3 around town, D4 on the highway. No problems.

 

^ I drive on D4 all the time, unless someone wants to dance. Should I be doing this different? My car feels fine when i'm in town driving on D4. The only thing is that if
shifts to 2nd pretty quick. I'm an EXPERT at driving manual but auto tranny's scare
me because I feel that they will

 

Well the only difference is D4 lets you go into overdrive. You can keep it in D3 in traffic but D4 is for over 50MPH. D3 will help if you drive on mountain roads also but if you plan on going over 50 leave it in D4.

 

But isn't D3's top speed 130 and D4 110mph?

 

You can get to 130 in D3? I thought the speedo only went to 120?

 

not sure but that sounds right because it's higher RPM's. If you keep it in D3 you are only not allowing it to shift into overdrive so its more gas and higher RPM's. If your racing for high speed than yes keep it in D3 but for regular highway than D4 will be your best bet.

 

^ How about around town or in traffic?

 

Definately D4 on the highway, used to use it all the time, but the ack is way happier around town with no overdrive.

 

My speedo goes up to 140, but I have a 3.0

 

i have a 3.0 and i drive it in D4 all the time. but when someone wants to play i go to D3 if i'm still driving. then if your at a light and no one in front of you and the guy next to you in his rice civic wants ot go i put it in 1, then i go threw the gears myself and then you see his face drop.

here's the thing D3 utilizes 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, gears only and does not go into a over drive mode. D4 uses all four gears but the 4th gear is basically the over drive gear for the highway and for fuel milage so it keeps the engine at low revs. i think max on 1st is 40mph, 2nd is 79mph, and 3rd is 108mph, then 4th will bring you to 137mph which is where our car tops out. if you ever notice on the highway once it hits 4th it really bogs down and takes a while for it to go and get up to that speed.

 

It's all good in the hood until your tranny takes a shit on you! If you're still under warranty... GO FOR IT! If you're not under warranty.... That's an expensive chance you're taking.

 

What are you refering to as the expensive chance?

 

I do 55 in d3 everyday... whats the problem?

 

Let me get this straight. D3 only utilizes 3 gears and does not have a 4th? Then what's the top speed you can reach on D3? I've gunned it on D4 and it gets me no where....I topped out at 110 and that's when my rev limiter kicked in. :ghey:
( I wish our 3.0's were 5 or 6 speed )

Now when you do it "Manually" you start on 1 until you hit redline then pop it up to 2 ( redline ), then D3 ( redline ), and finally D4 and you should be able to hit top speed...correct?

I'm because everyone does things different on their 3.0's.

 

No problem but, just as I stated before, you will be using more gas and making your engine work harder. If you plan on going over 50mph you should go to D4 so it can go into overdrive and drop your rpm's down but it's your gas money and your engine. 50mph runs @ around 2500rpm's in D4 and 50mph runs @ around 4000rpm's in D3. (for the 3.0) If your in stop and go traffic it is great to use D3 because you wont have to go in and out of overdrive when you jump from 35mph and slow down to 5mph then back to 35mph. I keep mine in D4 at all times unless I know I will be in heavy traffic for more than 15 minutes. I have had no problems with my tranny to this point so I will continue to use this method but feel free to do as you like...

 

^ Am I correct in my post above?

 

the only difference between D3 and D4 is that you don't shift into 4th in D3. 4TH is an "overdrive" gear that reduces the revs.....when driving in SLOW traffic (below about 40) then using D3 will keep it smoother, above 40 or so D4 is better for gas mileage. Stop and go = D3, normal highway above 40 or so = D4 . Manually shifting UP is OK as long as you don't mind spending a lot on gas, Don't shift DOWN with an automatic unless you want to go see the transmission guy.....I've driven many automatics and many manuals, I just wish my 99 3.0 would have been available in a 5 speed (or better yet 6!)


Divine CL, I've topped mine out at about 130+ in D4.....if you're only getting to 110 in D4 then you may have a problem?

 

Did you get to 130 by staying on D4 the whole time or were you on D3 until you redlined on 3rd gear and then upshifted to D4 to jump into 4th gear? Moreover, how is it that you race when you're on a redlight ( What are you on D4, D3, 2, or 1 and do you upshift at a certain point )? Sorry for not knowing how to get the best out of my auto tranny.

 

If your starting at a red light and you want to get the best jump you should start in 1. That way when you reach the redline you can put it in 2nd and then to 3rd. This gives you control of your tranny without a clutch. I would not do this often at all though. This will over time cause tranny problems. Remember not to rag out your CL because it is not a racecar and if you keep stressing the engine to the max, just like in any car, you will run into problems. Just some friendly advice!