I'v never driven a 6 speed car before......and I'm expecting my car this weekend...or monday at the latest and i was wondering ...when I'm driving..would i even need to go the 6th gear? or it would it just be just normal just going to the 5th and only using 6th if I want to go wild?

 

no

 

no what?

 

Hey terse,
Your car should be here. Mine arrived a couple hours ago. Woo hoo!

 

just called them...it's not in yet...although he said that it's in california..where in So cal are you?

 

You'll find that you should probably not use 6th gear unless you are traveling in the neighborhood of 55-60 MPH or more.

 

I use 6th all the time. It really depends on your driving and on how much gas you want to save. Using 6th gear is not a bad thing.

 

i don't really understand what you mean by going wild in 6th. 6th gear is the "tallest" gear and usually you won't use it unless you're going at a fast enough speed. I usually shift into 6th around 55-60 mph as well just because you will feel that the engine doesn't provide enough power if you try to use 6th at too low of a speed. Good luck! I didn't know how to drive a stick prior to this car either.

 

i just meant...most cars only have 5 gears...and go 80-90, right? so I was thinking..maybe i would never need to use the 6th gear...

 

6th is a OD gear. interstate driving.

use it and get the feel for it, then you be the judge, you are the driver.

 

..... or maybe his chauffer is the driver......

 

You'll find 6th is best at 60+ mph (~2000 rpm) unless you are on very flat or downhill terrain. You can be cruising in 6th as low as 45 mph (1500 rpm) per owners manual, but do not plan to accelerate in 6th without downshifting at that speed.

 

My everyday shifting is 1 to 2 to 4 to 6.(When I'm not in a rush). I'm going on 6 gear 30 mph in 25mph speed limit zone.I'm driving stick 30 years.

 

i only use 6th when i am cruising above 60mph. anything slower and the car will accelerate like a dog.

 

You are missing the pojnt - extra gears allow for closer ratios in the lower 5 for better accleration and throttle response, with 6th being a long gear for low noise and fuel economy.

 

still, with 6th, i feel that they could've made it "longer" or "taller" for even better gas mileage. at 80 mph, i'm getting around 3,000 rpm! Still everything is an engineering trade-off... so i'm sure acura had their reasons

 

This is just off the top of my head, but I'm pretty sure in the fifth gear of the 5-speed automatic transmission, 70MPH = about 1800 RPMs and 80 MPH = about 2200 RPMs. It's the 'tallest' overdrive gear I've ever seen on an auto transmission.

The G2 Acura Legend (1991-1995) had a 4-speed auto where the top gear yielded 3,000 RPMs at 80MPH.

This is one of the many ongoing improvements Honda makes in the name of fuel economy.

Personally, I would have gotten a Hybrid TL if they made one. I heard the Honda Accord Hybrid kicks the ass of the regular engine V6 Honda Accord, both in terms of fuel economy and acceleration.

 

Something else cool about transmissions... Mercedes uses a 7-speed automatic transmission in their E500s. I've never driven one, but it must accelerate very smoothly.

 

I never use 6th except on the highway at 55+. The gear is very tractable at those speeds but below that forget it. In the city 3rd and 4th are the most useful gears for slow driving. The sixth is really not necessary except as a highway overdrive gear. You could be running on fith all day at highway speeds and not even notice it. BTW, top speed is in 5th, 6th does not have enough torque to provide meaningfull thrust at 130+.

 

 

The Accord is as fast as the TL...number for number

I don't believe for a second that a hybrid Accord would be quicker than the regular V6 found in the Accord and our TL.

 

The hybird did recieve a power boost, don't know how much difference it'll make, but it should be a bit faster than tha regular V6...

 

This thread is retarded... You NOOB! How can you not understand the concept of switching gears from 1 to 6th? what you mean go wild in 6th gear? how can you go wild in 6th gear? People like you don't deserve to drive TL.

Probably, your next thread will be... "I've upshifted to 6th gear to go wild and to pass cars that were doing 45mph in 55mph zone"

You NOOB!

by the way.. One car that could've really used 6th gear is Integra GS-R... talk about sweet sound of engine..

 

What site said that?

 

So, are you really 30?

 

what a pathetic loser you are...I feel sorry for everyone that knows you....

 

and if he is, that'll be the real kicker. With the way he typed, I would think he was 16.

 

To terse;

You wrote,
"i just meant...most cars only have 5 gears...and go 80-90, right?"

Well most cars with manual transmissions have 5 forward gears, but virtually any car will easily go beyond 100 MPH.

There is nothing magical or special about a 6-speed manual transmission other than the fact that it allows the gear ratios to be a little closer, thus facilitating more spirited driving. In actuality, the transmission in our car is not all that "close ratio" when viewed in the light of former transmissions. But when compared to current offerings, it is an improvement. Still 6th gear is only 0.77:1 as I recall.

 

thanks, that was a good answer...i just didn't understand the major difference b/t 5 spd and 6 spd cars..

 

Me too, until I started reading this forum and the famous manual from SouthernBoy . This forum helped me in my decision to buy a stickshift rather than an auto. I'm glad I did.

I use 6th around 55mph in normal driving conditions for smooth driving and fuel economy. If I'm in a 'spirited' mood, I usually dont shift to 6th until 80 or so. I still feel that the ratio of 6th gear could be taller. I cant be 100% sure, but I believe BMW's 6th gear is taller than TL's (0.6:1 or something like that?)

After two weeks of figuring out the car (this is my first stickshift), I'm beginning to enjoy the fun part of this car. You'll love it!

 

cool, thanks

 

To terse;

Let's say you have a 5-speed transmission with the following gear ratios (I'm deliberately simplifying this):

1st, 3.75:1
2nd, 2.50:1
3rd, 1.75:1
4th, 1.00:1
5th, 0.75:1

And a final drive ratio of 3.80:1.

Now suppose we have a nearly identical car with a 6-speed with the following ratios (again, simplified):

1st, 3.85:1
2nd, 2.90:1
3rd, 2.00:1
4th, 1.40:1
5th, 1.00:1
6th, 0.75:1


Notice that the ratios are closer with the 6-speed tranny than with the 5-speed. What this means is that there will be less of a shock to the drive train under hard shifting with heavy throttle because there is not as much of an RPM difference between each gear. This is very important for drag racing. Also, it improves shifting performance. In my example, notice the two top gears are the same ratio, so no difference in top speed. But because the 6-speed has lower ratios in gears 1 through 5, the rate of acceleration is better.

Here's one for you. Let's say our 1st gear ratio is 3.85:1 and our final drive is 3.285:1 (I think these are actually the correct ratios). In first gear, the maximum amount of torque being delivered to the drive wheels is around 2649 lb/ft (1st gear X final drive X .88 (factors a 12% drive train torque loss)).

 

six-speed is amazing