I sent a PM to our resident M/T Guru, SouthernBoy.
Hope he replies and answers our questions.

 

6 FTW

but otherwise when i have two hands on the wheel, normally 8 and 4 here, kinda like i am meditating lol

 

Pistol grip wouldn't matter, that's just the knob on the shifter.

 

^well i understand putting extra wear on a normal ball shifter....
but with the pistol grip im gripping it.....err idunno. Where is southernboy???

 

hope this clears up any confusion.

 

I'll keep my hand off the shifter in neutral just in case.

 

so if in neutral and ur hand doesnt move the shifter at all ... in theory there should be no wear?

 

^ I assume it would have to be right in the middle of neutral to not engage synchronizers.

 

9 and 3 often when I'm doing city or driving stick... But on the highway, 9:30 with left elbow chilling on the door for longer distances.

 

I have a lot of respect for Southerboy's vehicular knowledge but my cars manufacturer says not to do it so I'm gonna go with what they say. But enough of my (sorry Costco)

For the most part I'm at high noon on the wheel, for a trip down one of New Englands twisty back roads I'm 9 and 3.

 

right arm out the window...left hand at 3..


sometimes i use this it really helps my elbows on long journeys

http://www.amazon.com/Mobile-Office-.../dp/B000IZGIA8

 

When the shifter is in neutral and the clutch is engaged (pedal is not depressed), if you were to move it a little it most likely would not cause synchronizers to contact one another providing there is some freeplay in the shifter. As for me, I do not do this because I don't wish to take the chance and guess whether or not there is a slight bit of contact. I just don't do it until I am ready to shift into a gear and start moving.

 

My 2000 SVT Contour also had a warning in the owner's manual against doing this for the reasons I have offered, though they didn't say why.

 

I'm amazed at all the two-handed driving positions. For me it's usually relaxed with my right elbow on the armrest 99.9% of the time, and a few fingers at either 5 or 7 Only time I use two hands is when I'm turning (even then it's only half the time), taking a corner briskly, or probably going faster than I should.

 

but it is kinda like how you are not suppose to drive with your left foot resting on the brake or clutch, it takes out any slack you may have (even if you are doing it ever so slightly


and as far as people resting thier hand on the shifter while in gear and driven, yeah you don't want to do that either, cause over enough miles, it will wear out the shift forks (or the bushings on the tips)/synchro grooves (where the forks ride) causing the possibility of a gear not fully engaging because it cannot push said gear far enough in
basically all of it still equals rebuilding the gearbox prematurely

 

I honestly doubt resting your hand on the shifter will wear out the forks so much that you'll need to open up the transmission before something else damages it, or the car's junked.

 

depends on maintence of the tranny itself (like fluid not being changed for 100k or so...)(and the design/materials of the tranny), but also how hard you rest your hand on the shifter, with how fast it wears

and remember when i said "the forks bushings", yeah some of them are nylon (or at least a plastic), and are design to only be engaged for a second or so AT a time, so what happens when they are engaged longer, and literally melt away and fall off the fork, you just gained a bunch of clearance ( and it will effect the other gear that syncho shares with it [geneally 1st and 2nd, 3rd and 4th, then 5th and 6th or 5th and reverse)

 

also look at this picture (original link: http://www.musclemustangfastfords.co.../photo_15.html )


btw it is out of a tremac tko 600 manual tranny (maybe not a honda, but still good idea to still drive like they are there)

notice those little black thing on the fork on the right..., yeah those are the little plastic bushings i am talking about, loose those, and you gain a bunch of clearence

 

 

Good points all and all are worth taking note of by manual drivers.

 

What with so many people having had the infamous 3rd gear problems in Honda manual transmissions, it is my opinion that anything you can do that will prolong the life of your transmission components is going to help you. I do these things anyway just because that is my preference. But with the failures which have occurred resulting in TSBs, it's a good thing to go the extra mile and practice good techniques.

 

No worries. The more we can learn from a thread, the better. I don't mind if a thread I made gets sidetracked, as long as it doesn't devolve into a discussion about side mirrors, ground clearance and drag coefficient.......

 

Flame me but I rarely have both hands towards the top of the steering wheel. I have my seat in such a way where I can hold the wheel at 5 and 7 down lower. Much more comfortable.

I sometimes do 12 with one hand..

 

is the point at which such things would start showing any affect be like over 500k miles, or would it be like closer to 100k? jw, sometimes us enthusiasts go crazy with little things that we may never see within the period we own our cars fors

 

swapped an 05 tranny (with about 79k on it) into my 03 TL, and when i recieved it, i had seen that it had already been opened before, so i called up acura, and actually got the dealers number that had done the warrenty work on it at 59k for indeed the 3rd gear issue (they where surprisingly helpful , but then again i was pretty specific with what i wanted to know though, of why the case had been split open already)

that pretty much applies to anything mechanical though

as said my tranny was already repaired at 59k for the 3rd gear issue

and sometimes we can easily be talking about less then 20k miles here, if abused hard enough (or a couple of track outings if you are really bad)

ie: give me 2 minutes with an automatic transmission (brand new or used, i don't care), and i will seize up first gear for you (how do you think my auto unusable anymore)

 

That sounds horribly difficult and not safe way of driving.

 

I choose a high risk lifestyle plus, that steering wheel desk is great for snorting cocaine

 

It depends on a number of things for me. What are the driving conditions (traffic, roadway, etc.), how long am I going to be driving and is it open highway or a mix. For most situations, I use the 10 and 2 position. When on a trip, I will alternate between that hold and a 7/8 hold with my left hand, leaving my right arm to rest on a prop on the arm rest. By prop, I mean a faux leather "pillow" about 10" x 8" x 4" deep. For long trips, this "pillow" sits on my driver's side arm rest to support my left arm.

I've driven some cars which are damned hard to find a good and comfortable position with everything (you, the controls, and the wheel). With the TL, it's a good thing it has memory positioning.