I am the proud owner of a Black 2003 G35 6mt with aero and premium package...gotta love those 18's. Neways...this is my first car in stick and also my first RWD car. Even though i cant realy drive stick, I got it in manual bc i have been told my whole life that you always get sports cars in stick, no if's and's or but's. So here are my questions:
1) when i am in 5th gear ( and racing someone) should i shift into 6th gear or leave it in 5th when it hits the redline...i was told by someone that 6th is just for cruising and not for racing...

2) what RPM should i be reving the engine to when im racing someone off the line? and should i let the clutch out slow or fast? i have researched this question on this site but answers vary...just looking for some more input

3) say for example i am in 3rd gear..am i supposed to shift to 4th when the rev needle is at the redline or a second b4 it hits the redline? (again...while racing)

4) I have also researched this question but im going to ask it anyways....why should i race wiht the vdc off instead of on. what are the advantages and disadvantages of doing each?

5) is it bad for the car if i downshirt from 4th to 3rd without slowing and then stomp on the gas..should i be letting the clutch out while simultaneously pressing the gas??
As you can tell...i am very new to this whole 6spd thing and im sure most of you are laughing at my questions but i would definitly appriciate some answers.
Im sorry to be asking so many questions but this is a very good forum and some of you seem to be extremely knowledgeable and i just figured i would rather look dumb on this forum then while racing another car.

Thanks

 

1) Ummm... you don't wanna stay in 5th or even think about going in 6th.... Try droping it in 4th depending on how fast you're going. If you're in 4th drop it into 3rd, let out the clutch and launch till you need to change gear's again.

2.)For manual try 3800rpms. Don't let off the clutch too fast and not to slow... Just the right time.

3.) Once again it depends on how fast you're going man. If you're at 30mph in 3rd and RPM's are low you can drop it int 2nd and go back to 3rd at a higher PRM.

4.) Yes VCD is deffinatly going to be turned off when you're racing.

5.) Well I got buddies and when I had my M3 did it all the time. You will know when you're releasing the clutch too quickly ...

In other words you should NOT race your car now... Drive it fast a few times man and then when you feel you're ready to take it out at night to run a few car's you should practice ahead of time like in a back farmland road in the middle of no where...

G35 Mafia Member # 01

 

First off, since your car is new, wait until it's thoroughly broken in before you race and hit redline. By that time, you and your car will have a chance to become familiar with each other and the answers to most of your questions will become abundantly clear. Then re-post your new questions. Not sure if this helps or not.

<font color=green>GG</font color=green>

 

1) If you hit the redline in 5th gear you'll be going around 140 mph. If you're new to the car and the car is new you'd have to be insane to do this. You'd have to be pretty nuts to do it under almost any circumstances. You're not nuts, right?

2, 3 and 4) You're a beginner at driving a manual car. Cop to that and learn to drive the car really well NORMALLY first. REALLY well.

You probably don't remember this, but when you were an infant you had to learn to crawl before you walked. The first few times you tried to walk you fell flat on your face or your butt. You cried and your mom picked you up and put you back on your feet. The stakes are a bit higher in this case. You've got a very powerful new $35,000 car, and in untrained, foolish hands it can easily get destroyed, quite possibly taking you and others with it.

So forget about racing in this car for now. Learn to drive it smoothly and cleanly. Learn about rev-matching for both up and downshifts. Learn to use engine braking. Learn about power oversteer (VDC must be off, and practice with care in an open, private area) as well as trail-throttle oversteer issues (decreasing radius turns at higher speeds can get REALLY interesting in an IRS car).

Learn the fundamentals first. Don't be a fool and try to run before you know how to walk. You'll run a lot better when you eventually do.

 

These are all good questions. I'm sure I'm one of the older guys on this forum, so I'm happy just to watch "2 Fast and 2 Furious', but I've been driving stick for a long time. My G35C 6MT is on order, so I cannot speak from first hand experience.

1) You should upshift just before the torque curve starts tailing off (just before you begin losing power). This is almost always before the redline.

2) I've heard about 2500 RPM works for some folks. The rule of thumb is the more gas from launch the faster you need to engage the clutch. If you give it less gas, release the clutch more slowly. This will give you the best performance and least clutch wear. Never ride the clutch. Don't even let your foot touch the pedal unless you are shifting gears.

5) Downshifting is fine as long as the clutch plate and the flywheel are close to the same RPM. If the tach needle jumps when you downshift, you are causing unnecessary clutch wear.

Sounds like you've already learned a lot about stick. But if you are still having some problems with clutch/gas position, you need to know exactly the position of your left foot when the clutch engages. Try launching the car without giving it any gas to find this position. You will be a long way to mastering stick when you can find this position without thinking about.

 

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr>

Even though i cant realy drive stick, I got it in manual bc i have been told my whole life that you always get sports cars in stick, no if's and's or but's.

<hr></blockquote>
Can someone say brainwashed? Just kidding . Learning stick is very easy, in fact I learned how to drive properly (without stalling) in less then a week on my first car. As for your questions, the only answer is "feel it". It seems very vague but just listen to the engine and you'll know what to do.

Honestly, I just don't understand the big fuss about stick. People that look down on automatic cars are idiot if you ask me. A car is beautifull in my eyes wether it's an automatic or manual. The difference in time from complete stop between the two is worth nothing in real life in my opinion since most people can't shift like the professionals do in the magazines (that gets such good 0-60 times). So you still end up nose to nose unless the other person did not push his car. Anyways, sorry for going OT, just felt like giving my 0.02 .

 

I'd have to agree with the other guy about walking crawling and running ...

BUT

one thing your going to want to learn or teach yourself is gas downshifting...

say your on the highway ... hmmm like me yesterday ..and you get this new Audi 1.8T pull up beside you and your in 6th cruising at around 110kmph ... and he wants to go ya.

well when you push in the clutch to go to 4th the rpms drop ... like they should.....
but as soon as you let out the clutch the rpms try and make their way up to what 4th gear would be at when travelling that initial speed,
but by now since the gas is off and the rpms climb slows you down to probably 105 to 100 which is no good, only because your car slows substantially and you give him the edge..

SO .... like I did .. I pushed in the clutch and the rpms dropped (like they should) and I tapped the gas a few times to bump it up to the rpms it is supposed to be at in 4th at that speed ...(your can tell by feel) and left that ****** in the dust.

so ...

you basically have to master this .. sometimes you over rev .. sometimes under rev.. the fun is getting it right and when you do on that ONE gas peddle rev to the exact rpm that particular gear needs to be in .... your opponent will only hear the fact you did it .. not see it because as smooth as it can be the car will not slow down or jerk back... and well the rest is history buddy.

and what a sweet sound it is too ...

later g's



66261-fullmod.jpg

 

normally he should turn off the VDC
but guys keep in mind its his first for alot of things.


dont turn off your VDC until youve gotten the feel for RWD

-moooooo

 

Thanks for all your help guys, it is appriciated.

I LOVE MY G!

 

Here are few comments in no particular order...

Since you're new at RWD, don't consider turning off the VDC until you have some empty parking lot practice... it's too easy to break the rear loose and come full circle in this car... and trust me you don't ever want to try this anywhere there's curbs!!! If you're just going straight line, then definitely leave the VDC off... reason is that VDC will detect wheel slippage and apply brakes to whatever wheel is slipping... the only problem with this is that it tends to brake your wheels on the side of safety to keep you out of a wreck... the over compensation and resulting lag could mean losing the race...

5500 RPM in 5th is about 130 MPH... in typical racing you will most likely not get this high, if you do, best of luck to you, but in my opinion, it's not worth the potential consequences... most of the time, if you just start your shifts the instant the needle jumps past 6100 RPM you won't have to meet MR rev limited and lose that split second...

finally... my advice is learn to shift smoothly first... the shifting quickly part will come to you naturally... while you're breaking in the car... watch your RPMS while you're shifting... pay attention to how the RPMS drop then decelerate then hold steady then climb... relate this to the relative position of each pedal and get a feel for how your fly wheel, clutch, and power output respond... eventually it'll all become second nature to you... whenever I race now (rarely)... I don't have time to watch the needles, it's all a matter of feel now...

 

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