I am considering getting a '07 6MT and was wondering how the clutch felt. I do a LOT of driving in the stop and go mess of Dallas and wanted to know if the takeup was smooth and easy.

I say this because I had a 2003 Z3 and the actual clutch feel was crap. It wanted to be shifted like you were stealing it. Not good for rush hour. But it did have 1 good point, once you got in in 1st it would idle and just c..r..a..w..l down the road...never lurched. How is the 6MT at doing this?

I have yet to drive one for myself and have read conflicting reviews on the web...some love the clutch and some hate it...what do you actual owners say???

 

I think you'll love it, but I'm biased because I own a 6MT. Honestly, from all the positive feedback on the auto (myself included), you will love the paddle shifters for your stop-and-go traffic. The shifter does have a LOT of vibration, but I'm so used to it. The clutch -- I find -- is very forgiving, and it's so high revving, it begs to be upshifted. I find myself sometimes in 4th gear in a residential zone. Definitely test drive it. It's the only way to find out.

 

It's definitely a very grabby clutch. Inititally, it needs delicate throttle control in 1st AND 2nd. Reminds me of the M3 clutch. However the 6MT clutch will ease up over time (10K miles) and will not be grabby in 2nd anymore and becomes manageable as long as you learn to feather the throttle in 1st.
A soft non-feeling clutch with no feedback it will never be.

 

It took a couple of months but I'm now totally used to the clutch on the 6MT. I don't think you'll have a feel for it during just a test drive. I haven't driven the AT so I can't compare.

I haven't experienced the prominent vibration others have mentioned, so it may vary from car to car.

 

I switched from an '04 coupe 6mt to an '07 sport 6mt sedan. The clutch on the new 6mt is a lot less grabby compared to the coupe. The overall clutch action is much lighter than the coupe's. Vibration is down, too. I find it pretty easy to engage smoothly. The slippage point is a little higher, too, but not bad. Overall, I find it's very appropriate for the sedan.

I've also read some complaints about gear whine. I don't think I've ever driven a manual tranny on a car w/any decent engine that didn't have some gear whine. I think it comes w/the territory of having 300+hp on tap. Anyhow, gear noise is also lower in this car, as is just about any other noise the car makes--unless ur up around 7500rpm.

Hope that helps...

 

Stupid question, a bit off topic, but I keep hearing conflicting arguments that you shouldn't touch the throttle when your pop your clutch in (foot pressing down on the clutch pedal). On the other hand, because of modern day technology, that's okay, and you don't need to double-shift. Namely, when you want to shift from 4th to 3rd, let's say, you disengaging the clutch, hit/blip the throttle to an RPM high enough before you release the clutch pedal (feather it with the throttle). That way, your downshift is smooth like butter.

Having driven a manual for 4 years (yes, I'm a late bloomer), I still feel like a noob sometimes asking stupid questions.

Edit: One thing about the 6mt, which has been brought up several times already. Because of the high revs or whatever, there's a very noticeable jerk after a second delay a so once you remove your foot from the throttle. For example, in my last example, if I'm driving in 3rd in a residential area that's maybe 35mph, I hesitate to stay in 3rd, because as soon as you no longer gas it, it'll jerk forward as the RPMs drop. So I shift to 4th and the jerk is almost non-existent. Because of the raw power of this car, even at 4th, you can accelerate with ample speed and strength.

 

I let me dad drive my 6MT for the first time last night and he was so rusty he completely died out in first. I mean the car jerked forward and everything. I thought we were going to hit the car in front of us. It took him a good 10 minutes to get used to the clutch and drive somewhat smoothly and all the while I was gritting my teeth and was telling my baby that it will be over soon...

 

It's worth it.. and your car will be fine. I remember teaching my son how to drive a stick. He stalled it many times and made me nervous. The car was fine and the memories live on which is priceless.. I'm sure your dad enjoyed the opportunity and you will remember it for a long time to come..

 

As several others have suggested, I definitely recommend a test drive, to see how it feels to you.

I test drove a 6MT, and I thought the clutch was trickier than a lot of cars I have driven (the friction point felt very high and very abrupt to me). I also found it difficult in general to drive it smoothly. However, I did not notice any vibration in the shifter that others have described.

Going into the test drive, I wanted to love it, but my commute is 30-45 minutes of crawling through traffic from one point in San Francisco to another, and I could not see driving that car under such conditions.

However, I will echo GoofyG28 here: the automatic in this car is really nice....I used the stick rather than the paddles when I test drove an auto G35S, and thought the shifts were VERY quick (with no lag like my old BMW's Steptronic).

 

Thanks for all the feedback. So it sounds like the '07 has a stronger master cylinder to make it lighter, but it is still grabby on top. That was how my BMW felt. Oh well, I could live with it but want my girlfriend to be able to drive it as well. Don't think her skills are there and not sure she wants to improve them

The one question that nobody answered was how it slogged along in 1st at low RPM. Does it buck and jerk or just purr along?

Thanks again, I do need to test one...

 

I've had my car for almost three weeks now and I can launch smoothly for about 90% of the time. The clutch engagement point is very high above the floor and it's very abrupt. The one time I stalled the car within the past three weeks was at the car dealership driving off the lot. Unlike most other cars where I can smoothly launch at around 1000-1200 rpms, it takes a tremendous amount of concentration to accomplish this with the new G. I usually start the car at around 1500-2000rpms. You should definitely test drive the car to see if it's right for you.

 

I have had mine for a few weeks also. Some comments:
- Overall the shifter action is very good. The 2nd best among the cars I testdrove (bmw, mazdaspeed6, subaru wrx sti (with some fancy shifter which was very good)).
-Yes, there is vibration in the shifter - but nothing unusual. better than the disconnected feeling of the beemer.
- The clutch uptake is a bit high.
- 1st/2nd gears are very accomodating ( you can go slow without stalling)
- The most annoying thing is the jerkiness when you let go of the accelerator at some speeds. Tough to be smooth with that. This is exactly what goofy also complained about.

 

The clutch engages quickly and there's not much torque at idle, so it takes a day or two to get used to it. I didn't find it that much different than the BMW M-car I had been driving previously.

What I'm still getting used to is how abruptly the car slows when you let off the throttle. As you lift, it almost feels like there's a switch that gets turned off and suddenly there's lots of engine braking. It's not as smooth transitioning from power on to power off as the BMWs I've owned.

 

This is my least favorite aspect of the car. The throttle "hangs up" when you lift your foot and then a second later drops precipitously. I notice it less now than at first, which may mean that I've subconsciously adjusted my throttle usage to compensate.

I wonder if our comrades with AT's experience the same thing?

 

i wonder how long will the clutch last on the 07. I know the 06 and 05 04 have bad life.