I remember reading a great how-to that Dave B. wrote about shifting a 5-spd but I can't seem to find it...!

Anyway, my question is how do you smoothly downshift to accelerate?? I keep on reading stories about how people downshifted from 5th to 3rd to accelerate.

Everytime I try it, I get a jerk. In my defense, I've only been driving 5-spd for like 6 days now and while my normal driving is pretty smooth, my performance driving is not. I've known how to drive 5-spds before, but it wasn't smooth since I didn't have experience.

Thanks.

 

Here's the thread: http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?threadid=83763

 

Thank you very much!

 

To do a good downshift from 5th to 3rd, try this. Depress the clutch, pull the shifter back into neutral, push into 3rd, rev up the motor to about 4500-5000rpms and quickly release the clutch. Make sure you hold the shifter the correct way when you shift into 3rd (ie palm open and behind the lever with fingers pointing to the passenger side). This will make things much smoother.

The reason you are experiencing the jerkiness is because you aren't rev matching the engine to the mphs. It takes a bit of practice to get it right. Learn what the rpms are in a certain gear and at that certain rpm.


Dave

 

I finaly learned how to rev match my self with my 5spd, now with my 6spd the damn electronic TB srews it all up. It has a annoying delay on it which makes sperr of the moment rev matches diffucult.

 

easiest way I've found to describe it is for a 1-gear downshift, just "blip" the gas and cram it in gear and go.

for a 2-gear (5th-to-3rd, 4th-to-2nd) downshift, give it two "blips" or one "burp" then stuff it in gear and let go of the clutch.


from a 5th to 3rd downshift, you'll basically have to double your RPM to hit it right. I hit 6700 at about 95mph in 3rd, and that's about 3800 in 5th.

 

Thanks a lot guys. Dave basically answered my question on how to hold the shifter. I find that the way you hold the shifter makes all the difference. If you hold it just right, it smoothly goes into gear.

 

Anyone care to post pics on proper grip? For the life of me, I can't visualize the description and I definitely know that's probably not what I'm doing since my palm always sits on top... If it's online somewhere, care to share the link?

 

When did you get a 5 speed?

 

Last week. Not a Maxima though, a '95 240SX 5-spd fully loaded with a VLSD in the rear-end! Really really nice car. Now I know what it means to drive a sports car. It may not be fast in a straight line, but there sure drives different. Everything is more 'tighter' and responsive. And cornering is FLAT!

 

ahh gotcha....
yes, 240SX is nice.. My friend has the same car although it's an automagic, it does drive different.. very nice car... About the speed.... two words: Engine.... swap... 13s instantly.

 

SR20DETT?

 

SR20DET not twin turbo, single turbo.

I don't think anyone has a SR20DETT.

Anyway, can't afford the SR20DET yet. The 240SX is fast enough to be fun without getting caught. It's probably slower than our '99 Maxima GLE but its damn fun to drive!

 

lately i've been so tempted to plan on building my own 240sx with SR20DET engine swap. after that, it would mean i would sell my max. i don't know if our cars can run all motor 13s with our non-existent aftermarket for engine parts. at this point i want to run solid 13s and beyond!

 

i highly recommend learning how to heel/toe,double clutch downshift! even though double clutching is unnecessary, the sensation of it is rewarding. buy a set of good aftermarket pedals before trying to master it. when i downshift from 5th to 3rd, i depress the clutch, shift into neutral, release the clutch at the same time matchrevving by blipping the throttle. a split second goes by and i press the clutch in and downshift to 3rd before the revs have a chance to go down. this is typical double clutching. the lever goes into gear with no resistance as opposed to normal match revving which has a notchy feeling. if i was to accelerate, it would be the same thing only i just keep the throttle to the floor after the shift is completed. you've gotta love "driving" in order to double clutch all the time.

 

hehe, Does the SR20DET swap count as all motor? even though it's boosted stock?
I think you can still make a Maxima just as fast as a 240SX.. I've seen a video of a 240SX with a swap and a 75 shot running like 11.2 But that's probably as fast as you can get... ofcourse with more $$$ anything is possible, but if Don can pull a low 12 with just nitrous, it would be interesting to see it run with a Supercharger as well, but it would probably not be able to handle all that much power.

Either way, 240SX is very nice, Rear wheel drive, and the last generation one looks 10X better then most affordable 2 door sports cars in the same price range..

 

SR20DET has a turbo so it's not all motor. i'm only interested in it because it's a very well balanced sports car and would be a huge project to pull off. my other interest is the WRX which has a tremendous aftermarket already. i just want to see how fast a maxima can go without a bolt on supercharger or NOS.

 

Man, that really gets me thinking. Next summer/fall I'll most likely be buying a lightly used 2002 Altima/Maxima auto and I'll be getting a project car. I was really thinking on getting a 5.0, but a 240 sounds far more inviting. Hmmmmm....


Dave

 

A 240 really has some ballz, my bro just got a 95 SE 5spd, and mama it may not have straight line take off, but boy does it handle and highway downshifting is the best thing ever!!

 

In its current form (KA24DE) it has a nice powerband in terms of drivability. It has excellent torque down low and up to about 5.5K RPMs, then the power drops off. But till then, it makes a real nice sound (kinda like the Max with an intake) while revving in 3rd!

And just driving it is another pleasure on its own. Its so smooth and nimble that it feels like it will never lose control! I don't know how to explain it, but theres a subtle pleasure in driving the 240SX, and I'm guessing that applies to driving other sports cars too.

And the interior is excellent also. The layout and equipment is quite nice. It has everything our GLE has except for BOSE and climate control. It still has AC and 6-speaker cd/tape though, just not BOSE. But it sounds good either way even though the CD player tends to skip a bit.

 

I have an ACT clutch and for some reason if I don't "double clutch" I can feel my throw out bearing taking a load it shouldn't, like I'm abusing it, but none of that's stock and it should handle whatever I throw at it. I don't know why, but it just feels like I'm gonna break it if I don't. I know I'm probably just paranoid from all the OEM clutches I've dumped, but... ?????