Please test my theory to achieve smooth shifts.

[COOL COUPE]

I have tried everything under the sun to do something anything at all to improve shift smoothness ... Today I noticed something. Slow release of the clutch ... Maybe something to do with the flywheel mass ? - not sure - but put the car in first gear ... rev and pull slowly and deliberately your left foot upward about half as fast as you would normally do ... then shift to second gear. Marked improvement of the scratchy gear issue ... same for all gears. Third gets notchy as well. I have found improvement. Coincidence ... Or am I onto something of importance here?

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[Maroco]

I have tried everything under the sun to do something anything at all to improve shift smoothness ... Today I noticed something. Slow release of the clutch ... Maybe something to do with the flywheel mass ? - not sure - but put the car in first gear ... rev and pull slowly and deliberately your left foot upward about half as fast as you would normally do ... then shift to second gear. Marked improvement of the scratchy gear issue ... same for all gears. Third gets notchy as well. I have found improvement. Coincidence ... Or am I onto something of importance here?

Im guessing what you are feeling is the clutch delay valve our cars come with. It sits inside our slave cylinder and can make shifts seems inconsistent. People report great improvement in shift feel after removal.

Search cdv removal

 

[SDAlexander8]

Woah buddy, I hope you aren’t shifting with the clutch pedal released halfway. That can be bad and you may get some gear grinding. Pedal should be on the floor when you shift into a gear with your right hand.

If I misunderstood what you were describing, it sounds like you are just learning how to modulate your clutch properly to achieve a smooth engagement.

 

[SDAlexander8]

Im guessing what you are feeling is the clutch delay valve our cars come with. It sits inside our slave cylinder and can make shifts seems inconsistent. People report great improvement in shift feel after removal.

Search cdv removal

I don’t know if this is a good suggestion to users who appear to not have a lot of experience driving a manual. The CDV was put there for a reason and I don’t think it should be removed unless you are capable of nailing every shift damn near perfectly. It has saved me from some some serious drivetrain shock. The way I read OP’s post is that he’s just figuring out how to drive a manual properly through trial and error. I could be wrong.

Just my opinion.

 

[COOL COUPE]

Keep in mind I am NOT talking about clutch engagement rathe the opposite. I am talking about slowly disengage of the clutch to perhaps not upset the apple cart. So I am not at all hovering slowly over the grey area ie riding the clutch. Suggesting rather that careful disengagement leads to a smooth entry for the shift position. It's oddball and making no sense I get that but if everything I have tried I can attribute at least some positive feedback for this. Pushing the clutch to the carpet didn't do it. Watching and waiting for the rev limiter didn't do it ... Etc

 

[COOL COUPE]

Try this to simplify ... WHATEVER you do with your left foot do it at half the speed! Up or down with clutch pedal.

 

[Maroco]

I don’t know if this is a good suggestion to users who appear to not have a lot of experience driving a manual. The CDV was put there for a reason and I don’t think it should be removed unless you are capable of nailing every shift damn near perfectly. It has saved me from some some serious drivetrain shock. The way I read OP’s post is that he’s just figuring out how to drive a manual properly through trial and error. I could be wrong.

Just my opinion.

Oh i think we read his posts differently lol. But im with you, we dont know long term data on that mod. But thats why i never told him to do it. I simply gave him a starting point for his search because to me it seemed like he was talking about slower clutch release which is what the cdv essentially does.

 

[SDAlexander8]

Keep in mind I am NOT talking about clutch engagement rathe the opposite. I am talking about slowly disengage of the clutch to perhaps not upset the apple cart. So I am not at all hovering slowly over the grey area ie riding the clutch. Suggesting rather that careful disengagement leads to a smooth entry for the shift position. It's oddball and making no sense I get that but if everything I have tried I can attribute at least some positive feedback for this. Pushing the clutch to the carpet didn't do it. Watching and waiting for the rev limiter didn't do it ... Etc

What you are describing is manual shifting 101. Before you shift, your engine input and transmission speeds are the same. When you upshift, that new gear you select on the transmission is spinning slower than the previous gear was, so you need to wait for your engine to slow down to that new speed.

It sounds like you’ve figured out that you can partially engage the clutch to cause drag and force the engine RPMs to drop faster and engage the flywheel more smoothly.

There is a sweet spot where it will do this with very minimal jerking and feels perfectly smooth, but it is very hard to feel it on this car.

Learning and understanding how a manual transmission works mechanically and seeing it visually has helped me tremendously. Watch this video for a great visual representation of how these things work.

 

[EdwinDrn]

I am going through this same thing.. I'm at 4K miles on my '19 as well. Super frustrating. This is also my first manual.

My biggest issues are with the bucking feel in first gear from a full stop..However, if I have any kind of momentum (2-3 MPH) my first shift is smooth. I don't know which thread it was, but this tip was super helpful..From Neutral, if you are anywhere from 0-5 MPH slip it into first.. from 6-14 MPH.. slip it into 2nd. Ill do some research on that thread and post it here. (For second gear, I believe it was 6-14 MPH.. I'd have to check)

One thing I did notice is if you put it in Sport mode, it revs up a little higher for you, that seems to help a lot.

Edwin,

 

[Maroco]

I am going through this same thing.. I'm at 4K miles on my '19 as well. Super frustrating. This is also my first manual.

My biggest issues are with the bucking feel in first gear from a full stop..However, if I have any kind of momentum (2-3 MPH) my first shift is smooth. I don't know which thread it was, but this tip was super helpful..From Neutral, if you are anywhere from 0-5 MPH slip it into first.. from 6-14 MPH.. slip it into 2nd. Ill do some research on that thread and post it here. (For second gear, I believe it was 6-14 MPH.. I'd have to check)

One thing I did notice is if you put it in Sport mode, it revs up a little higher for you, that seems to help a lot.

Edwin,

I installed a rear motor mount insert. Fixed the bucking and made the shifting more consistent feeling. This is my 5th manual and it had me a little confused at first as well. Low speed shifting had me scratching my head for a bit. Hang in there.

But the rear motor mount insert did fix 98% of low speed bucks for 36$. Best of luck too you!

 

[Siiick]

I guess I am in the minority here because I think the car shifts just fine in its stock form. I hit 1,200 miles yesterday and have adapted pretty quickly to how the car wants to be shifted. Granted I have been driving my ST for the past couple of years and it also has rev hang very similar to the Si, so I might be a little more used to it than others. I also have close to 20 years of experience with driving manual cars so I've got a little bit of practice in that regard. At this point though, i have no desire to change anything and actually like the way it shifts, which by the way has been progressively getting better as I continue to rack up the miles.

 

[si_well]

I guess I am in the minority here because I think the car shifts just fine in its stock form. I hit 1,200 miles yesterday and have adapted pretty quickly to how the car wants to be shifted. Granted I have been driving my ST for the past couple of years and it also has rev hang very similar to the Si, so I might be a little more used to it than others. I also have close to 20 years of experience with driving manual cars so I've got a little bit of practice in that regard. At this point though, i have no desire to change anything and actually like the way it shifts, which by the way has been progressively getting better as I continue to rack up the miles.

I agree with you on this one. I like the way it shifts and have picked up on it's nuances pretty quick even though my Si is my first manual. I think it being your first manual is actually somewhat of an advantage because you're going into it with a clean slate to build on, rather than being very used to driving how a different car drives and having to adapt to a new one that drives any differently. It reduces the learning curve that is specific to the Si.

 

[Spiff44]

I think its the delay in this process that you're doing that is causing the difference..that's what is helping.. not what you're doing during that time. Just giving a half second to one second delay between clutch engagement to the gear shift.. that always seems to help it snick into gear smoothly.

Not ideal for being fast, obviously.. but good for everyday driving.

 

[SDAlexander8]

I am going through this same thing.. I'm at 4K miles on my '19 as well. Super frustrating. This is also my first manual.

My biggest issues are with the bucking feel in first gear from a full stop..However, if I have any kind of momentum (2-3 MPH) my first shift is smooth. I don't know which thread it was, but this tip was super helpful..From Neutral, if you are anywhere from 0-5 MPH slip it into first.. from 6-14 MPH.. slip it into 2nd. Ill do some research on that thread and post it here. (For second gear, I believe it was 6-14 MPH.. I'd have to check)

One thing I did notice is if you put it in Sport mode, it revs up a little higher for you, that seems to help a lot.

Edwin,

I feel like 6 mph is a bit slow for 2nd gear. I feel quite a bit of lugging if I’m going that slow in 2nd. I’d argue that 8-9 mph is better.

 

[SDAlexander8]

I think its the delay in this process that you're doing that is causing the difference..that's what is helping.. not what you're doing during that time. Just giving a half second to one second delay between clutch engagement to the gear shift.. that always seems to help it snick into gear smoothly.

Not ideal for being fast, obviously.. but good for everyday driving.

It’s not about giving it a set amount of time, it’s all about matching the speed of the engine to the speed of the transmission. Understanding this and general memorization of what rpm you should be at in a certain gear at the speed you are traveling. Memorizing every line of a spreadsheet of these values isn’t required, but after enough practice and seat time you should be able to take a quick glance at the tach/speedo and confidently know where you need to be.

And when you get to that level of understanding your transmission, it is an extremely empowering feeling, and your confidence behind the wheel goes through the roof.

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