Does anyone think the shift gate on the z is a little off?

I have been driving a stick for yrs and find it veyr easy to go from 2nd to 5th instead of 3rd. I don't think it is me but hey it could be.

Does this happen to any of u?

I phucking hate it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Maybe your arm is crooked =/

 

Not ONCE have I ever missed a shift. I think the Z has one of the best gear boxes I've ever driven. A good stiff shift, no cable crap like German engineers seem to like so much.

 

i found it is much easier to NOT guide the shifter to 3rd. like from 2nd just push up and since it is spring loaded to the center, it easily falls into 3rd. thats just me, but whenever my dad drives the car, he tries to guide it and he always ends up in 5th. i have since told him to just push up and works alot better.


u can practice in your garage if you dont wanna screw up on the street tho...

 

Yeah, you have to try really hard to go from 2nd to 5th -- if you just let it slip up naturally, it drops right into the 3rd gate. If you try to be the incredible hulk shifting gears with your whole arm instead of a flick of the wrist, you will hamburger your shifts forever. Don't shift with a choke hold on the shifter -- put your palm on the top of the shifter (no ham-fist grabbing) and you will have nice clean shifts every time.

 

 

Oops is that what you mean by missing a shift? ..seriously your thinking about it too much and probably using more arm action which you shouldnt be..just let it fall as they say naturally.

 

Never have done it. Much less in the Z. The gears go in so easily and naturally. Now my cousin in a 78 280z went from 5th to 1st down shifting. Nothing good came out of that.

 

nope, but ive gone from 6th to 2nd at around 70

 

^
That had to hurt DrRick. OUCH!!!! Anyways, i think Tere nailed it right on the head. BTW, i havent had a problem up/down shifting either.

 

Indysmooth...you might not be too far off on the crooked arm comment.

Dawoo, you might not be using the proper shift technique. you should be changing how you hold the shifter depending on which gear you are changing. Let's go up through the hand positions:
1. Joystick grip/trigger grip: Holding the shift **** with your hand wrapped around it like you would hold a gun. The back of your palm faces the passenger door.
2. Overhand/top grip: Your hand is basically on top of the gearshift. Your forefinger and middle finger of the right hand are lined up in a straight line with your forearm...so the bones of the first two fingers form a solid line. Your thumb is on the left side of the shift ****, and your ring and pinky fall on the right side for support. The top of the **** should be right in the middle of your palm.

Now we'll shift up through the box using good hand positions...I'll explain why as we go. Neutral to 1st: Trigger grip...gives you good control to slot the gear towards you (left) and up. 1st to 2nd. Again, the trigger grip works well here, since you're pulling back and towards yourself. You should just pull straigh down on this shift, and it will slot in. 2nd to 3rd...trigger grip again. As mentioned above, if you just press straight forward out of 2nd using this grip, it will fall right into 3rd. Now, here's where the Overhand grip comes into play. 3rd to 4th. You want a very straight movement of your arm from 3 to 4, so you don't accidentally shift back into 2nd. Using the overhand grip lines your hand and forearm up, so when you pull back, your arm will move back in a straighter line than if you still had the trigger grip. I keep the overhand grip for 4 to 5, and 5 to six as well. From 4 to 5, push the stick to the right and up. I usually guide it here with the overhand grip, so I don't slot it back to 3. In the Z, 5th is much further to the side than 2 to 3. 5 to 6, I keep my had that way as well.
I pretty much do all of my downshifting with the overhand grip. I find it much easier to guide my hand in straight lines, and make sure I'm hitting the right gears. I have yet to hit a wrong gear in the Z...the gearbox works great IMO. Give this a try and see if it helps.

 

I think I've got ya beat. I went to 2nd from 3rd at 100mph (redline in 3rd) in my Z28 camaro. $$ Oops $$

 

yes you do have me beat. congrats. mine was about a 7 on the pucker factor. yours had to be at least a 9.......


Doc

 

Thanks for the comments all I will give it a try. I think I have been muscling it a bit. I will try the technique J ritt described and see what I see.

But Damn! I really feel like an *** now

 

Yep, I've done that as well.

Luckily, the rear tires locked up, and I corrected it very very quickly (nothing bent or broken, luckily).

That seems to be a popular manuever in our cars for some reason.

I guess it's because if you pull back and towards you, you hit second, rather than 4th (staight back).

 

Perhaps Daewoo's require force shifting =/

 

No. Never.

 

Down-shifting into 4th but getting 2nd has been my issue; think I finally have it down but still make a conscious decision everytime.

Man, it (hitting 2nd rather than 4th) does pucker ya up real fast!!

 

Hi Guys,

I had some problem missing shifts when I started getting better at track driving. As the cornering speeds got higher and higher, the tranny would shift around a little from the lateral g's so the gears wouldn't be exactly where you expect them to be.

A couple of the more advanced drivers showed me how to shift properly to minimize risks of missed shifts. Here's a link: Shift Technique Pay particular attention to picture 6. That's the one where people blow up their engines if they screw up.
HTH,

Emre

 

Don't grip the shifter so hard, and it will shift much better.

It is not a baseball bat!

Scott