I just bought a '97 del sol SI

I've driven other 5 spds, but this car's first gear seems very very short compared to other cars that I have driven. It just seems so short that if i stay in it too long, I'm already at 5 or 6k rpms, seems like it would be bad for the car. Anyone else notice this? or is it just me?

 

what motor.....if b16 you could expect that....why wouldnt you want short gears?

 

The transmission is setup like that...It's actually pretty normal...More acceleration off the line and you get into vtec faster...That's where the honda vtec motor makes most of it's power....I wouldn't worry about it.

 

Honda is notorious for making short first gears, even in their extremely long trannies (IE LS)...they usually end around 30 MPH...its better for acceleration...

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by elevatethis &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I just bought a '97 del sol SI

I've driven other 5 spds, but this car's first gear seems very very short compared to other cars that I have driven. It just seems so short that if i stay in it too long, I'm already at 5 or 6k rpms, seems like it would be bad for the car. Anyone else notice this? or is it just me?</TD></TR></TABLE>

that's normal. i have the same engine as you. my 1st gear redlines under 40, and my 2nd redlines at 60. that's a good thing because the engine doesn't make any power until higher rpm.