I have the infamous 3rd gear synchro grind with my Integra, and I'll be doing SCCA Solo Trials on Saturday, so that brings me to my question... is it really any faster to shift as fast as I can, or is it better to just wait for the RPMs to drop to the correct number for the next gear, then shift? I need to replace the synchro anyway, so I'm not concerned about more grinding, I just want good lap times.

Shifting fast seems to be what most people think is the best way to accelerate, but it seems like that's just trying to force the synchros to either speed up the wheels or slow down the motor, and I'm thinking it wouldn't really accomplish much. That's obviously not very smooth, but I wouldn't be shifting in a turn, so does smooth matter in the straights? Is the smooth way more efficient or faster (ie less wasted energy and G-force changes)?

I've never seen or heard this topic discussed at all, and I'd very much like to know what the road racers have to say about it. Thanks.

 

Check under the carpet on the driver's side firewall. And check the slave cylinder (usu. mounted to the tranny facing the radiator). If the car's shifting hard I'd certainly look into hydraulic issues before pulling the trans. Because the hydraulics will fail soon anyway.

That said...IMO (and you're only going to find opinion) is that there's a middle ground somewhere. I shift the car pretty fast on track. There are those who shift a lot faster than I do...and at the same time, there are those who don't get 48 track weekends out of a transmission with it looking brand new when you pull it apart.

My opinion is that at our level (I'm assuiming HPDEs or club racing or some such effort) it's best to be easy on equipment. Equipment like transmissions costs a lot. I'd rather spend my money on entry fees, or on a new set of tires, than on a 3rd gear synchro because it "grinds."

Eek, sorry to ramble...must be the cold medicine.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by krshultz &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">My opinion is that at our level (I'm assuiming HPDEs or club racing or some such effort) it's best to be easy on equipment. Equipment like transmissions costs a lot. I'd rather spend my money on entry fees, or on a new set of tires, than on a 3rd gear synchro because it "grinds."</TD></TR></TABLE>

Ditto.

 

I shift VERY easy/slowly when I run HPDE's. First, I dont need to gain an extra .5 sec out on track and 2, I dont have the $$ for a new tranny. If you are going to step up to w2w with a dedicated track car than yes I would shift faster.

Edit: To answer your question shifting faster IS actually the fastest way to accelerate (less time coasting and more time in gear with power to the wheels.)

 

Peter Cunningham once told me that one of the first things that tips him off to a bad driver is that they try to shift as fast as they can. He said to visualize the shift as two shifts, one from the gear to neutral, and one from neutral to the next gear. The benefit is in the smoothness of the shift, and the stability of the car as a result.


Matt