Do you downshift when?
 

Going on a long uphill? You see this is my first stick and i've had been doing some experimentation. Going about 110 km/h on 5th and then going on an uphill, it won't stay at that speed even with the gas WOT. So i downshift to 4th and i notice my rpm meter jump up and then i get a better boost of acceleration. But then again, this isn't good for my car cuz i'm ony at 650Km on my ODO. Can someone post when they shift and stuff? Cuz i find myself shifting down and up at the wrong areas and i jolt my car alot.
This one time i was pulling out of a parking lot and i'm going really really slow, and i think it's fine to put it in 1st, but then the car starts jolting and i guess i wasn't smooth on the gas? or should i of started on 2nd ( slow rolling start ).?

Sounds to me like you ARE downshifting correctly....and IF you think the RPM is too high for the number of miles you have on your car....then pull over into the SLOW lane and just slow down....but THAT is better than LUGGING your engine.....once you get more miles on the car...just down shift and ZOOM up the hill.

as far as pulling out really slow in 1st....yep manual trannies will do that....they ALL will do that....you just have to practice and know when to feather the clutch and be gentle with the gas till you get rollin and can go on to 2nd. :D

Hey thanks for the quick reply. My friend said it took him 3 months to perfect all the shifting and smooth clutch release/gas. I hope i'm a fast learner, only on my 2nd week now hehe. I heard that when breaking the car in it's good to boost it every now and then is this true? Or should i baby the car until after it's first 1000km before revving it higher? Someone also said i should wait until my first service (oilchange) at 8000km.. but that seems like forever!

Noodles.....you will find VERY many opinions on this one...in fact there was a whole thread about break in times and the such a while back....

HOWEVER....what I woud do if I were you, and EXACTLY what I did......keep it resonable (<4000 rpm) till you pass the recommended breakin period listed in the manual....then LET IT RIP.....but don't go banging the redline all the time.....use some common sence here...lol

I changed my oil in the MP3 the first 500 miles, then the next 1000

I always change the oil at 2500 miles. I can always feel the power difference, with the changed oil. I always use 5-30 Castrol.

It comes out the same color as it went in. I also run 1 quart of Marvel Mystery oil every 2 oil changes, and then only leave it in for 500 miles with the MMO in it!

That odd bucking you refered to is odd, as I had the same symptoms in my MP3. I know how to drive a stick, as I have been driving them for over 10 years now. I took the car back to the dealership and got the runaround, all Protege act this way!

So I assume this is because the clutch is biting very good, so take it easy and make the petal is all the way out, before you give it any gas, never just dump it!

always let your engine warm up before you drive it and make very sure you never go over 4000 before its broken it! Going over 4000 can cause alot of damage to a new engine, and making sure its warmed up, makes sure the oil is flowing and properly lubricating everything

And trust me buddy, it will take a lot quicker than 3 months to get it down. I learned how to drive stick on my protege, bought it brand new without even knowing how to drive it, and within the 1st week I was driving fine. Once you get the clutch down and all the catching points, then it is cake. And once you do have everything down you will look back and wonder how you ever had problems driving it.

Thanks guys, i hope my car loves me as much as i love it. I need to start changing gears at lower rpms, every once in awhile i'll shift at higher rpms cuz i go on highways a lot and need the quick acceleration. I'll search for that thread about breaking times and such... you guys are very helpful.:)

explain double clutching???

Double clutching is used by big semi's and such who don't have synchromesh gears. It is necessary to match engine revs to wheel speed. Any time you hear it used in this forum, it is either a question, or someone is misusing it. And don't listen to Fast and Furious either, abused there too. There are some other posts on it elsewhere if you are really curious.

breakin period
 

how long is the breakin period?

Re: breakin period
 

read the MANUAL!!!! :o

ok ok, for the first 600 miles take it easy, vary the RPMs, and don't let the engine run at a certain RPM for a long period of time.

after that, zoom zoom zoom!

Re: Re: breakin period
 

But like Sir Nuke said, keep it within reason. Running to redline now and then won't hurt but if you do it every time you drive the car something is going to wear out. Remember you want a long and enjoyable relationship with your new Protege (at least until you trade it in on a 4th Gen).

Oh. Try not to leave the car in fifth going uphill. You waste a lot of gas doing that. Just downshift if you notice you are giving the car a lot of gas.

We dont even double clutch in semi's anymore. Dont even use the clutch actually, no need. (Old 5&4's you still would)

Don

Whats up with that? You guys have electronic clutches now or are you speed shifting?

No electronic clutch, you use the clutch to start and thats about it.

Basicaly you would start out in 2nd or 3rd depending on weight. Say on a 10spd with a Cat motor you would rev up to 2100-2200 pull the shifter out of gear and hold it against the gate of the next one. When the gate opens (approx. 1750-1800rpm) it just pops in (quite smoothly too) rev up for the next shift. When shifting into a higher range, you would pre-select, say High range on a splitter (lever in front of the shift knob), rev up, and when you pull it out of gear it will go into high range immediately, then push against the next gear gate as before.

(so it would look like this- 2,3,4,5 flip into high, then back to 2nd which is now 6th,7,8,9)

Down shifts are a bit different (and you must downshift or you'll burn your brakes) you would idle down, *tap the gas* push the shifter into nuteral, rev *past* the point where the gates open, and as the revs fall back it will pop in.

13 and 18spd. are a blast because you split every high gear. ie: 6th low/high, 7th low/high, 8th etc.

(I was a driver trainer for Laidlaw Waste in Ontario until I creamed my knee)

Crazy huh?

Don