It's certainly different. I'm used to daily driving either a BMW 3 Series or a Porsche 911 Turbo, and the clutches in those cars are very, very different from the 370Z. My 370 is only a few days old, though, and I've already got the hang of it (mostly).

I'm new to manual trans also - just picked my 370Z up over the weekend. For 1st and 2nd gear, I noticed you need to really let the clutch out smoothly and just be gentle with her for those gears. Let's call it foreplay. :confused: The rest of them aren't so sensitive to letting the clutch out a little faster.

My problem is with hill starts. Heart pounds, person behind me is so close to my bumper, lots of things to think about with clutch/brake/gas that I even screw up the handbrake method.

I'm confident it will become second nature eventually, but it really stresses me out for now. I use SRM because I (a) don't want to grind gears, and (b) I like the perfect downshifts as I get used to the clutch.

mine feels great.
I have

http://www.the370z.com/drivetrain-en...available.html

+

http://www.the370z.com/z1-motorsport...ilable-z1.html

makes a HUGE difference.

arnold, you'll get used to it. at first its hard to get a sense of the clutch engagement in this car. its pretty subtle. after a little bit though, you get a feel for it and you'll be able to really shift well.

Yeah I'm getting more used to it now. For sone reason Im scared to rev past 1500 and slip it into first. Ive drivin manual transmissions before but they werr broken in and this one is brand new. Some times shift to fast I will buck a little. The more I drive it though its starting to feel like second nature.. I almost wish I could hear the engine a little bit more at lower rpms so I wond haveto look at the tach hah

sometimes when people feel the clutch grab, they have a tendency to just let it out really fast because they panic or are scared of burning it when thats exactly the point where you want to just smoothly let it out.

My only complaint is that the engagement point is too far off the floor (pedal too high). I like to be able to modulate the clutch with my ankle at the engagement point. With the point so high in the pedal travel, my knee is too flexed and I don't have the movement I want at my ankle. I compensated by moving the seat back. Now, I have to stretch a little to get the pedal to the floor (for starting the engine), but the engagement point is more controllable with ankle motion.

Is it ok to change the transmission fluid beforethe first oil change? I hear a clunk sometimes if I depress the clutch while I'm slipping it into 1st. Like if I'm not giving it enough gas and depress the clutch quickly to avoid stalling, it will make a weird clunky sound.. normal? Thanks guys +rep!

you can change the tranny fluid before engine oil..

don't worry about that clunk. its nothing bad. it just happens when you push the clutch in too fast, like when you are panicking and slam it to the floor. Normally when you're driving this car, theres no need to be doing that. Just push it in nice and smooth, maybe just a TAD slower than you think you should,and that clunk wont happen.

Compared to other manual cars I've driven (not many, but mostly crappy econoboxes) the engage point on the Z is a little high and engages quickly in relation to pedal travel. One of the reasons many stall it the first time out. When I drive, my heel is off the floor slightly and I'm pretty much using my whole leg to depress the clutch.

To reduce the "bucking," it helps to shift at a higher rpm from 1st to 2nd.... still engaging the clutch smoothly. Almost like powershifting until you get to 3rd gear.

Hill starts trouble everyone at first. You're still at a point where you might not be confident with where your feet are in relation to the pedals. From personal experience, coming from an AT, your muscle memory still needs to learn the different pedal position. Give it a few weeks (or even months) and you should be able to move your feet to the correct spot without thinking about it. Also, you should practice getting a feel for the "roll back" so it doesn't surprise you when the situtuation arises. I still use the handbrake method every once in a while when d-bags stop a foot behind me while waiting at a light, which happens way too often.

I know SRM makes it easier, but you should learn to drive without it. I don't see why you would grind the gears with it "off". Your shifts will be rough if you don't do it properly, but it shouldn't grind. Grinding happens when you shift without engaging the clutch (something that can still happen with SRM).

SRM is great for the break in period, thats for sure!

So can a total car moron do this? I'm assuming you need something to pump the tranny fluid back into the car? The Z1 site states a specific fluid that's different from the fluid you've linked.... any reason you know of?

I'd rather not buy 100 bucks worth of parts to install a 40 dollar tube.... I suppose I could go to Z1 one day and have them do this.

They would be able to do it easily and quickly. And yes you to nedd a pump to get it in.

And the mt-85 is the one u want.

Come see us. We have awesome rates and very savy techs. But yes I could even do it :).