6th gear

cab83_750

Interesting thread. Coming from a sports bike world, I always like to have power available. This means that I hate the 6th gear and use it only when I am alone on the road. I need agility to avoid crazy drivers.

sig11

Sometimes I idle at 25mph in 6th gear. Why not?

PapoZalsa

Depending on the cruising speed in the city. Most of the time I only have a chance to shift up to 5th gear.

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2009 370Z MB Base w/Sport Package 6MT
Modshack's Custom Air Intakes /3M Clear Bra/ Illuminated Kick Plates / F. I CBE w/12" resonators / EVO-R Front Lip / Rear Hatch Wing / Tein S-Tech Springs /Ilegal Tint in the Rep. of VA/4x20mm Z1 Spacers/ Vinyl Roof/Liquid Carbon Designs

Matt

Once I got over the gas mileage, I stopped going higher than 4th gear. It makes the highway really fun, I swear!

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"Any man who can drive a 370z while kissing a pretty girl is simply not giving the Z the attention it deserves." Albert Einstein....modified.

mick

page 5-19 (starting and driving) of the 370z manual says:
"for normal acceleration in low altitude areas (less than 4,000 ft):
gear change: 5th to 6th @ 33 mph.

i would change it to 6th gear @ 40 mph but i don't normally use 5th gear.
I would go 1-2-3-6.

6th gear @ 40 mph produces 1500 rpm, which is same rpm that my automatic mercedes runs at when traveling at same speed.

Auston

I was about to say the same thing. The manual recommends shifting
from 5th to 6th @ 33 mph for max fuel economy.

Though obviously if you are about to stop shortly after reaching 33 mph
it doesn't make much sense to shift all the way to 6.

Red370

Agreed, gas prices are still stupid around here, and I appreciate every mile I get, but I usually save 6th for 45+, and like I said, if you're in a hurry, a quick throttle blip downshift can be achieved in less than a second. Or a SRM downshift for you fancy sport drivers.

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2011 Mustang 5.0 | 3.55's | Lethal Performance off road H-Pipe | Magnaflow Muffler Delete | JLT CAI/Bama tuned 417whp/ 404 ft/lbs

mick

my last car was a mercedes c320 with 6 spd manual
and i think that engine would not run well in 6th gear at 40 mph.

I think larger engines such as the one in the 370z can handle it because i do it all the time and there's no sign that the engine is laboring.

Red370

Car runs fine in 6th at 45, and stays at 1.5k rpms, thats my happy fuel economy zone.

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2011 Mustang 5.0 | 3.55's | Lethal Performance off road H-Pipe | Magnaflow Muffler Delete | JLT CAI/Bama tuned 417whp/ 404 ft/lbs

The1michael

Waking up a dead thread but I tried this today. Read mpg at 32 with 41mph avg! Found new cruise mode

Was completely skeptical, especially with this transmission. Tried it, engine/tranny ran very smooth to my surprise. Just don't try to pass anyone at 40mph 6th gear

Edit: here's a pic. I couldn't snap the 32 mpg cuz I was driving and waited until I stopped.

Attached Images

20130411_084158.jpg (401.7 KB, 23 views)

7speed

I do the 1,2,4,6....for light traffic situations

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09 370z 6spd traded 1/12/15 for 15 Challenger RT 6spd

binary0x01

I don't get the whole thing about driving any car, let alone a sports car at low revs.

I keep mine at or above 3K all the time, and the car feels great. Gas milage is not something you should worry about if you have a sports car. I get 18.5/19.0 MPG in LA traffic.

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Tune (by Seb@SpecialtyZ) -- Upgraded Parts List : When in doubt, use brute force; if it doesn't work, you aren't using enough.

The1michael

Long trips and things like this. Its my daily driver. Sometimes you wanna push, other times you want economy. I like the fact I can choose. Also I cant drive the car very hard on base (rules, regulations, work reputation) so its perfect for that.

Id say I drive the car like you 70% of the time. 30% now, I cruise around.

SS_Firehawk

I learned skipping gears like that makes my gear box grind. I used to do 1,2,3,5 in my BMW, so I had to break the skip shift habit. I've also noted that trying to accelerate in the wrong gear kills mpg worse than just choosing the lower one in the first place.

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chrischhorn

I cruise around in 5th a lot. Especially city driving. Sometimes 35 or under I never leave 4th. 6th gear if its gonna be a long trip with no lights. Even when I stay in 5th on the highway, my mpg doesnt drop much. When I drive like a grandpa, I get about 450 miles to the tank.

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R.I.P. 8/01/13 1SlowZ
One day I'll have another....