SMUATF
(Someone Makes Up Acronyms Too Frequently):ugh2:

lol :gtfo2::gtfo2::gtfo2::gtfo2::gtfo2:

It is slow, but it gets from point A to point B, and that's all I require for my DD to do. Never intended it to be a fun car.

Drove 2 different Z's, and know people who own them/have ridden in them. Most shift jerkily (maybe they fail?), and I found both of them I drove different in the ways previously mentioned. . You don't need to own the car to tell that it's different from everything you have driven before, regarding the clutch. I bet you felt that the LS3 has some torque, no? You don't need to own a 'vette to know that, yes? Same thing.

on a good day. :tup:

Indeed, it does seem to have its flaws. Either way, it's paid for and it does what it needs to do.

If I can do it 2nd nature now
 

I have had my car since Oct. My previous standards were a 280z and an 62 E-type. I had not drive a shift for 20 years. I have it down now.

Yes, definitely. I agree with others who responded to your post/initial question. It has taken me 10 months to begin to feel smooth in my Z. It is much harder to drive smoothly than my RX-8, which was a high-revving, low-torque car. Don't give up. :hello:

What did you think of the E-type? :bowrofl:

This discussion reminds me of the days when the old timers were complaining about those new auto exposure cameras and how they just could not match the old held held meters and manually set cameras the purest (aka... old timers) used. You ought to think of an automatic transmission. Fast. Smooth and easy to master.:icon18:

I think I dis-agree with this. The point between which the clutch starts ingaging and is fully engaged, etc... can make a huge difference on how difficult it is and easy to stall if you are not used to it being like that.

See on my 370z if I let out the clutch slowly (at the grab point) I have no problem getting the car going (nice and slow) without giving it any gas at all (just letting off the clutch). The idle RPM is more than enough to get it going in reverse and forward. I typically don't give it any gas when backing out of my garage, parking lot at work, really bad stop/go traffic. etc...

I have driven Z's (mainly just 350z's) where the clutch was like digital. There is no way you could get it going without stalling it if you didn't give it gas. IMHO those Z's were pretty easy to stall and harder to drive than normal. My 370Z is not like this so I don't really consider my 370z to be hard to drive but I can imagine some 370z's are like the 350z I test drove that literally seemed to have a 'digital' clutch. The 'digital' clutch is a term me and my dad made after test driving that car.

Bought mine around September and had a ton of issues with the car. I found that the issue was PICNIC (problem in chair (seat), not in car). I found that if I let it rev over 3K and shift between 4-5K the car shifts wonderfully. Some may think I am nuts (for many reasons) but I run to 5 in first then shift around 4500 on average with other gears. In traffic, I will run in first for awhile and not have to mess with shifting. Just me though... On a side note, take it to 7K then shift and you will not even hear a pause in the process. JUST AWESOME....

once I've owned and driven enough carbon clutches, everything else becomes a piece of cake.

just curious... what rpm do u guys normally shift? i personally shift around 2.5k-3k rpm... and when going around 45mph i will be in fifth gear... u guys?

Depends on the situation.

Daily driving, maybe around 3000-3500.

Fun driving, 6-7k

Downshifting on the highway to pass with style (I don't know, but it's f*cking fun).

To reach supersaiyan, I recommend shifting at OVER 9000!

:tup:

I did not find it difficult. It does engage over a small range but after a few shifts it should be clear. I'm thinking perhaps you guys are used to newer, more forgiving clutches, and haven't been driving a stick on older vehicles.

2001 WS6 Trans Am
Built 1988 Mustang GT
Whatever Ford made in standard for 2005 when I worked at the dealership (other than the GT"40", I am sad to say)

All clutches were more forgiving.

Easy way to prevent stalling is just rev it to 5500 and drop the clutch... pffft, newbie... *kidddding*

It is just you sucking at driving a MT :roflpuke2:

I never had problems with MT cars, I stalled about 10 times in my life and 9 of them were on my first driving lesson and once when my foot slipped cuz of ice and slammed the clutch pedal up.

Yes I know that my Z is a AT if I could I would of gotten a MT but these days I don't mind it.

or maybe I am just getting corrupted.

the MT cars I have driven

renault clio 1.6 diesel
renault megane coupe 2009 1.9 diesel
renault megane CC 2.0 petrol
Renault master 3.2(not sure that is what my father always said) diesel
renault laguna 2.0 diesel
peugeot expert 2.0 diesel
BMW 320 diesel
BMW 325 petrol
Lotus elise
370Z roadster MT some laps on francorchamps and test drive


I OWNED the clio and megane coupe.

megane CC and laguna are my parents cars when the GT-R is in the garage for the winter :roflpuke2:

The master and peugeot are work cars

rest was borrowing from friends

I still find it funny that I went from a 1.9 4 cilinder diesel to a 3.7 V6 petrol

:bowrofl: and the truth comes out :bowrofl:

:icon18::iagree::icon18:

yah, but you're still a silly little kid. :tup:



jay- as for rpm's i like to use on the Z... note that it's my fun car so i dont putt around.

0-1 rev 2k+ or so, rpm drops 1700 maybe. i dont really look.
1-2 3700rpm or higher
2-3 3500rpm or higher
3-4 3000rpm or higher
4-5 2500rpm or higher
5-6 2500rpm or higher

something like that.

i rev my honda's engine quite higher between 1-2-3. :p

I am the best driver. I never stall. Haha.

I'd actually stall my G35 on a weekly basis...but I think it had something to do with my ACT 6puck clutch and 12lb Fidanza flywheel.

Most Gears (1st-5th) I shift at 3000-3500 unless the car is not fully warmed up then I might do 2500-3000. I usually shift into 6th at a bit under 3000 sometimes if I am not accelerating on the freeway.

If I am driving for 'fun' or aggressively (passing, or what not) then I will not shift until 6700-6900 RPM. I think the revlimiter kicks in at 7500 on the 370z? Ive only hit it once and not really intentional. This jerk wasnt going when the light turned green after a bunch of people already went. After checking it was clear in the other lane I hit the rev limiter in first as I barely made the light and passed him after I cleared the intersection.

I totally would have missed the light (or ran it if I didn't stop) if I had not gone to pass him.

I know what you mean, I hated it when I drove my S13 on a daily basis... that clutch... uggh!

The weirdest thing was when I first test drove my 40th. I was used to my 6puck after havin it for 3 years. Then I get in and drive the Z. When I got back in my G35, I seriously thought my clutch was broke. Then I realized how different a 6puck really is compared to OEM. Ironically, I sometimes miss the heavy clutch feel.

Geez its not like I am like 17 im already liek 22 bro

if I feel sporty I don't shift untill 7400 RPM

:bowrofl:

i traded my mercedes for a z without having test driven the z.
so, the day i took delivery of the car was the first time i drove it.

my first impression was: i couldn't see well in front because the hood was longer. I couldn't see much in back because the rear wing covered up half of the view. and the side windows were much smaller.

but after a few weeks, i adapted well to the new car :)

I still deal with thinking my clutch feels "light" after driving with the 6 puck for 2 years.

You don't realize what you have until it's gone. Hahaha.

The 370Z is the first 6MT I've owned, but not the first I've driven. Yes, compared to most other cars it has a much higher learning curve - the clutch lacks feel and catches high. But it is slightly more refined than the 350Z, which actually did have decent feel and it did catch high, but it was much more firm, pushed back on your leg, and felt more like an on/off switch.

I test drove an Audi A5 and S5 both 6MT before buying my 370Z and after getting used to how easy those cars were, I had to get totally readjusted with the 370Z. There was some frustration for about a day or so, but I built enough confidence to overcome it.

i think the only reason someone would have much trouble shifting after driving/owning any car with a manual transmission for a while is just a failure to adapt. If the car bogs, or you engage to high, or the car jerks when you shift, someone who actually cares would say 'hmm that wasn't right, let me try it differently next time. Someone who doesn't care or is inept just thinks 'ok well, this is how I shift, i dont care if the car jerks when i shift like this, but thats how i do it, so i'll keep doing it that way'

Very true!

I don't think that it is hard to drive. i went for a test drive in a 2010 Nismo and I haven't driven a stick shift car or truck for over 20 years and I didn't have any problems. You just have to think about it and feel the clutch. Anyway it always gets better the more you do something.

look it this guy? lol all proud of himself... haha




HAHAHA!!! i love this guy!!! supersaiyan!!! hahaha over 9000!!!

All cars are different. Mine felt funny for about the first couple dozen shifts that I made and then I quickly adapted to it and never have had an issue.
I've been driving MT's since 1968 and learned the individual characteristics of each car in a matter of a few miles. Turn off your phone and stereo and listen to your car. Get in touch with it, feel how the different components interact and if you have at least normal hand/leg coordination it won't be a problem.
My only beef is the delay in the rev's dropping between 1st and 2nd caused by the heavy flywheel inertia. I can't shift as quickly as I'd like but it's not a big deal.

Since sold the 350 I've never driven a z as a test drive. Just bought it, the dealer was surprised that I didn't stall it.

when i took delivery of the car, the sales man asked me if i had ever driven a lowered car. I said no and he told me to always drive sideway when going in/out of a driveway so that the front spoiler would not get damaged :)

Yeah, o learned the hard way. Drove a gallardo up my driveway straight up.. lol