When I am at it shifting at redline, I seem to miss second a lot, and even normally, it seems very tough to shift in second. This is only in second, as the rest of the gears seem fine.

Mod edit: corrected spelling of "shifting".

Yes, several people have reported occasional missed 1-2 shifts, particularly at the redline. A search for "problem shift second" will find several existing threads.

How's about shifting near redline and grinding for a thought? Happened to me, fast clutch release right before gear engage! :o Done this type of shifting with my Integra, no problem probably due to its stiffness and short travel clutch compared to the RX8 (which is very soft and long travel); Got to do more practice on the 8 for fast shifting ;)

I posted the original thred on this. Take it in to the dealer ASAP and get your clutch looked at. Most likely your clutch is a bit burnt. Fix this problem before the fly wheel gets damaged.

Originally posted by CruelNewb
I posted the original thred on this. Take it in to the dealer ASAP and get your clutch looked at. Most likely your clutch is a bit burnt. Fix this problem before the fly wheel gets damaged.

Did they give you an explanation on why the clutch was causing this problem?

I have the same exact thing going on and to me it feels like this is an issue with either the shift linkage being off or the synchros not working right.

I am having the same problem. Only happens with a quick shift at redline and only from first to second.

I just hope it's a fixable problem and not something similar to the "Skip Shift" on my '95 Camaro. That "feature" is a huge PITA which blocks/locks out 2nd & 3rd gears, forcing me to go from 1st to 4th. Plenty of near-misses because of it.

I'm having the same problem in my 8 also...gear grind at high revs, from 1st to 2nd. to make sure that it wasn't me just missing or whatever, i even had it do it when coasting around 40-50...i'll press the clutch all the way in and put it back in second and it will grind. i'm about to do a search (recommend everybody doing this on here), but i do remember either some threads on here, or commercial site correcting the problem by switching to a steel braided clutch cable. our hydraulic line is rubber. they switched to a steel one and it went away. mines in the mail...so we'll see what happens. i may put it back in the shop for them to look at the tranny and clutch and all before the "not Genuine Mazda" part gets on the car. --Mark

When I am at it shifting at redline, I seem to miss second a lot, and even normally, it seems very tough to shift in second. This is only in second, as the rest of the gears seem fine.

Too funny to ignore. Actually, I've had no problems shifting in any of the gears--yet. Curious to see how yours turns out.

Mod edit: corrected spelling of "shifting".

other people i have heard have that same problem. i dont shift at redline in first gear...just second and up. try that and see if you still have the problem.

Okay, here's a challenge:
Redline 2nd and shift to 5th.
I absolutely cannot shift from 2nd to 5th (at 60 mph) without grinding. I have to let the revs settle down in neutral for a second before shifting. I'd be curious to see if other cars are the same.

[other people i have heard have that same problem. i dont shift at redline in first gear...just second and up. try that and see if you still have the problem.]

Of course it doesn't do it then. this problem is only at redline. thats not the point though, i should be able to take my car up to redline in any gear...not work around a manufacture defect.

This happened to me the other day (shifting from 1st to 2nd at redline and getting a grinding sound). I'm very interested to find out what the heck the problem is.

~ Matt

no problems with shifting at redline here, but I do get the feeling like.... ever ride a bike that had a really loose chain? you'd start to pedal, but it would take a second before it started to move?

I get that kind of feeling when I'm at a stop light and shifting into 1st, I feel things spinning, then it kind of gets it's act together and goes (nothing to do with the clutch). It's like it spins for a split second then the chain gets tight and a slight jerking motion. Anyone know what I'm talking about?

u'r just weird...i think thats the problem there. haha, haven't had that problem. my reverse is a pain to get into sometime also. it seems to be all the 'down' gears!
actually, when i first had the car, it would grind from 1st to 2nd, and also 3rd to 4th. they said they tightened back out screws on my flywheel? uh, sure. whatever they did, it went away. but...slowly but surely, back came my 1st to 2nd squelch. still waiting for my cable...i hate looking at FedEx tracking everyday and it says the same thing!

Jason Ithink Im having a similar problem asyou but I dont have a 6spd manual. Inmy car going from neutral to drive results in the car popping forward for a second. Im supposedto get that checked out tomorrowat a dealership but Idont know if Im going to have enough time to do so.

Hmmm....sounds like a few too many people are having this problem. Not good.

:(

Havin the same problem too... it's quite annoying as i am a veteran manual driver...it's deff. not my problem..it's something with the car. very embarrasing when ur tryin to show off for ur friends and instead of getting a "whoa" when you shift into second and put them back in the seats you get a grind from the engine.......*sigh*

i hate grinding, supposedly a MS steel braided clutch line gets around this. Any confirmations?

When I am at it shifting at redline

I'm surprised no one jumped all over this. :o

Mod edit: corrected spelling of "shifting".

I'm surprised no one jumped all over this. :oActually someone did - check page 1. Grabitquick made a crack 3 days ago.

I've had that problem before. It might just have to do with personal shifting style. I let my friend, whose car is easy to grind on ANY shift, drive the RX8 and was able to do several 1-->2 shifts at redline with no problem. I got this feeling where the gearbox was getting notchy and the 1-->2 shift was pretty hard, but got new transmission fluid and that seems to have helped a lot.

I seem to only have problems when the car isn't pointed perfectly straight. It would seem that loading of the motor and tranny combined with some side loading can make the next gear less of a sure thing.

I have had 2 grinding episodes so far in my 1st 900 miles. The first was on a short shift from 2nd to third during break in. The second was thursday night. I was existing a sharp corner at redline in first and when I tried to grap second I was met with much grinding and mister rev limiter. :eek:

So far no such issues while the car was pointed straight.

It's not a 'driver' issue. i was out cruising yesterday and it happened a couple of times. i can have the clutched mashed to the floor and it'll still do it. u can even feel the difference going into second when it doesn't grind...all my other gears i can slide right into in a split second, it actually takes effort to put it into 2nd, not smooth and clean. the steel braided cable is still in the mail...should have the car in the shop for Mazda to check the tranny and what not before installing the cable after next weekend (heading down to NOPI Nationals, hopefully Ivan doesn't hender this). also, the switching tranny fluids is a good idea...might switch over to Red Line...i'll let you guys know what i come up with. --Mark