Rx-8 gear change importance
 

Hi guys,
Recently i have been to a mechanic to get some body parts for my rx8 and he told me something which was new to me....he said that gear shifting (up and down) is very important in rx8 and if not done properly can totally screw up the engine...is this true? i usually shift from 3-4 rpm and upto 5 or more when am feeling sprirted ;)...is this ok? Will be waiting for ur feedback. Thanx

and did he enlighten you as to what was proper?

lol

I completely agree, shifting is incredibly important. If you do not shift gears, it is definitely not good for the engine. The only exception is if you never exceed neighborhood speeds.

:)

Mechanic was a wee bit vague wasn't he?
Jeez......WTF?


Never shifting........ha ha..........Wingznut!

Do not let idiots work on your car

That kind of statement is as useful as saying, "always fill up with the proper fuel, otherwise it could totally screw up the engine"

You should always have engine coolant, or it could be detrimental to your engine as well.

You should be officially license before you drive, otherwise, not only the engine will be damage, the car, people around you, etc will be damage/hurt/kill too.

Ok, ignored what i just said. :-)

You should always make sure your car has 4 wheels ....

Always make sure your Rx8 has engine oil. Now that's important.

But I don't get exactly where this is going, lol. If you're talking about when to shift your Rx8.. I shift plenty of times at 9k rpm, but as with any car, you just shift properly, wherever you are in the power band. If he's talking about over revving the engine, it's fine to hit 9k, but don't sustain like 7k rpm just cruising in town, obviously.

But in all honesty, I have no idea where you're going with that, lol.

i think the mechanic meant gear change for the rx8 is important AT REDLINE..... bringing up the whole one redline a day keeps the carbon away.

Perhaps he meant that this engine doesn't doesn't go in any gear. Like if you put it to the floor in 6th gear on the highway, you're not gonna blow people's doors off off the bat? That you've actually got to select the right gear for when you wanna go?

gear change is important is like saying breathing air is important.

I think what he meant was keeping the engine in the torque band is important.

The engine will rev to redline with no adverse effects (But you don't want to exceed the rev limiter or remain at redline for extenden periods of time) Heat generation will overheat the engine

You do not want to "lug" the engine (too much load/slow speed at a low rpm on a high gear) Lugging the engine will cause "pinging" (detonation) which will damage your apex seals

Seems from your description that you drive very conservatively (5K rpm is still very low in our rev range) so just make sure to downshift when you want to accelerate, & when you get slow,

Also, don't be afraid to let the revs climb.

Aside from that... use th emanual transmission properly (clutch usage, rev matching etc...) & avoid dumping the clutch. This car is a mountain road/ roadcourse star... not a dragracer.

I wholeheartedly agree with your statement, but I strongly think that in this case, the mechanic was dumbing it down for the owner, or the owner doesn't have the faculties to absorb and recapitulate the little nugget of knowledge he had bestowed him.

^^ :lol:

Hi...thanx alot for your input...it has helped a lot..u c am in pakistan and a car like rx8 is quite a rare car with even fewer mechanics..dats y knowledge about this car is very limited here and hence i constantly take help from rx8 club in resolving any issues i have...what the mechanic meant was that gear shifting should be proper as in at the recommended revs by the company or the engine gets fried...just wanted to clarify this point...thanx again for ur input...really appreciate it..

That's good to know? I guess!?