Why everyone feels the 6MT as notchy?

[GregW / Oregon]

Originally Posted by mantis

have you driven a 6mt 335 Greg? how do you compare it to that, after clutch is broken in?

Sorry, I have not. I should go do that just for comparison. After my last M3, the 335 never tempted me. I guess you get hooked on the M thing, and it's not an image thing. They just feel so tight and purposeful.

[sayemthree]

the e46 was notchy.

i think notchy is good - gives you a positive tactile indication the gear is engaged.

[!Xoible]

Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon

Sorry, I have not. I should go do that just for comparison. After my last M3, the 335 never tempted me. I guess you get hooked on the M thing, and it's not an image thing. They just feel so tight and purposeful.

no i understand. after i test drove Z4M i couldnt like my 335 anymore.

but the clutch is insanely nice on 335. Z4M's clutch isnt bad either, more jerky than 335, but M3 is on a whole different level. i guess i need to give it a shit load of gas everytime i undepress the clutch to get a smooth one...

[lucid]

Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon

Totally disagree. I'm still getting use to the engagement action, but I LIKE the lightness compared to the E46. No way this is a delicate clutch. Making it easy to use is not a sin.

Originally Posted by GregW / Oregon

Clutches take a lot of learning to get right. You can't expect your reactions and imputs to be spot on a quick test drive. Smooth action comes with a few k miles of getting used to it.

Totally agree with Greg on this. The clutch engagement is fine. Messing with CDV might improve things, but that's beside the point.

[Gearhead999s]

I have over 1000 kms on mine now and notchiness is much better now especially going in or out of 1st gear.

[KonigsTiger]

Yes it does seem to improve (or decrease) a bit over time!

[!Xoible]

Originally Posted by lucid

Totally agree with Greg on this. The clutch engagement is fine. Messing with CDV might improve things, but that's beside the point.

Originally Posted by Gearhead999s

I have over 1000 kms on mine now and notchiness is much better now especially going in or out of 1st gear.

Originally Posted by BMW-M-Mexico

Yes it does seem to improve (or decrease) a bit over time!

im glad to see all these words. i might go to the track once a month, but other than that this car will be my daily driver ... sounds good.

xiexie

[TomTarzian]

You just need to get used to the new/different gearbox and clutch. Once you adjust to them, they're fine. And what a car! I look for every excuse I can find to take another break-in drive on a hilly, winding road.

God bless,
Tom

[kamichael]

On the new E90/92 M3 when driving "easy" at slower paces with less gas pedal, when do any of you recommend shifting to have the smoothest gear change? At a higher RPM or lower - my greatest success is from higher RPM. I think I am still getting used to it or possibly developing a bad habit in the process of trying to master my 6MT. I cannot seem to get it consistenly right, I am noticing the notchy behavior (especially when downshifting or returning to a lower gear) and am having some trouble getting a gear change (1st to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd) without some jerkiness or drop and regain of RPM. Keep in mind that I am returning to a MT after 10+ years of driving autos. I have not forgotten how to do it, just how to do it well. Any thoughts would be appreciated, I want to become one with my new car.

[southlight]

Originally Posted by kamichael

On the new E90/92 M3 when driving "easy" at slower paces with less gas pedal, when do any of you recommend shifting to have the smoothest gear change? At a higher RPM or lower - my greatest success is from higher RPM. I think I am still getting used to it or possibly developing a bad habit in the process of trying to master my 6MT. I cannot seem to get it consistenly right, I am noticing the notchy behavior (especially when downshifting or returning to a lower gear) and am having some trouble getting a gear change (1st to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd) without some jerkiness or drop and regain of RPM. Keep in mind that I am returning to a MT after 10+ years of driving autos. I have not forgotten how to do it, just how to do it well. Any thoughts would be appreciated, I want to become one with my new car.

Initially I thought gear changes appear to be smoother at higher revvs, but after some time of getting used to (and after break-in) gear changes in general became smoother. For the beginning I'd say yes, higher revvs are helpful, so is the Sport throttle setting. Just give you some time of getting used to and you'll notice that you can change gears smoothly at almost every revv. For downshifts the only way to get really good transitions is with some throttle blip applying to adjust to the new rpms. Again, sport setting makes the blip easier.

Maybe that helps a bit.


Best regards, south

[kamichael]

I am waiting to get through the break in period but thought that the more responsive power modes would help. In normal mode, the lolwer end throttle is not as responsive, the gas pedal is a little heavy on the low end and requires more to get higher revs. I am working on it, thanks.

[drvai]

Yesterday I got in a sedan and tried the gearbox. What I found difficult was engaging the reverse. Any comments? Was really difficult. Even the client advisor had a hard time. That worries me....

I still can go DCT, but I really want a manual.

Probably will get better after 5k-10k miles.

[KonigsTiger]

Originally Posted by drvai

Yesterday I got in a sedan and tried the gearbox. What I found difficult was engaging the reverse. Any comments? Was really difficult. Even the client advisor had a hard time. That worries me....

I still can go DCT, but I really want a manual.

Probably will get better after 5k-10k miles.

Nop, no problem at all. Maybe just a bit of practice will resolve this for you.

[!Xoible]

Originally Posted by drvai

Yesterday I got in a sedan and tried the gearbox. What I found difficult was engaging the reverse. Any comments? Was really difficult. Even the client advisor had a hard time. That worries me....

I still can go DCT, but I really want a manual.

Probably will get better after 5k-10k miles.

i think that's done on purpose to prevent misshifting into reverse instead of first. if we're talking about the same thing that is

[spike357]

Originally Posted by drvai

Yesterday I got in a sedan and tried the gearbox. What I found difficult was engaging the reverse. Any comments? Was really difficult. Even the client advisor had a hard time. That worries me....

I still can go DCT, but I really want a manual.

Probably will get better after 5k-10k miles.

It actually gets a lot better after just 500 miles. I've got 2300 miles now, and I'm really liking the gearbox feel.

[Pancho]

Originally Posted by drvai

Yesterday I got in a sedan and tried the gearbox. What I found difficult was engaging the reverse. Any comments? Was really difficult. Even the client advisor had a hard time. That worries me....

I still can go DCT, but I really want a manual.

Probably will get better after 5k-10k miles.

Not to worry. Practice and use will make it easier.

[ersin]

Originally Posted by drvai

Yesterday I got in a sedan and tried the gearbox. What I found difficult was engaging the reverse. Any comments? Was really difficult. Even the client advisor had a hard time. That worries me....

I still can go DCT, but I really want a manual.

Probably will get better after 5k-10k miles.

Was your foot firmly planted on the brakes? If the car is rolling any slight bit then it will be hard to shift into reverse.

[VictorH]

I've driven two M3s now and I'm starting to wonder if perhaps BMW has a quality control problem (I know, too small a sample to draw any conclusions).

First of all I agree with most posters the clutch is very nice. Very smooth, linear, and take up is in the mid-point of the range.

The first M3 I drove was in December and I found the 1 > 2 engagement was just a little notchy but if you gave the tranny a pause in neutral during the shift it would go into gear just fine. The rest of the gears were fine, smooth with no issues up or downshifting. Throw is a little long but okay.

The M3 I drove today was so notchy in every gear, that I would not take this car if it were my new M3. Engagement into first at a stop was fine, but every gear change was not smooth and there was a mid-point resistance that I would define as notchy. Downshifting was a little better than upshifting, but this makes me think that there might be other reasons to order DCT other than just a trick new transmission. None of my usual tricks made the shift any better either. Disappointing.