1st gear to 2nd gear

Folks i had a quick question. I just got the M3 6MT last weekend and so far it has 500 miles on it. I've noticed that when im in 1st gear in the 4k or higher rpm range and shift to 2nd gear the car starts to bounce on me radically. If i do it below 4k rpm everything is fine. This is the most powerful car i've ever driven. I dont consider myself a novice manual driver i had a 2002 VW GTI 337 edition for 4 years and drove that fine. My question is...is this happening to anyone else?...is it because the car is still breaking in or is it because Im a tard and should go to stick shift school...lol....any inputs would be appreciated.

hmm... is your power button turned on? If so that would increase the sensitivity of the throttle, so any little movement by your right foot could cause the car to buck. When I first got my E46 M3 and would use the then "sport" button I would do the same thing at first. By now I am used to the sensitivity, and actually find it easier to match revs w/ power turned on.

Other than that I can't think of what could cause this. 4k is too high for the engine to lug or buck, so I hope it is just the power button.

Good Luck! Wait till u get the 1200 mile service done. Entirely different car above 5500rpm.

Try to set POWER to normal or sport. When POWER is set to SportPlus in my DCT E90 M3, it is almost impossible to drive it smoothly in 1st and 2nd gear.

Neo2ooo wrote

Folks i had a quick question. I just got the M3 6MT last weekend and so far it has 500 miles on it. I've noticed that when im in 1st gear in the 4k or higher rpm range and shift to 2nd gear the car starts to bounce on me radically. If i do it below 4k rpm everything is fine. This is the most powerful car i've ever driven. I dont consider myself a novice manual driver i had a 2002 VW GTI 337 edition for 4 years and drove that fine. My question is...is this happening to anyone else?...is it because the car is still breaking in or is it because Im a tard and should go to stick shift school...lol....any inputs would be appreciated.

Its on normal. Could taking my foot off the clutch too quickly cause this happen?

Neo2ooo wrote

Its on normal. Could taking my foot off the clutch too quickly cause this happen?

could be. you'd have to rev match really well to create no jerks at all.

I also notice the 1st to 2nd shift is the jerkiest. On previous manuals, I just release the clutch, but here I have to ease out of it otherwise it's neck snapping. But I notice it on lower RPMs more than higher RPMs.

C17MooseDriver wrote

I also notice the 1st to 2nd shift is the jerkiest. On previous manuals, I just release the clutch, but here I have to ease out of it otherwise it's neck snapping. But I notice it on lower RPMs more than higher RPMs.

I don't mean to turn this into a 6MT VS DCT, but I've noticed this as well while test driving 6MT. This was one of the factors that made me go ahead and try DCT. I noticed that 6MT wasn't as jerky for me when using the "Power" button and using a bit more RPMs before releasing the clutch slowly. All other gears are just right, but 1st to 2nd is a bit tricky on this car.

C17MooseDriver wrote

I also notice the 1st to 2nd shift is the jerkiest. On previous manuals, I just release the clutch, but here I have to ease out of it otherwise it's neck snapping. But I notice it on lower RPMs more than higher RPMs.

+1, it's hard to get smooth transition from 1st to 2nd at any rpm below 3k.

learn to drive stick

Sounds to me like you're being too gentle with the throttle after shifting into second gear. You're entering an "oscillation loop". Try using more gas.

Neo, are you beginning the shift at 4k RPM? Watch the RPMs when you start releasing the clutch for 2nd gear. The RPMs tend to drop pretty quick. You may have to give it a bit more gas to bring the RPMs back up to around 3k or above for a smooth transition. This is why i recommend the using the "Power" button, it makes the petal more sensitive so you won't have to floor the gas petal as much. FYI...this is just what I figured out while test driving a few cars, so my solution probably won't hold much weight as someone who actually drives one on a daily basis. just trying to help.

Thanks for feedback guys...I'll try them out.

This is my first stick so take my words with a grain of salt.

I've got about 5k on my car now and am pretty smooth from 1 to 2, but I remember that "bouncing" problem happened a lot at the beginning. I believe the following helped reduce that problem:

1) Shift from 1 to 2 as fast as possible. I found I can be quite lazy with my shifts in other gears with little consequence, but lazyness from 1 to 2 is def. punished more.

2) Shift either immediatly or near the red line. Not 100% on this one, but I think this does help. I'll confirm over lunch.

3) Release the clutch a bit slower. I'm guessing this isn't fantastic for clutch wear, but it certainly helps me find the exact release point which allows for a smoother shift.

Also note that while the 6MT is certianly "notchy," 1 to 2 was particularly horrendous for the first couple of weeks. It got to the point that I thought something might be wrong with the transmission. Now however (5K) , things have certainly smoothed out quite a bit, though 1 to 2 still remains the most harsh shift relative to the rest of the gears.

Hope that helps!

Peter

P.S. You've said you're in normal mode, but it worth repeating that IMO it is much harder to shift smoothly in the lower gears in sport and sport plus.

I dont know about bouncing but when I first started driving the car, 1st to 2nd under hard acceleration would be jerkier but now at 6.7k miles its relatively smooth

kronzprinz wrote

learn to drive stick

yes sir!


join the 6MT club too! http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=121608

Kobaiyashi wrote

2) Shift either immediatly or near the red line. Not 100% on this one, but I think this does help. I'll confirm over lunch.

Hope to see you in 1 piece after lunch.

lol I kid.

Neo2ooo wrote

Folks i had a quick question. I just got the M3 6MT last weekend and so far it has 500 miles on it. I've noticed that when im in 1st gear in the 4k or higher rpm range and shift to 2nd gear the car starts to bounce on me radically. If i do it below 4k rpm everything is fine. This is the most powerful car i've ever driven. I dont consider myself a novice manual driver i had a 2002 VW GTI 337 edition for 4 years and drove that fine. My question is...is this happening to anyone else?...is it because the car is still breaking in or is it because Im a tard and should go to stick shift school...lol....any inputs would be appreciated.

your probably not giving it gas after you release the clutch. Try giving gas sooner, like while you are releasing the clutch

Kobaiyashi wrote

This is my first stick so take my words with a grain of salt.

I've got about 5k on my car now and am pretty smooth from 1 to 2, but I remember that "bouncing" problem happened a lot at the beginning. I believe the following helped reduce that problem:

1) Shift from 1 to 2 as fast as possible. I found I can be quite lazy with my shifts in other gears with little consequence, but lazyness from 1 to 2 is def. punished more.

2) Shift either immediatly or near the red line. Not 100% on this one, but I think this does help. I'll confirm over lunch.

3) Release the clutch a bit slower. I'm guessing this isn't fantastic for clutch wear, but it certainly helps me find the exact release point which allows for a smoother shift.

Also note that while the 6MT is certianly "notchy," 1 to 2 was particularly horrendous for the first couple of weeks. It got to the point that I thought something might be wrong with the transmission. Now however (5K) , things have certainly smoothed out quite a bit, though 1 to 2 still remains the most harsh shift relative to the rest of the gears.

Hope that helps!

Peter

P.S. You've said you're in normal mode, but it worth repeating that IMO it is much harder to shift smoothly in the lower gears in sport and sport plus.

you certainly don't want to release the clutch slower while moving. Just imaging the break in speed. You go from lets say 0-15 1 second 2 second 15-5. see what i am saying you don't want to be waiting long in between shifts, because that is going to cause the car to bounce like hell.

oh and another thing are you accelerating hard? because if you are your shifts aren't going to be smooth...

This is because the gas pedal is so sensitive. You have to be very easy with your feet in this car.

Try this:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=169384

Clutch Pedal Spring Removal, best mod you can do on the MT car. I found it almost impossible to make smooth shifts from 1st to 2nd in this car. You could especially see it in the head movements of my passengers. With the spring in it's almost impossible to know exactly when the clutch is engaging. It's so much smoother and easier to control without the spring. All my shifts are perfectly smooth now.

J08M3 wrote

This is because the gas pedal is so sensitive. You have to be very easy with your feet in this car.

Try this:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=169384

Clutch Pedal Spring Removal, best mod you can do on the MT car. I found it almost impossible to make smooth shifts from 1st to 2nd in this car. You could especially see it in the head movements of my passengers. With the spring in it's almost impossible to know exactly when the clutch is engaging. It's so much smoother and easier to control without the spring. All my shifts are perfectly smooth now.

But I thought someone tested this out and they said it didnt make any difference.

I noticed the car was a little jerky at first compared to my old 325. It will get smoother once you get used to it. Also, I find the car is jerky in 1st or 2nd when then engine is cold and has not had enough time to warm up.