Am I the only one that finds it extremely difficult to shift these new 5.0 's at or near the redline by the sound of the engine. I have been driving manuals for over 20 years on all kinds of vehicles and trucks. I was always able to shift by the sound of the engine. I mean normally you can tell when your engine is about to run out of steam and then you shift. But these 5.0's never seem to run out of power. The first time I hit the rev limiter, I thought oops just have to get used to it. Well here it is after 8 months of ownership and I did it again. Hit the rev limiter for the third and last time.

 

I would never purposely try and shift at max revs without an eye on the tach.

 

I did at first and bumped the limiter a number of times. But after realizing that the ECU is pulling timing the last few hundred r's anyway, I don't see the need to peg redline. So my ear works well now.

Besides, isn't it more important to be in the beginning of the power band at the next highest gear rather than eeking out every nth of rpm in the previous gear?

 

I agree with you all. I guess I am just getting old. I need to get me hearing checked. This is really bothering me ego though. I mean I never thought I was a "driving god" but I always thought of myself as being a "competent driver".

 

Frankly, I wish the limiter was a few hundred above redline - we know there's safety margin factored in.
My Lotus didn't have a limiter - but as a good driver, smart driver, mechanical driver, I knew not to push past 7000. Did I shift at 7100 a few times? Probably. But it gave me full revs all the way to 7k and never blew up at 7100.
Plus Ford is pulling timing a few hundred before redline. Geez. I can feel mine flattening out after about 6300 (redline @ 6500 on mine).

The only way to override that crap is an aftermarket tune. But at this point I'm not ready to do that.

Give it a little more practice - you'll get it!

(As for me I have to depend on ear because I can't see in those deep dark holes of my year anyway! lol)

 

Some guys and girls get really good at this!

 

Normal driving I shift without looking at the tach, if I'm driving hard if ever I always glance at the tach. I'm a pilot so I'm used to scanning my eyes from outside to instruments and back quickly haha.

 

I've hit the rev limiter plenty of times, same kind of deal. I'm getting better at shifting by sound, but sometimes that sound is me hitting the rev limiter, haha. More recently though I have been shifting without looking at the tach or hitting the rev limiter, so I guess I'm getting used to the sound the engine makes at over 6000 RPM. Normal driving eh, shift whenever I feel like. Typically keep an eye on the tach when I'm in a gray area or debating between 5th or 6th or something. People wobbling their speed around 40 MPH +/- 5 are bothersome.

 

Yes. To find the best shift point, overlay dyno curves for each gear that factor in the overall gear ratio for that gear. The optimum shift point is where the lines cross.