Still learning to drive my '15 GT aggressively. For daily commute the manual suggests the following shift chart

2nd 15mph
3rd 25mph
4th 30mph
5th 40mph
6th 45mph

When I follow this chart I grease every gear, feels like a dang CVT. However what I need is a performance shifting chart. When going full throttle I've been looking at RPM to make my decisions but maybe I should look at MPH for this as well. Just have 2 modes of driving in my mind with 2 shift charts memorized.

Anyone have any recommended shift points based upon MPH? For some reason this just clicks with me mentally better than using RPM's as a gauge for when to shift.

 

Just shift when you want to shift. Don't get stuck in a groove where you're only shifting at certain set RPMs...OK for just driving around, not so much fun though (and not always good for performance).

It's going to take time to get used to how everything feels and such. It's not something that you can just read about then go and do really well. It takes seat time and it'll come when it comes. You'll ultimately be able to smoothly shift at any RPM and any driving style. You'll also learn to know what the RPMs are at any given time while shifting, you won't really need to be looking at the tach too much.

There isn't a right and wrong way with when to shift...if you want to ring it out and really get some speed quick then take it to redline before shifting. If you just want to get on it a little then shift sooner.

 

I have a 14 so it might be different, but I think this isn't somethingyou can chart because it relies on your shifting speed. You want to maximize the time the engine is near its maximum torque while having the clutch engaged. So if your max torque is at 5500, and you lose 1000 rpm during your shifts, you might shift at 6000 so your engine stays between 5000 and 6000 as an example. I don't remember the exact max torque as I have a different engine and don't have my dyno sheet handy.

 

Omg just listen to the engine, and don't hit the limiter!

You want to drive more sedately, then shift earlier. Want to drive aggressively? Then listen to the engine and change when it's screaming.

 

If you are comfortable with the idea of shifting at 6,000 RPM but want to know what that is in MPH the formula to convert to MPH is:

6,000 / GR / AR * TC / 12 * 60 / 5,280

GR is the gear ratio for first, second, etc.
AR is the rear axle ratio
TC is the rear tire circumference in inches
The remaining numbers are, of course, the number of inches in a foot, the number of minutes in an hour and the number of feet in a mile.

 

Are you serious?! Driving a manual car is all about sound and feel, not charts and formulae.

 

Does it make you feel good to make remarks like that? I've probably driven sticks longer than you've been alive (motorcycles as well) and am very much attuned to the sound of my engine when doing so. I upshift and downshift listening to the engine. The OP asked a specific question and I simply attempted to give him a way to find the answer.

 

And one thing nobody has mentioned is how much throttle is being applied. The desired rate of acceleration dictates how much throttle and at what RPM you should shift at.

If you want maximum fuel efficiency, use very light throttle input and shift at low rpms to get mph up into higher gears...

An engine is an air pump, the faster it spins, the more air it can pump, but only if you open the throttle to let the air in.

 

Well said

 

Make me feel good? No, that was not the intention at all.

Your answer over-complicates the whole issue. I assume (please forgive me if I'm wrong) that the person who asked the question hasn't been driving a manual for long, hence the question. So he (I assume he, again I apologize if I'm wrong) is looking for answers that will him to better drive a car with a manual box. Do you really think that long winded mathematical answers (that you think make you look intelligent, because you've been driving longer than I've been alive) are really going to help?

Real world answers are going to help. Like listening to the engine and not hitting the rev limiter. Those are real world answers. I would also add that shifting smoothly - rather than quickly actually helps, at least until he is more familiar with the whole thing.

So I ask you: does it make you feel good giving over complicated answered to a simple question? An answer designed, at least in your mind, to make you look clever?

 

You really so seem to gravitate towards rudeness.

My answer was not intended to make me seem clever, simply to provide the OP with a way to get an answer to the question he asked. You know the way you feel comfortable driving and shifting and seem to feel that you can describe your way and all will be well. If the OP is fairly new to driving a high performance stick it will take him a while to develop the 'ear' for his engine. As he drives it more and shifts based on the way he feels comfortable he will begin to hear his engine.

Lighten up.

 

No I have not been rude. Nor have I been patronizing, unlike yourself.

So your solution is for him to get out his instruction manual and a tape measure?!

I am from England where I learned to drive (many lessons, as is the way there, with a qualified instructor) a manual car, as most people do in Europe. In fact, if you learn in an auto and pass in an auto, you are forbidden from driving a manual, unless you relearn and repass in one. However, I am not judging the way there over the way here. The point I am making is that at no time did my instructor (nor anyone else's that I've ever known) get out the manual and examine gear ratios etc to explain when to shift. He told me it is all to do with listening, feeling and ultimately experience.

As I said, your answer is over-complicated and I just backed up what Joeywhat said.

 

Pretty sure the formula was a joke. That said I do find myself shifting much better in all conditions when I'm distracted, either talking with a passenger or rocking out to loud music. So my "feel" for the car is getting better. The funny part is when I make a conscious effort to shift I end up doing poorly, so I'm clearly overthinking it.

My biggest fear is simply destroying the clutch on a brand new car. I dont want to be that guy bringing it in for a repair job at 5k miles while the shop guys take pics and post them on here "look at this clutch plate!" I dont know if I'm shifting well or not, guess I just need an experienced driver with me to point out any flaws. For all I know I may be doing just fine.

 

Actually the formula was not a joke. I had to learn it because of a modification I made to a Morgan (yes, an English Morgan 4/4) that rendered the speedometer inaccurate. I drove the car and shifted by ear as I have always done and as Darth Paul described. I simply needed a way to use the tach to verify my speed to avoid tickets.

It sounds like you actually do have an ear for your engine and don't need to worry about shift points.

 

^^^^ Too funny!

You have any friends where you live who could ride with you? Or an older person who has been driving a manual for years?

 

I have a Gt Track and I shift just by sound. Sometimes skipping gears to get up to speed in traffic. To me I got a manual for the fun of shifting. This engine has soo much torque if the clutch is not slipping it is not hurting it and the car will go. These are fast cars. I love driving it every chance I can.

 

Well that puts a different perspective to the question. If your concern is clutch longevity, you need to focus on minimizing clutch slippage. You do this by learning what rpm the engine will be in at the desired gear for the speed you are traveling, and setting the engine to that rpm using the throttle before reengaging the clutch in the new gear.

 

You won't destroy the clutch unless you do something stupid. Otherwise, you're just reducing it's life a little bit.

 

I might refer to the tach when deciding on 5th or 6th when just cruising on a local road but generally it's just a feel thing. What you should learn to think about is what you might plan or unexpectedly need to do next. You don't want to be in too high a gear if you are going to want or need to accelerate soon and you don't want to be in too low a gear in slippery conditions where engine braking or abrupt wheel spin could happen. You might get into a lower gear well before entering a curve anticipating accelerating out of it. Doing it earlier lessens the chance of upsetting the stability of the car during the curve. Small stuff yes but its why some of us would rather have a manual.

 

OMG I finally figured it out. I've been shifting too fast! This car has a kind of rev-matching upshifter, whereby it drops the revs by almost 1000 so you arent jerking the car/slipping the clutch in the next gear. I've been defeating this by trying to instantly shift gears and rev match on my own. Using a MPH chart probably just delayed my reaction enabling the revmatch feature to work as intended.

I learned this after watching a random '15 exhaust demonstration. While listening to the exhaust note it was obvious he was shifting much slower than me. "Vrrooom!! ...... almost idle sound, shift gear..... Vroooom!!" As soon as I began adding 1-2 seconds to my shift style I noticed the tach dropping to around 2100 rpm and every gear, even from 1st to 2nd just slid right in like butter. I finally feel like I can drive normally now.