What RPM do you guys shift at?

[Natty]

I was wondering because I very recently learned stick. I just wanted to get general concensus.

Personally, I was to shift up at around 3k. Sometimes I will ride the gears up higher and shift at maybe 3,600k. I won't rev over 4k though. Something telling me it will hurt.

So, how about you guys?
Jeff

[240meowth]

i'm really confused at this as well, i use to shift @ 3k b 4 my HKS exhaust, now i do it @ 2.5k

but my real question is, where do u shift for the max power, for example racing.  the guys @ 240sx.org was taking about
to shift at max HP or max TORQUE, i personally thought the best way is to shift close to redline...

[twofortysx]

It all depends on how I feel.  I usually shift between 3 and 4k rpm for average driving, but if I'm trying to haul ass I will shift between 5 and 6 since power drops off big time after 5500.


** NOTE: You should really use the search function. &nbsp;Something very similar to this was posted within the last week. <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

[twofortysx]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (240meowth @ Mar. 11 2002,2:32)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">i'm really confused at this as well, i use to shift @ 3k b 4 my HKS exhaust, now i do it @ 2.5k

but my real question is, where do u shift for the max power, for example racing. the guys @ 240sx.org was taking about
to shift at max HP or max TORQUE, i personally thought the best way is to shift close to redline...</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
Well, it's good to shift before max power loss because even though torque begins decreasing after it's max (which is about 4600rpm right?) max hp is still building. &nbsp;HP drops WAY off after 5500, so to shift pass this is needless and may actually slow you down. &nbsp;I noticed last night that if I shift my s14 at 55 - 5700 rpm it will drop me right to 4k (max torque) and just keep on pulling.

[tnord]

3k- normal driving

4500-it's a nice day/just washed the car

6k-at the track

the reasoning twofourty gave is pretty accurate
you don't want to shift right at peak power, but a bit after it

if you really wanted to get mathmatical about it, you would take a dyno pull of your car, figure out how many rpm the engine drops with each shift, do a summation of each hp reading devided by the number of readings to find avg hp you obtain during the duration of the gear. working backwards from redline you can find your highest avg hp rating. seeing as how this is quite a bit of calculating, there are programs around that do this.

[sykikchimp]

Anybody got a stock 240 Dyno? that will tell you exactly where to shift. For normal driving anywhere b/w 3-4. Going above 4 will not hurt your car. going above 7 may. For racing I shift around 6,200-6,500 rpm. That usually lands me in I nice power spot in the curve. Just remember, as long as the rpm rise faster than the Torque curve drops, your still in that gear. If you shift earlier, your wasting some of that gear.

damn - you beat me to the dyno thing <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'>

[Ni5mo180SX]

The optimum shift points are to shift when you would be making more power in the next gear then in your current gear. Hard to explain but thats the basic idea.

oh, didnt see your post tnord

[Anubis]

i floor my auto all the way to 5000 or 6000 rpm and it does fine. It makes a really loud noise tho. But i have recently developed "autoshifting" &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sly.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':sly:'> , where i start the car in 1st and move to 2nd then drive. it works pretty well. Yea...not that this relates to the topic much.

[sykikchimp]

I've heard that can be bad for the drive train..

oh wait.. thats Neutral Dropping.. never mind

edit- grammer

[HaLo]

Peak HP is at 5600RPM.

I usually shift at 4500-5000 in my everyday driving.

3000 when I want to save some gas.

6500 when I want to push my car to its maximum!

[gregshin]

damn i shit at like 2700-3000 rpms for everyday driving...i shift at 5500RPMS when i'm racing

[HaLo]

Maybe I'm not normal and I'm pushing her too hard. <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=';)'>

[BlackS14]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (sykikchimp @ Mar. 11 2002,5:03)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Anybody got a stock 240 Dyno? that will tell you exactly where to shift. For normal driving anywhere b/w 3-4. Going above 4 will not hurt your car. going above 7 may. For racing I shift around 6,200-6,500 rpm. That usually lands me in I nice power spot in the curve. Just remember, as long as the rpm rise faster than the Torque curve drops, your still in that gear. If you shift earlier, your wasting some of that gear.

damn - you beat me to the dyno thing <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'></td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
I believe you can find a stock dyno chart in one the old SCC isuues when they first started thier project 240sx. Not sure though considering I don't have that particular issue (I assume they do it for all thier project cars to get baseline figures).

Daily Driving:3~3.5k

Racing: 6.2~6.5k

Two more things:
1. Getting an ECU will bump your red-line up 500 rpm to 7k

2. The Ka does not like to pushed in upwards of 7,300 rpm...that's when things start to go bye bye....unless of course the neccessary mods have been done internally to allow for a longer rpm band:)

[DuffMan]

Actually the ideal shift point is where the ratio of the gear ratio you're in now to the gear ratio you'll be in after the shift is equal to the ratio of the torque you will have after the shift to the toruqe you have now.

This means you want to not shift until you're already lost 1/4-1/3 of your peak torque.

[HaLo]

Hum... Is my car normal 'cuz the redline is at 6900RPM...

[XylathaneGTR]

Depends on the Car...for racing in an Integra Type R...you would shift at 8k. (redlines at a freaking 8.7k)
But if you hauling ass....Its normal for most to shift RedLine, or just before.
Daily driving, usually depending on the car, about half...But what DuffMan said is really prettymuch right

[S13Grl]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (gregshin @ Mar. 12 2002,4:36)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">damn i shit at like 2700-3000 rpms</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
Now, really?

[wherezmytofu]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (XylathaneGTR @ Mar. 10 2002,7:23)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Depends on the Car...for racing in an Integra Type R...you would shift at 8k. (redlines at a freaking 8.7k)
But if you hauling ass....Its normal for most to shift RedLine, or just before.
Daily driving, usually depending on the car, about half...But what DuffMan said is really prettymuch right</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
the best way to find out.....absoult best way.....is to go dyno your car....no engine is built the same...so looking at the dyno nissan/honda/toyota gives is not really gunna be the same as ur engine, out the box, u should shift 100-300 rpms over your max hp...........and if ur not a honda junkie please dont act like ur sum smart ass about honda.....i am...the type r ma hp is about 8.3-8.5 stock so there is no reason 2 get to red line....red line is just a calcuated safety limit for the rev the engine can take.....the rev limit is the control max rev.....in daidly driving u want to saty in the 3-5 range...i mean if u dont drive like an idiote!

[Anubis]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (sykikchimp @ Mar. 10 2002,6:13)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">I've heard that can be bad for the drive train..

oh wait.. thats Neutral Dropping.. never mind

edit- grammer</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
whats neutral dropping? is that like flooring it in neutral the switching to drive?

[XylathaneGTR]

Noooooo idea.
Imma n00000b
Im hopefully going to a performance driving school in Nevada...u get to drive Race Prepped BMW Z3 M editions &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

[Fuzzy Ewok]

Yeah, flooring it in neutral and then dropping it into gear is neutral dropping.

My daily driving shift point is usually around 3k-4k rpm. &nbsp;I usually push between 5500-6000 rpm if I'm racing.

[s13240sxman]

When daily driving my car the most I will take it to is 4500rpm. due to the fact that my exhaust is way to loud after this point and can attract way to much attention. If I am racing, I take my car right into the red and push for second as fast as i can. This should be about 6900rpms, now due to all the talk about power loss, although true this doesnt mean that just because you have hit &nbsp;peak power in that gear that you have to shift then. You do need the right amount of power to hit the next gear and if you shift to quick and come into the next gear before your power point then you lost the time its going to take to hit a good RPM. Then again this is all IMO. So there ya have it.

[shiq]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">What RPM do you guys shift at? </td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>


....whatever RPM my auto tranny chooses for me..... <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'> ....

[tnord]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (s13240sxman @ Mar. 10 2002,8:36)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">When daily driving my car the most I will take it to is 4500rpm. due to the fact that my exhaust is way to loud after this point and can attract way to much attention. If I am racing, I take my car right into the red and push for second as fast as i can. This should be about 6900rpms, now due to all the talk about power loss, although true this doesnt mean that just because you have hit peak power in that gear that you have to shift then. You do need the right amount of power to hit the next gear and if you shift to quick and come into the next gear before your power point then you lost the time its going to take to hit a good RPM. Then again this is all IMO. So there ya have it.</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
you do know that when you shift at 6900, in the next gear you'll be around 5700, which is already past peak hp.

[Gorath]

Halo your car is normal. &nbsp;The s13s have a redline at 6900. &nbsp;The s14 had the redline reduced to 6500. &nbsp;I think i remember reading that Nissan did this because people were pushing the car too much, but i dont know exactly.

[s13240sxman]

Ill take you for a ride T <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

[s13240sxman]

Oh and Hey to TNORD just went and took a test.... Its 4500 into second out of 1st at 6900. &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/thumbs-up.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':thumbsup:'> &nbsp;You should try, it wont hurt.

[daywalker]

hmm around 8k

[tnord]

no way.......there's no way rpm's drop 2400 in an upshift

i shift at 3k on a regular basis and i know for a fact it doesn't fall all the way down to 600

[s13240sxman]

All you have to do is go try. Then again I know Im not saying it just to be right because i just went and did it so. If you say so but thats what happens. 6900 to 4500.

[HaLo]

that's about what I get too: 6900->4500

depending on the shift. 1->2, 2->3... etc.

[s13240sxman]

Hum didnt check my 2nd to 3rd. Theres always tomorrow. &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

[tnord]

i'm not saying you're lying.......but you do have to agree that rpm doesn't go to 600 from 3000. and if you're in the same gear, i really don't understand how the rpm drop could be different.

i think what might be happening is that we're both right, and i just don't have a complete understanding of how transmissions work. &nbsp;i'll have to play around on the way to class tomorrow.

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">damn i shit at like 2700-3000 rpms

Now, really?

</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>

<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'> damn you S13grl, you stole mine. hehehehe..... <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'>

[sykikchimp]

Sounds to me like you guys shift too slow when racing.. &nbsp;got work on that shift speed kiddies. &nbsp;It shouldn't be dropping that much.

[240sxspeedracer1]

absolutely sykik, very good thinking, thats another variable.
people have to be able to get it from one gear to the next without wasting too much time or the darn thing will obviously be falling down. &nbsp; <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>
that means u r granny shifting <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sleeping.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':zzzz:'>

[240 2NR]

Tnord- you're right and wrong. &nbsp;Gears are ratios so rather than a set fall off from gear to gear its a ratio. &nbsp;Going from first to second at 6900 probably does yield a 4500 in second, but that doesn't mean for any given rpm in first you subract 2400 rpms, but ratio the ratio that creates of roughly 2/3 (for arguement purposes) so at 3000 rpms in first, second would be 2000.

But this means for argueing about where to shift and claiming an arbitrary number like 200 rpm past peak, you are wrong. &nbsp;First you must look at the power curve and then compare that to the gear ratios and arrive at the maximum torque available in the next gear that is greater than the torque in the current gear, or redline, which ever comes first.

I guarantee that even driving at the peak of power in fifth gear, I can out accelerate you anywhere over about 1000rpm in first gear. &nbsp;Even third would probably be a run for you money. &nbsp;Not to say I will be going faster, but the acceleration is much greater. &nbsp;I wish I had the website that describes this using a corvette and a water wheel as comparisons. &nbsp;Basically the calculations involved are pretty tedious without using a spread sheet, and it requires knowing all of your gear ratios, final drive, tire circumference, and power curve, to tell you where you are making the most power when shifting.

[240 2NR]

Found it. &nbsp;This is much more detailed than I could ever hope to be.

http://www.vettenet.org/torquehp.html

[tnord]

alright........well i tinkered around in 2nd and 3rd gear today with shift points. at each rpm i shifted at (3,4, 5.5) the rpm dropped real close to 1000 each time. didn't test out anything in 1st. 240 2nr said he'd mess around with it on his way home so we'll see what happens.

btw-you guys that are claiming 2400 rpm drops aren't driving auto's are you?

[HaLo]

i'll try again on my way back from school...

[Natty]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (tnord @ Mar. 12 2002,4:10)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">btw-you guys that are claiming 2400 rpm drops aren't driving auto's are you?</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
Um, about that too. It woudn't be bad if say, I was on a hill at a light and I slowly let out the clutch at maybe 2,000rpm to avoid hitting the dumbass right kid on my ass?
Heh, don't drive to work on your second day of driving stick &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'>
Jeff

[HaLo]

I tried again and again...
when shifting around 6500-6900, the drop brings me back to 4500ish.

As for shifting 4000-5000, the drop is close to 1000rpm..

[tnord]

halo- i dinked around in 1st gear earlier this evening, you were pretty much right. i shifted at 6000k and ended up at 4100. and in 1st gear still, when i shift at 3, it drops down to 2. it seems to me that there are gears within each gear. i have never seen a transmission opened up so i really don't if this is right or not. but this is the only solution i can come up with. someone please clarify this for me.