Getting into 1st gear in the Mazdaspeed without any jerking

[shaftwagon]

I took my MS3 in today to get a tire patched. And predictably the mechanic stalled in 1st gear pulling it into the garage. Love that burning clutch smell.

Seriously folks, our clutch engagement is non-conventional. I'd say that almost every person that has ever driven my car for the first time has either 1) stalled or 2) burnt a lot of clutch. Do others agree?

Yes, stop and go traffic can be quite annoying with the MS3 clutch, but there are advantages to. It's so frieking fun and easy to spool up the turbo then pop the clutch to peel out in 2nd or 3rd gear while moving. wahoo.

 

[Jon MS3]

The instructor from that video was fired!

http://jalopnik.com/5466660/jerkoff-track-day-instructor-outed-on-youtube-fired

that just made my day. outstanding!

 

[noobinacan]

Do not get a after market motor mount. Its not required.
COBB and many others track their cars on stock mount.

You shouldn't be going into first anyways...I'm only in first if at stand-still.


blip the throttle.
watch,...

http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/dis...eCode=MS3&directPath=ms3/home#/MS3/LagunaSeca

 

[Mid_Life_Crisis]

Seriously folks, our clutch engagement is non-conventional. I'd say that almost every person that has ever driven my car for the first time has either 1) stalled or 2) burnt a lot of clutch. Do others agree?

Yes, stop and go traffic can be quite annoying with the MS3 clutch, but there are advantages to. It's so frieking fun and easy to spool up the turbo then pop the clutch to peel out in 2nd or 3rd gear while moving. wahoo.

It took a day or two to adjust to. My wife drove it a couple of times. I warned her of what to expect and she had no problems, except giving me back the keys.

 

[Jon MS3]

Do not get a after market motor mount. Its not required.
COBB and many others track their cars on stock mount.

You shouldn't be going into first anyways...I'm only in first if at stand-still.


blip the throttle.
watch,...

http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/dis...eCode=MS3&directPath=ms3/home#/MS3/LagunaSeca

huh??? plus, not sure how that video proves your point

 

[JamesCH]

On some of the down-shifts the driver was heel-toe on the brake and gas. It's definitely a cool video.

Personally, I love skipping gears on down-shifts, and when I let the clutch out I blend it in while i'm letting off the brake so there is smooth braking force on the car. It's the lazy man's way to go

 

[noobinacan]

huh??? plus, not sure how that video proves your point

blip the throttle dude..
blip...and downshift
use your engine braking...your brake pads will last forever.

plus you'll be ready for the track..like a PRO^

and at the track, you'll reduce your braking distance by a mile....

On some of the down-shifts the driver was heel-toe on the brake and gas. It's definitely a cool video.

Personally, I love skipping gears on down-shifts, and when I let the clutch out I blend it in while i'm letting off the brake so there is smooth braking force on the car. It's the lazy man's way to go

yeah, I didn't know the terms 'rev-matching' and 'hell-toe' etc...
and then I found out what they were and i was like "oh...yeah, I been doing that the whole time"

 

[JamesCH]

use your engine braking...your brake pads will last forever.

While true, brakes are a lot cheaper than a new engine and transmission! Though I am a fan of letting the car coast down on it's own, I personally don't aggressively down-shift to save brake wear.

 

[jon2000]

Things have improved a lot over the last couple weeks. I find I have to be really smooth and easy when coming off the gas and when pushing the clutch in to avoid jerkiness. Adding a touch more throttle, again very smooth,then releasing the throttle smooth as the clutch is pushed in seems to slow down the rpm drop while changing gears. I'm at the point now where I'm clutching out and adding a bit of throttle in first gear to get the car moving then keep clutching out slowly while gradually adding throttle to even things out. I'm punching the gas less on hills now too as I'm getting used to the touchy throttle. I installed my Cobb SRI yesterday which has really stepped up the fun factor. Next to install: Ford Motocraft full synthetic tranny fluid and a JBarone shift plate and shifter bushings.

 

[JamesCH]

Definitely at a MS CAI if you haven't already.

 

[jon2000]

I went with the Cobb SRI ...love the extra pull and sound

 

[Design]

This car is definitely tempermental with trying to get smooth/accurate shifts. It's more the clutch than anything else. Basically grabs at the first sign of friction. However, at WOT there is some transmission movement which makes shifting a bit cryptic. Not as bad as the SRT-4 IMO. I've got about 375,000 miles of experience and still goof every now and then with this car lol.

I think it's time I compiled a quick vid regarding shifting techniques (for daily driving at least). I have some footage laying around that I had originally put together for a friend on the East Coast. Might help a few members who haven't had a lot of seat time behind a manual.

 

[jon2000]

^ yeah that would be great. It would be nice to see how others get their Mazdaspeed3 moving by watching the footwork. It's funny when someone new tries the car and says "man that clutch is touchy."

 

[MSP300]

+1