Was wondering what other people do in their 5 mt. I drove a ford escort 5 mt for years and despite the fit being a much nicer car in every aspect, that car was so far easier to drive without the clutch delay and rev hang.

If I shift at low rpms like driving around a neighborhood it isn't a problem, but if I want to actually accelerate more quickly and shift around 3500 or higher the car lurches. I either have to let the clutch out slower or wait an extra 1/2-1 second for the revs to fall before going into gear. Neither situation is ideal since I'm either burning the clutch more or shifting really slowly. How do other people deal with the rev hang?

 

its funny your mentioning rev hang, i have the opposite experience, I owned 3 fords before this that were all manuals and they all had the craziest rev hangs I have ever seen..., like the cars literally revved up when engaging the clutch with no gas pedal down at all....

 

The delay is definitely not even worthy of a 1/2 second wait.

Are you depressing the clutch prior to releasing the gas pedal?

 

You are correct about the rev hang. There is no perfect solution. It is a pollution control thing. The problem is less with the AC compressor engaged because that helps to drop RPMs, but because the AC cycles, you never know if it is engaged. In normal traffic I wait for revs to lower before engaging clutch. If I need a quick shift, I accept that it will not be perfectly smooth. Clutch replacement is expensive.

 

IDK, I just learned how to drive the car. You'll get used to it. I can hop from my old cable clutch car and into my Fit and don't need to adjust to anything. It's just muscle memory, practice.

Then again I never noticed the rev hang in the first place until people complained about it on here

 

I actually have the completely opposite experience than you... the earlier I shift the more the rev hang is pronounced. I've altered my driving style by shifting between ~5k-~6.5k rpms.... maybe occasionally 4.5k rpm+ and I don't notice it at all anymore. Whenever I catch up on my mods I'm going to get Item9's mod for the CDV. That stock clutch delay still annoys the crap out of me.

I honestly think quite a few problems are from shifting too early, like last week those 2 threads about lugging, etc... as some one in those threads mentioned, it's a Honda you have to rev it.

 

the rev hang is still there at low rpms, I think I just don't notice it as much because the the lower rpms don't cause the car to lurch. in my experience, it's mostly a problem in the 1st to 2nd shift if I'm trying to accelerate quickly from a stop. If i wait too long to shift out of 1st, the rpms always seem to be way too high for second gear.

the clutch delay is definitely very annoying, especially in 1st or 2nd gear. I'd do the CDV mod posted here it if the car wasn't under warranty.


it definitely is during the 1st to 2nd shift. not so much any other.

 

It took me a bit to get the feel for the car, particularly the rev hang. It's really just a matter of timing the shift—taking the foot off the gas earlier when compared with pressing the clutch pedal. When you're used to something else, any new vehicle will feel "wrong" in my experience.

I'm rather surprised you can actually tell there's a clutch delay there in street driving; I certainly find it not at all noticeable. (It does sound like you're trying to shift rather more aggressively than I do, too.) The clutch in general doesn't have a whole lot of feel to it, which I tend to suspect is typical of hydraulic clutches when compared to cable operated ones, but I don't think the delay valve has much if anything to do with that.

 

https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/fit-...ml#post1162678

 

I don't feel like I shift all that aggressively to be honest. I usually shift around 3000-3500 and I also often have people on my bumper because I'm not accelerating fast enough for them.

And I'm surprised you're surprised I can tell there's a clutch delay in relaxed driving! I find it extremely noticeable in every gear. Even starting from a stop, if you instantly stop lifting off the clutch pedal, you can still feel the clutch continuing to engage. It's definitely not a a 1:1 connection. If you're moving and you clutch in, let the rpms drop, and clutch out without trying to rev match, there's definitely a slight lag for the clutch to engage completely that isn't there in a car or motorcycle without clutch delay. But yeah, once you're away from 1st and 2nd gear and upshifting and match the revs perfectly you can't feel it since you don't feel the clutch engage at all.

I definitely plan on doing that when the warranty is up.

 

I've found the fastest shifts come from being quick with your shifter hand and slow (er) with the clutch foot. It's the clutch that's the limiting factor, so minimize the other aspects of the shift so the clutch is the only delay.

It also seems to help to let off the gas a split second before pressing the clutch. I think that tells the computer to apply less fuel so the revs will drop faster.

 

I've been driving this car for over a year and I still have trouble with the rev hang and CDV. I still semi frequently get choppy shifts. My down shifts are extremely hard to rev match without staring at the tach. And on cooler mornings, starting in first I can hear a faint "choo choo choo" sound as I let the clutch out. I don't know if I'm just killing my clutch already or if that's a normal sound but I do know that the clutch is the biggest detractor to me having fun while driving.

It really makes me miss my old cable clutch civic. I used to be able to heel and toe, rev match, shift without the clutch if I needed to, now I can't do any of those things. Sometimes I wish I'd just gotten the paddle shifters.

 

Maybe the answer is time! The longer I've had mine, the less the throttle has hung on shifts. I've got 96K now and no noticeable hang.

 

I have a 13 Base with 5 MT. Bought it in Jan this year, 4,000 miles on it. I still have problems shifting, and it's the clutch / revs thing. It can be really frustrating to try and get a good shift. Low speeds no problem. In traffic, it can be a real PITA. I had an 86 Honda Civic Si, and loved that car. Easy to shift, etc. I sure wish the Fit would shift as good as my old Civic. I bet I echo everyone with that comment! Driven sticks all my life, but never had problems shifting like with the Fit. I love my Fit, but....

 

Those of us who shift smoothly don't have mismatches in rpm; in fact often we shift without using the clutch. When you match rpm to gearbox rpm its easy. In our old days it was called heel and toe.
I infer from your 'description' that you merely push the clutch pedal in, shift gear, and let the clutch out. That's not a proper shift. Downshifts will be abrupt and upshifts sag. (is that what you call revs hanging?)

 

How I shift my manual transmission is to rev it to whatever and when I shift, keep the revs where they are. Put in next higher gear and give a small amount of more throttle when engaging the clutch in the next higher gear. This assumes you are accelerating.










If I am accelerating very hard, I will give it more throttle when engaging the clutch in the next higher gear. It will lurch forward a bit (depending on how aggressive I am driving) on clutch engagement but that is fine.


Hope this info. helps you. 65k miles on clutch with no replacement in sight.

 

if you keep rpm constant when upshifting the engine will either bog down because its trying to make the car go faster and can't because you haven't added power, or it will jump. as you upshift the gear ratio decreases so the next gear aand car would be going faster at that rpm.
you can see that by dropping the rpm to the matching speed of that gear; if you want to try you will be able to shift without using the clutch because the gears are matched speed to engine. Its a slow learning process but you will see why the latest sifting systems incorporate rpm matchin the next chosen gear to mph. Best, there is very little wear and tear on the syncronizers.

if you are aggressive, the throttle is buried and no more power available the car will accelerate as quickly as possible. And wear out syncronizers.
And for us old guys who remember 25,000 miles as the limit for aggressive gear changing, you can thank us for the tremendous improvements in metals and designs of gears and synchronizers. Back then you learned to shift without clutches or prepared for a regular weekend repair schedule,