Sounds basic - which gear should I be in?

B

budfox

Member
 Somerset
Never had a six speed box before, or anything with the performance of my Z4, and I'm often finding myself not sure which gear I should be in. Sounds weird, I've been driving for thirty years.

This mainly occurs when I'm going along at around 50-60 on a decent A or B road. 6th is probably right but I feel that the revs are a little low at that speed, 5th seems more comfortable but in most other cars I'm sure I'd be in the highest gear.

This isn't for 'spirited' driving occasions when I'd be in a lower gear, but just for normal usage.

Opinions would be much appreciated.
 
If as you say you're not driving in a spirited mannor and the cars engine isn't labouring in 6th then it will be fine.

If its quite hilly and it feels better/more responsive to be in 5th then leave it in 5th, or try pressing the sport button in 6th, see which you prefer.

Either way you wont damage your car and the difference in MPG will be negligable :thumbsup:
 
Heck sometimes i will be pootling along at 30mph in 6th gear!

And on a sprint i can be in 3rd upto 80mph.

As long as the engine doesnt sound like its struggling i dont see an issue.

I dont really see the point of the 5th/ 6th on most drives i just skip the 5th and go from 4th to 6th :lol:


Sent from my iPhone 5s using Tapatalk
 
Trust your ears and your arse - if it feels like you're in the right gear then you probably are :thumbsup:
 
pvr said:
What do you define as revs being a little low?
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Probably under 2k, I can't remember to be honest, but it does just feel a little laboured.

I think I'll try the 6th with sport option, or probably stick to 5th below 60mph. MPG doesn't worry me, damaging the engine would.

Thanks all.
 
The 3.0 is a great engine with bags of low down torque, so 5th and 30 mph still gives easy acceleration. The e89 has an indicator light to tell you to change up or down to give best economy, whilst eventually annoying it did teach me to drive in a relaxed way using that torque.

But still nothing better than joining a motorway slip road, accelerating hard and getting close to that redline in 3rd :D
 
sars said:
The 3.0 is a great engine with bags of low down torque, so 5th and 30 mph still gives easy acceleration. The e89 has an indicator light to tell you to change up or down to give best economy, whilst eventually annoying it did teach me to drive in a relaxed way using that torque.

But still nothing better than joining a motorway slip road, accelerating hard and getting close to that redline in 3rd :D
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Oh I do love those slip roads. So much so that when I joined the M5 yesterday I seriously considered exiting and re-entering at the next junction :-)
 
In most 6 speeds the 5th gear is usually a 1:1 ratio or close to it and the 6th gear is an overdrive ratio. My cars putt around in top gear at ridiculously low RPM, I shift down sometimes to make sure the oil is moving around enough :lol:
 
I think the gear you should be in is entirely weather dependent….warm summer, i would suggest pair of calf length shorts and t-shirt but in this weather you should be wearing winter gear, i.e…three layers and a good pair of jeans. :D
 
Hunter said:
I think the gear you should be in is entirely weather dependent….warm summer, i would suggest pair of calf length shorts and t-shirt but in this weather you should be wearing winter gear, i.e…three layers and a good pair of jeans. :D
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I knew someone would suggest that, and believe me, if there had been an alternative word for gear I would have used it...
 
The highest and lowest gear ratios are not that different from that of 5 speeds, the difference is the gear ratios are closer together so you're more likely to find the sweet spot in revs. I personally wouldn't go slower than 45 in 6th under normal conditions, though 55 really feels better to me. If you run up close to red line in second, you'll be going fast enough to go straight to 6th, skipping 3rd, 4th, and 5th. Less clutch wear! :thumbsup: Yeah, sure, that's the reason, the fun of running to red line in second has nothing to do with it. :evil:
 
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