This is an easy question I think. Anyways, usually when I am on the freeway, I am up in the 4000-5000 rpm just cruising, and I was wondering if there is a way to drop the revs down to around 3000 to cruise that that same speed?

 

Unless you're not running in top gear for whatever reason, then no. If you're running a gear short, you can upshift, but I doubt you're doing that. Unfortunately for gas mileage, our cars like to spin their rotors around a lot.

 

if your in 6th gear there is nothing you can do but slow down. Or get your gears changed

 

Cruising at 5,000? What, on the autobahn?

 

4k in 6th is 80mph which is on the slow side of crusing speed here in San Diego.

 

i got a speeding ticket going 80

 

Well if there's a cop on the road people usually slow to 65 but it's very normal for everyone to be rolling along at 80mph or so. Very different to Portland (where I used to live before moving down here) where 65 was the speed everyone went and going 70 made you feel like you were sticking out like a sore thumb.

Im sure you could get a ticket for going along with traffic at 80, you'd just have to be the unlucky one that got singled out.

As to the original question - if you're already in 6th gear (presuming you have manual) then the only way to get revs down is to drive slower.

 

Ummm... shift up a gear? :D

 

You're kidding, right?

1.3L

 

be easy, he's a noob with manual transmission. Yeah, if you can shift up, shift if you're at the six gear just drop speeds to about 55 you get your cruising speed at 3000 rpms. Also hope you know there is a sixth gear...

 

Once in 6th, ain't nothing to do.

 

Sorry for not making it straight forward, I am in 6th gear already. I thought you guys would have known that by the question, but oh well lol, sorry for the miscommunication!

 

hmm.. wait til theres a new tranny with a different 6th gear ratio? i really dont know why they wouldnt make 6th longer to keep revs down, no one really needs a ton of power in 6th so why make it so close to 5th? space it and let us run 70mph@ 2500 and i'll be happy

 

exactly

 

Totally agree. Wish they'd done that.

 

easy way to keep the revs down...buy a Mustang :D

 

Since 5000 rpm in 6th gear is about 100 miles per hour you might see where the confusion came in.

 

I must also add myself to the consensus of desiring a taller 6th gear. I287 in NY is much the same, and keeping the engine revs low enough to prevent the secondary injectors coming online doesn't seem possible.

Options I've seen so are are:

1. Use a shorter final drive such as the last RX-7 used
2. Find a way to replace 6th speed with a taller ratio (perhaps closer to what the automatic uses)
3. Replace the entire transmission with one spec'ed to a different market where 6th is taller than what we have in North America or perhaps the 2009 model has more agreeable ratios.

I did hear someone mention about a group buy to get a taller 6th speed ratio; but do not know if that ever went beyond discussion. I believe I've seen that some vendors do offer taller final drive ratios; but I don't know what that would do to the overall drivability of the car. I believe that a review I read online of the UK version of the 2009 model stated that 6th gear was taller in order to compensate for the even shorter final drive being used in the 2009 model. Unfortunately, I don't know if this is also true of the North American 2009 model, and, I have no idea if the parts are interchangeable between the 2004-2008 models and the 2009 model.

 

You could allways trade for the automatic then. Boy you wont hear that much around here.

 

Thats what I'm talkin' bout. My 07 6spd auto GT is unreal smooth, and cruises on our West Texas speed limit of 80mph at 3000rpm. I had a 73 RX3 and loved to shift down and around, but the 2nd gear synchro's were not up to par. My 8 averages over 20mpg, 24 cruise, and 10 on the HPDE. When you stomp it and level off at 80mph it's in 3rd so it shifts 4,5,6. Cool huh?

 

cool? or just what every automatic does?

if there was a part that someone sold to replace 6th gear with something really tall, so 80mph was 2500 rpms. if it was under $300, i'd buy it without hesitation. IM SPEAKING TO YOU FORUM VENDORS. MAZSPORT!! BHR!!

 

Weird thing is the OP is actually an ex-FD owner.

I didnt know he got an 8 back then, i thought he got the GTO.

 

Depress the clutch and coast on idle RPMs.
Dude, go learn how a drivetrain works!

 

wonder if you could put the diff from an AT into a manual ......

 

Why?