Hey everyone, just got an 04 AT and I've been feverishly reading about my wonderful new baby. My question is since the RX8 likes higher revs is it ok for me to be driving my AT in manual mode in third gear on the highway full time. It seems to keep a steady 4000-4500 rpm in third. I'm afraid to put it in 4th on the highway because everyone is saying not to drive it like a granny. Any thoughts?

 

it has 4 gears for a reason

 

why would you be afraid? redline it once in a while but on the freeway dont you want to save gas and get the best milage?

 

If your around 4k rpm you'll be fine, redline it every so often though

 

4th gear is fine on the freeway.

 

I have a manual and I put it in six gear around 20 to 25 and hit the cruise control if am in heavy traffic. save gas!!!

 

The "Drive like a granny" comments you have read really refer to shifting between 3-4k and NEVER redline the motor.
Or the car is always driven in auto mode and the car shifts for you.

The motor never gets a good and proper workout this way. carbon build up happens quicker this way.

So, use that 4th gear on the freeway and save a little gas.

 

Drive it efficiently on the highway (let the auto tranmission do its thing), but just manually get it up in the rev's once a day to keep the carbon down (and to have some fun).

 

lolwut?

wouldn't that put you around 1k rpm?

 

1.500rpm, and don't do it on an up hill, only on flat or down hill!!!

 

and what kind mpg you getting?
I always keep her above 2500-3000rpm anything below its bogging down.

 

wait... because people say "dont drive like granny" you are going to not use all the gears and just burn through fuel, specially on the hi-way????

thats kind of retarted....there is nothing wrong with driving the car in a normal manner. Though you should take some time to screw around and rev it high at least daily....but on the hi-way...forget it and just cruise.

 

Pretty much I follow the rule of "highest operable gear". So when I am driving through town, I will try and stay in 6th gear on a 30-40mph cruise. It sits at a very low rpm, but there is really no need to stress the motor...its not like im going to need to skyrocket at any point.

I Redline once a day, but to save gas and to reduce stress, I try and take it up the gears as much as I can without bogging the car down.

 

Vehicle Owner's Manuals (the RX-8 included) always cite the optimal fuel efficiency shift points and no one's arguing that it's fine to do so. It's just that we know from collective experience that the Renesis accumulates carbon more quickly than a comparable piston engine and therefore needs to be 'exercised' (or rather exorcised?) on a frequent basis to compensate, hence the "redline a day" slogan. Also consider that this is a sportscar and not a very fuel efficient one to begin with. If you're more concerned with MPG, then another vehicle is a better choice.

 

Why not second gear? Just do it! Your tranny should hold up for like a week or two.

 

hey fellow RX8 ppl,

i recently purchased a 06 At 4 speed RX8, rather than start a new thead i decided to ask my question in this thread as it also concerns the manipulation of gears.

what i want to know is
is it save to switch over from automatic mode to manual mode while doing lets say moderate to high speeds, or should i slow down and then make the switch

 

The owner's manual doesn't specifically cite switching at stop/slow or higher speed, but it would seem reasonable to do so when slower:

Manual Shift Mode
This mode gives you the feel of driving a
manual transmission vehicle by operating
the shift lever or steering shift switches
and allows you to control engine rpm and
torque to the rear wheels much like a
manual transmission when more control is
desired.
To change to manual shift mode, shift the
lever from D to M.
To return to automatic shift mode, shift
the lever from M to D.
NOTE
If you change to manual shift mode
when the vehicle is stopped, the gear
will shift to M1.
If you shift up once when the vehicle
is stopped and the gear is at M1, the
gear will shift to M2. M2 is helpful
for starting on slippery surfaces.

 

hey guys I was wondering if it was ok for me to always start it in M2, my wifes Mercedes have a "comfort" mode where it only starts the car in second gear. Im just wondering if my tranny will pay for this or if its ok? I have been doing this for 3 weeks and have gotten 18 mpg!!!

 

Troll

 

Don't "lug" this engine

 

This is retarded.

This is even more retarded. Though I have a feeling you are just trolling.



I will not go into explanation, for the advice you seek has been stated several times already.

 

If you consult your owners manual ( few people do ), you will find this mode is for low traction conditions ( snow, ice ), so less initial torque gets to the wheels and reduces potential for wheel slip. It will not harm the transmission or motor as long as you drive it normally otherwise and allow it to rev enough to minimize carbon build-up. I occasionally select M2 when in heavy/slow stop-and-go traffic, to prevent continuously repeated 1-2 shifts.

 

Agreed. Although driving in the highest possible gear will "Save gas" it should only be done at a "drivable" gear. Meaning, whatever gear you are cruising on should have your RPM's sitting at about 3k. The higher up in gears you go and the lower your speed goes can be detrimental to your engine, as the backpressure buildup can be dangerous to components. I.E. doing 20mph and having the car in 6th gear would create so much pressure to maintain that speed on the engine and its components vs 20mph on 3rd gear.

This should be fine, just make sure you arent starting in second gear and just slamming to WOT....that wouldn't be too good for the transmission because of exactly what i said above. Just like starting a manual car in 2nd ... it is possible, but accelerate slowly (if you were driving manual you would be burning that clutch if you tried to accel fast in 2nd)

 

The only thing potentially affected might be fluid temperature, due to more slip in the torque converter, but in the described situation this would be so short lived as to be negligible. I would be more concerned about engine lugging, but again this is short term and occasional incidental lugging shouldn't be as hard on rotaries as it is in piston motors ( piston side loads, wrist pins, rod bearings ). But starting in 2nd with a torque converter really isn't going to lug the engine to any significant degree, mostly just reduce initial torque to the wheels.

 

i apologize if this is repetitive. i didnt want to read all of the posts

due to gas mileage just keep it in 4th if your highway cruising, but nothing wrong with dropping to 3rd for passing. ive accepted my terrible mileage and i dont care anymore
(i drive in manual ALL the time)

if your trying to get the most torque feeling from our wonderful 4 speeds
30mph and under you can drop to 1st and redline it
(i hate getting stuck in the 35mph 2nd gear acceleration... its pitiful)
45-60 has a pretty good jump when it drops to 2nd
60-90 3rd gear for highway passing

dont be afraid to redline. i drive mine hard, still going strong at 65k miles and as said many times before its good to prevent carbon build up.

happy ATing