6th gear

[Another S in S]

Originally posted by Ad Sach
I disagree with 'another s in s' about the 6 speed. I think the LESS power you have the more you need the extra gear - but we've had this discussion before so I won't go more into it.

just wanted to provide an alternate opinion (mine) that 6th gear is pleasant for cruising in flat places (Arizona) at 75mph or more and is nice for that exciting UPSHIFT at an indicated 150MPH. When cruising at 110-130 in mounatinous areas I tend to swap between 5th and 6th gear.

Having moved to NY last year, 6th is only for freeway cruising now

LOL. Nice try hijacking my thread. My point was about the appropriateness of the S having a 6 speed. It wasn't about whether the base needs a 6 speed. Frankly it doesn't. I have never ever wished for a 6th gear, even cruising on the freeway. And if it did have 6 speed that wasn't tuned for the 2.7L powertrain it would be horrible, "rowing through the gears" as some have described the shifiting in the city in the S which has gearing tuned for the 996.

If you know anything about Boxster history you will know that the 2.7L has the most perfected transmission in the Boxster line. When Porsche increased the engine size in '00 to 2.7L they re-tuned, re-optimized, the transmission to perfectly match the 2.7L engine powertrain. In the case of the S, they just bolted on the same transmission as the 996 as a marketing gimmick.

Many S owners will say you need to learn how to shift the 6 speed. It takes some getting used to. Translation: it takes time to live with a mis-matched transmission.

"I've just concluded -- agreeing with many -- that the 6 speed transmission in the S is just not that smooth. "
-JLR
(posted by S owner JLR last week on PPBB.com)