02-14-2007, 06:08 PM
|
#1
|
Porscheectomy
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Seattle Area
Posts: 3,011
|
Does anyone else think the 6-speed is not necessary?
Gears 4, 5, and 6 seem way too closely spaced. I hardly use 4th and never use 5th. I'd much rather that Porsche had put in a torsen diff than the redundant gear.
Has anyone tried a lower final drive ratio? I can imagine that would make the car a liitle quicker and make the 6-speed ratio spread a little more useable.
|
|
|
02-14-2007, 07:34 PM
|
#2
|
Registered User
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Toronto
Posts: 277
|
I thought it was just my lack of experience, but, yes, an awful lot of gears past 4th in my opinion too.
|
|
|
02-14-2007, 08:53 PM
|
#3
|
Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
Posts: 3,308
|
Hi,
Gear ratios are designed to keep the engine in the sweet spot. That said, unless you're absolutely flogging the Boxster on a Daily basis, 6 speeds of closely ratioed gears has a lot more to do with matching the Competition in the Marketplace than it does in actually bettering the car...
Happy Motoring!... Jim'99
|
|
|
02-14-2007, 10:02 PM
|
#4
|
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: San Diego, California
Posts: 874
|
I'm in agreement here; 5th gear is the superfluous gear amongst the six in my mind and the S would be just fine with five on the floor.
3rd gear in either tranny takes you into the 90s, at least in the 987.
__________________
http://i7.tinypic.com/24ovngk.jpghttp://i7.tinypic.com/24ow0id.jpg
06 987S- Sold
Carrara White / Black / Black/Stone Grey Two-tone
05 987 5-speed - Sold
Midnight Blue Metallic / Metropol Blue / Sand Beige
06 MB SLK350- Lease escapee
Iridium Silver Metallic / Black
We've heard that a million monkeys at a million keyboards could produce the complete works of Shakespeare; now, thanks to the Internet, we know that is not true. - Robert Wilensky
|
|
|
02-15-2007, 05:25 AM
|
#5
|
Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: NY
Posts: 129
|
It's definitely more of a marketing thing than a necessity; my GTI 2.0T has a 6-spd and really doesn't need it - the car has an a--load of torque so the gear you're in isn't all that important. The extra shifting can become annoying. I think the base Box could probably use it more than the 'S', but that's where the marketing comes in - you'll find it as a feature on higher-end, premium cars, not necessarily where it's needed.
|
|
|
02-15-2007, 05:44 AM
|
#6
|
Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: MD
Posts: 447
|
The synchros are tough in these transmissions. Just skip the superfluous gears when in town. I very rarely use 5th gear.
|
|
|
02-15-2007, 06:47 AM
|
#7
|
Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Texas
Posts: 1,311
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by blue2000s
Gears 4, 5, and 6 seem way too closely spaced. I hardly use 4th and never use 5th. I'd much rather that Porsche had put in a torsen diff than the redundant gear.
Has anyone tried a lower final drive ratio? I can imagine that would make the car a liitle quicker and make the 6-speed ratio spread a little more useable.
|
I agree, while a sixth gear seems worthless, I do find myself using 4th and 5th when on an open highway. 5th only when I'm in "cruise control mode" on a long stretch of highway, like say the interstate on a road trip. My brother has a 6th gear in his Toyota Celica GTS and says he NEVER uses it either. It's definately a marketing thing. People tend to think if it has that "extra" gear then it must be sooo much faster and have even more power.
|
|
|
02-15-2007, 07:50 AM
|
#8
|
Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Where the Sewer Meets the Sea, CA. USA
Posts: 2,695
|
Thats interesting cause when im driving with normal easy acceleration, I feel that the gear ratios are too short and when upshifting the the car is lightly jolted backward cause the rpms are either droping too fast of im not shifting fast enough. There are times where its smooth but mostly not.
|
|
|
02-15-2007, 07:56 AM
|
#9
|
Registered User
Join Date: May 2002
Location: San Jose
Posts: 1,889
|
This has been debated for a long time. The ratios on the 6 speed Boxster are the same as the 996, but the 996 has more hp.
At least that is what was being said when the Boxster S came out.
|
|
|
02-16-2007, 11:46 AM
|
#10
|
Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: California
Posts: 43
|
If the 6-speed would give me what equates to a gear between 2 and 3 on the 5-speed then I would say it's useful. On my favorite road I find myself bumping between 2 and 3 all the time, which while fun, is tricky when I run out of revs in 2nd exiting a corner and don't want shift just yet and upset the chassis. Once I get a little better at driving the box it won't be such a big deal I'm sure, but for the moment maybe a 6 would be easier.
|
|
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is On
|
|
|
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 09:25 PM.
| |