Faster shifting Ideas & experiments

[c20500]

I now have aprx 6,000 miles on my 08 passion and I've tried many ways of getting the transmission to shift as quickly as I can. It has improved a great deal with more miles on the clock.

I've tried many different combos and believe it or not, my car shifts up gears the quickest when I DEPRESS the accelerator (in manual mode) right up to the kickdown stop just when its changing and then bring it back just after shifting. It's not the smoothest but it seems to get into the next gear without as much bog/slip. Its important not to press the pedal too far or it will get into kickdown mode and even drop a gear as there seems to be many automatic overides even in manual mode (ie, shifting to 2nd automatically from 1st if you get to redline or downshifting when the computer thinks its necessary.)

bliping the throttle does help it get it into gear in downshifting mode faster but there's not much engine braking there.

I wonder if a lighter flywheel would dramatically quicken shifts as the rpms would drop quicker naturally.

Also, it would be interesting for some tuners to create a way to turn the left paddle into a hand operated clutch and just split the right paddle for up and down shifting and create a true manual mode.

Just some mindless thinking out loud!

Regards

[headless]

you can get smoother and faster changes if you change the standard air filter for a sports one, the engine breathes better and a side effect is it changes better, it is a cheap and cheerful mod and I know a lot of you guys over in America don't like the transmission on the smarts, so this helps, never using auto mode also helps, as it sucks, stick to manual.
El

[p1nball]

Originally Posted by headless

you can get smoother and faster changes if you change the standard air filter for a sports one, the engine breathes better and a side effect is it changes better, it is a cheap and cheerful mod and I know a lot of you guys over in America don't like the transmission on the smarts, so this helps, never using auto mode also helps, as it sucks, stick to manual.
El

Go for the air intake, K&N and better exhaust system. You will have a very different car!! The shifts will be faster, smoother, and no lag!!

[smart fortimo]

Originally Posted by headless

you can get smoother and faster changes if you change the standard air filter for a sports one, the engine breathes better and a side effect is it changes better, it is a cheap and cheerful mod and I know a lot of you guys over in America don't like the transmission on the smarts, so this helps, never using auto mode also helps, as it sucks, stick to manual.
El

Agreed on the intake upgrade smoothing out the shifts, but a lot can be said of having a "touch" with the gas pedal that develops over time.

I cheerfully disagree about the auto mode. For most driving, it is great! And there are occasions when in congestion that it is helpful to shift manually. I have learned to like the trans either way.

$.02 & Cheers,
Timo

[NCC1701]

Originally Posted by smart fortimo

I have learned to like the trans either way.

$.02 & Cheers,
Timo

I also use both. Maybe it's just me, but starting into motion entering a turn (from a traffic or stop light) in manual isn't very practical. Since the car wants to shift to 2nd while halfway through the turn and the upshift paddle is inaccessible. I haven't used manual via the shifter ... maybe that would be the solution in this situation.
I find manual particularly useful when entering a corner already in motion. Whereas doing this in Auto can result in a second or two of transmission indecision ... putting it in manual and downshifting provide power through the turn.
But, I just freely switch between Auto and Paddles and this works for me!

My 2¢

[GHammerly]

There is a Italian company that sells performance clutches and a lighter flywheel for the smart, not sure if they have them for the 451 smart.
I would love to know how the smart responds to a lighter flywheel. I know it would feel stronger in the lower gears but not sure if it will shift smoothly or quicker since it´s all electronically controlled via servos.
Engine RPM would drop very quickly when the throttle closes and that could speed up shift time but maybe the electronic control may not keep up since it´s tuned for a heavy flywheel that drops RPM at a slower rate.

[c20500]

I disconnected the intake pipe from the aircleaner to see if it would improve things or simulate a better aircleaner mod and didn't notice much of a difference. would proabably need to be on a dyno to see. It did sound better with more intake noise but that was it. Maybe I'll try a cordless leaf blower next.

[SuperGeek]

I was thinking of this from a software point of view. Just to throw out an idea... what if the shifting program were modified to feather the throttle after the clutch re-engages? It seems to me that most of the bog/nod is from re-engaging at the same throttle point (i.e. 75%) it was at when disengaging. The result is that the higher gear requires less throttle (50%) and the car's pushed forward more than desired. That's why lifting after the shift smooths things out.

On any other manual transmission, the driver has to re-apply the throttle from zero unless he's perfectly matching RPMs. What if the computer were to match RPMs with lighter throttle (50%), then ramp it back up to setpoint (75%) over, say, a half second? A full second might be too slow, but that half second should be a good compromise. Maybe a different shift mode would leave the current method in place and this could be an advanced option, maybe they could even sell it as a sport upgrade.

Is this idea worth taking to the engineering team(s)?

[imcquade]

Originally Posted by NCC1701

I also use both. Maybe it's just me, but starting into motion entering a turn (from a traffic or stop light) in manual isn't very practical. Since the car wants to shift to 2nd while halfway through the turn and the upshift paddle is inaccessible.

My 2¢

Use the stick to shove it in to second; or if turning at a light start in 2nd....

Cheers

[nader]

stating in 2nd? ouch! that's like slipping the clutch for 5 seconds. I was wondering about a lighter flywheel the other day too. I know its no DSG but it is pretty darn slow.

I dont think we can answer this questions untilwe find someone who knows how the factory system is programed and what its limitations are. I would assume the car has the ability to engage the clutch quickly and shift gears relatively fast. The issue with the 1-2 shift is that the car takes so long to drop the RPMs so it doesn't lurch forward in the next gear. i assume its all in the name of clutch longevity.

I know the 450's were even worse and people were tuning those. Anyone here of anyone making any improvements to the older models?