Traded an '03 Spec V on an EVO8 2 weeks ago. Followed the break in recommendations and now I'm wondering if any of you have experienced the problem I'm having. Car shifts fine at redline if I shift slow and precisely. But, each time I race someone and I know my shifts have to be fast, the tranny grinds when going from 1st to 2nd....or I miss the shift all together and it just winds to the moon...which just sucks. Do you guys make the 1 to 2 shift nice and easy? Or do you clutch/shift simaltaneouly? No problems on any other gear changes, just 1 to 2. Maybe I just get too excited when someone's next to me that I just spaz out. Second issue, how bulletproof/strong is the clutch in our cars? I'd like to leave the line quicker without punishing the clutch, but without building the revs, it's just a dog off the line until it boosts up. I know it's not a drag car by design, but being able to get a quick standing start is important to me. Seems like I play a lot of "catch up" to reel in slower cars that launch better than my EVO. Once the roads clear up here in Iowa I'll put my Vericom VC2000 to work and see what kind of 0-60, 50-80 & quarter mile times this car is capable of. Great website, your advise on these topics is appreciated.

 

yeah the shift from 1st to 2nd is pain in the butt, best thing to do is make sure your engaging and pushing the gear all the way to the left before hitting 2nd, i find that tends to shift a little smoother, otherwise, granny shift. good luck and congrats on the car, its one hella of a ride.

 

i had that problem when i first got my evo but now sitting at just under 5500 i have a silky smooth shift... also if you know how to launch this car you will not fry the clutch however you will find alot of people crying about the clutch because it is their first MT and they do not know how to drive it... personally i think that mechanics are trying to make everyone think they fried there clutch... because when i went in for my first oil change they told me my clutch was done... that was over 200 miles ago and i still have had no problem from the clutch

 

I also have the problem with the 1st to 2nd grind only when I rev it close to redline. It just wont go into gear. I was wondering if removing the clutch restrictor and installing an SS clutch line would help this problem.

 

ya at first 1st to 2nd was a little different than any of my other manual cars. but after about 8 months now no problems at all and im flying through the gears, you'll get used to were you need to be with the gears

 

Don't street race and you'll eliminate most of your clutch issues.

 

This will go away, at least mine did, think around 2K miles.... Im at 4500 now, and its only happened 1nce since then. It did it ALOT at first though....

.....Well if you abuse it, you loose it.... I guess. There have been (seems) a lot of people on here with clutch problems. It might be a little 's fault and a little drivers fault. Like below, if you launch the car a lot, you will burn up your cluch. I've read that would rather the clutch to go out instead of the tranny. (me too)

I've learned how to launch the car somewhat good, without burning the clutch to hell, the first couple times the smell of burnt clutch was so bad it stayed with the car for a day... But now I have RPM's around 4500-5500, let clutch out fast and apply equally fast to the gas, takes some practice, ( ) but seems to work. I do not always do this. But worth it. I have not had any trouble at all ................Knock on wood...........

What cars? This should not happen. Just practice. I know it took me some time to get used to where the clutch engages, way up high, it was low in my Eclipse, first time I test drove the Evo I killed it, been driving manuals for 12yrs....

One last note, Welcome to the list/site..... There are a lot of knollageable people on here, lot of good info... Most people are cool, some.........

 

I thought I read somewhere, that it would help make changing gears much more smooth... That would be nice...

 

The AWD tranny in the Mitsubishis have never been the best in the world.. They can definately handle the extra power, but you CANNOT power shift them.. Simply put it in gear, and let the engine do the work.. You can shift fast, but you can't POWER shift... It will break.. As for people saying the WRX trannys are better, well I beg to differ.. Since I've owned one, and blew a couple tranny's simply by adding extra power.. That's the biggest bull**** lie I've ever heard.. Some friend's of mine that still own theirs will gladly agree... You can't add big power to the Subie tranny and have it stay in one piece.. Mind you, I've never had a problem with the Mitsu tranny with adding the power (with the exception of my old 93 GSX), the previous owner dogged it... But once it was fixed, never had a problem.. You can add all the power you want to the EVO's tranny, just don't muscle it into gears... I've seen the tranny taken apart at the dealer, and I can tell you that it's very beefy.. Good luck, and happy hunting, whatever it might be!!

 

i only grind if two things even though its pretty rare

1. if the tranny oil isnt warmed up in the cold morning
2. if the passenger's legs are in the way

 

Thanks everyone! I think I'll try short shifting at 5,500 rpms from 1st - 2nd gear, and use the VERICOM to see if it makes that big of diff. Just have to get rid of this snow and ice first! I think everything is just spinnin' so fast at 7,000 that a quick shift is asking too much for the tranny to keep up with. I'll try some of the things you guys suggested. Oh yeah, there was one other big surprise after I took delivery of the car... I didn't realize EVO's don't have cruise control. Oh well.

 

<stop trolling>

 

He did. He bought the better car!

 

Whaa! won't warranty my clutch post from THKFAST in 5...4...3....2....

 

Try changing to a good synthetic transmission fluid. I changed to Royal Purple and it did wonders for shifting.