[BiturboS4] Gear selection

[California Fields]

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Guys, I have to reply to all these "complaints" about the close ratio 6spd
gearbox. The car is a sports sedan not an econobox. The transmission is
purposely engineered so that the engine rpms are closer to the maximum power
area in each gear - at least more than the average sedan out there. You can't
have great gas mileage and great performance. In my opinion, the 6spds are
spaced perfectly. Yes, the S4 has lots of torque and yes the engine can spin a
much taller gear. But at what cost? Performance. Keep in mind that the
transmission was engineered with the stock 250hp/258lbs in mind....not the
whopping 310hp/368lbs many of us are putting down with our Stage II setup. For
those Stage II setups, it obviously feels as if the 6th gear is too low
because you don't need to shift on the highway to pass someone. If Audi were
to have designed around that parameter, I'm sure the gears would have been
spaced further apart (maybe we can look to the RS4 for those specs....which I
don't have handy now).

Have you ever seen an S4 hit 6.5k rpm in gears 1-5? I have. The tach drops
right to the meaty part of the powerband on each shift (ask me if you want
video clip). The pull is great from 120mph-140mph. Ever seen a 5spd hit 120mph
and then shift into 5th? They bog like crazy. Shifts too far apart. Heck, in
our S4s you can hit 148mph (stock) or ~155mph (Stage II). How many of you
actually drive that fast? Seems 6th gear is tall enough for me!

Now, if you want to talk 7 or 8 spds, then you've got an argument :)

Cheers.
>From: DAK
>To: daniel chisholm
>CC: biturbos4 at audifans.com
>Subject: Re: [BiturboS4] Gear selection
>Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2003 14:26:46 -0500
>
>I think it depends on the terrain. If you are on a relatively flat
>road
>or downhill, use the higher gear. If I don't need much out of the
>engine, I let the RPMs get down to 2K or lower before downshifting.
>
>What I want to know is this... Has anyone tried to change the final
>drive ratio to get wider ratios between gears? I find the 6 speed to
>be
>a little close on the shifts. With an engine like this, I should
>need
>6th until I get crusing on the highway. I find myself in 6th when on
>some surface streets.
>
>David
>
>daniel chisholm wrote:
>>--
>>[ Picked text/plain from multipart/alternative ]
>>What is the best gear selection at 40mph? I cannot decide if I
>>should shift into 2nd or stay in 3rd. This is with the assumption
>>of a straightaway, no rain, straight line, etc. It seems that 3rd
>>gear has the same pull and keeps going past the 63 mph mark.
>>
>>Dan
>>
>>
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