Summarize the 6MT Situation For Me

[hephaestus]

All of the above basically sums it up pretty well. The clutch design is the main hurdle. The clutch disc cannot freely travel, thus making shifts notchy or sticky and very inconsistent. I thought it might have just been mine, so I test drove a couple new ones for comparison. The new ones that I drove were even worse-off than mine. I could barely get the one into reverse to back out of its parking spot. At first I chalked it up to sitting and not being driven. Then halfway through my test drive it about locked me out of 2nd and 3rd. What gets me the most is somebody actually let that fly.

Of all the complaints in this thread, that is one I have not experienced with mine. Mine shifts smoothly in and out of all gears. Sometimes the first shift into reverse of the morning is a little stubborn, but that's it.

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[hephaestus]

The issues:

- Shifter throw resembles a 1978 dump truck

Huh? Now I think you're just trolling. As someone who has driven 70's era SM420's, 465's, and 540's, I assure you, the M6 in these JL's throw like a sports car comparatively.

 

[LSJKU]

The issues:

- Shifter throw resembles a 1978 dump truck

- Pedal feedback is non-existant and unpredictable

- Stock clutch in JL units is particularly garbage and was the source of at least one recall

Ha ha, great short summary! Now i know what it is like to drive a 1978 dump truck!

• B&M makes a short-throw kit for the Jeep 6MT. Reduces throw by almost 20%. Appears to be a pretty simple install. I may give it a whirl. Save my knuckles and quit randomly engaging the emergency flashers.
• I now have improved pedal feel. Enough that I can now "feather" the clutch. Makes a big difference, especially offroad.
• I don't disagree, but don't totally agree. There is currently no better aftermarket option. My advice is don't buy the 6MT if driving it is that bad for you. Mine is ok now.

 

[hephaestus]

Ha ha, great short summary! Now i know what it is like to drive a 1978 dump truck!

No, you don't.

FYI, the short-throw kit increases required force to shift, if that's a concern for you.

 

[LSJKU]

I think you hit the nail on the head! The only thing I would add is the lousy throttle response. For an old head like me that has only ever driven manuals with mechanical linkage, waiting for the ECM to decide when to add/reduce fuel can be extremely frustrating. Personally I put about 70% of the stall blame on said electronic throttle.

I have to agree with you. I too thought it was mostly tip-in throttle causing the stall issues. @bmpcamry09 tuned my 3.6L, I specifically asked him to address this and he solved it. No. more tendency to stall from a dead stop, and I can actually feel the clutch engage. And no more of the hootenanny of the Jeep wanting to stall backing up a steep incline.

 

[jeepingib]

To summarize, paraphrase, and state quite succinctly... It's shit.

 

[LKG]

I have to agree with you. I too thought it was mostly tip-in throttle causing the stall issues. @bmpcamry09 tuned my 3.6L, I specifically asked him to address this and he solved it. No. more tendency to stall from a dead stop, and I can actually feel the clutch engage. And no more of the hootenanny of the Jeep wanting to stall backing up a steep incline.

That is great news, a tune is definitely on my to do list. If you don't mind me asking, all in, how much am I looking at?

 

[Traveller128]

FYI, the short-throw kit increases required force to shift, if that's a concern for you.

Not really. Ours shifts like butter or a euro car. It really did make a huge difference. My wife noticed, which is saying something.

A JK shifts like a truck. The JL shifts like a decent manual trans car with the B&M. I've installed a LOT of aftermarket parts in my time and was a bit shocked how much better it was compared to stock. Mopar just needed to tweak it a little longer and people would have been a lot happier out of the box. We were both pretty unhappy with the stock guess a gear shifter with NEW! Knuckle bust action!

 

[LSJKU]

No, you don't.

FYI, the short-throw kit increases required force to shift, if that's a concern for you.

Well, yes I do: I drove a water truck for years at an old job. But I get your point. I was just being facetious with the comparison of the Jeep to a dump truck.

Not at all worried about the increase in force req'd to shift. But thanks.

 

[Bryce919er]

I have a new 4 door auto JL. Was asking for the hypothetical reason of possibly acquiring an additional that is intentionally different—meaning a used 2 door and specifically with a manual trans. Sounds like with recalls it should at least not explode but some people dont like and it has manny modern nannies so drive one first. Factoring in price a JK is more likely and sounds like they do not share any of the JL “issues” due to different clutch design

 

[LSJKU]

That is great news, a tune is definitely on my to do list. If you don't mind me asking, all in, how much am I looking at?

It depends, are you already in the HPTuners ecosystem and own an MPVI?

The new MPVI4 is $400 with the software suite. You have to send your ECU to HPT so they can unlock it, that's another $250 prep cost. Then you have to buy tuning credits @ $50 apiece. If you are GSPEC2, then it takes 2 x credits. GSPEC5 ECU's require 4 x credits. And then, pay Brad whatever he is now charging for tuning your Jeep. Mine was $300 for the 6MT tune and I think the auto transmission price was around $400 for tuning both the ECU and TCM.

Total all in with purchasing everything new was just over $900 for me. Well worth the cost of admission.

 

[LKG]

It depends, are you already in the HPTuners ecosystem and own an MPVI?

The new MPVI4 is $400 with the software suite. You have to send your ECU to HPT so they can unlock it, that's another $250 prep cost. Then you have to buy tuning credits @ $50 apiece. If you are GSPEC2, then it takes 2 x credits. GSPEC5 ECU's require 4 x credits. And then, pay Brad whatever he is now charging for tuning your Jeep. Mine was $300 for the 6MT tune and I think the auto transmission price was around $400 for tuning both the ECU and TCM.

Total all in with purchasing everything new was just over $900 for me. Well worth the cost of admission.

Thanks, I really apreciate that! Looks like my other hobbies are going to suffer for a while, haha.

 

[LSJKU]

To summarize, paraphrase, and state quite succinctly... It's shit.

 

[WXman]

Huh? Now I think you're just trolling. As someone who has driven 70's era SM420's, 465's, and 540's, I assure you, the M6 in these JL's throw like a sports car comparatively.

It was clearly a figure of speech. A funny (and true) one at that.

I've had everything from 1980s pickups with sticks to muscle cars with sticks to a Jeep JK Wrangler with a stick, and the Jeep was hands down the worst manual I've ever driven in my life. Just dreadful. I had a 1999 New Holland farm tractor that had a shorter throw than that Jeep.

Is the JL stick better? Marginally. Maybe. Probably not.

 

[bmpcamry09]

Thanks, I really apreciate that! Looks like my other hobbies are going to suffer for a while, haha.

Attached below is my tuning guide. I broke everything down so the average 1st grader can hopefully understand it. It has all the pricing scenarios and what not in it as well.

It’s kind of expensive, not going to lie, but what I tell people is it’s about the cost of 4 new tires these days . My cost of $300 or $400 for the tuning/revisions/datalogging is actually absurdly cheap considering I’ll give you multiple files for multiple octanes and you’ll never be waiting for days for email response.

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