Manual Transmission Newbie’s

[Capricorn]

Its been about 20 plus years since I last drove a stick as a daily driver, Having fun with the manual but have a question what gear is the best for normal highway driving 4th or 5th gear? I’m usually going about 65

Cruising at 65 mph - 5th.
Accelerate with 4th.

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[Deleted member 59498]

65 6th gear, you only down shfit when you need it. It is not complicated, auto trans do it everyday.

 

[omnitonic]

In my bone stock Willys, commuting between the Roanoke and New River valleys every day, I eventually discovered through trial and error that I should just leave it in 4th forever and always. I got worse fuel economy using 5th and 6th. I tried using them in different scenarios, like rolling off one of the steeper grades, and I always found that running it in direct (4th gear) resulted in the best fuel economy.

After I put on the bigger tires, still with the stock 3.45 gears, I found that 5th and 6th were no longer viable for anything. Not surprisingly.

After months of driving it like a 4-speed, I finally got regeared to 4.56. I'm still figuring out the best way to drive it. It seems like driving it the "natural way" is working out best. What's natural to me is roughly the gear number being good for n5 that in miles per hour. 1st up to 15 mph, 2nd to 25, 3rd to 35, 4th to 45, 5th to 55, 6th to 65. That's if I'm just easing along, which I usually am. Drop one gear if I'm in more of a hurry. Drop two if I'm really in a hurry. With these 4.56 gears, if I want to show my ass, this thing will really rip.

There just isn't much difference between 5th and 6th, so if I'm in 6th and I need to speed up, I usually just go straight to 4th. When I'm accelerating onto the highway, I've been shifting "in a hurry," so I'm running 65 in 4th gear, and when I get up to speed, I usually just slide straight over to 6th. When I'm going up enough of a grade that 6th isn't holding speed, and if I'm not in a hurry, that's when I slip down to 5th. 5th has become the new "put it in gear and forget it" gear, where I can cruise all the way home at speed without shifting, if I don't feel like it.

I realize having a manual transmission means I signed up to shift gears, but rowing in and out of a high overdrive is both tedious, and it seems to make my fuel economy worse instead of better. That fact has been true across all three incarnations of my Jeep.

 

[Trainman]

Best answer out there on this!

I buy this answer to, driving sticks for years it a feel process for me, ie., the engine, speed of the vehicle, and road conditions will tell you what gear you need to be in. Sounds like many of you are wanting more power all the time and pic a lower gear to be in that range. A stick Wrangler is not for everyone, it's the sport of driving and enjoying the drive where you are in control, with an automatic it is more less controlling you.

 

[HungryHound]

Don't overthink it. You'll eventually get the feel of it and won't be looking at numbers. Bottom line: the higher the gear, the better the mpg. The Jeep will grumble at you when it wants a lower gear.

 

[RomerDawg65]

I buy this answer to, driving sticks for years it a feel process for me, ie., the engine, speed of the vehicle, and road conditions will tell you what gear you need to be in. Sounds like many of you are wanting more power all the time and pic a lower gear to be in that range. A stick Wrangler is not for everyone, it's the sport of driving and enjoying the drive where you are in control, with an automatic it is more less controlling you.

Thanks

if you bought a brand new Jeep, please don't let it rip high in the rev band for the first 1000 miles or so. I got a stick and like you, this is my second Stick Jeep in 21 years. Having a blast but trying to keep the revs low. On a straight-level road, 4th gear will be a bit too short at 65. 5th may work better but you may shift to 4th if you want to pass someone or if the road elevation changes. I have not taken the Jeep to the highway so I've barely selected 6th gear yet.

Us

 

[JLBoucher]

Its been about 20 plus years since I last drove a stick as a daily driver, Having fun with the manual but have a question what gear is the best for normal highway driving 4th or 5th gear? I’m usually going about 65

I've been a manual transmission all my life and yes, the Wrangler's 3.73 gear ratio can be tricky during your first rides.

Keep in mind the 5th and the 6th are overdrive gears, nothing else. You'll need to clutch down to 4th to have anybody home, if you want to pass a country road or if you want to accelerate.

I barely used the 6th gear. I really have to be cruising for more than 100 kilometers (62 miles) to use it, and it's strictly for gas economy reasons.

5th has a tad more life and can do the trick if you're going up a hill at high speed.

You'll soon enough get how the transmission wants you to work. Once you'll get there, don't worry, you'll have a ton of fun.

P.S.: the 6MT changes its manners, depending if you're on 2H, 4H or 4L. So keep that in mind.

 

[R00STER]

Highway driving preferences aside, how are you all keeping your butt on the ground in 2nd when the roads are wet and you are on KO2s?

Once above 2500 in 2nd, that pentastar finally finds some torque and it magically turns into 70s pony car with my rearend going sideways.

Don't get me wrong I love it, but im not so sure my wife and 15 yr old petrmit drver enjoy as much. Is it better to drive in 4 Hi when the roads are wet, or will that mess up the drivetrain?

 

[bjm00se]

Don't get me wrong I love it, but im not so sure my wife and 15 yr old petrmit drver enjoy as much. Is it better to drive in 4 Hi when the roads are wet, or will that mess up the drivetrain?

Assuming you don't have the 4-Auto transfer case,

If it's frosty/icy/really slick, yes 4H helps with traction.

If it's just a wet road, leave it in 2h and apply the skinny pedal a bit more judiciously.

Two cents of advice from a random dude on the internet. Subject to prior sale. Additional fees may apply. Contestants may have received compensation for their participation.

 

[omnitonic]

Once above 2500 in 2nd, that pentastar finally finds some torque and it magically turns into 70s pony car with my rearend going sideways.

The torque curve on the Pentastar is definitely weird, and takes some getting used to. It seems to be making power at lower RPMs, and then you hit the band when it actually starts making real power, and the transition isn't always smooth. For a relatively small and relatively wimpy engine, this thing really has some ass at higher revs.

Another side effect of this is the way it behaves going off a hill in 4 low in a fixed gear. Gravity pushes, the revs climb. At a certain point, somewhere between 2500 and 3000, the engine braking effect becomes so strong that it lugs down to about 1500, and then the cycle repeats. Creeping off a hill just letting the gear hold you back is this weird rocking chair kind of phenomenon.

Now that I'm really thinking about it, I'm not even sure why that is. Is it actually making torque when the gears are pushing the valve train and the pistons? It sure behaves that way. Especially if you're letting the engine hold you back in a relatively high gear, like 3rd.

rrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrr

I've never driven anything else that behaved that way. It's weird. Hey, I'm not griping about it. It just took awhile to figure out how to make this thing move efficiently.

 

[OllieChristopher]

I'm getting nauseous reading this thread. After over 45+ years worth of manuals and driving huge trucks I'm done!!

Heck I'm even running a Rekluse on my dual sport Beta LOL!!

 

[BobW]

On flat highway, 6th.

 

[me109stock]

I have over 60k on my JLUR 6-Speed - all stock suspension and wheels. I commute 25 miles to/from work 5x per week, travel to the hills on the weekends, and up and down I5 (windy and hilly in sections). The best thing about a manual transmission... YOU select the gear. Use whatever gear works at the time for the conditions. You should be able to feel if adding right pedal is bogging the engine or making you go faster. If it isn't going faster, downshift. The engine will bog if you try to accelerate or climb a hill when you are cruising at 2k RPM. It seems pretty happy accelerating or climbing at 2500-3000 RPM. I would guess that's where the torque curve peaks (I haven't looked them up).
Cruising to/from work, I'm never in a hurry and typically follow behind a semi to save gas (I average 22+ mpg commuting, but it's flat freeway driving). I'm always in 6th gear, milking the jeep along maximizing my MPGs. I can slowly pass by the semi I'm following still in 6th if he happens to slow down, but if I'm jumping in front of someone to pass I'll downshift to 5th or sometimes 4th.
Entering freeways is a PITA - If you accelerate and drop into 4th too soon, you are dead. I usually stay in 3rd until I'm up to speed (60+). The gear range between 3rd and 4th in my opinion is too large - it would be nice if they were spaced a little closer.
On hills it's a crapshoot. Once you start slowing down in 6th, by the time you downshift to 5th you're already to slow and then down to 4th. You have to drive predictively and downshift early if you want to stay in the sweet zone.
I'm close to upgrading to 37s, and will run the 4.10 gears initially but plan to go to 5.13s. I'd rather have lower gears to select from (or skip) at the bottom and a shorter gear on top than be geared perfect at the bottom and useless at the top.
For reference, my other car is my go-fast car (Porsche Boxster S). It will pull in 6th gear at 65 mph - or do 70 in 3rd... very different driving experience.

 

[me109stock]

Highway driving preferences aside, how are you all keeping your butt on the ground in 2nd when the roads are wet and you are on KO2s?

Teach your right foot how to control itself...

 

[Jeep55]

I live in Florida where the roads are flat as a pancake. On the interstate, I normally drive 65-70 mostly in 6th gear. Sometimes I will downshift to 5th gear if I need pass another vehicle. All depends on the situation and driving conditions.

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