5 or 6 speed?
#21
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Thread Starter
My daily driver is a 2012 Jetta TDI. It's a six speed and I use all the gears when I drive. I drive about 80 miles a day to and from work. Some City driving, most highway. I know it doesn't really compare to a Corvette, but I love that car and the six speed transmission. That's what got me thinking of changing my 71. Then when I found out about silver sport, that pretty much cemented it. I just wondered which way to go....five speed or a six speed.
#22
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I guess if you have a small engine that you have to keep the RPM'S up to get it to go but all Corvettes have enough HP to not have to be shifted all the time which in daily driving I find irritating.
#25
Le Mans Master
What one person finds irritating, another finds to be a lot of fun. I enjoy my 6 speed behind my 496 big block. Maybe a 2 speed Powerglide should be standard for street Corvettes?
#26
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Do you shift through all 6 gears just driving in town to the store? My 4 Corvettes are all 4-speeds with 3:08 to 4;11'S so I do like to shift some times. All I am saying is most of the time one doesn't need many gear changes. I also have a Jeep with a 5 speed that I play in the desert here in AZ.
#27
Le Mans Master
Do you shift through all 6 gears just driving in town to the store? My 4 Corvettes are all 4-speeds with 3:08 to 4;11'S so I do like to shift some times. All I am saying is most of the time one doesn't need many gear changes. I also have a Jeep with a 5 speed that I play in the desert here in AZ.
When my '75 was built, it had a 3.36 rear and a 4 speed. The national speed limit was also 55 mph. After my. First cross country drive taching 3200 rpm at 65 mph, I decided that OD was a necessity.
Our cars were built in a different era and high speed cruising was not a US auto maker imperative. I want a car that can do it all and my 6 speed gives me that.
Last edited by SteveG75; 12-29-2018 at 11:16 AM.
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kenba (12-30-2018)
#29
Advanced
I have the TKO600 5 speed with .64 OD from SilverSport Transmissions. I have 4.11 gears so the .64 OD made a dramatic difference at interstate speeds as my rpms dropped to 2300 at 70 mph.
Customer service from SST is outstanding.
I chose the 5 speed as I was installing myself and didn’t want to do any fabrication. The 5 speed completely changed the car. If I had it to do over, I would have added the hydraulic clutch kit.
Customer service from SST is outstanding.
I chose the 5 speed as I was installing myself and didn’t want to do any fabrication. The 5 speed completely changed the car. If I had it to do over, I would have added the hydraulic clutch kit.
Last edited by fms93gt; 12-29-2018 at 08:25 PM.
#31
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1-4 around town. Some of our major surface roads are 50 mph so nice to have option to lower rpms. Majority of highway around here is 70mph limit with most people cruising at least 5 over. 5th and 6th work good for me on the highway. Use highways a lot to avoid surface roads.
When my '75 was built, it had a 3.36 rear and a 4 speed. The national speed limit was also 55 mph. After my. First cross country drive taching 3200 rpm at 65 mph, I decided that OD was a necessity.
Our cars were built in a different era and high speed cruising was not a US auto maker imperative. I want a car that can do it all and my 6 speed gives me that.
#32
#33
4.11 = 58.63 MPH
3.73 = 65 MPH
3.55 = 67.88 MPH
3.36 = 71.72 MPH
3.08 = 78.24 MPH
So if you don't get near these speeds @ 3000 RPM something else is going on with the speedo gauge.
So to get 3200 RPM going 65 MPH with a stock tire size you would need a 3.95 gear ratio. So something else is going on.
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kenba (12-31-2018)
#34
Le Mans Master
The OD makes freeway driving much more comfortable with my current configuration of BBC sidepipe convertible.
#35
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Some of us like the purr of the engine at 3000 RPM'S especially with factory side pipes & the top down. Thought that's why one buys a sports/ muscle car. Different strokes for different fokes.
#36
People like different things at different times. So if you have the money and are ready to upgrade then go for the most options you can afford.
The problem is if you have no money you don't have options / freedom to choose so you stick with what you have until you are ready or have the ability to make a change.
If you want your car to change, you must first change yourself.
Last edited by cagotzmann; 12-31-2018 at 01:13 PM.