The above map is to scale. So is the shift pattern.
Disclaimer - I like this car. A lot. After a weekend, I can go through gears in this car easier than Elizabeth Taylor went through husbands. Too soon?
Lets take a run through the gears.
Gears one through four are tight together, much like they should be on a four-speed gearbox. Only fifth seems to be in a different orbit. It's like they just stuck fifth gear into a 'box where only four had been before.
So let's look at that map.
First is in Beverly Hills. Nice place. Second is in Rolling Hills Estates. It's a nice place too, but it's going to take a while to get there. Just be patient. Third is all the way the hell back up in Hollywood. Don't worry, if you learned anything from your trip from Beverly Hills down to Rolling Hills, the trip back up should be a lot quicker. Fourth... fourth is in San Pedro. It's next to Rolling Hills Estates, but if you're not careful, you're going wind up back in Rolling Hills Estates and you're gonna have a problem. Rolling Hills and San Pedro are solid three wood apart. And much like the two cities themselves, what you can do in San Pedro, you can't get away with in Rolling Hills.
Now for fifth.
Fifth is in Upland. It's a hell of a long way to go. Much like Upland, the first time you go there, you start to wonder if you've gone too far, only to wind up there after you thought you couldn't possibly go any further east. A little blip of the throttle ensures you drop it into gear without a second thought.
Now comes the hard part.
Our 911's shift linkage is not self centering; once you're in Upland, it wants to stay in Upland. To get it back into fourth takes an act of faith. Upland to San Pedro. Pick the wrong exit and you wind up in Rolling Hills; you're going to pay. This is how I get there. I pull it out of fifth, and throw the lever west until it hits the stop above second. From there, I move it east, barely, until I think I'm over fourth and with a blip, I drop it into gear. Another blip to match the revs I hope are correct and then I let the clutch out and listen. A spike means I've gone to far and I'm in second and I'm going to have explaining to do. No spike means I'm right where I want to be and I just mash the throttle and revel in some flat six sound - I can also breath again.
For me, the lack of a self centering shifter is the most difficult part about this gearbox. I'd love to say how difficult this 911 is to drive, with the hopes of scaring off the rest of the staff, but the fact is, I really dig this car. It take some adaptation, but if you care enough to learn its ways, it rewards you with things only an air cooled 911 can. I want more.
Kurt Niebuhr, Photo Editor @ whatevertheslowodometersez
emajor says:
04:55 AM, 04/19/11
This is funny even if you don't live in LA.
pauldun170 says:
06:48 AM, 04/19/11
Two words: Rubber Bands
Macgyver could fix that self centering problem in 30's seconds.
altimadude05 says:
06:48 AM, 04/19/11
Blog post of the year!
hybris says:
06:53 AM, 04/19/11
Is there anyway to tighten up the linkage in anyway or is this just how 80's Porsche transmissions shifted?
vvk says:
07:26 AM, 04/19/11
> Blog post of the year!
Couldn't agree more.
hondanut says:
07:31 AM, 04/19/11
I agree....blog post o' the year.
arbita911sc says:
07:38 AM, 04/19/11
Yes...the 915 transmission (this is what it's called) is very tricky to get used to. There is something 911 owner's (w/ 915 transmissions only) have dubbed as the "money shift". This is when you are in 4th gear (usually on the track) and need to shift down to 3rd, however end up in first. This usually ends up with an engine rebuild which is why it's called the "money shift".
Aftermarket manufacturers have developed solutions to deal with this. The one I have in my car is from Seine Systems. It centers the shifter in the 3rd/4th plain like a normal car and gives you positive action for all gears. Great upgrade!
bobjonesesq says:
07:40 AM, 04/19/11
You get used to it. I converted my 1973 Super Beetle's transmission from a 4 speed to a 5 speed, and it, too, is not self centering. It takes a little while to get used to it, but it get's pretty easy after you drive it a while.
stress83 says:
08:02 AM, 04/19/11
This wit is why I prefer Edmunds. If only it were more consistent!
mmmmmmmm3 says:
08:17 AM, 04/19/11
The "money" shift is usually referenced as 5 to 2 but any over-rev shift could be a money shift.
bonzjr says:
08:41 AM, 04/19/11
"After a weekend, I can go through gears in this car easier than Elizabeth Taylor went through husbands. Too soon?"
No you can't. You'd need a seven-speed. And even with that you'd need to use one of the gears twice (overdrive switch?).
;)
stovt001 says:
09:31 AM, 04/19/11
While you and the 911 are in Upland come visit me. It's not a bad place to call home if you're on my kind of budget.
subytrojan says:
09:46 AM, 04/19/11
I think a 4-3 shift is a more common money shift (in general) than a 5-2 shift, at least in my own experience. :P I disengaged the clutch before redline in my WRX. In the 1987 Saab 900 LeMon I raced, the aftermarket rev limiter cut in *hard*. 5th was so close to 3rd in that gearbox. It was a pain.
greenpony says:
10:11 AM, 04/19/11
Thank you Kurt. I don't have to read any more blogs today.
t93 says:
10:56 AM, 04/19/11
Just pull straight back from 5th. There's a spring-loaded mechanism that pushes the shifter over to 4th (keeps it from going into reverse). If that doesn't happen or there's some grinding, either the mechanism is broken, or the shifter is out of alignment. (If it's the latter, it's a matter of fiddling with the connection to the coupler in the floor in front of the back seats. Kind of tricky to get right. If you pull off that shift boot you can see what's happening.)
t93 says:
11:00 AM, 04/19/11
By the way - you can replace the shift bushings... there are about 4 different plastic parts in there (two in the front, two in the coupler at the back) that wear and make shifting much harder than it should be.
funkymunky says:
11:24 AM, 04/19/11
Reminiscent of a VW bus my friend had in college. Sometimes 1st would be in Rolling Hills, but other times in Beverly Hills. Occasionally you'd make an unexpected trip from Hollywood to San Pedro for the 3rd-4th shift. Other times, it's not inconceivable that 1st would be in Upland, 2nd would be in Beverly Hills but then 3rd would be in Hollywood. Always an adventure. Sometimes we'd just have to pop start it down a hill and hope for the best.
The weird part is I didn't even go to college in Los Angeles.
davantriv says:
11:42 AM, 04/19/11
In what year was this map produced? I dont see the 60, 57, 605 or the 405! It's kind of weird seeing what the Los Angeles area looked like way back when.
boost4 says:
01:10 PM, 04/19/11
At least on the 4th to 5th upshift, if you only make it 80% of the way northeast and miss the shift, the consolation is that you end up at Glendora Mountain Road : )
g33t33b33 says:
02:33 PM, 04/19/11
Tyler Durden sez: "Oh I get it. It's very clever. How's that working out for you?"
Thanks for the laugh at old German engineering's expense!
ddoouugg says:
03:44 PM, 04/19/11
Rolling Hills and Rolling Hills Estates are NOT the same thing. Good analogy though.
stovt001 says:
05:38 PM, 04/19/11
"At least on the 4th to 5th upshift, if you only make it 80% of the way northeast and miss the shift, the consolation is that you end up at Glendora Mountain Road : )"
Ah but making it to Upland (in fact precisely at the spot Kurt placed 5th) leaves you at Mt Baldy Road, which connects to Glendora Ridge Road, which turns into GMR. Now that's a driving loop. And also one of my commute options.
bimmerjay says:
08:26 PM, 04/19/11
Great post!
teampenske3 says:
08:29 PM, 04/19/11
Ditto for blog post of the year.
Liking how Reverse is just randomly down in Santa Ana, what's up w/ that? Not interested in going into the mountains? (which is what would happen if it was directly across from 5th as it is on most normal five speeds)
v8vader says:
11:44 PM, 04/20/11
haha alright hometown! way to be referenced in a silly, absolutely true, and awesome way!