5Speed vs 6Speed

What's the difference between the two?

Difference: one extra gear!

Haha what kind of question is that?

Difference: one extra gear!

Don't laugh just because he wants to know something. Do you know exactly how a sequential gearbox works without looking it up on Google?

And another question, would a 6 speed gearbox be better for fuel economy and since there is probably a longer ratio between 3rd and 4th on a 5 speed does that mean a 5 speed would have better mid-latteral acceleration? Also, why would a 4 speed be more ideal for drag racing? Answer me that one Poindexter.:naughty:

You have me on one thing, I have no clue what a sequential gear box does. I know that for drag racing you don't really want that many gears because every shift is going to take up more time, so the longer you can stretch out a gear the better. Thats why generally vehicals with broader torque bands will fare well in a drag race.

Well on some 6-speeds you have two overdrives which allows for better fuel economy, for example the Corvette Z06 gets 26 mpg hwy even with 505hp.

Don't laugh just because he wants to know something.

I didnt. I just gave him a simple, barebones response.

Theoretically, a 6-speed will always have better performance and/or fuel economy than a 5-speed. However, when you consider real-world factors, such as the aspect ratio of your tires, aerodynamics, shift lag, and traction, the answer isn't always as clear.

6 speed is also better when the road gets twisty. why do you think the new M5 has 7 gears? when you have 500hp you don't really need 7 gears, and your quarter time would be better with less (although not much since sequential gearboxes shift incredibly fast nowadays)if you didn't have so many, but with more gears, you can always find the perfect ratio going into and coming out of turns

Again, though, that's situational. Let's say that the perfect speed for coming out of a corner is 38 mph. Car A, with a 7-speed transmission, has a 2nd gear sweet spot of 33 mph, and a 3rd gear sweet spot of 43 mph. Car B, with a 5-speed transmission, has a 2nd gear sweet spot of 38 mph. The 5-speed is going to be the superior option when coming out of that corner, because its second gear will put at exactly the right speed. I will admit, though, that having more gears increases your chances of coming out of a corner fastest.

I will admit, though, that having more gears increases your chances of coming out of a corner fastest.

bingo :boink:

I didnt. I just gave him a simple, barebones response.

Sorry, that response was meant for BlackGT2k's remark, which he actually ended up responding quite nicely to.:grinyes:

Anyway, according to this site (http://auto.howstuffworks.com/sequential-gearbox1.htm) a sequential transmission is one that has a drum gear that ensures you go through every gear in sequence without the worry of skipping a gear, so for example if you want to go from 1st to 3rd you automatically go through 2nd. It also doesn't seem to need a clutch eithe.

As for CVTs they seem to be like automatic but instead use a pulley system of some kind to operate a couple with many tiny teeth that have ratios set to ensure that the engine stays at the best rpm for peak hp and torque. Anyone else is welcome to fill me in or correct me on this.

Thats interesting about the sequential, I haven't ever researched them. As for the CVT, I had a friend who worked at a ford dealer and he said that the CVT was one of the strangest things to drive. He said that it would accelerate to a certain RPM and there was no shift but it would gain speed as a normal car would. He said he was left waiting for a shift that never happened, I can immagine that being a little odd to drive.

my parents have a ford freestyle with the cvt, and it does take some getting used to. it's far from perfect, but they did a pretty decent job of it their first go-round. i'm amazed how well the cvt uses every horsepower to make a really underpowered car go. granted, it's still pretty slow (it's 4112 lbs and only 200 hp), but i don't think it's nearly as slow as it would be with a 5spd (especially since it probably would have had a 4spd if it weren't for the cvt). also, with the cvt you can still get 25mpg out of a pretty heavy, grossily underpower car.
it's a shame they're not selling very well because they're really good cars. it has a lot better handling then you'd expect. it's got awd, really comfortable seats, really good ergonomics and driving position, and some really nice options (6disc cd player/mp3 player, and the flip-down dvd player is especially nice for long trips).
i'm telling you, if it had three engine options, the 3.0L V6 it has now, a bigger 6-cylinder engine making around 250hp, and then the V8 out of the Volvo XC90 (i hear they're on the same platform, so it would fit quite nicely) that makes 300hp, and you would sell every freestyle you could make.
....okay, so i got really off-topic there. sorry about that.

Now...I know thanks.

The Freestyle and 500 were slated to get a 3.5L Duratec making ~250 hp, but it wasn't done in time, It should be out for '07.

Yeah I read about the new 3.5 duratec, I heard it may go into the V6 mustang as well.

it's a shame they're not selling very well because they're really good cars. it has a lot better handling then you'd expect. it's got awd, really comfortable seats, really good ergonomics and driving position, and some really nice options (6disc cd player/mp3 player, and the flip-down dvd player is especially nice for long trips).
i'm telling you, if it had three engine options, the 3.0L V6 it has now, a bigger 6-cylinder engine making around 250hp, and then the V8 out of the Volvo XC90 (i hear they're on the same platform, so it would fit quite nicely) that makes 300hp, and you would sell every freestyle you could make.
....okay, so i got really off-topic there. sorry about that.

Haha staying off topic...I think the freestyle isn't selling well because Its generally pretty bland, like its sibling the Ford 500 it really doesn't command attention...Its a practical but generally boring automobile...and with competitors making practical, attractive and fun to drive vehicles, your going to get left behind...

And about the CVT...I know that when your pulling hard the engine just stays at redline for as long as you need it to...thats because the gears are constantly changing ratios to give the best ratio for that speed...but apparently the 3.0L Duratec sounds awful at high revs and your gonna stay at redline for a solid 10-15 secs

it's true, the 3.0 really doesn't sound very good, nor does it perform very well. that 3.5 will do wonders for the car i'm sure, but i hear the freestyle is being replaced pretty quickly because of sales anyway.
i agree with the bland styling. i like personally, i see it more as in a simple, clean looking car, but i definitely agree that it doesn't exactly stand out in a crowd and say, "buy me! i'm a fun, exciting car!"
if it only had a better engine...everythink else is in place: it has really good handling and road manners (relative to other cars the same size and weight of course), it's got good ergonomics and comfortable seats, awd, and a dvd player.
i'm amazed how much more attactrive a powerful engine makes a car look. The Evo is the perfect example

Now I am really confused and want to know the truth.
If you guys are saying that the more gear the better chance to go fast, so why are you guys saying the less gears the faster the car is in the drag race?

Also, if more gear is better, wouldn't it be the best to have CVT?

Also, if more gear is better, wouldn't it be the best to have CVT?

eventually they will be. right now, cvt's are pretty new, and the technology is far from perfect. in theory though, cvt transmissions will eventually allow cars to out-accelerate vastly more powerful cars and at the same time, give them far better gas mileage than less powerful, economic minded cars. we'll just have to wait and see if cvt's start becoming any more popular in the years to come.

If you guys are saying that the more gear the better chance to go fast, so why are you guys saying the less gears the faster the car is in the drag race?

more gears is generally faster around a track. more gears give you a better chance of being in the right ratio for optimal power coming out of a turn, but less gears is generally better for drag racing because shifting takes a lot of time. so the less you have to shift the better (to a degree).
which is why cvt's are theoretically the best. it removes any lapses in power due to shifting, and is able to hold the engine in the most powerful spot in it's rpm range the whole race

But the CVT has been made since 1980's.
They still have not figured out how to make it as good as AT or just because the cost is much higher?

the important thing is the ratio between gears.
having an extra gear means you can keep them shorter and closer together, allowing you to stay in the rev range with maximum torque to keep acceleration as stong for as long as possible.
in some cases, that extra gear is used as an extra long cruising (6th) gear instead of being used to aid acceleration.

But the CVT has been made since 1980's.
They still have not figured out how to make it as good as AT or just because the cost is much higher?

that's a wonderful question. i don't really know. my guess would be that they tried it back in the 80's, but they didn't really have the technology to make it very good, so it just died out. now your seeing them in more and more cars: the new ford cars (freestyle, and 500), the nissan murano and i think i remember a cvt being in one the hybrid cars. there's probaby more, but that's all i can think of off the top of my head.
anyway, that's why i think it's just now becoming more prevalent; we know the incredible potential of the cvt and now we have the technology to finally start developing being it.

Actually according to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continuously_variable_transmission) or who ever contributed to that article there are several different kinds of CVT. However, according to this article (http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Car_Care/Notes_From_The_Road/I_Want_My_CVT.aspx) CVT was first developed by GM 1930s. I even recall looking up a high end luxury car from 1938 that had CVT, probably the pulley kind.

CVT seems like an interesting/efficient concept to fully develop.
Anotherthing on 5spd vs 6spd. Generally the 5-speed gears are larger, as there is more space allowing bigger gears. In effect the 5-speed tranny generally handles more power than the same transmission except with an extra gear. Ex.- S15 Silvia has a 6-speed and for several racers it broke under harsh conditions, unlike the 5-speed. Another example is acura RSX and the type-S.
Hope my words made sense.

Another good example is Mercedes' AMG cars. As far as I know, all of them are using Mercedes' venerable 5-speed automatic, not the 7-speed used by cars such as the SLK350. Why not use the 7-speed in, say, the SL65 AMG? Because 600+ horsepower would tear it apart!