I have a 3.6 997.2 and my tranny feels great.. in fact, it's the best I have ever felt on any car.

 

I have a 997.2 S and the transmission is great. I don't down shift for slowing. That is a trucker's technique, they have a special "Jake" valve so they can use the engine to slow the heavy weight of the truck. They double clutch also. Not necessary, or good for, a light weight car. Around town I'm lazy, I go from 1st to 3rd to 5th or 6th depending on the speed. I've seen average milage around 31 - 33 when driving easy. You should really only need to down shift after you have slowed, or while slowing, in preparation for accelerating again. Not as a means of slowing. That's bad for baby.

 

This is an excellent writeup and I agree with everything said here. If I could add two points:
When the transmission is cold (my Ford GT is legend for having a balky 1-2 shift when cold), in addition to the double clutch technique noted in this post, I often use the 1-3-2 techique. Hold the clutch down, shift from 1-3 (do not release the clutch) and then shift to 2nd. Slowly and gently. It works well on a cold Porsche as well. It's a well known technique for getting going while things are getting up to speed.
Separately, unless you are racing/tracking/etc, and even if you have unlimited funds, I let the machine tell me what it likes to do. I know this sounds like a very zen California thing, but forcing the shift lever in to 1st just feels like the wrong thing to do. Using the transmission and clutch to slow the car when on the streets is just harsh on the machinery. In general, if you have to use significant force to operate the controls of the car (or motorcycle or airplane) you are either misusing the vehicle (i.e. operating the vehicle in a mode for which it was not designed) or there is something badly wrong.
I'm amazed by people who floor their SUV's from a red light, or wind out their Toyota's to the red line. If they really enjoy these things, they are driving the wrong vehicle.

 

Thanks to all who have provided their input/feedback for this thread. It sounds like lots of you are experiencing the same 997.2 6-speed "notchy/clunky" 1st to 2nd gear shifting that I am, yet several of you are experiencing a "smooth as butter" tranny. I am now guessing this might not be an inherent problem with the new 997.2 and their newly designed 6-speed box but maybe isolated quality problems with either the transmission/shift linkage/clutch adjustment. I am going to experiment with a few things: 1) Try to concentrate on pushing the clutch in as far as possible during gear changes and 2) Slowing down the shift speed (although this is a high performance sports car and shouldn't require "*****" shifts!). I will provide further feedback.

For those who said that I should just double clutch for shifts, I say NO WAY!! This is a $100,000 high performance machine and shouldn't have to be driven like an 18-wheel Peterbuilt!!

For those who said that all 6-speeds have this "notchy" shifting, I say BUNK! My 2003 996 C4S was sweet shifting, as is my 2009 Boxster S and almost all of my previous Japanese cars such as Honda Preludes and Acuras and Mazdas.

And for those who said that there is no need to downshift as much and just use the brakes more, I say COME ON!! Once again, this is a high performance sports car and the reason that people opt for the 6-speed in a Porsche is to really get the true sports car experience, and that includes spirited driving and enjoying the thrill of a perfectly executed heel-and-toe downshift with throttle-blip rev-matching (especially with the sweet sound of the aftermarket mufflers that I have!!).

And thank you to "atr911" for your input on possible adjustment of the "two selector shafts" on the shift linkage/transmission. I will explore that with my Porsche service guys.

Thanks again for all the inputs and I hope folks will continue to make inputs on this thread. And for those out there who have the same problem as me, I urge you to contact PCNA and complain - the squeaky wheel will get the grease (maybe!!).

 

You are correct in what you say. If the dealer is telling you this is normal then i'd ask for a drive in another car the same as yours. Ill be v surprised if it changes the same. Yes you should always depress the clutch fully and take a nano second between each shift to neutralise between each gear shift but im sure youre doing that now. I agree that to shift from scond into 1st should be avoided (wherever possible) unless the car is at standstill and i also agree that heel and toe technque to match gear speed to engine rpms is optimum way to minimise wear and stress to synchros (i always do that) and, is more fun anyway. If the box gives a clunk from 1st going into second and, from 3rd going back to second then there is definately an issue in my books. The C2S I had prior to my 997tt developed a clunk on the odd occasion going from second back to 1st at virtual standstill and was always tight between 1st/2nd/to 3rd and back down) same like you report. Sometimes it would not want to go into second at all coming down from 3rd. Eventually it all went pair shaped after i heard a clicking sound in ist when moving slow in traffic. Took it into porsche and they finally acknowledged something was seriously wrong with the box even though i had complained since i had the car of the tight shifting only to be told it was normal. Yes I had driven other C2S's and knew better. Sometimes dealer technicians dont know but say they do. I wound up having a brand new drive unit (gearbox/diff) fitted. Failed gbox went back to P AG and I was later told it had nothing to do with my driving (I knew that would be the case as I knew id been using the tranny properly). I believe the failure may well have emanated from either a pressure plate fault or an assembly fault within the box. Anyway.. good luck. One should be mindfull that out of the 1,000s of boxes that are manufactured not every gearbox is made perfect and there is always a percentage, small as it may well be, that dont go together properly, same with p/plates and the installation onto flywheel.

 

speed21,
Good info - thanks!! I will definitely ask to drive one of the Porsche dealer's other 997.2 6-speeds and compare and then keep holding their feet to the fire (as well as PCNA!). Details to follow.

 

Shift quality definitely does vary between cars. There are quite a few threads on the subject.

Like speed21 I had a car with a particularly troublesome shift and Porsche elected to exchange the complete gearbox. That was a 997.1 C2. However my current 997.2 C2S is much, much better. I can change (up or down) pretty much at will, so long as the rev range is sensible of course.

And yes, I do double clutch but no, I do not see that as anything at all related to how how truckies drive. It's just my habit from years of driving Italian cars with weak synchro's plus years of driving on the track. Personally I believe it's a good skill to learn that saves unnecessary wear and tear and improves balance and control. Without it you'll struggle to safely drive a manual car quickly.

 

I have had many 911's over the last 30 years and virtually evey one has had a "notchy" first gear. It is definitely a characteristic of this car. It is more common when the car is cold but sometimes occurs when it is fully warmed up. If first is tough to engage, shift to second and then back to first. Also, avoid downshifting into first except when at a dead stop. Other than that, just forget about it and enjoy the car.

 

BTW the new drive unit (G/box/diff) shifted like heaven..... nothing at all like the old one so that blows away this myth that all Porsche boxes are tight, sticky and baulky .
The new GBx shift was slightly firm as it should be but very precise and each gear change, particularly the first 3 gears, were an absolute joy to shift up and down . Porsche gearboxes are renowned for the precision and pleasure of their shift operation...not the other way round as some would have you believe .
My old box had also failed over 1 year outside of warranty but Porsche true to their word replaced the unit entirely free on the basis they found no driver error (which they did) . They never did provide me the reason behind the problem nor why the box was tight shifting and clunky other than to say it had nothing to do with me . The only real pain was knowing that I had missed out on the enjoyment of owning a car with a nice shift for the best part of my ownership (which is what i paid for) . My 997tt box is definately more "rifle bolt" in its shift from ist to second to 3rd... etc.. and is still an absolute pleasure to operate . I wouldnt be getting hoodwinked by any P car salesman or workshop staff saying your current shift is normal thats for sure . Again....good luck .

 

The perfect shift belonged to my Cayman S.

The 997.2 is a nice shifter. A wee bit harder and notchy when cold but thats what I expect from cars like the Porsche. My M3's were like that too. When cold, so especially in winter, you would have to be slower and more in tune with what the car wanted. When fully warmed up and during performance driving, the shifter always felt second nature, and extension of the driver.

 

I've found the 6sp in my 997.2 to be silky smooth. However, I don't go into first unless at a complete stop and only after going into 2nd (my first car was a Benz with no syncro in 1st, so old habits never die). Second is a little stiff when cold, but a double clutch solves that problem.

My only complaint is the length of the shift, which I find long. I plan to replace with a short shift kit, but do expect to give up some silkiness after the conversion.

 

I think this is the easiest manual sports car in the world to drive smoothly. That said, it has taken me a few thousand miles to figure out how to upshift smoothly from 1st-2nd without damaging the clutch. I first tried giving a little gas as I let out the clutch in 2nd, but this will burn the clutch and you can even hear an odd mechanical noise from clutch slippage I believe if you do this regularly (perhaps the noise some of you were describing). My solution (which I borrowed from my motorcycle riding technique) is not to put the clutch to the floor for the 1-2 shift. Its a high clutch, so 1/2 down should do it. All the other shifts I put the clutch to the floor. As for clunky downshifting, the synchros for 2nd are clearly inferior to the other gears in my car. Until the transmission is really warmed up (usually takes 2x that of the coolant temp. to warm up - oil temp is prob. good indicator of when the trans. is warmed up) don't downshift to 1st or 2nd and double clutch the upshifts a few times. Also remember that short shift kits make cold shifting harder.

I think this transmission is incredible, and one of the cars primary assets

Good luck,
David

 

Hi,
Any updates?
Did you drive other 997.2 car to compare?

 

I started a thread on this in the "other forum". It definitely seems to be pretty standard for the 997, but I don't think it's a normal or okay thing for cars to behave like this.

http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforum...-1st-gear.html

 

Sometimes in the morning I experience the same thing. What I do is shift slower, as in wait a second after clutching to shift. Hope that helps.