2018 cold shifting
 

Howdy y'all, I have a 2018 BRZ Ts with about 4K miles on it. I got it used with 3K on it. When its cold it really doesn't want to go into 2nd gear. It takes about 15 minutes & 5 miles of driving before it gets easier. I live in Hawaii where its 68 degrees at 6am in January. So, freezing temps aren't an issue. I'm curious if anyone else has experienced this.
Back in the mid 80's when I was a Mercedes technician, we would put Redline MTL Fluid in 300E's to make them shift when it was cold. Anyone try that?
Any help/thoughts are greatly appreciated, Kato

Yes.

Keep changing trans fluid til the problem goes away. For me 2-3 flushes did it. Tried Redline and Motul. For me personally Redline was better. Motul is best once the car is warmed up but not the best while it’s warming up.

Well I woundn't won't that particular oil weight, but I would put the recommended oil weight from Redline.

It helps, but it's still a few 5-10 minutes from a cold start that the shift feel nocthy at lest 1&2nd are.

I live in Greece where ambient temps this period are about 10C and have experienced the same exactly problem, I changed once to Motul Gear 300 with no big difference and recently to Redline MT85 that improved 70-80% the gear changes at least with these temperatures.
Plus I ordered the Mtec neutral springs that helped a lot in my problem

Based on your climate and very low mileage I'd wait a bit to see if it works itself out. This is a common "issue" with the platform but I wouldn't rush to start flushing fluids just yet... let it break in for a while.

One trick I use regularly (even after changing fluids at 30k kms) is to just row through all the gears 1-6 once or twice before I leave in the morning while waiting for revs to drop. This seems to loosen everything up and then I have no issues.

This^
It get's better when you have some miles behind you.

Same issue on my 2013 with 50k miles.
Didn't really notice it too much over the summer, but definitely a big issue when it was ~20F.
It was almost like uncomfortable how hard I had to pull to get it into 2nd gear. Obviously, I was pushing clutch pedal in all the way, shifting slowly and gently, but it was still odd.

Even when 50-60F, there is noticeable resistance going into 2nd gear when it's cold.

I swapped the fluid out for Redline MT85. I noticed zero difference in performance at any temp.

Pentosin MTF2 75w80. BMW oil, $25/qt, but worth it. 20 thousand miles and buttery. Even with a lightweight shift knob.

How do you shift? I have the same problem. So the first one or two gear changes, I just double clutch it. It is inconvenient, but not a big deal.

I changed to motul at around 32k. Not much difference. Even slightly worse, like when the car was new. I think the hard to shift issue gets better when the mtf is a bit worn/used.

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Try the MTEC shifter springs. I have that, the Whiteline shifter support and Perrin trans insert and I never have issues shifting like I used to when that whole area was stock.

My car gets notchy too when it gets below 60 degrees but improves when it's up to temperature. Check your clutch fluid level

Many thanks to all for your responses. I usually double clutch when first starting out, but that doesn't always help. I like the idea of rowing through all of the gears while waiting for the revs to come down. I'll try that. If that doesn't do it, I'll try switching the springs. I'm going to have to wait to change to Redline as there's none to be had around here. At least I know I'm not the only one experiencing this.
Kato

Many thanks to all for your responses. I usually double clutch when first starting out, but that doesn't always help. I like the idea of rowing through all of the gears while waiting for the revs to come down. I'll try that. If that doesn't do it, I'll try switching the springs. I'm going to have to wait to change to Redline as there's none to be had around here. At least I know I'm not the only one experiencing this.
Kato

I recommend just giving it a few thousand more miles to break in before swapping fluids around.

Otherwise, good luck.

My 2020 BRZ does the same thing but then again every car I've owned in the last 30 years has done it at one time or another. It usually happens before the car has totally warmed up and it feels like you have to give it a little nudge into second gear. There's a little resistance it but it will go into gear.

I don't drive very high-end cars - 2 Celicas, a tC, and now the BRZ and and the second gear cold nudge was always common. It usually goes away after about 15 minutes of driving and I don't think it's too much to worry about.

Over time, you will probably find yourself double clutching into 1st or reverse as your clutch and TOB experience normal wear... again nothing to worry about.

As others have mentioned the platform is a little less refined, and that was intentional. Personally I like the rawness of the car, all the way down to the lack of Jesus handles.

You guys complaining at 60 degF have it easy; try shifting when it is 0 degF! I had to reverse into parking spots and leave it in 1st, otherwise I'd be waiting 10 min before I could even move. Fortunately, it does get better with age. And after 30,000 miles I switched to Motul, which also helped quite a bit. Then I bought a 2nd car and the issue went away entirely!

Also, it is an excuse to learn how to double-clutch.

My experience differs.
Never before have I had a vehicle that has done this. Again, it's not a serious issue, just...odd? concerning? awkward? Not sure the right word.

I've never had a car that I've had to actively tell myself "okay, don't try to shift into 2nd gear like normal, I have to shift super slow and shove it through that weird resistance"

I'm talking about 20 year old shitboxes I've had. From 1995 Civic, 1994 Nissan hardbody, 2000 Tacoma, 2005 Tacoma (owned the 5spd/4cyl and 6spd/v6), 2003 Jetta, 1997 Boxster, 2004 Focus, etc. All of them over 100k miles with unknown fluid.

All of them have shifted pretty well, and perfectly consistent through each gear and temperature.
Again, not a huge issue, but absolutely something that needs to be updated in year-to-year tweaks.

I'm on my 2nd brz. The first one I went through about 6 different lots of tranny fluid trying to fix it, endless clutch pedal adjustments, etc. With each it felt better for a short while then back to how it was. My current car I just left stock and it feels no worse than the first car ever did.


These cars just have awkward gearboxes when cold (and sometimes when hot). I have also had no other cars in nearly 30 years of driving stick that pissed me off so much when the gear box is cold, but I've learnt to live with it. It's still my favourite car.

Oh, and I just set off in 2nd when it's really cold. Makes drifting out of side streets easier too...

yeah 2nd gear can be a bitch in the mornings. And thats here in an area of CA where it doesn't even get to freezing temps. I've found it helps to row through the gears before setting off.

It was pretty bad with the factory transmission fluid, swapped in motul 300 a couple weeks ago and going into first in the morning is even worse. But once it's properly warmed up it's a night and day difference in how much better it feels.

For the first 10 min of a drive, I'll shift 1-N-2 instead of 1 straight down into 2. This is all while holding the clutch down throughout the shifter movement (ie: not double clutching). I have no idea why this works well, especially with low revs in cold weather. That being said, I've been doing it here where it's -20C and the shifter is buttery smooth on stock fluid.

You guys are talking about upshifts right?

This is my first winter with the 86 and we've had a couple really cold mornings over the last weeks and I've had no problems with upshifts, even when the car isn't warmed up. It was -14C this morning and I had this thread in mind. I did a couple of stops on my commute before I got to main road. Nothing different on upshifts than when the car is warmed up or the outside temperature is above freezing. Obviously, it's not the time for a lazy left foot but like @Larphraulen said, it's buttery smooth on mine with stock fluid.

To me, the "issue" is with downshifts when it's cold. The second and first gear are nearly impossible to engage while moving without rev match (doesn't always work), double clutching or going through gears. It's no big deal and it makes me do longer stops than I would normaly do. It might even saved me from a ticket last week, so it's not all bad.

Oh and what about reverse? Mine is a bitch the colder it is...

This is what I do as well after reading about it from another thread. However it's become a permanent habit of mine even when the car is warmed up - it helps me with timing because of the rev-hang in first gear.

I have to be swift - while pausing in neutral for a brief moment - and trying to not press against the sides of the gate, it will slip into 2nd like butter and like it's perfectly synchronized.

When it's really sub-zero outside, I'll idle the car until the engine oil temp reaches 22*C on my Torque app. Then I'll row through 1-2-3-2-1 a few times to circulate the tranny fluid before driving off.

Sometimes the first shift into 2nd might take some muscle, but after that it's an easy flicking motion 1-N-2 I can do with my fingertips.

Oh and I'm on still on stock fluid. Considered Red Line MT-90 for a while but I've been able to live with how it shifts now.

Whats happening is that the shifter is hanging up on the reverse gate. I saw a vid on youtube, Straight Pipes, that showed that this is what is making the first/second shift difficult. I can confirm its true, and so can you. ;)

That was a Raiu edition that was passed around to all of the local journalists including a buddy of mine and they all reported the same thing. I think something was wrong with the stupid STi short shifter in that Raiu. I personally think the stock shifter is fine and the car does not need the short shifter.

I did read about an actual Raiu owner on this forum also having difficulty shifting from 1st to 2nd. Possibly more evidence that the short shifter was a bad idea.

Its the same tranny. Lets put it this way. With that in mind, I can avoid the reverse gate and shift perfectly even when cold.

Wouldn't be a bad idea to check if your reverse lockout plate is aligned correctly based on your symptoms.

https://demos.starbase7.net/t3Portal..._rm_index.html

Drivetrain > TL70 Manual > Shifter Lever Assembly > Installation > 11. ADJUST SHIFT LEVER POSITION

A few people on here have had to adjust this plate on their stock shifter that was misaligned from the factory. I had to install and align mine after a short lived experience with an IRP shifter and have had no issues before or after.

I doubt the STI shifter itself is to blame. It's a direct drop in replacement of the OEM one into the same carrier, and uses the same plate. My money would be on the plate not being aligned properly.

Im in the habit of rev matching 1st and 2nd when it is cold. I will blip the throttle just go to in first, and if second doesn't go in nicely I'll do the same. Seems to be working for me for years. Im about to change my trans and diff fluid next weekend with the same motul 300 that is currently in there. I'll update if I notice any difference.

Great link, very interesting!! :thanks: