Possibly noob question from a not so noob manual driver
 

Ok, new to the forum, pls go easy. Also posting from phone so I apologize for any shorthand or typos. I just bought a white Subaru BRZ. Love the car. Even with king concerns I want to address in a minute, I am very happy but I can’t say I’m not looking for some peace of mind. I have drove exclusively manua for the last 10 years now, learned on manual and driven both manual and automatic longer, but just manual for about 10 years. I just got a brz and took a risk on pre inspected because at the test drive I really didn’t feel anything weird, and it does have a buyback but I really like the car and don’t want to give it up so I am looking for thoughts and insight... getting into second is a pain. 4k rpm minimum to up shift shift smoothly and first is jerky. Not slipping jerky, just, very touchy. For a car that I can clear 35 in first gear, I would expect a little more leeway on the acceleration. Maybe I’m just spoiled and out of practice though because I haven’t driven much in the last few years since moving to New Jersey. Once in second, my low RPM tolerance is pretty bad. Below 2800 and it makes some subtle sorta clunky noises. Sounds like an engine with rancid gunned up oil... but also no slipping. If I try to shift before 4k on a cold transmission then I struggle to get in gear and occasional I can hear the synchro but it’s not the sound I think of going bad, just sorta heavy sounding if that makes sense. The engine oil was sludge when I bought it so I think the transmission fluid just needs to be changed. Doing that tomorrow. I still want to hear your thoughts. I occasionally get a smell from the transmission on acceleration and I don’t have that with any of my other cars but I’m not feeling any slip so I think it’s just old transmission fluids but I also can’t feel much in the clutch tbh so I really can’t be positive. As much as I love the car it doesn’t give as much feedback as many other manuals. I am just hoping for some opinions and thoughts. Doing my best not to let my worries blow the sound of this out of proportion but also want to make sure I cover all the issues.

Sorry for the block. Like I said, phone.


Thank you so much and with how much I love the car, I hope to be here often, just maybe in a less depressing section. Lol

I never got the first to second shift down. it was always jerky for me.

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I have a tune, OFT.
1- 1st is jerky, yes.
2- Going to 2nd if cold is not easy under 3.5/4 k. Over 4k is so smooth.
3- Change your fluids, should be fine.

Enjoy your car.

If the engine oil was pretty gross, I recommend changing it and the filter again in 500 to 1000 miles. Something like Pennzoil Plat will give the engine a pretty good scrubbing and it's always good to get the gunk out. It never hurts to change the transmission and differential lube. You'll find a number of how-tos and recommendations on the board. I personally like Redline MT90 in the gearbox and Motul 300 (non-lsd) in thr diff.

Shifting these cars is an acquired taste. First to second can be notchy when cold, even with good lube in the box. Warmed up, my car is fine. The keys I've found are to 1) make sure I get into the habit of pulling the shifter straight back and once that is programmed into muscle memory, 2) not to overthink it. Once, my car is warmed up, the less I think about the 1-2 shift the smoother it is. When I lose myself in the driving 1-2 is no different than 3-4.

Trans mount and diff mount bracing/bushing inserts help out those shifts too, IMO. There's so much slop in the stock bushings that it makes those shifts harder.

Thank you both I appreciate it and I definitely feel a bit better. Just trying to sorta sort through what are corks with the car, me out of practice, and what actually needs to be fixed.

Thank you also. This is an amazingly thorough post. I am very grateful. Oh yeah I’ll be cycling through all fluids that affect anything mechanical a few times. Especially the transmission. Toyota trannys hate flushes, I know that’s really risky business with them, so I assume this is no exception on a brz. I am gonna do the transmission fluid today and then I’ll probably do it again in a week and I’ll do the oil again in a thousand.

You know how they say for full synthetic “change your oil every 3-10k miles?” Yeah, no, I don’t think this car has had the oil changed SINCE 3-10k miles... its at 60k.... LOL. I know I probably shouldn’t be laughing out loud about that but I entertain myself easily ��

I hate that I just googled “brz moumy” and not only did google know what I was trying to say, I completely omitted the “transmission” part and the first thing that came up was after market transmission mounts for a BRZ 😂

Looking at parts now. Do you have any recommendations for after market mounts and bushings that are any good? I saw Perrin makes some that they at least claim reduce movement during hard acceleration which on paper sounds perfect but I prefer hearing first hand what people have made work. Haven’t found anything that jumps out at me for bushings but like I said, if there is anything you use that you know has done the trick for you I’d love to know.

I have had the Whiteline rear diff mount inserts for about six months now, and love the improvement for a tiny increase in NVH. Just installed the Cusco trans mount collar this past weekend, but have yet to test drive. From reports on here, it should basically provide an increase of the same benefit as the diff inserts.

But really, I don't think there's a bad choice among the main brands (Cusco, Perrin, Whiteline, Energy Suspension, etc.).

OP if you're money shifting, don't.

The whiteline insert cleaned up the the bucking and jerky slop in first and second gear I was dealing with.
It's possible to get smooth shifts without it, but your timing needs to be on point.

Increase to NVH is minimal but it's there. You hear the input shaft in neutral with no other noise pollution. Slightest in vibrations at high revs. Most noticeable is when the drivetrain is still cold and you get up to 100kmh/60mph.

And honestly? I kinda like it. Sounds more "race car" without being annoying or obtrusive.

no money shifting happening here. I think maybe there was a misunderstanding with what I said. Totally possible since I was posting from my phone and posted a block of text the size and shape of Minnesota. But I agree. No, the issue is just going up to second. It doesnt just "fall" into gear so to speak until around 4k RPM and I just wanted to see if thats normal for other drivers too. Once the transmission is warm I can smoothly shift as low as 3.2k but just after startup (usually warm the car up for a few minutes before moving) if I shift at a lower RPM then it is heavy and clunky and if I am at 2.5k or below then I definitely hear the synchros as I go into gear, but at higher RPMs or once it's warm, all good. The fact that it is an intermittent problem that is fixable by revving higher before gear change doesn't scream damage to me but I do suspect my tranny fluid change later will (hopefully) do the trick. Ill update you all if there is an immediate improvement but I suspect it will take a few cycles.