Driving stick shift (twins vs any other sticks)

[x1UP]

I, in my opinion, love the feel of the clutch. Albeit it being the first car that i've learned manual in, it still feels like it could be the nearest to perfection. I trust the car companies that make the car and I can only imagine that they did it this way for a reason.

[Eski]

You may also want to keep in mind the mileage on each vehicle (BRZ vs GTI) and the fact that the two different manufacturers may use different companies for clutches. Any clutch pedal can be adjusted for height as well so it is possible that someone may have adjusted the GTI before your friend took ownership. There is also the difference to be noted between a Subaru STI clutch (very stiff and high with very little play and lots of room for error) vs a Subaru BRZ clutch (smoother and somewhere in the middle of the pedal travel with more room for error). As far as the feel of the gears on the actual stick itself, that has to do with the types of transmissions used by each manufacturer and once again mileage and how much wear and tear there is on each individual clutch. You would notice a difference in the feel of the gears on the stick from a 2014 to a 2015 or even a 2015 with 50k miles and a 2015 with 5k miles. Many factors go into this "feel" you described and keep in mind, reading things on forums can create a placebo affect and make you think about this feel differently vs how it actually is.

[Scenic Driver]

The biggest reason for the difference in feel when shifting is because the GTI is using cables running from the shifter to the transmission.

[Rota]

I've driven a lot of manual cars and the only one I can compare the BRZ to is a 240SX I drove with what felt like a failing clutch. I used to have an Infiniti G20 and the cable clutch in it felt great. Last week I finally got around to adjusting the clutch using THIS method and it now feels like what I'm used to and in my opinion is MUCH better than stock.

[Jfheisenberg]

The brz is my first car in manual.. I feels right IMO. It was very easy to learn driving it, definitely a beginners car.

[Ultramaroon]

The clutch is terribly vague. The manufacturer did everything possible to minimize the pedal weight. That's why the engagement arc is so loooooong. Tcoat already plugged my DIY but I'll say it again.

You guys that are used to a heavier clutch with a quicker bite, I urge you to give it a read. The change can be compared to the added feel gained by going from a large diameter steering wheel to a nice little one.

DIY - Swap clutch slave cylinder for improved feel and control

[extrashaky]

Originally Posted by Drakelee117

Anyway, my question is, does anybody have any idea what am I talk about with the gears? Which one is the norm among typical cars with stick shift?

The BRZ is a high-feedback sports car, and that includes the transmission. In most vehicles with manual transmissions, they are much more forgiving, but they're so sloppy and loose that you can't feel what's going on inside. With the BRZ transmission, you can feel what the synchronizers are doing, and you can feel the gears engage. So in that respect, the BRZ is not typical.

Real sports cars tend to have high-feedback control inputs. A Porsche is a real sports car. An MG is a real sports car. A BRZ is a real sports car.

A GTI is not a real sports car. It's a compact economy/family car that has been upgraded to go faster. And that's fine, because it serves a particular market that wants some performance without being bombarded with feedback, which those drivers interpret as stiffness and rattles and noise. BRZs are not for everybody, and that's fine too.

But if you're willing to recognize the value in that high feedback and actually listen to what the car is telling you, the BRZ will teach you to be a better, more precise driver.

[Drakelee117]

Originally Posted by Scenic Driver

The biggest reason for the difference in feel when shifting is because the GTI is using cables running from the shifter to the transmission.

That was my first guess! Any idea what other cars use that sort of shifter?

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Drakelee117

That was my first guess! Any idea what other cars use that sort of shifter?

All FWD cars

[xxBrun0xx]

Originally Posted by Drakelee117

That was my first guess! Any idea what other cars use that sort of shifter?

2015 WRX does and it sucks.

[themadscientist]

Most FWD cars do. Some feel very good, others, you can feel the cable system dragging badly.

[ajaxthebetter]

My 1985 Honda Prelude had an amazing shifter in it. Felt very similar to this one. Being my first car, I thought everything about the car sucked. Now, though not far removed from it, I look back at it and think what a great driving car it was--inspired me to buy the 86. I literally gave it away. For shame.

[krayzie]

Originally Posted by xxBrun0xx

2015 WRX does and it sucks.

And here's a picture of the WRX cable actuated shifter:



Compare to the Twins direct linkage shifter:

[krayzie]

BTW these are short shifters off the STI Performance catalog, but from the picture there are no discernible differences.

The WRX one is most likely the one that came with the WRX STI Launch Edition (I heard you can actually buy this from the dealer).

I've got the one for the BRZ installed (straight from Mitaka Subaru STI via japanparts.com), 4mm shorter throw (I think that's 10% reduction). I love the shift feel it's like a rifle bolt when matched with a slightly heavier aluminum shift knob (from my avatar).

http://www.sti.jp/parts/catalogue/index.html

I think the one from TRD Japan (again looks exactly the same) is actually 8mm reduction.

So my point is, in regards to driving stick feel there are a lot of other factors beside what have been already mentioned in the thread.