Hey guys
Me and a buddy of mine were discussing whats the "proper" RPM to shift gears at and whats too much. I drive a 94 Ex and during everyday driving I usually shift around 3700-4100 RPMS. Ivery rarely go over that.He said that was way too high and that I'm beating on my car. He drives a 2007 Accord VP manual and he said he shifts between 3000-3500 RPMs....never over. Do you think I'm damaging my car by shifting at 4k RPMs? I feel like if I shift below 3500rpms my car lags. Just curious on to what you guys think about the proper way to drive a manual during everyday driving.
thanks

 

I shift betwee 2800-3300 usually, I feel it gives me the best acceleraton with the best gas mileage, it's really up to you. Shifting 500 rpms higher isnt gonna kill your engine.

 

You aren't hurting it a bit. Depending on the situation, I shift anywhere between 3000 and 5000 rpms.

 

I was taught to actually sometimes use the speedometer instead. 2nd at 20mph, 3rd at 30mph, etc. of course depends on how fast you're aiming for. maybe wait a little for highway speeds or a lot less for 25 zones(5 mph increments from 15). surprisingly my RPM stays fairly decent that way. I only really use the Tac for when i'm in a hurry.

 

I actually use the speedometer sometimes as well. but i think its safe to say that shifting at 4k RPMs is not doing any harm. I'm used to shifting high cause my first manual was a 99 Prelude, and I never shifted under 4k in that bad boy.

 

It really all depends on what you are looking for in the ride. if you want to accelerate fast and guzzle gas, then crank it to 5k rpms or higher. if you want to conserve gas like I do, shift it before 3.5k or so. As long as you don't red line it all the time, you shouldn't be doing any damage by letting the rpm's go up a bit.

 

thanks for all the replies
considering gas prices recently....its safe to say that keeping it UNDER 4K might be more economical for me!

 

It's important to remember that acceleration rather than RPMs has a bigger impact on gas mileage. This is because the further you press down on the gas pedal, the more air is indroduced to the engine. This in turn requires more fuel. Accelerate nice and gently to get the most MPG.

 

and if u drive ur car nice while saving gas. u can make ur dream car last longer that way too

 

Wouldn't reving the engine higher put more stress on the engine and lubricant (oil) and hence necessitate more frequesnt preventive maintenace (e.g, oil change, etc.)?