How good is the Civic Si in snow?

"Elmo P. Shagnasty" > wrote in message
...
> In article >,
> Gordon McGrew > wrote:
>
>> without ALB it took about 300 feet to stop from 30mph
>> (as best as I can recall.) With the ALB engaged, the stopping
>> distance went to 600 feet.
>
> ...but without ALB there was zero control, but with ALB the driver had
> control.

Zero control? You don't have to stand on the brake, just brake enough. I get
plenty of opportunities to drive in ice and snow and have never had a
problem.

>
> It's not about only the stopping distance. 600 feet but I steered away
> from the scene of the accident beats 300 feet but I slammed into the
> accident.
>

If you have enough traction to stop in 300 feet vs. 600 feet, then you have
enough traction to turn out. People get into trouble because they don't know
how to stop and then end up locking their wheels, and there goes control.

To tell you the truth, the 1990 Mazda Miata that I had (bought new at the
time) was my first car with a manual transmission. My father had a 1978 Fiat
Pininfarina Azura and an 1988 Alfa Romeo Spider Quadrofolio that I had
driven once or twice prior, but the Miata was my real learning car. I
learned on it and still the clutch lasted me till 75,000 miles. When I would
shift I would always bring the rpms to 4000-4500 which I considered to be a
good shifting point for any gear. My father used to also shift at high rpms.

A couple of things I was wondering if they are safe for the clutch and
transmission:

1. Is it okay to hold the car with the clutch and accelerator on a steep
hill to prevent roll back?

2. Is it okay to ride the clutch while coasting down a hill in tight city
traffic as long as the clutch is in all the way?

3. Is there a reason why some people downshift and REV the engine just after
they shift and before they let out the clutch as opposed to just clutching,
shifting and letting out the clutch?

4. What about if you are in third gear and you coast to a stop and put in
the clutch and then put it in first without going to second gear first?

Thanks,
Al

Get the Dodge Caliber srt-4 .Its compact ,has good ground clearance.
300 Hp. And will blow the doors off the civic si. 28mpg highway

Private Private wrote:

> Get the Dodge Caliber srt-4 .Its compact ,has good ground clearance.
> 300 Hp. And will blow the doors off the civic si. 28mpg highway

Yeah, but it's a Crapsler... so it's proven crap.

Next!

"alfred" > wrote in message
news:xPO2i.16454$He1.308@trndny04...
> To tell you the truth, the 1990 Mazda Miata that I had (bought new at the
> time) was my first car with a manual transmission. My father had a 1978
> Fiat
> Pininfarina Azura and an 1988 Alfa Romeo Spider Quadrofolio that I had
> driven once or twice prior, but the Miata was my real learning car. I
> learned on it and still the clutch lasted me till 75,000 miles. When I
> would
> shift I would always bring the rpms to 4000-4500 which I considered to be
> a
> good shifting point for any gear. My father used to also shift at high
> rpms.
>
> A couple of things I was wondering if they are safe for the clutch and
> transmission:
>
> 1. Is it okay to hold the car with the clutch and accelerator on a steep
> hill to prevent roll back?

No.

>
> 2. Is it okay to ride the clutch while coasting down a hill in tight city
> traffic as long as the clutch is in all the way?
>

It's not the best. You are either riding the brakes or using what we used
to call "Georgia overdrive".

> 3. Is there a reason why some people downshift and REV the engine
> just after they shift and before they let out the clutch as opposed to
> just clutching, shifting and letting out the clutch?

Yes. It is because they don't want to be thrown violently towards the
windshield as they let out the clutch on an engine that is running too slow
for the gear selected.

>
> 4. What about if you are in third gear and you coast to a stop and put in
> the clutch and then put it in first without going to second gear first?

That is just fine. Shifting third, second, first while you are sitting
still is a waste of time. Sometimes I do 4-2 to decelerate while
approaching a light.

Saludos,

Earle

Private Private wrote:

> Get the Dodge Caliber srt-4 .Its compact ,has good ground clearance.
> 300 Hp. And will blow the doors off the civic si. 28mpg highway

Nice looking car, and good numbers, but you'd have to be a ****ing loon to
buy a Chrysler product of any kind. My last 3 Dodges went through a total
of 5 trannys and 2 engines, with a total of about 350,000 miles between
them (only one made it over 100K before I finally got smart and ditched
it).

I'll stick with the Si. In 5 years, the car will still run, and the resale
value will be leagues beyond that of the Caliber...

"alfred" ) writes:
> To tell you the truth, the 1990 Mazda Miata that I had (bought new at the
> time) was my first car with a manual transmission. My father had a 1978 Fiat
> Pininfarina Azura and an 1988 Alfa Romeo Spider Quadrofolio that I had
> driven once or twice prior, but the Miata was my real learning car. I
> learned on it and still the clutch lasted me till 75,000 miles. When I would
> shift I would always bring the rpms to 4000-4500 which I considered to be a
> good shifting point for any gear. My father used to also shift at high rpms.
>
> A couple of things I was wondering if they are safe for the clutch and
> transmission:
>
> 1. Is it okay to hold the car with the clutch and accelerator on a steep
> hill to prevent roll back?
In doing so, you are having the clutch disk rubbing continuously against
the pressure plate. That is a lot of wear. If you hold the car with the
brakes, it is static - nothing is moving, and there is no wear. So, the
answer is NO.

>
> 2. Is it okay to ride the clutch while coasting down a hill in tight city
> traffic as long as the clutch is in all the way?
While the clutch pedal is depressed, the clutch is being held apart by the
throwout bearing, so there will be some wear (not a lot). However, you
have less control than if you kept it in gear, so I don't know why you
would want to do this. I have heard that in some jurisdictions, it is
illegal, and in others, it could cause you to fail a driver's test.

>
> 3. Is there a reason why some people downshift and REV the engine just after
> they shift and before they let out the clutch as opposed to just clutching,
> shifting and letting out the clutch?
Matching engine speed to transmission speed makes for a smoother downshift and
less stress on the synchronizers. I do it if driving aggressively.

>
> 4. What about if you are in third gear and you coast to a stop and put in
> the clutch and then put it in first without going to second gear first?

No problem. Much more common though is forcing the transmission into first
before the car is stopped which is very hard on the first-gear synchro.

In regards to shift speed, a fixed speed doesn't make much sense. If driving
for economy, you want to shift up as soon as possible. On level ground and
with a modern car in North America, that might be as low as 1,000 rpm.
Uphill, or with a peaky engine, it would be higher. As long as the engine
pulls smoothly (no 'lugging'), you are fine. If driving for performance
(max acceleration), you want to be shifting close to redline (once the
engine is warm).

Dan

(This account is not used for email.)

>> 1. Is it okay to hold the car with the clutch and accelerator on a steep
>> hill to prevent roll back?
> In doing so, you are having the clutch disk rubbing continuously against
> the pressure plate. That is a lot of wear. If you hold the car with the
> brakes, it is static - nothing is moving, and there is no wear. So, the
> answer is NO.

Well to tell you the truth I did this a few time, but not that often. Only
in extreme hills. I guess you could also use the emergency brake in case
some doofus is right on your tail and you don't want to hit them rolling
back.

>> 2. Is it okay to ride the clutch while coasting down a hill in tight city
>> traffic as long as the clutch is in all the way?
> While the clutch pedal is depressed, the clutch is being held apart by the
> throwout bearing, so there will be some wear (not a lot). However, you
> have less control than if you kept it in gear, so I don't know why you
> would want to do this. I have heard that in some jurisdictions, it is
> illegal, and in others, it could cause you to fail a driver's test.

Well I don't think we have laws about that in my state, and I already have a
license so it wouldnt really pertain to me. You only need to get a license
on an automatic and then you can drive a shift car with the same license.

>
>>
>> 3. Is there a reason why some people downshift and REV the engine just
>> after
>> they shift and before they let out the clutch as opposed to just
>> clutching,
>> shifting and letting out the clutch?
> Matching engine speed to transmission speed makes for a smoother downshift
> and
> less stress on the synchronizers. I do it if driving aggressively.

Okay that makes sense.

>
>>
>> 4. What about if you are in third gear and you coast to a stop and put in
>> the clutch and then put it in first without going to second gear first?
>
> No problem. Much more common though is forcing the transmission into first
> before the car is stopped which is very hard on the first-gear synchro.

I think i did that a few times and in the process ground the gears a little.
I guess I wasnt aware that going into 1st gear was only for when you were
already stopped.

>
> In regards to shift speed, a fixed speed doesn't make much sense. If
> driving
> for economy, you want to shift up as soon as possible. On level ground and
> with a modern car in North America, that might be as low as 1,000 rpm.
> Uphill, or with a peaky engine, it would be higher. As long as the engine
> pulls smoothly (no 'lugging'), you are fine. If driving for performance
> (max acceleration), you want to be shifting close to redline (once the
> engine is warm).

Yes alot of times I did shift early, which for me was 3000 rpms, but in some
occasions i shifted at 4500 rpms for a little performance. I don't think I
went beyond 5000 rpms. I have a friend and he has a 2004 PT Cruiser with a 5
speed manual and he always shifts at 2000 rpms or so. Its drives me nuts,
but he says that his car would act badly if he drove it like a performance
car!

Al

Resale value right? You mean like what all the commercials are saying
right now...ah such cows follow the herd. My del sol isnt worth ****
right now and its only got 60k miles on it. Honda is overrated

we all know what a great investment a car is these days. Its better than
Gold!! I mean if i bought an Si right now. It would be worth 2 times as
much , soon as I drive it off the lot. YAY advertising!!