V6 Manual Shifting
 

Is anyone else having an issue with the manual shifter in the V6? I've owned many manual transmissions in various cars including a 6-speed manual in a 1999 Firehawk T/A and I have to say I am disappointed with my shifter. I'm not sure if there is something wrong or what.

If I sit there with the clutch pushed all the way in and run through the gears it seems extremely clunky to me. It takes way more force to get through the gears then I'm used to. Are other Camaros like this or is it just mine? I know this is a subjective question but I'm trying to figure out if I need to take mine in or not. It drives fine and gets through the gears, just not as smooth as I'm used to.

I'll agree that it certainly isn't as smooth as I had hoped. It works but it would be nice if it didn't take quite so much effort to get it into gear.

Hey guys, my only other long term experience with a manual is my converted Trans Am, and I have the Pro 5.0 short throw, which is awesome. So I kinda expected the stock shifter on the Camaro to be a bit stiffer with longer throws. Now after 2 years using the Pro 5.0, it has really lossened up, and I like it even better, so I am thinking our stock piece on the Camaro will loosen up a bit. I am still probably gonna swap for a short throw at some point though. I will agree that sometimes to actually get it into gear, especially 1st you kinda have to shove it harder than should be required. But not always, so i wonder if your alignment just has to be perfect? I would recommend taking it to the dealer and have them look at it since its bothering you. GM should be made aware of the issue so they can possibly issue a TSB to smooth it up. I am taking mine in for stripes on Monday and I will mention it to the service manager to see what he thinks.

It's not just yours. Mine is really hard to shift into 2nd in particular - I thought it was just me (been 10+ years since I had a manual) but then my husband mentioned it after he drove it while I was out of town. We were wondering if others had experienced this as well.

When I did the same thing (sat with the clutch in and ran through the gears) in number 3's car I didn't notice this at all. Maybe its something like bond said, and it'll smooth out over time?
- X

That's what I'm hoping. My car has about 700mi on it now.

Got 2700 miles and it still shifts the same...But there is hope..saw a post where they were offering a smoother shifter..gonna put one in this winter and see how it goes

Well, I believe number 3's car numbered in the 10s of thousands of miles. :iono:
- X

Ahh, but his car didn't have the same transmission. Remember, they switched up the transmission at the last minute for the V6 in April/May. They went with a different spec.

This is disappointing to hear that others are having the same issue. Like I said, it isn't horrible but it would be so much nicer to drive if it was smoother moving gears.

Hmm... I don't remember reading that. Link?
- X

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20054

There's another thread around here somewhere where they specifically mentioned a sync issue w/2nd gear - so interesting that it's 2nd I have the most trouble with. However, NOT enough trouble that I don't love this car!

Hard to search on this b/c "V6" is too short a search term but I'll see if I can dig it up.

Edit: Here it is.

I think there's another thread where someone asked a GM person about this in a webcast? (Primus maybe?)

I think the V6 is smoother then the V8

Ah. I must have missed this. Honestly, if its the difference between a weaker tranny and slightly stiffer shifts, I'll take the stiffer shifts.
- X

Yeah, I posed the question on cz28.com and John Fitzpatrick kind of answered it in one of their podcasts.