Whats the optimal RPM shifting per gear?

[TilhasBB]

Hello,

I was wondering at what RPMs I should shift up to get the fastest acceleration?
I raced my friend's car (98 Civic EX 2 door) with my (99 Civic EX 2 door) and he kills me on some runs.
I shift before i red line he shifts well before... Its weird I thought i want to hit Vtec to get more power? he shifts a lot sooner on 2nd.

Is there a way to get my Vtec to engage a little earlier ?

 

[RedLine42]

a Vtec Controller but you dont really need that, honda engineers know best. Vtec Pops on a Y8 around 5000-5400 depending on the temp, ect... If i was racing i would shift around 6800 try taking out your spare tire to give up some weight...

 

[YoungKadafi]

auto, stock? straight? maybe you need some weight reduction, and some header exhaust ram air combo

 

[bmoua]

a Vtec Controller but you dont really need that, honda engineers know best. Vtec Pops on a Y8 around 5000-5400 depending on the temp, ect... If i was racing i would shift around 6800 try taking out your spare tire to give up some weight...

yep 6800.....after that you can feel a power loss...even though our Y8's have no power what so ever....haha...

 

[TilhasBB]

Manual, Stock.
Only changed spark plugs, battery, cables since i bought it.

I shift just before red line around 6800 but he shifts around 5000 on 2nd and he kills me. he's just as stock as me.
I heard headers kills your low end... so when I am driving to work and such i would use more gas to move...
Change exhaust first? I am thinking twin loop knock off?

I heard Cold Air intake kills your high end and gives more power in mid range... what about short ram?

 

[98civichx]

a header will help out the low end a little bit and take away from the top. i cold air kills anything really it takes so long for the air to get to the intake manifold i would recommend the stock airbox with a k&n drop-in filter. a short ram will kill your low end and help in the top slightly. i have used a short ram and a cold air. i prefer my stock airbox with k&n to short or cai. i get the low end help from my header and the stock airbox. i also have a 2.25" exhaust and a ractive fireball style muffler. i can kill ex's all day long and my car is an hx. i shift now at 7500 with the aid of a p28. with the stock ecu i shifter at 7000 and had no power loss. just long ass gears though. its all in how fast you can shift compared to who your racing. him shifting at 5000 doesnt help hi at all while racing he isnt using all his powerband.

 

[silvertuner98]

a header will help out the low end a little bit and take away from the top. i cold air kills anything really it takes so long for the air to get to the intake manifold i would recommend the stock airbox with a k&n drop-in filter. a short ram will kill your low end and help in the top slightly. i have used a short ram and a cold air. i prefer my stock airbox with k&n to short or cai. i get the low end help from my header and the stock airbox. i also have a 2.25" exhaust and a ractive fireball style muffler. i can kill ex's all day long and my car is an hx. i shift now at 7500 with the aid of a p28. with the stock ecu i shifter at 7000 and had no power loss. just long ass gears though. its all in how fast you can shift compared to who your racing. him shifting at 5000 doesnt help hi at all while racing he isnt using all his powerband.

wish u was closer to indy, id line my EX up against ur HX, ill give u 4 cars even anyways, i was under the assumption a header helps high end and kills low end. as for the stock air box, that is a matter of preference. i only changed mine out for the loud ass vtec crossover my car has for a single slammer.

anyways, there are many factors to consider. sounds to me like your friend is raping you bc he is a better driver then you personally. i rev the f**k out of mine and it still pulls all the way til about 200rpms before i shift. i really need to get off my ass and do a video of my car lol. and yes, if he is short shifting as much as 2k rpms and you cant beat him revving to redline then you or your car has issues.

 

[JohnS.]

no offense but everyone needs a serious grammar lesson....

anyways, i dont see why headers would kill low end. 4-2-1 headers are supposed to help low-mid range rpm's while 4-1 headers help top end power. im assuming thats why they put a 4-2-1 stock on an ex since its sohc and vtec engages so late.

as for an intake, an intake is essentially an intake. a cold air brings in colder air from underneath the car, hence its name, and cooler air = "more" power. short rams obviously suck in heat from the engine bay and such and are pretty much like a stock box except the nicer sound. id say it all depends on preference. a lot of people will argue about how they prefer their setup but i think its all preference.

as for shifting, i believe most people take their car TO the redline or just before it. if ur buddies shifting 1800 rpm's short of redline and he's still killing u, then theres something wrong with ur driving or ur car. i walked another 96-98 ex at the time when i shifted ABOVE the redline (close to revlimiter). so how fast u can shift factors in as well

 

[silvertuner98]

O NOES GRAMMAR POLICIA! *runs for cover*

 

[RedLine42]

i really dont think hes shifting at 5k.....

 

[Eran]

Oh my .... these threads make me giggle.

"Oh noes, my friendz bolt-on single cam beat mi bolt-on single cam? Howze can I beat him in j00r quarta myle?"

Where he's probably killing you is the launch. Try launching at some different rpm's, and learn how to butterfly your clutch.

 

[TilhasBB]

what RPM is my powerband on each gear?

I think you guys misunderstood me.
ME VS Him
1st Gear 6800rpm and shift 6800rpm and shift == we are head to head.
2nd Gear 6800rpm and shift 5000rpm and shift
3rd Gear I am around 5000rpm He just started 4th Gear and he's beating me by quite a bit.

Thats what is going on.
Am I getting less power at 5000+ till 6800rpm on 2nd than I would on 3000-4000 on 3rd?

 

[YoungKadafi]

well i dont think 2 cars are alike sometimes. For instance, i would probably smoke you and your friend combined, with my stock like setup, and my car has a bogging problem like whoa. But I have modified my engine in a different way other than bolt ons, and continue to smoke alot of different ve-hicles. And the funny thing is, my 0-60 seems faster when i shift at a lower RPM, because my low end torque seems like an is300.

Try learning about how engines really work, and then you will whoop his ass, with some "home made" mods

 

[TilhasBB]

YoungKadafi> I am in enginnering I took thermodynamics i understand how engines work. Its just hard to really see what your doing with out a dyno.

How did you gain low end power?

 

[xxsenceo89x]

i think its the whole torque thing. torque is in the lower rpms until about 4K. after that you sort of loose it. with vtec i think the torque is higher in the 5-6k range.

what about timing? possibly could b off? i know you said you stayed neck and neck on 1st but it could b possible. idk im a nooooobbbbb

 

[YoungKadafi]

You really dont need a dyno, when you make serious power off of 50 cents, then you know something has been done correctly.

Freed up low end torque by doing stuff like this

0/1 gauge ground wires, and only replaced the stock locations, anything else is bad, re surfaced other ground locations

new fuel pump ground and power cable using 4gauge wire.

filled motor mounts using polyurathane, now my tires spin like DJ scribble

Constructed my own airbox that has made more power than any intake ive seen and owned, and it only cost me like 10 bucks.

Coolant bypass

direct fuel filter braided line to fuel rail, opens some bandwidth

insulated exhaust to keep temps high and velocity high

A CRAP load of aerodynamic mods, like effing sheet metal undercarrage, to keep air friction down

weight reduction jenny craig would probably bust a N to advertise

a ton of other port matching, porting and insulating, and more weight reduction. plus stuff i dont even remember, but it will all come back to me soon.

oh and you know wind is a killer too, so wax that ass.

My car has a huge bogging problem that most of the time it takes forever to get over 60,(been killed by prizms and metros and even astro vans, KILLED) but when it clears up, the gas pedal gets stiff, and im kicking a 240s ass like whoa and can burn out for hours.

 

[Bfreeman]

my optimal s**t point is when my RPM needle wont move anymore.

 

[silvertuner98]

i really shoulda said "i shift at fuel cut" which is about 7700 rpms

i still wanna race this HX tho, f**kin worldwide forums, i think i may have a chance...

www.indybalts.com/files/silvertuner.wmv

 

[EXSpeedAddict]

Your powerband is the same in every gear. Maybe you have a dx tranny and noone told you, maybe your car has mechanical problems or...

Hes punkin you wit the NAWWWSSSSSSS

EDIT: To answer your question shift between 6800-7000 rpm. Above that on a stock engine you risk damaging the engine (specifically valvetrain), and below that you're not fully using your powerband.

 

[Trey99EK]

In my y8 I shift at 8800 and that is some sick ass vtec up there, I wish. Around 6500-6800.