so i just picked up an 04 mazda 3 2.3L with tiptronic...just wondering if theres anyone out there who has the same car if you could share with me when you are shifting with the tip...by that i mean what rpm

 

if u wanted to manualy change gears, then you should have manned up and bought a manual.

 

OUCH!!! That hurts....

I would treat it just like the manual. Your best power crossover is right around 52-5300 rpm, but you can certainly shiftat lower speeds thanthat. I mean, who wants to shift that high all the time.

BTW: Welcome to the forum!!I also have an '04 2.3 HB. (5-sp MTX though)
You may find out sooner or later that I call the tiptronic the Man-u-mati, so I may as well tell you now. I've heard much worse... Tit-tronic, i.e.

 

yea like me, i let my ***** hang low now since i got mine in manual its cool man. but you don't have to worry about when to shift you can shift whenever.

 

I have an auto 05 2.3. It's the same engine as the 04 with only 4 gears. I always drive it in manual mode because you have more control of the car. IfI want to save on gasor the engine is cold, I upshift as soon as possible. I am in 4th between 20-25mph. I don't really look at the RPM's. When the RPM is around 3000, that's when you feel more power. If you are doing tight lane changes or weavingin and out of traffic, it's best to stay above the 3000 range. You press the gas and feel the car pick up and go. The best gears to work in for lane changing are 2nd and 3rd.I have gotten a ticket for aggressive lane changing, 3 points.

The car wont allow you to upshift if it's too soon to. It will stay in the gear you are currently in until you reacha higher RPM. Downshifting is like a mirror effect. The car won't let you downshift if the lower gear will be too high in the RPM. It will blink the gear you are in. You can't downshift into first until you are around 25mph. You can't downshift into second until a little below 65mph. The car willNOT upshift automatically if you redline or go higher. I would forget sometimes that the car was in manual and i would accidently go above redline.

I didn't know how to drive stick when i got the car and my dad was paying for it and he wanted me to have automatic. I also lived in Miami where there was constant traffic and having a manual was not an option. I now know how to drive manual and love it.I know that my next 3 will be manual. Unless mazda comes out with SMG and paddle shifters, then i'll choose that. Hope I've answered some questions.

 

paddle shifting..... *spits* unfortunatly it looks more and more like the days of the manual transmission are numbered, even in economy cars (new lancer for example) they are begining to offer paddle shifters. it disgusts me realy

 

paddle shifters are nice on 500hp plus cars luxury rockets (AMG mercedes, M series BMWs, etc), and the technology offered today is just as efficient, if not more than the manual transmissions of today.

but, as long as its offered, i will always opt for manual transmission.

 

Flappy paddle gearboxes are rubbish if you ask for me - for people with more money than driving skill...if you get my drift.

 

For fuel economy, upshift when your RPMs hit 3000. Try to quickly get up to at least 3rd gear to get decent MPG.

Definitely downshift when your hitting the gas, and your RPMs are under 2250.

Never mind the idea that the manualwill becomeextinct ...ANY transmission with gearswill be going the way of the 8-trackwithin 10-15 years. The CVT is here, and with some additional evolution, will emerge as THE choice.

http://www.edmunds.com/ownership/tec...4/article.html

 

The manual trans will live on no matter what, and the future of CVT is not certain though. I truly like the dual-clutch automated transmission, (i.e. VW's DSG, direct shift gearbox, (TM)), and think CVT might have a tough time to compete with DSG. CVT might find its ways into low hp hybrids. I have started another thread for the dual-clutch trans., no torque converter, just gears and a dual clutch pack. It has three shafts, a co-axial input shaft, one shaft for even gears, and one shaft for odd gears and reverse. upshift time is 8 millisecond, 10 times faster that fastest human hands can do.
________
Nexium Class Action Lawsuit