With an ever growing passion for cars, trucks and things that go fast, Charles is always seeking new information and ways to increase vehicle performance and handling. Since there is a selector shaft, the need for a clutch is non existent, except for selecting first gear. The example they use is the NA Miata. Twelve thousand! They offer lightning fast shifts, amazing sound, and incredible performance. We’re not talking, “eh kinda expensive.” We’re talking about full on more than the car itself. We'll send you an email with your username and a link to reset your password.Use this shortened URL to share your current search results. Sequential transmissions can be clunky and not very smooth to drive around town or at low speeds. Call us today to make an appointment with one of our friendly and knowledgeable mechanics and learn about your options.Enter your email address that you used to register. The top left position is first, and then you move straight down to second. Since there is a selector shaft, the need for a clutch is non existent, except for selecting first gear. This is pretty much it though, as how the gears are chosen is completely different.
With a manual transmission, you can skip right from first to fourth gear if you want – though you will likely get some pushback from the car. We guess if you don’t know cars, you might find it annoying or “unbearable” as Car Throttle puts it, but we love it.Following up on that note, they do redeem themselves somewhat. In a vehicle with a sequential gearbox, you just hit a lever or a paddle to click through each of the gears in order, whether you are up-shifting or down-shifting.Typically, you are going to find a sequential gearbox in a car that is designed for high performance or in a race car. However, due to the high costs associated, most of us are left rowing our own gears with a standard manual transmission, and there is certainly nothing wrong with that!Build your own custom newsletter with the content you love from Turnology, directly to your inbox, absolutely FREE!We'll send you raw engine tech articles, news, features, and videos every week from TURNology.We promise not to use your email address for anything but exclusive updates from the Power Automedia Network. Used in high performance road and track vehicles, the sequential gearbox allows for lightning quick shifts and helps drop lap times. In a car with a manual transmission, you shift the car through the gears in an “H” pattern. With steering wheel mounted paddles, the driver can keep their hands on the wheel at all times, instead of needing to remove one hand to grab the next gear. Wrong! Rowing through gears and nailing heel toe downshifts is infinitely rewarding, and something that just makes you feel good.At the end of the day however, you can’t argue that sequential transmissions aren’t awesome. In Formula One race cars, the shifters are located on either side of the steering wheel. Fourth gear is straight down from third. Frequently associated with sequential transmissions is the whine produced from the gears, and many gear heads enjoy the sound. It sounds complicated, but when you watch the video it begins to all makes sense.Now, due to the design and name of a sequential transmission, you might guess that gears are chosen sequentially-and you are absolutely right. The most common shifting complaint is grinding or "crunching" when shifting into gear, which is usually felt as much as it is heard. Unless you’re someone who loves tinkering with cars, the words “sequential gearbox” probably sound like Greek to you. This does a couple things for you–first off, it makes driving easier since you can focus on driving, and not shifting. Lets start off with the positive side of things, of why the sequential gearbox is awesome to have. Even if you don’t have paddle shifters, the time required to shift is still significantly less than a normal manual, and you still reap the benefits on having your hands on most of the time.Sounds like everything is great, right? To get to third, you shift up, to the right and up again. From there, the engine spins the chosen gear, and power makes its way to the wheels. However, that can be both a pro and a con, so lets dive in and see what thoughts Lets start off with the positive side of things, of why the sequential gearbox is awesome to have.