Manual Transmission Feels Heavy

[Ehibb034]

Yesterday and today were very cold days in PA. Temperatures were below freezing this morning. The shifter on my car just seemed really reluctant to want to move to any of the gears. Second gear is especially rough. I did a search and saw that some people had the same issues and that using another trans fluid seemed to help. Any ideas of what causes this behavior?

[KuroNekko]

It's the cold. The cold weather affects the viscosity of the fluid, making it harder to shift. Changing the fluid to full synthetic helps, but it still feels heavy. There is really nothing you can do, but it warms up quickly.

[murcod]

Yes, the cold and oil thickening. IMHO it would be a good move to buy a quality synthetic (eg. Redline or some similar brand) and fill the gearbox with that. It should make a big difference. Make sure you get the correct viscosity- especially note the first number in the oil rating as that is the cold weather viscosity rating.

PS: Second gear "clunky" seems to be a common problem - not just in cold conditions either.

[~tc~]

Redline MT90 is good stuff. I use it and heavy shockproof (diffs) in the truck.... I would not recommend heavy shockproof in Pittsburgh, it's thick stuff! Great when you're in double low (200:1 gear reduction) and the wheels are turning like 1 RPM LOL

[SamirD]

Redline makes some really great products. I'd actually give them a call and see what their recommendation is. They don't have phone monkeys, but real techs answering. q

[KuroNekko]

I have MT90 in my man trans and it was a significant upgrade for the tranny. I did a write-up so you can find it here.
http://www.kizashiclub.com/forum/viewto ... =32&t=2623

However, I wish the Kizashi's manual trans was better. The throw is not too long, but not exactly short either. Also, it's not that precise. The 5 speed in my Mazda3 was a lot better, but Mazda is known for making sweet man trans. Sometimes with the Kizashi, shifting into gear is hard and the reverse doesn't like to go in.
I really wish someone made a short throw for the Kizashi. It's actually one of the few mods I'd actually want for this car.

[SamirD]

I really wish someone made a short throw for the Kizashi. It's actually one of the few mods I'd actually want for this car.

Since the transmission is similar to the Jatco ones used by Nissan, do you think a Nissan short-throw might work?

[murcod]

MTL 75W80 is what the Redline site recommends for the Kizashi: http://www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?product=50204

[KuroNekko]

I really wish someone made a short throw for the Kizashi. It's actually one of the few mods I'd actually want for this car.

Since the transmission is similar to the Jatco ones used by Nissan, do you think a Nissan short-throw might work?

JATCO only makes automatics, if not exclusively CVTs. JATCO is an acronym for Japanese Automatic Transmission Company.

The manual is not made by JATCO. Given how simple manuals are, it may even be made by Suzuki themselves much like the engine. If not, my guess is Aisin or some other Japanese transmission company. Aisin makes Toyota's CVTs (Aisin is under Toyota) while Honda makes their own. This may explain why Toyotas and Hondas seem immune to the CVT headaches Nissan experiences. However, neither are trying to put CVTs in larger vehicles like midsize SUVs like Nissan.

[Woodie]

I'm experiencing the sluggishness too, and was just wondering if I should change to Synchromesh. That's the majik elixir for Suzuki "G" transmissions. I also put it in my Aerio's "J" transmission and had good results.