Quote:
Originally Posted by PaleMelanesian
We have to compare gear ratios, not just number of gears. The 6-speed's 6th gear actually turns a few more rpm at speed than the 5-speed's top gear. I don't doubt the 6 is a better transmission, but it's not going to be any more fuel efficient.
C59 5-speed
5th: 0.815
Final: 3.941
Combined engine-wheel ratio: 3.212
C60 6-speed
6th: 0.725
Final: 4.529
Combined engine-wheel ratio: 3.284
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Well from the perspective of someone who drives in the city and heavy traffic a lot, the closer gear spacing is quite beneficial. On hills I'm glad I have the 4.3(12?) final drive, and my car is the lightest of the ZZ engined family excluding the Lotii. 3rd gear makes you roll a little too fast in the parking lot or heavy traffic, I always find myself wishing for shorter 2nd/3rd gears in these situations for more flexibility in controlling my "crawl". Additionally, the rpm drops are a bit big on the 5 speed and so it's easy to drop the rpms low and the have the car run out of breath.
That said, 4th gear from the C59 (about the same as the C60's 5th) is perfect for 25mph roads, as 1500rpm in 5th on the C56 makes the engine struggle a bit even if it doesn't audibly complain, but I think the C59 needs shorter gears 1-3.
If it were me, I'd take a 4.3 6 speed with 0.725 6th, with the 4.3 1st gear seems plenty short, but not sure I'd want to go down to 3.9. I like to drive slow so I'll be grateful to be able to cruise at 2700rpm instead of 3000 (that's ~55mph).
Actually fun fact, the Lotus cars have much larger wheels so even with 4.5 final drive and 0.815 6th, they spin *slightly* slower on the highway than C56 equipped cars. Only Honda has a more idiotic idea of what a highway cruising gear should be (see Integra GSR, S2000).