981 Boxster S Manual Gear Ratios - What have Porsche done??

[MadMark981]

What were Porsche thinking? Now that I've done over 500 miles - I've started extending the revs in the gears and although it feels quick the gear ratios are sooooo looooong!

Just before the 7,800rpm limiter, the speeds are:
1st = 46mph
2nd - 83mph
3rd = 118mph
4th = 150mph

Which leaves 2 gears to cover about 25mph ....

Now I thought the 997 GT3 had long gearing (2nd went to 88mph and 3rd went to 122mph) - but that had more torque and a lot more power! So the cynic in me thinks that Porsche either did it to get the emmissions lower or to peg it back against the 991 - but I gather that has rather long gearing too .... Harry Metcalfe wrote about the Cayman 2.7 in EVO and that must be positively glacial with this gearset!

Although I love the car, is this yet another reason to choose the PDK?

[MogulBoy]

Someone should develop/offer a shorter final drive ratio.

[Zyp]

I've just read Richard Meaden's review of the 981 Cayman S, he reckons the 6 speed manual ratios are perfectly matched to the 3.4 engine.

I assume the gearboxes are the same in both cars? (Box and CS)

[cay]

Are they any different to the Gen 1 cars?

I think my Gen 1 will do 77 or more in second gear and the new cars rev higher.

[MadMark981]

Zyp said:

I've just read Richard Meaden's review of the 981 Cayman S, he reckons the 6 speed manual ratios are perfectly matched to the 3.4 engine.

I assume the gearboxes are the same in both cars? (Box and CS)

I believe they are - but I can't understand why he would think they were so appropriate? The engine is torquey everywhere - but only really gets going at 4,500rpm .... So imagine an overtake on an A road at 50mph, 3rd gear has you at around 3,500rpm, so to be safe and overtake quickly, you have to then pop it down to 2nd. This gives you 5,300rpm and has you smack in the meat of the powerband - cue a howling and wailing moment as you blast past before popping it into 6th - but you're having to use 2nd!

How much better would it be if the gearing was 1st - 38mph, 2nd 68mph, 3rd 90mph, 4th 120mph, 5th 150mph and 6th for 175mph

Then in the same situation you could pull 3rd, from just under 4,400 rpm and still blast past .....

[MadMark981]

cay said:

Are they any different to the Gen 1 cars?

I think my Gen 1 will do 77 or more in second gear and the new cars rev higher.

Good point - I don't know! Neither can I remember what my 987.1 Boxster did in gears - but I don't remember the gearing being this this long and that revved to 7,300rpm!!

[Ian_UK1]

MadMark981 said:

What were Porsche thinking? Now that I've done over 500 miles - I've started extending the revs in the gears and although it feels quick the gear ratios are sooooo looooong!

Just before the 7,800rpm limiter, the speeds are:
1st = 46mph
2nd - 83mph
3rd = 118mph
4th = 150mph

Which leaves 2 gears to cover about 25mph ....

Now I thought the 997 GT3 had long gearing (2nd went to 88mph and 3rd went to 122mph) - but that had more torque and a lot more power! So the cynic in me thinks that Porsche either did it to get the emmissions lower or to peg it back against the 991 - but I gather that has rather long gearing too .... Harry Metcalfe wrote about the Cayman 2.7 in EVO and that must be positively glacial with this gearset!

Although I love the car, is this yet another reason to choose the PDK?

Those ratios are, I agree, insane for UK roads. If they were shortened considerably, the car would be so much more responsive and punchy. Whilst a shorter-ratio diff would help - it would make more sense of 1st, 2nd and 3rd - it would still leave 3 too-tightly-stacked ratios at the top that would sometimes need to come into play.

It reminds me of the gearbox in a 2.2-litre Alfa 159 I used to run as a daily drive. That had long 1st/2nd/3rd, then very tightly spaced 4th, 5th and 6th . In Alfa's case they'd clearly done this to mask the engine's complete lack of torque at motorway speeds. Can't understand Porsche doing this at all though (unless it's for marketing reasons, as you suggested).

I wonder if any tuners will develop different internal ratios, or whether there are any motorsport gear pairs for that 'box?

Edited by Ian_UK1 on Monday 10th June 13:12

[Olivera]

I read Metcalf's article on this subject in Evo and simply assumed he had the figures wrong. If the manual ratios are as you describe then they are simply appalling for anything other than fiddling a C02 test. For maximum performance you would gear 2nd (and the others) for at least 20 mph lower. Even as a manual lover I wouldn't even consider buying a non PDK Boxster/Cayman with those ratios.

[SonnyM]

MadMark981 said:

cay said:

Are they any different to the Gen 1 cars?

I think my Gen 1 will do 77 or more in second gear and the new cars rev higher.

Good point - I don't know! Neither can I remember what my 987.1 Boxster did in gears - but I don't remember the gearing being this this long and that revved to 7,300rpm!!

987.1 is:

1st 30mph
2nd 70mph
3rd 99mph

I never get to use the other gears.

[BIRMA]

SonnyM said:

MadMark981 said:

cay said:

Are they any different to the Gen 1 cars?

I think my Gen 1 will do 77 or more in second gear and the new cars rev higher.

Good point - I don't know! Neither can I remember what my 987.1 Boxster did in gears - but I don't remember the gearing being this this long and that revved to 7,300rpm!!

987.1 is:

1st 30mph
2nd 70mph
3rd 99mph

I never get to use the other gears.

With the Sports Exhaust who would

[stevod]

Ian_UK1 said:

If they were shortened considerably, the car would be so much more responsive and punchy.

Stepping out of a 981S into a V6S F-type is just that. The responsiveness makes it feel a lot quicker, even if it isn't really.

S

[SonnyM]

BIRMA said:

SonnyM said:

MadMark981 said:

cay said:

Are they any different to the Gen 1 cars?

I think my Gen 1 will do 77 or more in second gear and the new cars rev higher.

Good point - I don't know! Neither can I remember what my 987.1 Boxster did in gears - but I don't remember the gearing being this this long and that revved to 7,300rpm!!

987.1 is:

1st 30mph
2nd 70mph
3rd 99mph

I never get to use the other gears.

With the Sports Exhaust who would

Sorry I forgot:

6th 172mph

[carryondentist]

MadMark981 said:

Just before the 7,800rpm limiter, the speeds are:
1st = 46mph
2nd - 83mph
3rd = 118mph
4th = 150mph

They are remarkably similar to the ratios in the regular manual Evora (which are the same as the Toyota Auris that the box came from).. I went for the CR option, which were Lotus specified ratios, but have to say I do wish 2nd and 3rd were shorter still.

Regular CR
1 = 40 40
2 = 75 75
3 = 117 102
4 = 166 131
5 = 211 172
6 = 262 194


(edit to try and sort formatting_

Edited by carryondentist on Monday 10th June 16:42

Edited by carryondentist on Monday 10th June 16:47

[MadMark981]

Nuts isn't it? I only had a short and swift stint in a manual - whereas I got the whole weekend with the PDK (when I was really pushing the revs in gear - unaccompanied) and I don't remember the PDK box as having such long ratios - other than 7th - which is billed as an overdrive!

If various magazines have clocked the manual at 4.7sec to 60 and 11 seconds to 100 (whilst managing to beat the "F" Types on track) - what one earth would it do if you made the first 5 gears 20% shorter??

[Zyp]

[Tin foil hat] - could it be because Porsche want to sell more PDK cars?[/Tin foil hat]

[mrdemon]

Zyp][Tin foil hat said:

- could it be because Porsche want to sell more PDK cars?[/Tin foil hat]

No because people have no idea about gear ratio's until you have lived with a car with long ones.
Ruined my gt3 dream owner ship.
And even still now not many agree , saying not an issue !!

These new cars in manual seem stupid, but the ave person will not find out till they have bought one.

I have never given it a thought in my past 40 odd cars, but it's high on the list now.

Edited by mrdemon on Monday 10th June 19:10

[Zyp]

I agree.

Having only driven a PDK 981 Boxster and Cayman, and after reading the above, it'd be a hard decision to discount buying a PDK equipped car next time around.

Never owned an auto and never thought I would!

(Is the PDK in a 981 the same as a 991?)

[MadMark981]

I think the PDK box is the same (or very similar) - but yes I will no doubt learn to live with the manual - but I might (now) consider a PDK next year ....

Maybe they really do only want to sell the very expensive PDK's ..... or maybe they'll fix it for the GenII?

[Kamox]

I agree, my 987S Mk I is similar, just a tad shorter. But then again, just stay in 2nd or 3rd gear and you're done
When I want to have a good time in the mountain roads nearby, I leave the stick in 2nd gear and forget about it!
BTW, my 1st gen Audi TT quattro had perfect gear spacing: 60-90-130-170-210-250 km/h.

[RedSwede]

Nice to see I'm not the only one swearing at Porsche for this one. My 987.2 is about 75 in 2nd, 105 in 3rd. And then 6th is only around 24mph/1000, when it would be much more relaxing (and perfectly responsive enough) at 28 mph/1000.

1st does the job, and 5th is a decent gear for A-road driving, but the other 4 are all wrong - frustratingly, maddeningly wrong. It's not just that you have to grab 2nd for an overtake - its that there is a huge chasm between 2nd, 3rd and 4th when you want close ratios, and really closely stacked 4th, 5th and 6th when you want to get some longer legs.

Does anyone actually know why they do it? I've had the car for a couple of years now, and still haven't made a complaint to Porsche, though I keep meaning to.

Argh.