Hey guys,

A month ago I purchased a very low mileage 2003 S, and yes, I already have parts from Mr. Webb sitting in my garage awaiting installation.

Anyhoo, the way the throttle behaves during a shift reminds me of the old 320 Bemmers. On an upshift, the throttle is really slow to drop, ie. RPMs stay high for a second or two, then begin to drop. I really dislike this and wonder what can be done to allow the throttle to drop off quickly. My guess is BMW does this to help drivers maintain closer engine-to-gear box speeds, helping to smooth shifts. But it drives me nuts. I don't like BMW thinking it knows how to control engine speeds better than I do. Ha!

On the old 320s, removing and plugging a single vacum hose resolved the slow throttle response, but that was back in the days of pre-computer controlled systems, the 320i had mechanical FI.

Am I the only one bothered by the slow reaction in throttle/RPM drop? LOL. There must be a fix for this...

Phil
Napa, CA
The Whine Country

 

I'm probably totally wrong but could a lightened flywheel help out with that? It helps me with that on Gran Turismo 3 :smile:

 

This topic has come up before, in the context of throttle "blip." Someone observed that if you quickly depress and release the throttle at idle, there's a lag time before the engine responds. Unlike a car with a mechanical throttle, where your foot is directly connected to the motor, the fly-by-wire electronic throttle intercedes to modulate your input. The thinking was that the ECU was the cause, as opposed to something mechanical. Maybe a lighter flywheel would make some difference, I don't know.

If I remember correctly, one of the theories about why MINI decided to do this had to do with improved emissions/efficiency. You're idea about matching sounds like a valid notion too. Personally, I kind of like the way the revs hang for a second, because it makes the upshifts smoother without the old school rev matching.

Anyway, if you do a search for the word "blip" you might be able to find that thread I mentinoned.

 

It could be related to emissions, but my take is it's part of the BMW formula. Their old cars did it, so do their new cars. My experience with this:

1978 320i
1992 325i
2002 M5
2004 Z4 (although it was less pronounced than the Mini)

all had manual shift, and they all had the behavior. My wife's 2004 325Ci has an auto, so it's hard to know how it would work. My Porsches were not like this, nor was the Z06 I drove the other day, nor any of the cars I drove before I decided on a Mini -- and that was a long list.

It's a very small complaint, and clearly a personal preference. If it can't be changed, I'll live with it. The Mini is so much like my old Lotus Europa, one of few cars I ever really regretted selling... wait, I take that back. The Lotus was a real piece of crap, but a hoot to drive.

 

you can try rolling off the gas a tad before you clutch-in or
get a lightened flywheel.

imo, due to its close ratio gearbox, i don't think i would want
the flywheel any lighter though especially since i commute to
work on my MCS.

 

i could not agree more... I would get a lightend fly wheel! :smile: