Option fo 5 or 6 gear box

youtheman

I’m due to change my company vehicle in September. Looking at a Ford S-Max 1.8 TDCI, which is available in either 5 speed or 6 speed (got three kids who are getting bigger, and every long journey begins with ‘I’m not sitting in the middle’). Was wondering what are the advantages of the 6 speed box over the normal 5 speed.

It’s a company vehicle so economy is not a factor (none according to the brochure anyway). More gears mean more gear changes, and a bigger chance of selecting the wrong gear. Top speed and acceleration are slightly better for the 6 speed (3 km/hr and 0.2 sec to 100 km/hr respectively). But these are very small in the greater scheme of things. Can anyone think of a major selling point for the 6 speed variant.

Anan1

I can't. Personally, I think a 6-speed manual diesel would be a pain in the h0le.:)

Plug

I'd agree with Anan1.

peasant

Plug, for your sake I assume that what you originally typed instead of Anan1's user name was a typo.

Consider this a warning, you'll be banned next time, typo or not

E92

I would imagine that the advantage of 6 rather than 5 gears is that at Motorway/Dual Carriageway speeds, the engine would be at a lower engine speed, so the car would be quieter and more economical.

I also would imagine that first gear would be shorter in the 6 speed model, making accelerate from take off better, and because the gears would be closer together, you would be in the engines' power band more often, and there would therefore be a better response as you accelerate through the gears like you would when joining a Motorway/Dual Carriageway etc. Because the engine would be in its comfort zone more often, it would make it more economical as well.

The disadvantages of an extra gear would be that you would probably end up having to work the gearbox more often in certain situations, as well as the obvious fact that you have to go up an extra gear at the end too. 6th gear would probably have the engine at a lower engine speed than 5th gear in the 5 speed model, so you probably wouldn't get the same response when you put your foot down.

If 1st gear is shorter in the 6 speed model vis a vis the 5 speed model then it would make hill starts a bit easier and it would be keener to get up to speed, but it would also make it more painful to drive smoothly(the reason why the clutch is less sensitive in higher gears is because the gears are taller as you go up them) when taking off and it would get annoying if you plan to use the car for a lot of urban driving.

Plug

peasant wrote: »

Plug, for your sake I assume that what you originally typed instead of Anan1's user name was a typo.

Consider this a warning, you'll be banned next time, typo or not

Yes it was typo. His name just looks like that.

towel401

is there a list of ratios for the 2 gearboxes somehwere?

colm_mcm

I'd go with the 6 speed if it's not costing you extra. I definately prefer the 6 speed Avensis to the 5 speed.

gyppo

I'd agree with Colm.
Hav a 6 speed Mondeo, and 6th is great for relaxed cruising on motorways.

Anan1

Is top definitely a higher ratio on the 6-speed?

colm_mcm

I'd put money on it. what'd be the point in having 2 different gearboxes otherwise

also the OP says the top speed of the 6 speed is higher

Hotwheels

Anan1 wrote: »

I can't. Personally, I think a 6-speed manual diesel would be a pain in the h0le.:)

I've a six speed box and find it excellent, imo cruises much better in top than an five-speeder...I'd go with the six speed

Anan1

colm_mcm wrote: »

I'd put money on it. what'd be the point in having 2 different gearboxes otherwise

also the OP says the top speed of the 6 speed is higher

It could just be to close up the intermediates? Also, a higher top speed does not necessarily mean higher gearing.

bazz26

To be honest if changing up an extra gear is really an inconvenience for the OP then maybe he should consider an auto instead?

Stevie Dakota

6 speed is much better for cruising, and is the reason I'm an not buying a Citroen C5 1.6HDI, only 5 speed, when the competition offers 6 speed.

ninty9er

For all the bulk of these cars, there's probably more room in the middle seat of most larger saloon's on the market.

colm_mcm

ninty9er wrote: »

For all the bulk of these cars, there's probably more room in the middle seat of most larger saloon's on the market.

I'd have to disagree, most mini MPVs have the seats pushed out towards the edge of the car, to make space for child seats, this makes for a lot more rear seat width for the middle passenger.

A car like an Avensis or a Passat will have quite heavy bolstering on the edge of the rear seat, which makes the car really comfy for 2 rear seat passengers, but not so great for 3.

It gets worse as you go upmarket, most large saloons are made for making things comfortable for 2 rather than 3 people

unkel

bazz26 wrote: »

To be honest if changing up an extra gear is really an inconvenience for the OP then maybe he should consider an auto instead?

+1

The only problem is that the 1.8 diesel is not available with an autobox. That said, there is only about €3k in it between a 6-speed 1.8 diesel and a autobox 2.0 diesel in the same trim. Try to convince your company you need one of them autos

It they won't budge, consider paying for the difference yourself

Ferris

Most 6 speed diesels it's easier to 'block shift' (skip gears) than in a 5 speed as the ratios are usually closer.

You can go from 2nd-4th-6th really easily in the VAG 2L tdi, its lazy driving but useful on congested roads. The 6th also offers quieter cruising and better economy at higher speeds.

Zube

Oddly, carzone lists top in the 5 speed as .675 to 1, and the 6 speed as .789 to 1, so the 5 speed has the longer top gear.

The wife's S-Max is a 6 speeder, and doesn't need a higher ratio, 6th is fine for cruising.

Zube

For the other anoraks out there:

5 speed: 3.800:1 2.048:1 1.258:1 0.865:1 0.674:1
6 speed: 3.583:1 1.952:1 1.241:1 0.943:1 0.868:1 0.789:1

So in the six speed 1st is shorter, 2nd and 3rd similar, they've squeezed in a 4th gear, 5th matches the 5 speed's 4th and they've pulled 6th back below the 5-speeds top.

So I'd say the 5 speed is designed for economy, and the 6 for accelleration.

Stevie Dakota

That's fascinating Zube

Can you do the same for the C5 1.6HDI 5 speed V C5 2.0HDI 6 speed, which is spinning faster at 120km for example?

Zube

Sorry, Stevie, I don't see the gear ratios for the new C5 online. Neither carzone nor Citroen's own sites list them.