Am I a sh** driver.. Guys?

[Gansel]

So.. Since i have not owned a 6 spd car for a very long time Im starting to question my ability here. That being said I have driven lots of other 6 spd cars in the last few years and have had zero issues.

Now my issue is that in 1st some times the throttle response seems so damn touchy that it almost bounces through acceleration as I try to back off and add more throttle. Makes me feel like a damn rookie.
Its almost like the injectors give it no gas then all the gas at once then none. Now I will say that this only happens about 10% of the time. But its really annoying and i cant figure out if its me or the car.

Any ideas? Or should I pack it up and go practice in a empty lot? hahaha

Pic for street cred

[tHatOne guY]

Very nice pic!

[LINDW4LL]

Sounds like you and your right foot just aren't used to the touchy throttle response yet. I had the same thing happen a few times when I first drove my M3 in Sport mode!

[Gansel]

Sounds like you and your right foot just aren't used to the touchy throttle response. I had the same thing happen a few times when I first drove my M3 in Sport mode!

This isn't even in sport mode..

[LINDW4LL]

Doesn't matter, really. I was just giving a personal example with the M3 as I don't own an RS4. It still sounds like it's the same thing happening- your foot not being calibrated to the RS's throttle response.

Put it in S mode where the throttle is even more sensitive and I bet you'll have the same issue but worse. Your foot will get used to it.

[JimmyBones]

You need more seat time. It is that simple.

By the way, great picture!

[Peter1.8t]

You'll get the hang of it with more practice.

[Gansel]

Doesn't matter, really. I was just giving a personal example with the M3 as I don't own an RS4. It still sounds like it's the same thing happening- your foot not being calibrated to the RS's throttle response.

Put it in S mode where the throttle is even more sensitive and I bet you'll have the same issue but worse. Your foot will get used to it.

Its interesting because i drive my buddies r8 v10 all the time and never have this issue. I guess ill just stick to it.. I was convinced something was up with my car hahaha

[jdangr]

Depends on what mods you have. clutch, spacers, tune, etc. or you may have a vacuum leak somewhere. My car was the same way. I felt like a complete idiot in parking lots with bumps in 1st and 2nd gear my car would hop around like I was a 16yr old kid that took my dads car out for a joyride. It started doing it after my jhm 93 tune and spacers with flap delete. I also have a jhm lwfw stage 3r clutch. It turned out to be a pretty big vacuum leak at the manifold spacers that was causing it. I would smoke test yours to check for any vacuum leaks first and then look into your clutch hydraulics or your clutch and pp next. These cars are a little throttle sensitive but I just knew something was wrong. edit: forgot to mention that it could be intermitant because some vac leaks go away when the motor gets up to temp. so be sure to smoke test it cold and hot.

[Gansel]

Depends on what mods you have. clutch, spacers, tune, etc. or you may have a vacuum leak somewhere. My car was the same way. I felt like a complete idiot in parking lots with bumps in 1st and 2nd gear my car would hop around like I was a 16yr old kid that took my dads car out for a joyride. It started doing it after my jhm 93 tune and spacers with flap delete. I also have a jhm lwfw stage 3r clutch. It turned out to be a pretty big vacuum leak at the manifold spacers that was causing it. I would smoke test yours to check for any vacuum leaks first and then look into your clutch hydraulics or your clutch and pp next. These cars are a little throttle sensitive but I just knew something was wrong. edit: forgot to mention that it could be intermitant because some vac leaks go away when the motor gets up to temp. so be sure to smoke test it cold and hot.

Its completely stock. But I will have a look at that. Could a vacuum leak cause the esp light coming on steady after hard drives?

[Sleepin On 18s]

I think its just our throttle is extremely touchy around those ranges...I know what youre talking about. I would just try going EXTRA smooth with your foot/ankle in those torquey gears at parking lot speeds...hopefully should help.

You'd notice a vacuum leak in these ranges by the RPMs dipping down for a second then coming back up when you let off the gas. R8 V10 probably has so much power it isnt this touchy!! haha

[Gansel]

I think its just our throttle is extremely touchy around those ranges...I know what youre talking about. I would just try going EXTRA smooth with your foot/ankle in those torquey gears at parking lot speeds...hopefully should help.

You'd notice a vacuum leak in these ranges by the RPMs dipping down for a second then coming back up when you let off the gas. R8 V10 probably has so much power it isnt this touchy!! haha

I mean it rarely happens so i dont need to go practice really. But I wanted to confirm it was me and not the car causing the issue! Sounds like its a ME problem.

Yeah that R8 is insane. We have done a couple of side by side highway pulls and it makes my car feel like its sanding still. Its overwhelming speed when you drive it. Makes my car feel like a honda civic.

[my_RS4]

Yeah man.. Took me a few weeks to dial it in. It is a bit sensitive in parking lot speeds for sure. Too many horsies under that hood waiting to be unleashed!


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[Peter1.8t]

I had fun the first couple days with my car.

6puck clutch and the instant power from the blower made for a steep learning curve. After a couple days of driving I got the hang of it. It was also the exact opposite of what I was used to. My s4's clutch grabs at the top of the pedal travel, and the rs4 was near the floor.

[Gansel]

I had fun the first couple days with my car.

6puck clutch and the instant power from the blower made for a steep learning curve. After a couple days of driving I got the hang of it. It was also the exact opposite of what I was used to. My s4's clutch grabs at the top of the pedal travel, and the rs4 was near the floor.

I bet man! Do you still have both?

[mk420thae]

Have the same issue.. Got the car in January. Driven manual since I got my license. The car is smooth as can be most days.. But sometimes it wants to be a royal pain and bucks and jerks like a kid learning to drive.
I was leaning toward a clutch issue but it holds just fine. So maybe a clutch hydraulic issue?
I do have a jhm tune which I thought was the cause but it doesn't happen everyday

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[iparatroop]

Does your cruise control work?


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[your daddy]

check engine mounts.

[dufferdude]

So much power it wants to pull my foot off the throttle. Then I over compensate and back and forth I go. Usually at an intersection with everyone eye fucking my car. Doh!

[Lugi20]

I have the same issue rather consistantly, I'm worried that it's either the fuel delivery system or the throttle body, but the TB shouldn't really be an issue until over 4k rpm. It is frustrating.

[S4Caster]

I don't know if this will help, but it may be another data point: my initial reaction to reading the OP's issue was that when I got my car with 52k miles, it lurched during shifting, and it almost always happened. (I'm an experienced manual transmission person.) This went away with a carbon cleaning at 60k miles; I now have 69k miles. Thinking further that the OP said it doesn't happen all the time, my thought then went to the fact that I get some bucking as I pull away after start-up when the car is cold. I "think" the problem is even worse in winter when the ambient temperature is colder, but this disappears in a couple of blocks with warm-up. I can also get some bucking when going over some bumps, e.g. a speed bump, while accelerating mildly in a low (2nd) gear, even when warm. I will bring this issue up with my indie tech at my next opportunity.

[Reggie]

check engine mounts.

Yes - It really does sound like something in the car is not right - with a NA engine there should not be lag not sudden acceleration.

[Gansel]

I don't know if this will help, but it may be another data point: my initial reaction to reading the OP's issue was that when I got my car with 52k miles, it lurched during shifting, and it almost always happened. (I'm an experienced manual transmission person.) This went away with a carbon cleaning at 60k miles; I now have 69k miles. Thinking further that the OP said it doesn't happen all the time, my thought then went to the fact that I get some bucking as I pull away after start-up when the car is cold. I "think" the problem is even worse in winter when the ambient temperature is colder, but this disappears in a couple of blocks with warm-up. I can also get some bucking when going over some bumps, e.g. a speed bump, while accelerating mildly in a low (2nd) gear, even when warm. I will bring this issue up with my indie tech at my next opportunity.

I did just find out that my "recently carbon cleaned" car was only cleaned in 2013. So im assuming that it needs to be done. The harder I drive it the more im feeling some flat spots in the acceleration. Yesterday i was pulling hard in 1st and around 5k the car choked up a bit then power back on.

I am also noticing that when im coasting then giving it gas there is some sort of play in the motor mounts/ trans mount ( or it feels this way) Its not so much a clunk but a nudge saying that something isn't as tight as it should be.

[your daddy]

I just installed a JHM stage 4 clutch last week in a RS4 that had only ~65k on it. looked the car over, and the passenger mount was in 3 pieces, and torque mount in 2. we installed 034 engine, trans, and torque mounts. much better!

[Gansel]

I just installed a JHM stage 4 clutch last week in a RS4 that had only ~65k on it. looked the car over, and the passenger mount was in 3 pieces, and torque mount in 2. we installed 034 engine, trans, and torque mounts. much better!

Perfect ill have a look at this also.

[tadhgbrosnan]

It's not you. Lifelong, experienced MT driver here who owned a B5 S4 & B6 S4 before the RS4 and the RS was humbling. Throttle is sensitive with most of the action occurring within the first inch or two of pedal travel. Meanwhile, the friction point of the clutch is very high. Together, this takes some getting used to. I had plenty of WTF moments in my first year of ownership.

[Gansel]

It's not you. Lifelong, experienced MT driver here who owned a B5 S4 & B6 S4 before the RS4 and the RS was humbling. Throttle is sensitive with most of the action occurring within the first inch or two of pedal travel. Meanwhile, the friction point of the clutch is very high. Together, this takes some getting used to. I had plenty of WTF moments in my first year of ownership.

Yeah man. There has been no shortage of WTF moments here

[my_RS4]

I just installed a JHM stage 4 clutch last week in a RS4 that had only ~65k on it. looked the car over, and the passenger mount was in 3 pieces, and torque mount in 2. we installed 034 engine, trans, and torque mounts. much better!

Went with JHM LWFW and 034 Torque Mount recently -- really helped! 🏼🏼


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[Peter1.8t]

I bet man! Do you still have both?

Yes, I've been trading off driving each of them lately. Probably will sell the s4 soon.

[Fourplay]

It's not just you, OP. I've been having similar issues since I got mine a couple months ago. Driven dozens of manual cars (have owned only manuals for the past 6 years) and it will buck sometimes. Seems like the only way to drive smoothly sometimes is to give it longer on shifts, especially on 1-2.

Figure it might be mounts and replaced my torque mount with the 034 one, but the stock one looked brand new, so who knows. I'll be doing a carbon clean and motor/tranny/diff mounts soon, so we'll see if that clears it up.

[CoreyRS]

It aint the car, its the driver. I was experiencing the same thing when i first got the car, but 25k miles later and it is well under control. For me, while the RS4 isn't the fastest car on the road, the most rewarding part of driving the car is driving smooth AND fast.

Also try turning off cruise control (hold ESP button for 5 seconds)...I think it is placebo, but it seems to feel smoother for me.

[lucidmatt]

It aint the car, its the driver. I was experiencing the same thing when i first got the car, but 25k miles later and it is well under control. For me, while the RS4 isn't the fastest car on the road, the most rewarding part of driving the car is driving smooth AND fast.

Also try turning off cruise control (hold ESP button for 5 seconds)...I think it is placebo, but it seems to feel smoother for me.

ESP definitely exasperates this problem. It cuts in very quickly i've noticed, even without flashing the warning icon.

[Gansel]

ESP definitely exasperates this problem. It cuts in very quickly i've noticed, even without flashing the warning icon.

Ill give this a go. I usually always leave ESP on

[FWP!]

For what it's worth, after I upgraded to an ECS rear diff mount and a Stern transmission mount, the car was noticeably nicer to drive in terms of how the clutch engaged.

[iparatroop]

Without sounding like a dick, it could very well be the driver (as much as it could be the car). There's a plethora of reasons why the car could buck, all the way down to the clutch switch being bad. I had a little bit of rev hang, cruise didn't work and neither did the convenience start (don't know the appropriate name). Swapped the clutch switch and the rev hang went away and so did a lot of the bucking, even with the 5R clutch. I never had an issue on my first RS4.


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[Gansel]

Without sounding like a dick, it could very well be the driver (as much as it could be the car). There's a plethora of reasons why the car could buck, all the way down to the clutch switch being bad. I had a little bit of rev hang, cruise didn't work and neither did the convenience start (don't know the appropriate name). Swapped the clutch switch and the rev hang went away and so did a lot of the bucking, even with the 5R clutch. I never had an issue on my first RS4.


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Not sounding like a dick at all. I know there is a high chance that it could be my lack of skills. I think im going to start replacing mounts and see what effect that has.

[CoreyRS]

Not sounding like a dick at all. I know there is a high chance that it could be my lack of skills. I think im going to start replacing mounts and see what effect that has.

Its probably not lack of skills, rather this car is just difficult to drive smoothly until you have a lot of seat time.

[my_RS4]

Its probably not lack of skills, rather this car is just difficult to drive smoothly until you have a lot of seat time.

Absolutely...my salesman stalled the car on my initial test drive.. Hah


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[Gansel]

Absolutely...my salesman stalled the car on my initial test drive.. Hah


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Thats funny.. my brother test drove it for me (out of province) and he said he was terrible at driving it also. Stalled and was jerky in it

[Eric F]

My car was very inconsistent when I first bought it. Most of the time it was completely smooth but other times I would get the bucking. I wonder if it's partly related to the dual mass flywheel? My clutch failed a couple of months after I bought the car (used). I replaced it with a 3R clutch and lightweight flywheel from JHM. It's been trouble free ever since and I haven't since experienced the bucking condition. I've had the JHM setup for going on 2 years.

I actually find the RS4 very easy to drive. I've been driving manual transmission vehicles almost exclusively for 25 years. The RS4 is one of the only vehicles I have never stalled. The only car that was easier was my Z06 Corvette. It had so much low end torque that you could easily just let the clutch out without giving it any gas. The clutch and shifter feels much better on the RS4. But it's hard to beat gobs of torque and low weight. There is a video of Jeremy Clarkson starting out in a Z06 in 5th gear and going 0-180 mph in one gear!