13,500 miles mint condition. Just picked it up from a local dealer on Saturday. After driving it for 2 days l am having trouble finding first gear at stop lights. I have many years driving manual trans vehicles in my younger days.Maybe l should give it a little more time for me to get used to it, but l have had problems finding. 1st gear while stopped when the light turns green. It just won't go into gear sometimes. Other times l find myself stalling the engine because l have selected 3rd instead of 1st. All other shifts 2nd through 6th are butter smooth including reverse. Looking for advice from the group.
2015 Base manual trans hard to get in 1st gear
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Try putting a little pressure to the left when you push forward into 1st.
What niel says, plus keep your fingers off the reverse ring.
I have a friend that unknowingly had that habit & often struggled with first. I told him the car can't understand his in-between directions.
Like you, I'm an experienced mt driver. But this Kia is the first for me with a reverse ring. Trust me, I've embarrassed myself a few times with this German inspired set up.
Remember the MT motto: If you can't find it, you're gonna grind it
I have a friend that unknowingly had that habit & often struggled with first. I told him the car can't understand his in-between directions.
Like you, I'm an experienced mt driver. But this Kia is the first for me with a reverse ring. Trust me, I've embarrassed myself a few times with this German inspired set up.
Remember the MT motto: If you can't find it, you're gonna grind it
Thank you for the replies. I have tried everything l could think of prior to posting. Putting even light pressure to the left and the shift lever just won't move up into first. It feels like there is a "stop" to prevent you from going into reverse without pulling up on the ring first. I have tried spinning the trans in neutral with the clutch out then quickly trying to engage first. I have tried going from second to first also. 75% of the time the lever will not move up into first and/or goes into 3rd instead.
Is there any way to program the dash gear indicator to show the actual gear that you are in rather than when to shift up?
Is there any way to program the dash gear indicator to show the actual gear that you are in rather than when to shift up?
Hey DBM, under the leather shift boot & plastic collar is a complex set of plastic-type gears. It has a whitish looking lubricant. I notice this when I replaced the center console on mine.
It's nothing like the old time manual floor shifters. You might want to have your dealer inspect that area. The previous owner may have forced a gear change & damaged something.
It's nothing like the old time manual floor shifters. You might want to have your dealer inspect that area. The previous owner may have forced a gear change & damaged something.
Thank you for all the help. Today was day 3 driving the new to me Soul manual. Each day l am getting a better feel for the stop light shift to 1st gear. Is there anything l can do like lube the plastic gears under the boot and/or change the fluid in the clutch master and/or transmission to help smooth things out?
It's not too hard to remove the leather boot cover and/or shift collar. Look in the threads for "armrest conversion" to see steps to do that. There are photos, but I'm having trouble lately viewing any pics on this forum.
I'd suggest going to a Kia dealer parts dept and tell them you need the lubricant for the plastic gearing. I've never bought it, but it's kind of a white/yellow color, consistency of gear lube.
Probably AutoZone or someplace like that would have it as well.
I'd suggest going to a Kia dealer parts dept and tell them you need the lubricant for the plastic gearing. I've never bought it, but it's kind of a white/yellow color, consistency of gear lube.
Probably AutoZone or someplace like that would have it as well.
Thank you to alll that have tried to help. I was wondering if there was another Soul Mate on this forum with a Gen 2 M6 that lives in the Tampa/Brandon Florida area that could drive my car and tell me if it feels normal going into 1st, or do they think l might have a problem.
Yes, l am pushing the peddle all the way down. I was wondering maybe the clutch hydraulics need to be flushed and bled with fresh fluid. The car is 3 years old with only 13500 miles. Not sure how long it sat at the dealer. Anyone got a link to a DIY video?
In my other car, when the slave cylinder was going out, it would grind when I tried to put in first.
You could check your brake fluid level and see if it's low (they share the same reservoir). If it's low, fill it up and see if it alleviates the problem. If it does, it means you have a leak or need a new master or slave cylinder.
I sure hope you find an answer to this problem DBM.
You could check your brake fluid level and see if it's low (they share the same reservoir). If it's low, fill it up and see if it alleviates the problem. If it does, it means you have a leak or need a new master or slave cylinder.
I sure hope you find an answer to this problem DBM.
Thanks again everyone. Mine goes right into first most of the time when l down shift into second then engage first. The problem with that is you must then sit and wait for the green light with your peddle to the floor. I prefer to wait in neutral.
Update. After a week driving the M6, l am getting better at finding first gear. I think my "problem" was user error. I was putting too much pressure to the left causing me to hit the "stop" that prevents engaging reverse without raising the ring first. I plan to drain and fill the trans and also bleed the clutch slave just for giggles. Thanks to everyone for the help.
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