GR86 Jerky acceleration when cold?

When cold is your 86 OK to pull away smoothly and easily?

  • Yes smooth as butter

    Votes: 11 9.4%

  • Not perfect but not an issue

    Votes: 61 52.1%

  • Finding it frustrating but ok to live with it

    Votes: 35 29.9%

  • Jesus Christ its annoying, just stop it, stop it now!

    Votes: 10 8.5%
  • Total voters
    117
I have the auto no problems with mine, I assume the slush box buffers some of the effect. I leave it in auto when the engine is cold.
 
For those of you having real problems, might I suggest trying something? Disconnect your negative battery terminal for a minute or so, then reconnect and try driving the car. This will introduce a noticeable dead spot/lag at the top of the pedal travel for the first few miles, but persevere with it and see what you think. I know you can do the pedal calibration trick (which is something I've previously shared around a lot), and although that seems to get rid of that dead spot instantly, I do wonder if it inadvertently makes the pedal a little hyperactive. Also, I think this might reset the long-term fuel trims in the ECU (ie, the ones the car 'learns' as you drive).

I'm an enormous tinker when it comes to my car, and although I hadn't had huge issues with the throttle pedal, I have noticed the slight jerkiness and sometimes that feeling that I didn't have very fine control of the pedal. So last week, I disconnected the battery knowing it would reset the pedal calibration. As I said, the result is that it introduced a bit of a dead spot at the top, which I'd usually do the pedal dance to cancel out. But instead, I've decided to just leave it to re-adjust naturally, and drive around it in the meantime. And I suspect it might actually make it easier to drive....you have to give the pedal a bit more oomph when pulling away, but I feel like when I do so, it's perhaps a little softer and easier to control without over-revving.

I noticed it especially when driving to the gym - they have a couple of those bloody awful small, but really pronounced, bolt-down speed bumps - the kind you find in car parks, where really have to slow to a crawl to get over comfortably. And you also have to go over them going up hill. Quite a few times, I've found myself lurching while trying to slip the clutch over them in 2nd gear, but since disconnecting the battery, the pedal feels a little softer and easier to slowly ease the car over them.

Might be all in my head, but I thought I'd offer it as something for others to try to see how it affects how your car feels. Just a disclaimer - disconnecting the battery shouldn't introduce any ill effects (you may have to run on the rev warning limit again but I don't think the radio stations get reset). But just in case any of you are running fancy immobilisers, trackers or dashcams which a power loss might affect, bear that in mind. Keep the car unlocked when you do so and the alarm shouldn't go off either.
 
Conscript said:
Fortuitous timing, as I've just received a pair of Onitsuka Tiger Machu Racers....yes, I know @Salko_GR recommended the Serrano, but I went on the website, and these looked very similar and were in the sale for £56, almost half the price...and I am tighter than a nun's promise :p

www.onitsukatiger.com

MACHU RACER

www.onitsukatiger.com www.onitsukatiger.com

I will take the car out later whilst wearing them and see if they have turned me into a driving God.

Narrator: there is no way a pair of trainers would turn him into a driving God.
Click to expand...
On that note I might have to pull out my Mexico 66s for that intimate driving experience :giggle:
 
Conscript said:
For those of you having real problems, might I suggest trying something? Disconnect your negative battery terminal for a minute or so, then reconnect and try driving the car. This will introduce a noticeable dead spot/lag at the top of the pedal travel for the first few miles, but persevere with it and see what you think. I know you can do the pedal calibration trick (which is something I've previously shared around a lot), and although that seems to get rid of that dead spot instantly, I do wonder if it inadvertently makes the pedal a little hyperactive. Also, I think this might reset the long-term fuel trims in the ECU (ie, the ones the car 'learns' as you drive).

I'm an enormous tinker when it comes to my car, and although I hadn't had huge issues with the throttle pedal, I have noticed the slight jerkiness and sometimes that feeling that I didn't have very fine control of the pedal. So last week, I disconnected the battery knowing it would reset the pedal calibration. As I said, the result is that it introduced a bit of a dead spot at the top, which I'd usually do the pedal dance to cancel out. But instead, I've decided to just leave it to re-adjust naturally, and drive around it in the meantime. And I suspect it might actually make it easier to drive....you have to give the pedal a bit more oomph when pulling away, but I feel like when I do so, it's perhaps a little softer and easier to control without over-revving.

I noticed it especially when driving to the gym - they have a couple of those bloody awful small, but really pronounced, bolt-down speed bumps - the kind you find in car parks, where really have to slow to a crawl to get over comfortably. And you also have to go over them going up hill. Quite a few times, I've found myself lurching while trying to slip the clutch over them in 2nd gear, but since disconnecting the battery, the pedal feels a little softer and easier to slowly ease the car over them.

Might be all in my head, but I thought I'd offer it as something for others to try to see how it affects how your car feels. Just a disclaimer - disconnecting the battery shouldn't introduce any ill effects (you may have to run on the rev warning limit again but I don't think the radio stations get reset). But just in case any of you are running fancy immobilisers, trackers or dashcams which a power loss might affect, bear that in mind. Keep the car unlocked when you do so and the alarm shouldn't go off either.
Click to expand...
And if none of that works, may I recommend that you watch the first two minutes of this clip from the frankly excellent film Le Mans '66 (aka Ford v Ferrari in some markets), and have a think about your life. ;)

Disclaimer: This post is intended to be light-hearted, and is in no way meant to insult your driving ability. Further support is available here.
 
Silver Fox said:
And if none of that works, may I recommend that you watch the first two minutes of this clip from the frankly excellent film Le Mans '66 (aka Ford v Ferrari in some markets), and have a think about your life. ;)

Disclaimer: This post is intended to be light-hearted, and is in no way meant to insult your driving ability. Further support is available here.
Click to expand...
Check out Mr Coat Hooks giving lectures on how to enjoy our cars ;)
 
I see that EVO magazine have slightly revised their (five star) review, as of 30 August.

This now mentions the throttle issue. I quote: "When you do reach the redline (accompanied by a rather irritating warning beep), the gearbox enables swift, fast shifts, with a pleasingly positive action across the gate and into gears. It's just a shame that the purity of the powertrain is marred slightly by the non-linear throttle calibration, which gives a big hit of response at the top of the pedal and comparatively little beyond halfway."

I think this is new text.

Link

Interesting they've picked up on this when seems to affect some cars (or drivers?) more than others. Have some of you been writing to EVO? Trying to win a watch or something? ;)
 
Silver Fox said:
I see that EVO magazine have slightly revised their (five star) review, as of 30 August.

This now mentions the throttle issue. I quote: "When you do reach the redline (accompanied by a rather irritating warning beep), the gearbox enables swift, fast shifts, with a pleasingly positive action across the gate and into gears. It's just a shame that the purity of the powertrain is marred slightly by the non-linear throttle calibration, which gives a big hit of response at the top of the pedal and comparatively little beyond halfway."

I think this is new text.

Link

Interesting they've picked up on this when seems to affect some cars (or drivers?) more than others. Have some of you been writing to EVO? Trying to win a watch or something? ;)
Click to expand...
I think that's more of a comment on the throttle mapping, being a bit oversensitive, rather than the jerky acceleration. He's right, it feels like the throttle is 100% open by the time the pedal is only 60% depressed. Think this is a trick employed by some manufacturers to make a relatively slow car feel faster.

Side note, it annoys me when reviewers mention annoyances like the warning beep, without clarifying that not only can you change when occurs but also that it can be disabled entirely.
 
Conscript said:
I think that's more of a comment on the throttle mapping, being a bit oversensitive, rather than the jerky acceleration. He's right, it feels like the throttle is 100% open by the time the pedal is only 60% depressed. Think this is a trick employed by some manufacturers to make a relatively slow car feel faster.

Side note, it annoys me when reviewers mention annoyances like the warning beep, without clarifying that not only can you change when occurs but also that it can be disabled entirely.
Click to expand...
I think the jerky throttle is amplified by the top heavy mapping of the throttle travel.

Hopefully somebody will remap it soon enough
 
JonBon said:
IMHO, one of the key differences between the GR86 and the GT86 was the tyres. I think the GT86 with its 17" wheels was able to soak up the smaller bumps. This was most noticeable for me when on the M25 driving over the sections of the motorway that are the beige not tarmac. The GT86 rode this surface far better.
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This stretch of the M25 is shocking in any car 🤪
 
Conscript said:
I think that's more of a comment on the throttle mapping, being a bit oversensitive, rather than the jerky acceleration. He's right, it feels like the throttle is 100% open by the time the pedal is only 60% depressed.
Click to expand...
Yes I agree, I suppose the two are linked though.
 
Silver Fox said:
Absolutely.
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I’m finding it pretty tricky to blip the throttle on a heel and toe gear shift. A slight blip seems to yield nothing, and a bigger blip sends the revs skyward. There doesn’t seem to be any connection between the actual feel of your foot on the pedal and the relative effect. Not the worst thing in the world I know, but kind of annoying in an enthusiast car
 
jb1750 said:
I’m finding it pretty tricky to blip the throttle on a heel and toe gear shift. A slight blip seems to yield nothing, and a bigger blip sends the revs skyward. There doesn’t seem to be any connection between the actual feel of your foot on the pedal and the relative effect. Not the worst thing in the world I know, but kind of annoying in an enthusiast car
Click to expand...

This will get fixed when mappers get their hands on it proper. All this stuff has been done for emissions so nothing we can do about it for now. All those pedal commanders etc will do nothing.

I have only got 60 odd miles on mine so far though but when I try to heel toe it is just a mess :p
 
Heel & toeing takes a bit of practise, but you do get there. My car seems noticeably smoother than the dealer demo I drove (thank goodness!).

Puma Speedcats I find are a little too thin soled/narrow to heel and toe in the GR86 (sheer perfection for the Elise, though - which to be honest, as a driver’s car, is damn near perfect); I’ll give the pair of Piloti shoes I’ve got (which are too thick for the Elise!) a go when I next drive it.

Converse aren’t bad to drive in, neither are Adidas Hamburgs!

Does anyone know if this aforementioned dealer software update softens the initial throttle response? It’s the flare of revs from a slight blip that I find most difficult to predict and control.
 
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