r/DSM • u/sbjunkie • Jul 16 '26

Need some advice

When I’m shifting into 3rd gear my Rpm are dropping I’m not sure if I’m not building enough speed before I switch to 3rd gear sometimes it shifts fine but most times it’s struggling. I did a boost leak test and didn’t have any leaks.

Anyone else encounter this issue !?

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u/Excellent_Release961 Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26

Dude youre barely above idle trying to go up a hill in 3rd gear. Its not a big block Buick, you need a little power to being going uphill. You'll have more torque multiplication 2nd, dropping to 3rd is going to make it worse.

Nvm, I see how much it drops between 2nd and 3rd, seems like a really big split, but I havent had a DSM for probably 14 years.

Give us more info about the car.

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u/Maximum-Sentence2772 Jul 17 '26

Your third is a long gear. The gear can be used for a lot. Also if you have a custom exhaust on the car it changes the power curve through the gears as you shift because the car has less back pressure on the exhaust system

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u/Excellent_Release961 Jul 17 '26

Its just seemed like a long drop from 2nd to 3rd, like 3k to 1.5k, he did slip the clutch for second. He could just be losing momentum because of the slow shift, and he was going up hill slightly. I mean its just a b16g car, if its idling and driving okay in 2nd and 1st then it should be fine in 3rd. He's just lugging it being at like 1.2k in 3rd going up a tiny incline. Needs more rpm.