I recently bought a used 2SS LS3 M6. I specifically bought the M6 because I want to control the variables of mph, rpm, acceleration, and gear selection. Now I find GM's automotive engineers have installed something that intervenes in my control and it's most annoying.

What's the reasoning behind the 1-to-4 skip shift? Does GM have any plans to permit owners to bypass or disable this annoying feature? (I realize that there are after market devices that can be installed to fool the ECM into thinking it's still connected to the transmission, but I'd like to avoid having to resort to installing one of them.) I'm thinking that an ECM program update might be an easy way to let owners chose to enable or disable this "feature."

Thanks for taking the time to listen to my griping.

 

The reason it is there is not to annoy you but to help you conserve your gas. If you achieve a speed that enables the car to handle the load of 4th gear from first then it makes you take the shift. This system should not prevent you from going through all the gears if you are accelerating rapidly, like on the freeway onramp or the track. If you hang onto first for too long even under those conditions then it may force you into forth. I have played with a 2010 2SS with a M6 and found it a rather nice car to drive. I did get the Skip Shift light when under moderate acceleration telling me to go from 2nd to 4th. I do this usually any way so it was not a big deal to me. I got on it hard getting onto the freeway and I was able to get through 5 of the 6 gears under rapid acceleration and never seen the SS light. I imagine that a tuner shop can remove the feature from the PCM for you.

Massey

 

Massey,

Thanks for the reply. If I understand you correctly, if I accelerate in 1st sufficiently to get the SS indication, the engine will be O.K. (not lugged or in any way damaged) if I shift into 4th. Is that right?

I have usually "bypassed" the skip shift feature by accelerating to the point where the SS indicator extinguishes and then shift to 2nd. Do you have any idea what this does to my rate of fuel consumption? I imagine it would be higher but how much higher I don't know.

 

the "skip-shift"situation is all about C.A.F.E.(corporate average fuel economy).the feds mandated all manufacturers to increase their mileages across the board.obviously,the vehicles with ***** are thirstier than the cobalts,etc.i've owned a 2002 'vette coupe,and a 2004 Z06 that were equipped with the skip shift thingie.i never saw the light come on,and you shouldn't either.if you're looking for fuel economy,trade it in.if you drive these cars the way god intended them to be driven,you won't be concerned with that 1-4 madness!

 

I know you said you didn't want to install a skip shift eliminator, but they really are a breeze to install and uninstall, so if you wanted to clock the differences in MPG between having one and not having one, it would be very easy and inexpensive. The Skip Shift Eliminators don't affect your factory ECM in any way, but disable the factory skip shift, so you can shift to 2nd whenever you choose.

If you didn't like it, you could simply remove it- takes 5-10 minutes of install/un-install... really no downsides to it whatsoever.

Camaro Skip Shift Eliminator