Salam. This is my first post and I'm new here. Your views are welcome. This article is about something that I've always noticed while driving different cars during my experience of more than 15 years of driving. Efi is becoming more and more popular these days but inspite of all of it's virtues, one thing that I've always noted is the apparent 'short-gearedness'. It's very strange but, yet, it is there. I've driven many new and old cars, 4-speed and 5-speed but this remains noticeable. People who have driven (and most of you have) a Corolla 88' , a VXR Cultus or any other carbed car might have observed that there is no limitation in any gears when you accelerate, cars goes on accelerating very easily and engine never "whines" to have reached the limit, the whining would only occur at very high revs. Besides that, there is 'range' of a gear where the car 'sits easily' and you can cruise along without the engine wanting the next gear if you donot accelerate further.
That is not the case with an efi.
According to my observations:-
1- Typically a 1000 cc carbed car would urge you to push it to some 50 or 60 km/h in the 2nd gear before it needs another gear but an efi would start whining at 40km/hr in 2nd gear (although it would eventually go to more than 50 or 60km/hr but the engine would be screaming).
2- Even if the rpm is the same, the model is same but one with carb and other with efi, efi engine would roar more on a lower rev, indicating that next gear is needed.
3- The engine is more than eager to make you change to next gear, when in 2nd, a little more throttle and you should change to 3rd otherwise engine would seem over-reving and when in 3rd, change to 4rth. The car doesn't feel easy unless the final gear has been shifted at a higher car speed. A carbed car would allow you in every gear a point on the rev meter where you can cruise along easily, without the engine screaming for the next gear.
4- A carbed 1000cc car would knock if you engage the 5th gear before 100km/hr but an efi 1000 cc car would be easy at 85km/hr and at 100 or 110km/hr it would show the need of a 6th gear.
5- Compare the gear range of a 1.8 carburettor car with an efi one and it becomes more obvious. Maybe that's why the makers of "Fast and Furious" opted for 95' Civic because of it's carburettor driven mechanism.
Your opinions are welcome.