Last victory for the H?

[Sonic]

I've found a 1991 Benetton for sale in '91 spec which according to the spec sheet has a H box. So I'm sticking to my original suggestion of spa '92.

http://www.race-cars.com/carsales

[I am evil Homer]

92 looks sequential...there's no "gate" for the H pattern just a single lever - how would you move from gear to gear with a lever that only goes two directions? So i'd think 91 is more likely

[blito]

a racing car doesnt actually need a gate for its h pattern shift. the gears are there in exactly the place youd expect to find them so theres no need for a gate - that only makes the shift width wider than is necesary for a pro racer.

[AndyL]

I was thinking it looked sequential because the lever has a pivot that looks like it only goes backwards and forwards... but looking at some pictures of some older cars like the '91 Benetton and some 80's cars, they look similar. Maybe the whole tube that the lever is mounted on rotates for the side-to-side movement across the "H-gate"?

[schmenke]

Cripes, I can't imagine shifting gawd-knows-how-many times per lap without a gate hock:

[shazbot]

Well, it was an 'H' here at Monza-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k4Y-uangHM

[AndyL]

Well, it was an 'H' here at Monza-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9k4Y-uangHM

How can you tell? I only watched the first 3 minutes but I can't see the gearshift clearly in the video. Do they mention it on the voice-over?

[shazbot]

They don't mention it,but H pattern and sequential shifts sound different. You can hear Schumacher shifting down a couple of gears (4th straight to 2nd for example) and knocking it into neutral entering the pits. When you've driven both types you get to know and feel the difference even from footage like this.

[AndyL]

Thanks I see it now, only one downshift going in to most of the corners. I am familiar with both types but the H pattern is a distant memory

[LeonBrooke]

I can imagine that they might fit different gearchange mechanisms to the car for different races - an H-pattern at Monza for shifting down several gears at once, then a sequential at Spa or Monaco for ease of use and more time with hands on the wheel.