I have a 2011 base 5MT, when I am in traffic and just crawling along there is a point right arround 1000rpm (first or second gear doesn't matter) where the engine surges. I would say at a hair over 1hz (bit more than one surge per second). Above that RPM range, nothing, below it with the car idleing is fine as well even with a tiny bit of throtle it is fine, but that little spot arround 1000rpm, it can't seem to make up its mind. Any idea what is going on?

If all else fails I will get out my OBDII scan tool and make some graphs of the throtle position, rpm, speed sensor and other related items.

 

What's the idle of your car? If it's about to stall it will do the same thing. You may just be nearing that threshold.

 

Normal idle is ~600, maybe 650. This isn't the type of surgeing you get near stalling (I know what that feels like). It is a gentle rythmic one.

 

I think what you are thinking of, happens to almost all manual cars out there, because the gearing is so close in 1st, and the weight of the car, when you are going slow, the power train and vehicle mass are playing catch up, and doing a little back and forth rocking. which kinda feels like power surging. It can and most likely will happen no matter how smooth you are trying to be, some cars are worse than others.

And this is a MT related issue only

 

Interesting that you post this as I have an automatic that does this surging when cold. It does not do it while idling or under normal acceleration (such as from a stop light). It does it while cruising between, say, 25 MPH to 50 MPH.

Other FF members have suggested that the accelerator sensor was 'between' positions and causing the computer to jump back and forth, that there was water in the fuel, that the engine was too cold or that the transmission was too cold. (My auto does this even if I manually force it into a drive gear mode, such as 3rd or 4th.)

The only solid correlation I can find is that it only occurs in the winter and when the car isn't fully warmed up. (Until the car has been driven for about 15 minutes.) Like you said, it's very subtle and easier to see on the tachometer than it is to feel.

We may not have a common problem but I find this interesting.

 

This may be the case. My civic had a similar thing, but with 180,000 miles and a sticky throtle cable and bad engine mounts there was nothing smooth about that car at all.

Yeah, it almost feels like the car can't decide if I am pushing the pedle or not. Though it has nothing to do with temperature on my car. I started noticing it on my first drive back from Canada when I got stuck in traffic on rt80 in PA. (Pro tip, avoild rt80 between 380 and the deleware watter gap on the last evening of the weekend. Everyone from NYC and the surrounding area is returning from the mountains.)

 

^^^this^^^