Is something up with first gear?

I notice if I am crusing to a stop sign and say I'm going about 30 MPH, depress clutch and use brake to slow down, I can't easily put it in first while crusing. I have to be just about stopped for it to go into first.

I don't know maybe it's cause first has double syncros (I think). But just wondering cause I think you should be able to put it in first if the clutch is in, so I am ready to get going after stopping.


Any thoughts?

 

That's normal. I just coast into a stop in Nuetral, then when stopped put it in first if you like. First isnt really meant to downshift into like the other gears since it's strung so high. Same issue with any manual car really.

 

the car is trying to stop you from doing a bad thing, don't downshift into first.

 

I'm not certain why you want to put it in first gear at 30 mph. 2nd gear has plenty of torque at that speed; in fact it has plenty of torque at 15 mph. I can shift the transmission into first with rev matching at 10-15 mph if I plan to accelerate out of a corner.

I guess we are all saying the same thing. Learning a manual transmission takes lots of practice before you really feel comfortable with it.

 

I was always taught not to downshift to first except to stop. As posted by others, there really isn't any reaosn to do it.

 

I put into 2nd as long as the car's moving... say even 1mph...
If you really want to put it into 1st, you've gotta match the rev speed, that'll help

 

30mph and trying to put it into 1st?!?! (yes I realize you have the clutch in) That's really hard on your synchro's. Stop it!

 

Every manual car is like that....to get into first you have to rev match but there really is no point in downshifting into first ever.

 

Agreed! First gear at 30 mph is a bit much for normal driving. If you're "really" in a hurry, I imagine that you could downshift to 1st at that speed but you'd need to do a healthy throttle blip to match revs for the shift before punching.

I'd just coast down and slip it into gear as I'm coming to a stop. Someone else mentioned putting it into first gear after stopping but I've generally found that it's a little easier if you do it right "before" coming to a complete stop. As long as the wheels are turning at all will make a difference in how easily it slips into gear.

FWIW,
Drive Safe,
Steve R.

 

shoot, i start in second often. short gear ratios and ample torque mean you hardly need any clutch to do this. i wont tell you not to downshift to first, enough others have

 

Thanks for the info guys, this forum is great for answers to questions like these.

I was just using 30 MPH as an example, I never have put it into first at anything above 15 MPH, but as a newbie stick driver I was just curious why it wasn't possible. Even at 15 MPH the shifter doesn't want to go into 1st without a nice push. I understand the reason I shouldn't do this, and am fine with it.

How about starting from 2nd? OK to do? Is it bad for tranny, engine, etc. ????

I actually started from 3rd yesterday on accident, I thought I was in first. It started but really sluggish.

Again, thanks so much for the info fellas.

-J

 

The car pulls hard enough in second that it is rarely worth the time to downshift into first, then back into second anyway.

There is one road that I like to drive and there is a real tight hairpin curve, that is also REALLY steep, uphill. I will usually downshift into first for this turn, but you have to rev match before you put it into gear. Going the other direction, I just downshift into second.

 

Yeah I just figured out this rev matching using the blip technique when downshifting yesterday. Let me just say WOW what adifference it makes for a smooth down shift.

I put in clutch, downshift shifter, blip, release clutch faster than without blippin. Goes so smooth!

Do you do this everytime you downshift?

-J

 

Hi Dolph:
Next autocross you'll have to tell me where this favorite road is.

Jon

 

3 peices, engine, gears, and driveshaft. clutch is between the engine and gears, synchros are between gears and driveshaft. basicly the gears are not spinning fast enough to match up with the driveshaft. blipping the throttle can help this, but only with clutch out in nuetral, then clutch in, shift, clutch out, go.

hope that makes sense(and I hope I got that right).

1st runs out of rpms around 30mph tho. shifting there anyway is tough on the synchros regaurdless. but thats already been made clear I think.

 

I think starting off from a dead stop in second rather than first on a regular basis would be extra wear on your clutch, as it seems you'd have to slip the clutch more than normal to get rolling. But it shouldn't make a big difference....

 

I don't think this would be very good for your clutch OR your engine. Remember, ours is an engine that doesn't like to "lug". It likes to rev. Frequently "lugging" could damage the engine.

 

I slip it into second when rolling up on stopped traffic that might get moving and then either stop and shift to first or engage the clutch and take off. If you stop and start from 2nd, it takes longer to reach mid range rpms (2,200 or so) and its not good to give it full throttle at low rpms in a higher gear. The engine is "lugging" or "slugging" under hard acceleration in high gears which causes the engine valves to wear.

It's recommended to use 2nd or even 3rd to start from a stop when you want to reduce torque and potential wheel spin in order to get started on slippery pavement . You do have to slip the clutch more and should be light on the gas to keep rpms and torque down. This will minimize clutch wear and wear from lugging too.

 

1st gear is for taking off from a dead stop. period. oh wait, and burnouts and stuff.

 

Its the 'stuff' is what gets you in trouble!