lately i've been starting from second gear..i barely use first anymore..could this harm the transmission in anyway later on?

 

I do from a slight roll....never from a full stop- although I have started from both 2nd and 3rd once before giggles- I cannot imagine it being that great for the clutch in the long run

 

What do you perceive to be the benefit of starting from second gear? It will be harder on your clutch in the end.

 

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second goes up to like 35-45 mph and you can just switch to 3rd..just a little easier if you drive a lot

 

I start in 2nd or sometimes even 3rd in the snow / ice to get started moving (but that is rare since it rarely sticks here). I will also start in 2nd when I'm still rolling as in when I'm coming to a light and I'm out of gear but still coasting forward and the like.

But, starting in 2nd from a dead stop will, as has been stated, shorten the life of your clutch if you are letting the clutch out slower. Basically, your asking your clutch / 2nd gear to act as 1st gear and the friction material will be worn away much faster in doing so.

 

If your car had a "granny gear" for 1st, it would not hurt to take off from a dead stop in 2nd. Since your car does not have a "granny gear", it can not be good for your drivetrain to subject it to constant starting in too high a gear. Do it for a few months and get back to me and let me know how your clutch fairs. I drive my 5 speed KingCab a lot but never tried to start out in 2nd from a dead stop. Maybe somebody is too lazy.

 

I drive quite a bit (~90 miles per day) and I find that skipping gears is not a bad idea. However, try skipping 2nd instead of 1st. I generally do 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 to start out with but I do 1, 3, 4, 6 a bit with obvious variations in there depending upon traffic and posted speed limit.

 

Skipping higher gears isn't as bad as skipping low then?

 

It's not as hard on the clutch because you are already rolling forward and have speed involved.

 

hmmm i see thanks a lot for the responses..ill start off 1st from now on...dont want my clutch going

 

I think the Nissan owners manual actually suggest skipping gears for fuel economy.

 

yea, once the car is moving already. RPMs determine how much gas used. Higher reving, burns more gas.

 

Vette trannies used to (and may still, don't know) skip from 1st - 4th unless you shifted above 2500 RPM(?) using something called CAGS (computer aided gear selection). This was on the 6-speed, of course, and it is not an optional thing on trannies equipped with it. It can be overriden with simple after-market stuff but anyway... If a Corvette putting down 300+ HP can withstand shifting from 1st to 4th at 2500 RPM and below I think the Max could do a 1st to 3rd easily enough, just in case you were wondering! lol

 

F bodys, Camaros and Firebirds had them the late models... 1st to 4th shift if you don't rev 1st gear past a certain RPM. And it's to save gas.

 

I start on 2nd gear when there's a lot of snow/ice.

 

whether starting in 1st or 2nd in snow you're going to burn ( feather) the clutch. If you go easy on the gas and clutch... you'll get the same result.

 

Not w/ the tires I have.

 

then maybe you should get tires with good treads

 

I only start from 2nd on rolling stops... and yes, in the ice/snow... I used to live in Michigan too...

 

I wouldn't start from a dead stop in second....

I like to go 1,2,3,5 when driving around town...

 

Love my 512s but when these wear out, I'm buying dedicated snow tires.

 

I looked in my owner's manual and saw nothing about skipping gears.

 

Even the C6 still has the skip shift mode to avoid the gas guzzler tax. I had an old F150 4 speed that had the granny 1st gear. Top speed was 5 mph in 1st, and the throw to 2nd was about 18". It never saw 1st gear.

 

I frequently ship 1-2, 2-4, then 4-6. Definately saves in gas! ANd at $2.20/gallon for premium, every little bit helps.

 

how could skipping gear be more efficient?!???

if you skip from 3rd to 5th, it means you got to at least 3kRPM on the 3rd... wouldnt it have been more fuel efficient to shift from 3rd to 4th at 2krpm and from 4th to 5th at 2kRPM again????

I think it is fuel efficient to gun the highest gear possible when cruising (without going too low on RPM), but when accelerating, I dont see the point of saving gas by skipping gear!

 

You manual trans. guys are making me jealous

 

i skip 3rd gear often all it's good for around here is bringing you over the speed limit. i'll just rev 2nd a little higher than normal and go right to 4th. and i don't start in 2nd from a dead stop but if i'm rolling to a stop like at a stop sign or coming off an exit on the freeway i'll just leave it in 2nd and kinda bog the tranny for a split second. it's gotta be better than having to cram it into 1st.

 

And rightly so!

I only start from 2nd from a roll or in inclement weather. I wonder sometimes if it is better to do that and let the car nearly stall because it drops below idle or buck the clutch in first.

I often skip 4th gear when accelerating on the highway when I don't need to get up to speed that fast. 3rd gear is skipped occasionally especially when there are a lot of cars that prevent speedy acceleration.

 

Of course not. I've probably done it once in my life because I forgot to put it into 1st. My dad used to do this sometimes, but as mentioned it's bad on the car, so no point.

I sometimes do skip 4th if I used 3rd to gun me up to speed, but that's about it.

 

Veeery rarely, usually my car is rolling at 2-3 mph in order for me to put it in 2nd... i dont think its that great if you do it from a stop...

 

I wouldn't let the car almost stall or buck the clutch. That's bad for the springs that are on the clutch. The bucking is basically the clutch slipping and grabbing at intervals which sends shock though the whole drive train. It's not good. I rather lightly feather it than buck the clutch. I don't start on second even in snow because you end up slipping the clutch more becaue it's a higher gear. I ease the clutch and gas in snow. And I skip gears too, usually 3rd or 4th. If I'm in no hurry to get fast .