Anybody else start in 2nd gear?

M

mo08ms3

Member
:
08.5 BM Mazdaspeed3
When I am just mosying around town in traffic I will usually start the car in second rather than first. I knew a lot of people with big engines that do this. I would do it in my WRX every once in awhile but my Speed3 has more power and torque so its more practical to do with less (usually no) bogging down. I like it for when I don't/can't start fast because I don't have to do the 1st to 2nd shift. I won't do it when I am im bumper to bumer traffic because it seems like it would put unneccesarry stress on the tranny/clutch.

Does anybody else do this when they don't want to or can't launch fast due to cars being in front of you?
 
I only do it if I can get the car moving first, like when I am on a little bit of a downhill. I won't take off from a dead stop with second.
 
As much time as I used spend on the WRX forums and now the Mazda forums, I haven't heard anybody talk about this so I fugured:
A) Nobody does it
B) Its not worth talking about

Anyways, it was on my mind so Cheers and enjoy this fine Independance day everyone(drinks)
 
I sometimes do this in my cars when I'm starting from a wet patch, so as to not have to worry about wheelspin, or when I'm just a bit lazy and rather just start in second than start in first, shift and then having to slowdown for a corner.

As long as I don't feel any strain, I'll do it when I feel it'll be the smoothest thing to do.
 
I do it all the time, sometimes even in third if rolling! I *hate* the 1-2 shift bounce in this car! Just not smooth at all...(Before being flamed, I've been driving and racing manuals for 18 years now...)

Daniel
 
I do it about 50% of the time when stopped, depends on the traffic and road slope.
I only use second if stopped on the flat or on a downslope, if there is any upslope at all I use first.
If I have any movement at all I always use second.


Works for me. Been driving manual shift vehicles since 1980.
 
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If the car is rolling, yes. From a complete stop, this car DOES bog down and will stall pretty easily. My Acura RSX Type-S took a 2nd gear start better than this car will. The power and torque is only there when the turbo is spinning. It as almost if this car has a lightweight flywheel from factory.
 
FrequentFlyer said:
If the car is rolling, yes. From a complete stop, this car DOES bog down and will stall pretty easily. My Acura RSX Type-S took a 2nd gear start better than this car will. The power and torque is only there when the turbo is spinning. It as almost if this car has a lightweight flywheel from factory.
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Are you kidding??

I roll out of 2nd almost all the time because 1st gear is pretty much useless in traffic.

If someone say this car 'bogs down' and stalls often when rolling out in 2nd then I question their driving ability. A decent to good manual driver should have zero problem completely avoiding 1st gear in the MS3. Plus starting from 2nd will help a lil bit with MPG. I typically shift 2-4-6 gears when doing normal driving. Helps MPG, and the ride is a lot smoother for the wifey.
 
mo08ms3 said:
When I am just mosying around town in traffic I will usually start the car in second rather than first. I knew a lot of people with big engines that do this. I would do it in my WRX every once in awhile but my Speed3 has more power and torque so its more practical to do with less (usually no) bogging down. I like it for when I don't/can't start fast because I don't have to do the 1st to 2nd shift. I won't do it when I am im bumper to bumer traffic because it seems like it would put unneccesarry stress on the tranny/clutch.

Does anybody else do this when they don't want to or can't launch fast due to cars being in front of you?
Click to expand...


Only on incomplete (rolling) stops. It's too hard on the clutch otherwise.
 
robin2660 said:
Only on incomplete (rolling) stops. It's too hard on the clutch otherwise.
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Exactly. So in my opinion, anyone reving the motor up and slipping the clutch out to prevent it from stalling starting out in 2nd gear is not exactly a "decent" or "good" manual driver. It's not good for the car and I couldn't justify the wear and tear on the clutch doing it to save .02 a gallon. 1st is there for a reason. The only time I would consider doing it is in the snow where I didn't want that much torque getting to the ground, but then again, I'd have my Blizzaks on and probably wouldn't need to do it.
 
freeflyfreak said:
Yep, me too.
Unless Im in a hurry, 2,4,6
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I've never done the 2,4,6 thing but I start in 2nd and rarely bog the car out. 1st gear seems like a waste to me unless I can actually use it. When I am driving behind traffic, I can't really go fast anyways from a start.
 
punch said:
I typically shift 2-4-6 gears when doing normal driving. Helps MPG, and the ride is a lot smoother for the wifey.
Click to expand...
You will always, always, always get better MPG by fully using your vehicles gearing. This is part of what gears are for: maximizing efficiency. When you skip gears you run higher into the RPM range of gears before shifting, and at higher RPMs you're burning more fuel. You also tend to shift into the next gear outside of the effective power range, and do not make the best use of your engine.

You are driving lazily, and not even remotely improving fuel economy. You are making it worse.
 
happy and angry said:
You will always, always, always get better MPG by fully using your vehicles gearing. This is part of what gears are for: maximizing efficiency. When you skip gears you run higher into the RPM range of gears before shifting, and at higher RPMs you're burning more fuel. You also tend to shift into the next gear outside of the effective power range, and do not make the best use of your engine.

You are driving lazily, and not even remotely improving fuel economy. You are making it worse.
Click to expand...

What about if you're still shifting below 3k rpms? So, go from first to 3k (16 mph), shift to 3rd (1333 RPM at 16mph) pull to 3k (36 mph) etc.. sure its slow, but if that's slightly downhill you're telling me you won't improve fuel economy at all?
 
I really, really doubt it. You have zero power that low in the RPM band, and to accelerate you will simply need to use more fuel because of the lack of power.

You will always maximize fuel economy by running at or near your most fuel efficient RPM range, for any motor, and in this car it's between about 2k and 3k. Enough power to accelerate, low enough in the RPM range to be fuel efficient.

You know how a CVT works? Keeping your engine at its ideal RPM range through the entire act of acceleration? One of the big advantages of this is that it can keep the motor running at the most fuel efficient RPM range, and thus maximize fuel economy. Using all 6 gears in our vehicle is the closest we can get to that sort of efficiency, but it's something we should strive to do if we're trying to maximize our MPG.
 
Imagine driving a 10 speed bike and having it in a high gear while you're going slow and trying to accelerate. Legs hurt yet? They should because you're doing more work to accelerate in the wrong gear. Same concept with a car and you're using more throttle to accelerate. I shift at 3.5-4k with this car on a normal basis and usually make sure I'm cruising in the 2.5-3k range. I came out of an RSX Type S and before that, an S2000, so I'm not rev shy. I'd shift those cars at 5-6k on a daily basis, but they were so smooth, it felt like they were only doing 3k.
 
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