I've never had to replace a clutch in any of my cars (2 integra gsr) and my cls 6 *knock on wood*

I am VERY contentious about how i treat my clutch bc its not a cheap fix. I usually start off in first run it up to about 20mph and then just throw it in 3rd, then 5th, and 6th if needed (hwy). I do this bc in my thinking I'm limiting the amount of times I'm using my clutch so i don't put as much wear on it. If i happen to be at a light that's slightly down hill I will let it roll then start in 2nd, shift to 4th then 5-6th depending where i am.

Does anyone else do this? I've always wondered

 

I skip shift constantly in my daily driving. 1-3-5-6 usually.

 

i used to have a decent city commute and would go 1-3 quite often. There's enough power there to skip gears and it was easier in the morning when you're half asleep.

 

yeah i know sometimes shifting from 1-2 in the morning kinda throws you back with the nice cool air my engine just wants to run! I still love the short gearing tho

 

Never up shifting. Not on any stick I drive. Just not the way I learned to do it. Habits are hard on break on that.

 

+1

 

I do quite often. Half of my clutches nearing 200k life have been 2nd gear starts as well. (though i know its starting to finally give up as in quick shifts into 3rd it will it slip pretty good)

 

if you are skilling gears, row through the gear you are skipping. the way our transmissions are designed makes for an unhappy trans when gears are skipped. so if you go 1-3, make sure you slide in and out of 2nd on your way to 3rd.

 

this is the same reason why you should never down shift to 1st gear. have you ever been at a light and 1st gear takes a little more effort getting into before you drive off? go into second, then slide into 1st before you start moving it slows down the mainshaft and saves wear on your 1st gear synchro

 

I skip gears, and occasionally even start off in second. Very rarely will I skip gears downshifting, theres just too much room for error if you hit second instead of fourth. At the very least, I do what phee said and go into fifth without engaging the clutch, then onto fourth.

The most important thing is to rev match (if skipping gears or not). If you run it up to ~4k rpms in first, then throw it into third, the rev drop will shock the transmission, and it wont like that.

It takes a bit of getting used to, and the stock dual mass flywheel sucks to rev match with, but your clutch and bearings will love you for it.

 

yeah i rev match EVERY time i down shift...and i do usually slide gear into 2nd if i skip it.

 

Oh god lol. I'm doing a 6MT swap, and I have no idea how to drive clutch. Was planning on learning after the swap. Guess I'll get my dad to break it in.

 

+1.

 

dont worry about it. just do it.

 

I had a 6 speed maxima and always skipped gears. Usually 2nd to 4th to 6th. Who needs first gear?!

 

I skip shift. 1-3-5-6. Only use 2nd and 4th if I slow down and need them or for 2nd gear starts where I slow but don't come to a full start (or in the winter when getting going in 1st would result in lots of spinning of the wheels).

 

Yup! all day everyday on upshifts 1-2-4-6 shift at 3K

 

Almost every time I drive the car I do. It's just because I'm lazy lol

 

Sometimes i do..usually from 4-6 getting onto the highway or something. But i always start off in 1rst and go all the way through 4th just the way i was taught....plus hear the SC whine never gets old in any gear

 

I don't know how you guys can do this???? I tried yesterday on my Explorer. Felt so unnatural to me. Tried to skip 3rd, & then tried to skip 4th. So I went from 2-4 & then 3-5. Also it has zero power so it just bogs down when I try.

 

Really depends on the car. I have no problems doing it in my Acura and have done it this way for years. I got in my friends SVT Focus and tried it out of habit. Not happening. Have to hit every gear in there. Friends Z06 has no problem doing it. Then again 1st will take you to 60mph alone if you like.

 

Gear jumping is never recommended, it causes severe damage to your synchronizers.

 

Not according so several guys I know who have been working on performance transmissions for everything form hot rods to drag cars. They've said its an issue for old transmissions but not at all for anything made in the past 20 years.

 

I have always driven like this in the past, until I saw an Acura TSB on gear jumping and what it does to the Honda 6 speed close ration gearboxes. But the current TSB (08-018) is a revision of the older one that did explains the gear jumping concern.

 

That TTB says nothing about not shipping gears when shifting. All it says is that some customers might have issues going into 3rd. If that's the case, replace 3rd.

PDF of the TTB
http://www./forums/attachment.php?at...9&d=1208224780

 

Thats right but like I said, the older TSB stated the problem. It instructed the technician to look at how the customer drives the car and see if they gear jump.

 

Skipping gears had nothing to do with that issue though, which is why they amended the TSB.

 

You've got people with hundreds of thousands of miles on their cars that skip gears every day and don't have any issues. It sure doesn't seem to be a problem or else everyone in this thread would be having issues.

 

I've always done it. I dont make it a point to do it but when it's obvious that I'm at a certain speed, e.g. 60mph in 4th, it makes no sense to go to 5th, so I go straight to 6th. I didn't blow out 3rd gear until I got the blower, but I've always driven pretty aggresively so that wasn't surprising.

 

I usually skip 5th gear when getting up to speed on the freeway. I frequently skip gears when downshifting. I don't see any problems skipping gears because I think everyone skips gears going down. So what difference is it when upshifting? What's most important is match revving. I'm not an expert or anything, but I do have 151,000 miles and still counting on my original clutch, so I'm pretty sure skipping gears doesn't cause any harm.

 

I never skip gears and always rev match downshifts. I have an autocross event this Saturday. I have been watching videos of other people and some of them downshift from 2nd to 1st. I dunno if that is safe with our cars, I thought I remembered reading in manual to only shift into 1st at 5 mph or lower. I plan on starting in 1st and just leaving it in 2nd after up shift. Heel toe downshifting around corners is my favorite thing to do.

 

^ It depends on the car and your course layout. Im willing to bet you wont need first. The car makes enough torque down low to pull in second gear.

 

You won't be able to shift into 1st when your car is going above somewhere around 5-10 mph and up. First gear will be locked out, similar to how you can't shift into reverse when driving forwards. You can try it out. When driving above 10 mph, put your foot on the clutch and try to shift it to 1st, you shouldn't be able to get it in. Once you get to a speed slow enough, first gear will open up and let you shift in. If for some crazy reason you can get it into 1st, just don't let your foot off the clutch.

 

uh ya u can. I do it whenever i do 20 punches... Just slip out of whatever gear your in to N and then w the foot off the clutch rev to about 5.5-6k put foot back on clutch and it slides in 1st ...called rev matching

 

I've never tried that, but if you want to override the mechanism to prevent damage to your clutch and tranny, I guess you could if you wanted. There's no reason to rev up to 6000 rpms and drop it into 1st gear.

 

[QUOTE=TStroke40Killa;13965087]I've never tried that, but if you want to override the mechanism to prevent damage to your clutch and tranny, I guess you could if you wanted. There's no reason to rev up to 6000 rpms and drop it into 1st gear.[/QUOTE

lol um its not overriding a mechanism, they're called syncros... and rev match. Is this your first standard car? I also like your verbiage to make it sound dramatic by saying "drop" it into first. It gently slides in and the engine and transmission are in complete synchronization....hence the name.

 

there's no lockout for first. if you rev match it will go.

 

Nope, I've only owned manuals my whole life. Just been out of the car game for awhile. I didn't spend the time trying think of the correct terms. Getting a little old and didn't bother straining the brain to remember the correct terminolgy. Whatever you want to call it, synchros, match revving, whatever. It was designed so you don't drop it into first when driving at a high speed is my point.

I just tried, and you can't shift into first unless you're under 30 mph (w/o match revving). I didn't try match revving, but I don't see any point in trying to shift it into 1st when driving at a high speed.

 

I was just asking about dropping into 1st on autocross course, depending on layout they sometimes have sharp 180 degree corners. Has anyone ever used the handbrake to turn sharper, I have never tried that. I am no expert and think I will learn a lot once I get some experience and tips from other drivers.

 

Watch some of the guys on the course with FWD cars. Most of the fastest guys dont have much tire squeal. I would think the e-brake would slow you down more then taking a proper line and powering out of the turn.