Hello everyone, and welcome!
In this video we're going to be talking about
whether or not it's a good idea to start from a dead stop
in second gear.
And I have brought some toys along with me to help demonstrate this.
Uh, we're going to be talking about automatic transmissions, manual transmissions
and dual clutch transmissions.
We won't talk about CVTs -- those don't
really have gears, uh you just, you know
drive off and go do your thing.
So, the logic behind it... Why do people say maybe you should
start in second gear? Well, perhaps
it's that your starting on an incline
and so you want to just be able to be in second
gear, 'cause the car starts to accelerate immediately.
Perhaps you're driving in the snow, you
want easier throttle response so you don't spin the tires.
Um, some people say they
don't want to wear out first gear -- that's kind of
silly that's what first gear is for you should use it.
Uh, some people say, uh, that their first gear
is just super short, so they just start in second,
uh, for those reasons.
So we're going to get into the individual reasons
and talk about the different style transmissions
and why you may or may not want to
start in second gear. So let's start off
talking about manual transmissions
and with manual transmissions, really
the only scenario I think that makes sense
to start off in second gear is
if you're on a downhill slope, and
you're... So you just put it in second gear and as
you start to roll down that slope from a
dead stop, uh, you ease off the clutch
as the car accelerates going down that hill
then you've got a nice smooth transition
into second gear. Inevitably, if you start
in first, it's gonna be very quick that you shift
into second, um, so no big deal if you're
going downhill -- it's not going to really put any strain on your
clutch, your engine, your transmission.
Um, so that seems like a logical scenario to use it.
On the other hand people will say,
you know, if you want to start in the snow
with the manual transmission,
and you don't want your wheels to spin,
you can use second gear.
Because second gear is going to have less torque,
it's going to be less likely that you spin those tires.
Uh, so more likely that you get traction
and accelerate off.
So we're going to talk about why, you know,
this isn't really the best way to approach that.
If you have to do it,
if you can't find any other way out of it...
Perhaps give it a try, uh, but
it's really better to just, you know,
be more careful with your throttle modulation
and, you know, just use first gear
and just be patient with it.
So why is that?
So, here we've got a fly wheel, um,
so we can imagine this is our engine
which is spinning -- it's happily spinning.
You've got your clutch pressed in, um,
your clutch pedal pressed in.
So your clutch is disengaged
and then you've got your clutch, of course,
right here.
So this is matched to your transmission,
whereas this is spinning with your engine.
So, when you're in second gear
-- if you're gonna start to accelerate off
from a dead stop,
your engine's happily spinning
-- it doesn't care.
Your transmission's in second gear
-- it doesn't care at all.
But your clutch is what you can make unhappy
by being in that second gear.
So why is that?
Well, let's say your engine is spinning
at a thousand RPM.
Your transmission, of course,
is geared to your wheels.
So it's connected to your wheels;
your wheels aren't spinning
-- your vehicle speed is zero.
So you've got a disconnection here,
which is the clutch,
that allows for this to be at speed
and your transmission is not
because it's connected to your wheels,
which are not moving.
Okay. So we want to accelerate that.
Now in first gear, if this engine is spinning
at a thousand RPM and we fully engage the clutch,
and we're moving along at a thousand RPM.
Let's say we're at maybe 5 miles per hour
-- that's a really aggressive gear ratio.
And so when the engine is spinning
at a thousand RPM.
Your vehicle speed only needs to be at
5 miles per hour
in order for you to fully engage that clutch.
It's not slipping, whatsoever,
against that flywheel.
They're both completely engaged
-- both spinning together.
Okay, when [in] second gear...
Now your vehicle speed
at a thousand RPM
needs to be, let's just say as an example,
10 miles per hour.
It's going to be higher than first gear.
So, now you have to get your vehicle speed
all the way up to 10 miles per hour.
And you're using your engine and the clutch to do that.
So, you're modulating your clutch
-- how much pressure you're allowing it
to squeeze this down against the fly wheel.
Your engine's happily spinning along at
a thousand RPM, or whatever RPM you've got it at
-- perhaps fifteen-hundred (1500),
and you're pressing it up against it.
But you need to bring your vehicle speed
up to 10 miles per hour,
instead of 5 miles per hour now,
in order to fully engage these.
Otherwise, it's slipping.
So it's going to be slipping for a longer duration
in second gear,
and you're going to be putting more wear on that clutch
in second gear,
than if you were to just do it in first gear.
So what's the better thing to do?
Well, the better thing to do is just
be patient and be gentle with it.
So, you know, you can let the clutch out
a little bit slower than usual, if you want.
You know, the main thing is really just
keeping those engine RPMs really low
if you're trying to accelerate on a really slick surface.
So keep your engine RPM really low with the throttle
And then just slowly ease out of that clutch pedal,
perhaps a little bit slower than normal,
and that will ease you out.
You're not going to spin up those tires.
Uh, and it's really about foot control
rather than using your clutch,
rather than sacrificing your clutch,
uh, for...
For lack of a better way of saying it:
Your lack of driving skill.
And so, you know, put it in first gear.
Just be gentle with your inputs and
that's going to be better for your clutch than
kind of burning it up in second gear.
Now, is it the worst thing in the world to do?
No, your clutch can handle a little slipping,
it's designed for that.
Uh, but if you want to do the absolute best thing for it,
you'd start in first gear
and just be gentle with your inputs
when you're accelerating in slippery conditions.