You know those times when you're rolling up to a red light in second after having down shifted through the gears and it turns green, do you want to stop all the way and shift into first or is it safe for the tranny to put it into first while you're still rolling a bit?

 

I do it all the time. I usually don't do it at a speed any higher than 8mph. I'm also quite gentle as I let it ease into 1st.

 

it is normal to do it, it always works better if you can double clutch downshift into 1st gear. If you can't get the double clutch to work for you quick enough, then at least blip the throttle before you engage 1st. On this car it seems to work best with a good stab of the pedal to get rpms up 3k-4k range and the shifter should slide in nicely. The synchros will work to get you into the gear regardless, but it will be easier on them if you can get the revs right.

 

double clutch? wtf?

 

yeah, double clutch....

"A double clutch (also called a double declutch) is a driving procedure primarily used for vehicles with an UNSYNCRONIZED manual transmission."

 

yeah,for example, if you are in 2nd gear and want to get into 1st, push clutch in, move shifter to neutral, release clutch out, blip throttle with a good stab to get rpms up around 4k, push clutch in and put shifter into first. If you get it right the shifter will slide in like it's being sucked into gear, and it is real easy on the synchros. You can do this on any downshift. Once again it is totally not necessary as your synchros will make it work either way, but when you get it right the shift feels really good and your synchros will be better off for it. If you've never done it , it can be a bit tricky getting the timing right and it can be a slow process. Once you get used to it , it is pretty simple to do. If you don't like the idea of double clutching, then at least get the revs up before you jam it into first and that will be almost as good.

 

i did that the other day (shifting into first while rolling), almost to a stop but then the light turned green. second would've bogged and so i decided to go into first, got an awful grind, maybe i started to release the clutch a bit as the hesitation when it wouldn't get into gear right away...

 

Just release the clutch slowly.

Or alternatively, leave it in 2nd. Clutch in at friction point and slowly give it gas and release clutch.

Not good if you have anything other than OEM clutch as it will be jerky, but heavy traffic driving requires slipping to be smooth. If your worried about burning your clutch don't follow my advice haha

spectacled - you've never blipped the throttle before putting into a lower gear? On synchronised transmissions like ours doing that makes it smoother and in most cases gets rid of the 'clunk' or sudden deceleration you experience if you just drop it into a lower gear.

 

yeah that is about all you need to do to eliminate the clunk and help it get into gear more smoothly, it should never grind if you do it that way.

 

if you shift it into first while still moving without double clutching/ bliping and hear a clunk is that normal for not bliping it?