Proper Way to shift to 1st gear?

ElectricTroy said:

My salesman taught me to:
- rev to ~3000 rpm
- slowly release clutch
- remove left foot at 5 mph
troy

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That guy doesn't know how to shift into 1st properly or he's just a clutch saleman :wink:

When starting from a stand still in 1st gear the clutch should only slip for less then 1 second.
And the engine RPM should be at or slightly above idle (1000 RPM) like kapps said.
But kapps, assist is your friend at low RPMs 8)

And in all the other gears the cluch should be released quickly to avoid slipping. To have smooth shifts proper rev-matching is crutial. Slipping the clutch to smooth out the shifting is a terrible technique! :roll:

ElectricTroy said:

remove left foot at 5 mph

troy

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The speed is not relevant,
Quickly finish releasing the clutch as soon as the car starts to move (when the clutch engages).
Try to slip the clutch in 1st gear for less then 1 second.
Don't look at the speedometer, look at the tach while learning.

Good instructional video clips here:
http://www.standardshift.com/videos.html

Excellent information here.
http://www.standardshift.com/faq.html