Launching in 2nd?

[stickicivi]

What is the consensus on launching in 2nd gear? I did a quick search and didn't find what I'm looking for. Specifically I want to know whether it is better for the clutch or worse? On the one hand the engine is definitely working harder to launch, and I wonder if this is translating to more wear on the clutch, or if wear is mostly a function to the relative speeds between the flywheel and clutch plate rather than the torque forces? On the one hand I have to feather the clutch some more to launch, but on the other hand you are essentially skipping a shift. I also find myself less likely to over-rev when I launch in 2nd.

[Shadow]

With your car (like most), it's definitely recommended to launch in 1st gear. My dad used to have an old 4-speed Chevy pick-up that was normally launched in 2nd gear....but 1st gear was more of a creeper gear in his case.

[six]

It is highly recommended that you start in 1st gear. Launching once in 2nd gear is the equivalent of launching four times in 1st. You are essentially putting 4x the amount of wear on the clutch.

[theholycow]

The wearing job of the clutch when launching is to absorb the difference in speed between 0 and whatever speed you'll be going as soon as it's not slipping anymore. In 2nd gear that speed is higher. There will be that much more wear.

[rml605]

I see you drive a Honda and so do I (well Acura, but same low torquey car)..

I have trouble launching at as low RPM as possible with minimal slippage in 1st...I can't imagine it for 2nd..

[Roger]

I don't see the point of launching in 2nd unless you are going down a steep hill. The extra clutch wear is unneccessary and pointless because you will have to slip the clutch for longer.

[Rope-Pusher]

It depends on the vehicle gear ratios, final drive ratios, tire diameters, mass, flywheel inertia, phase of the moon, gradient of the road, direction the wind is blowing, etc. Sometimes, 1st is more gear reduction than I need when not ballasted by cargo, not towing a trailer, or not trying to make time. I do no-gas or almost-no-gas launch, hooking up with the engine below idle speed.

[bk7794]

I see you drive a Honda and so do I (well Acura, but same low torquey car)..

I have trouble launching at as low RPM as possible with minimal slippage in 1st...I can't imagine it for 2nd..

I take the cake for being the most underpowered car here. But I love it.

I found that even while going down hill, launching in second just isn't worth the clutch wear. If I find that I am rolling and I am going too fast to get it into first I will occasionally slip second, just to save my syncros. But if I am coming up a hill, I will do my best to double clutch it into first.

[daleadbull]

The only time I "launch" in 2nd is if I'm already rolling a little (Down hill, rolling stop, etc.). 1st gear's primary purpose is launching so I use it, a few times I slipped it into 2nd and I was creeping a little too slow which lead to me slipping the clutch longer than I'd like to or a rough launch. So, now the only time I put it in 2nd is if I'm already rolling > 5mph if I had to guess.

[tankinbeans]

My friend launches almost exclusively in 2nd for some random reason. His Jetta doesn't seem to mind it.

I think it takes too long and avoid it altogether. The only time I will "launch" in 2nd is if I'm already rolling up to a light and it changes. Then I'll do a quick rev-match into 2nd and keep going, but otherwise I use 1st for its intended purpose, POWER!!!!

[Shadow]

The only time I "launch" in 2nd is if I'm already rolling a little (Down hill, rolling stop, etc.). 1st gear's primary purpose is launching so I use it, a few times I slipped it into 2nd and I was creeping a little too slow which lead to me slipping the clutch longer than I'd like to or a rough launch. So, now the only time I put it in 2nd is if I'm already rolling > 5mph if I had to guess.

Yeah, I've done that a lot of times. If I'm on a steep enough hill, I'll just release the brakes and begin to roll down the hill in 2nd gear and engage the clutch once I'm moving a few MPH.

[Rope-Pusher]

I drove home tonite for almost a mile with no-gas launch in 2nd and no-gas shifting up through the gears to 6th. It only goes about 15 mph in 6th no-gas, but I was driving thru a residential area with nobody behind me. The motor was cold and it would only pull about 500 rpm in 6th.

[Perpetuus]

Launching in second is an easy way to reduce the torque to your wheels (less likely to lose traction by spinning them out) on low grip roads.

For a car with lower torque, launching in 1st is what I would recommend, because you are making it less difficult for yourself. Launching in second might teach you how to be smoother with the clutch and accelerator though, so it might be good as practice.

Patience, and good observation of what you`re doing right is key above all.

[ClutchFork]

I don't normally launch in second. I used to have a highway geared '84 F150. It had a 2.7x rear end and 4 speed OD. When I got my '95 F150 it had a 3.3x rear end and a 5 speed OD. Second gear in the '95 was just a tad taller than first was in the '84. It was pretty close and I thought about launching in second because I wasn't used to shifting out of first so soon, but it was just a bit too tall, would have been a strain. The 84 could wind first out to about 45 mph, but the '95 could only wind out to 25 mph in first.

Only time you would normally start in second is if you have a creeper first like in the F350 dump truck I used to drive when I worked for the City of Southfield, MI, forestry crew back in the 80s.