I shift like that sometimes when I'm muddin. I don't do it a whole lot though because my truck doesn't have a tachometer.

 

What is the point of keeping it in first or second gear? I don't really understand. If you're going to accelerate normally why not keep it in D?

 

I don't have to worry about it in mine. It doesn't shift into D under 35mph unless I let off and then ease back on the throttle. It may be a problem with the tranny, I don't know for sure.

 

I travel back country roads where there are a lot oftwists,turns, and hills, and practical speed is in the range of 35- 50 mph. When I hit a corner or make a turn and have to slow down, the tranny will remain in 3rd gear or maybe OD because I'm not on the throttle. Then as I start to accelerate through the turn, its stays in the higher gear until I keep pressing the skinny pedal hard enough to make it kick down. Maybe my problem is that I don't hammer the throttle hard enough to make it kick down quicker. It just bugs me that it stays in the higher gear and of course won't pick up speed again quickly. Since I drive the same route almost every day, I've learned the spots where it helps to shift manually to help accelerate quicker.

I'll also do it just for fun. Like I stated at the top, I miss not shifting gears. I used to run VW rabbits with manualsand my dad's 66 Dodge Stepside that had a 4 on the floor. I would play around double-clutching or trying to shift without the clutch. I've run a few dumptrucks and many old tractors where shifting on the gowas a real treat.

I just thought I'd start a thread to see if anyone else shifts manually for practical or fun reasons.

 

What Ash just said.

At higher RPM, the motor makes more power (up to a point). If you delay shifting, you stay in the power band. If you're in a lower gear and accelerate, the truck responds more quickly.

If you're going to "accelerate normally", just leave it in D, as you suggested.

 

Well, this is a great issue, I am 25 now and my dad wore my butt out when I did it to his old truck, but I just wouldn't stop. I did it to my neon, my ford escape, my bros z28 and my wifes firebird, I love it, most of the time I just fooled around, but in the neon, I had a guy put a lifetime warranty on the tranny, so I whomped on that thing like it was disposable, nothing ever happened to the tranny, only thing that ever happened to that was the tranny cooling lines going to the radiator busted a couple times till I got a more heavy duty replacement. No problem since, that was at 50k now she is at 135k and no problem. But I suppose it depends on individual trannys, some are oranges some are lemons.

 

Track I always manual shift, have the Transgo stage III race kit in so it will shift way too early if left in D.

Edit; Inever downshift, only upshift