Moving Stick into First
 

Hi, I just bought a 07 Mustang GT w/a Stick and sometimes I think that I moved the knob to 1st but when I let off the clutch it starts to grind the gears because I'm all the way into 1st gear. Has anyone else had happen? This is my first manual car.

You might not be in gear all the way. Also, the stock shifter isn't the best thing in the world so you might even be between the 1-3 gates. Just make sure that when you shift into 1st, push the stick all the way to the left and then push up with a bit of force.

ugh... grinding gears is the worst noise... ever

are you moving when u go into first...if u are stop doing that ....there is a block for first while moving....

can you explain that a lil better...not sure i get what ur saying...if im doing under like 30 mph and i wanna take off ill downshft to 1st gear and never had a grind..

never shift the 3650 transmission into 1st gear above 15mph (with 3.27-3.55 gears, less with 3.73 and 4.10 or higher). You can severly damage your transmission. If you're moving then the rule of thumb is to be in 2nd gear or higher. If you want to do that kind of thing get a 2.95 1st gear put in like road race trannies have.

atc89, just make sure you put it all the way into gear. Since the car is new, I'd speculate that things are a bit tight yet and it'll wear in so getting solidly into 1st isn't such a chore. In the mean time, a better shifter like a Steeda or other aftermarket unit will help make the gear changes more sense-able and you'll have better feel of where the gears are and when they're all the way meshed. Be nice to it... it's new.

No, I mean from a stand-still. I think that I'm not flooring the clutch all the way to the firewall. I just have to work on it. Thanks for the replys.

That could do it. In addition, the Ford manual states that under no circumstances (whether to engine brake or accelerate) should you shift into 1st when going faster than 15 mph.

thats reallyy odd i never knew that but honestly not sure if i am going to put to much thinking into that...i cant understand why it would hurt the t-45 tranny at least i mean it makes no sense in having a manual transmission if your not able to put it in first gear an get up an go---a guy driving down the road in his automatic stang slams the pedal while going 20 or so mph the tranny downshifts and correct me if im wrong but i believe it would go down into 1st gear...i dont have the book for my car lol preveious owner must have thought it would benefit them somehow lol

first gear is just there to get you going. I've been known to start off in 2nd pretty regularly. It's got the power, might as well use it.

The factory warning seemed pretty intent on you not shifting into first while moving so I've always taken that pretty seriously. The factory writes some strange stuff in the manual but this is one thing they didn't him and haw about... it said severe damage and I'm willing to take their word for it.

well i agree with all the damage and stuff, but its not comfortable to downshift into first at all, it jerks and everything, so not only is it not good for ur car, but its horrible to get jerked like that, well atleast in my car, an 07 might not be as bad, but i got a steeda tri-ax, good choice on my part, ull like a new shfter

I accidently shifted into 1st from second before and it scared the crap out of me. I was going into 3rd but somehow made it into 1st and the torque and power was too much for my car to handle and it started to seem like it was about to spin out. I probably did a 7 ft fishtail from side to side

haha ive done that before its not comfortable..

its ok...

don't worry bout it... ya'll get the feel for a stick... takes a bit of getting used to... more time for some then others but you will...

i also did that once when i was new at driving stick--trying to shift real fast and go real fast ripped into 1st gear while doing like 50 or so let the clutch half way out and was like oooo god clutch went down so fast it was rediculous lol

I do it if i'm stopping at a light and I am almost stopped but not quite and it turns green. doesnt seem to be harming anything.

be careful shifting always---->

a few months back I got a Z4 in my bay...it was a no-start. checked the basics and went on to do a compression test and I had nearly 0 on 5 of the 6 cylinders. Borescoped the motor and saw scratches on all 6 cylinder walls and little bits of metal where it shouldnt be. the piston tops had pieces missing and distinct impressions of the valves stamped into them. Flipped the cyl head over and saw all of the exhaust vales bent. Dayum! (I got pics if anyone wants to see the destruction)

Motor was toast.

cause: missed shift mechanical over rev. engine saw around 11k rpms.

customer eventually admitted to being an assclown.

shift carefully ppl. :breakdancesmilie:

That's the fun in a stick, the ability to rip apart the engine beyond repair at any time you see fit :salook:

Done that my first week driving a stick. It certainly didn't feel good. :eek2:

And for some reason, I've recently developed a bad habit of accidentall shifting 3rd > 2nd at WOT. NOT pretty!