Stick shift question

Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my son
to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I know.

"JoeSpareBedroom" <dishborealis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:zCZhg.3203$Oh1.454@news01.roc.ny...[color=blue]
> Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
> reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my
> son to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I know.[/color]

It "sticks" because there's no synchros in reverse, to help line up the
gears. Shifting to 2nd then reverse allows the transmission shafts to turn
slightly in relation to each other(because there ARE synchros on 2nd), after
which the reverse idler will more closely align with the gear.
--
Mike Harris
Austin, TX

--
..
"Mike Harris" <harrisremovethiswest@sbcglobal.net> wrote in message
news:YXZhg.47440$Lm5.29362@newssvr12.news.prodigy.com...[color=blue]
> "JoeSpareBedroom" <dishborealis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:zCZhg.3203$Oh1.454@news01.roc.ny...[color=green]
> > Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
> > reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my
> > son to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I[/color][/color]
know.[color=blue]
>
> It "sticks" because there's no synchros in reverse, to help line up the
> gears. Shifting to 2nd then reverse allows the transmission shafts to[/color]
turn[color=blue]
> slightly in relation to each other(because there ARE synchros on 2nd),[/color]
after[color=blue]
> which the reverse idler will more closely align with the gear.
> --
> Mike Harris
> Austin, TX
>[/color]

Its a force of habit with me now to put it in 2nd before reverse. As per
Mike's post above.

"Brad P" <bradp_xx@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:5I_hg.19417$A26.443831@ursa-nb00s0.nbnet.nb.ca...[color=blue]
> --
> .
> "Mike Harris" <harrisremovethiswest@sbcglobal.net> wrote in message
> news:YXZhg.47440$Lm5.29362@newssvr12.news.prodigy.com...[color=green]
>> "JoeSpareBedroom" <dishborealis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
>> news:zCZhg.3203$Oh1.454@news01.roc.ny...[color=darkred]
>> > Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
>> > reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my
>> > son to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I[/color][/color]
> know.[color=green]
>>
>> It "sticks" because there's no synchros in reverse, to help line up the
>> gears. Shifting to 2nd then reverse allows the transmission shafts to[/color]
> turn[color=green]
>> slightly in relation to each other(because there ARE synchros on 2nd),[/color]
> after[color=green]
>> which the reverse idler will more closely align with the gear.
>> --
>> Mike Harris
>> Austin, TX
>>[/color]
>
> Its a force of habit with me now to put it in 2nd before reverse. As per
> Mike's post above.
>
>[/color]

Mine, too. My son thought I was having a seizure in my arm. :-)

See this:

[url]http://auto.howstuffworks.com/transmission.htm[/url]

Then you are an expert.

On Thu, 08 Jun 2006 18:02:07 GMT, "JoeSpareBedroom"
<dishborealis@yahoo.com> wrote:
[color=blue]
>Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
>reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my son
>to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I know.
>[/color]

In Neutral, the gears inside the tranmsission are spinning. When you depress
the clutch and attempt to select R, the spinning gears will grind, OR the
non-synchronized gear faces (edges really) can strike each other and prevent
the gears from meshing. If you select 2nd first, or even 1st, then select R,
you are using the synchronizers on these gears to stop the transmission from
spinning, and the gear edges for R will slip together easily.

Your Toyota truck uses non-synchromesh Reverse in the transmission. They
(somebody) can make syncromeshed Reverse gear transmissions, but Toyota
doesn't use them on trucks -- they might use them on some of the cars. (I
have a BMW with that has fully synchro'd Reverse gears, I can shift into R
while the car is moving, and there is no grinding at any time, and never a
bind that requires the selection of another gear before going for R.)

You can teach your kid to start the car or truck in gear so the
transmissiion gears are not spinning, then the selection of R will be a bit
easier. Of course, starting a car in gear demands the clutch pedal be
depressed.



"JoeSpareBedroom" <dishborealis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:zCZhg.3203$Oh1.454@news01.roc.ny...[color=blue]
> Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
> reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my
> son to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I know.
>[/color]

Actually, this is his mom's Subaru, but the principle's the same.


"Jeff Strickland" <crwlr@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:3s2dnRhiGp2DexfZnZ2dnUVZ_rOdnZ2d@ez2.net...[color=blue]
> In Neutral, the gears inside the tranmsission are spinning. When you
> depress the clutch and attempt to select R, the spinning gears will grind,
> OR the non-synchronized gear faces (edges really) can strike each other
> and prevent the gears from meshing. If you select 2nd first, or even 1st,
> then select R, you are using the synchronizers on these gears to stop the
> transmission from spinning, and the gear edges for R will slip together
> easily.
>
> Your Toyota truck uses non-synchromesh Reverse in the transmission. They
> (somebody) can make syncromeshed Reverse gear transmissions, but Toyota
> doesn't use them on trucks -- they might use them on some of the cars. (I
> have a BMW with that has fully synchro'd Reverse gears, I can shift into R
> while the car is moving, and there is no grinding at any time, and never a
> bind that requires the selection of another gear before going for R.)
>
> You can teach your kid to start the car or truck in gear so the
> transmissiion gears are not spinning, then the selection of R will be a
> bit easier. Of course, starting a car in gear demands the clutch pedal be
> depressed.
>
>
>
> "JoeSpareBedroom" <dishborealis@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:zCZhg.3203$Oh1.454@news01.roc.ny...[color=green]
>> Ever since I've driven a stick, I've known that if you can't get into
>> reverse, you slip the shifter to 2nd, and then reverse. I'm teaching my
>> son to drive at the moment, and he asked why this works. Damned if I
>> know.
>>[/color]
>[/color]