2nd GEAR JERK

[FRSTR90]

Originally Posted by BigCarrot

If you do it slightly slower it wont hurt the clutch but it will smooth out the transition. Your clutch isn't an on/off button. It takes practice to get it down and you can't be perfect every shift. It's all trial and error to get it comfortable for you.

I use to think exactly like you.. I was either on or off the clutch with no in between. Keep in mind, no one is telling you to RIDE the clutch because like you said it will BURN it up. Try releasing the clutch slower than you are now. I suspect that the jerk is coming from mismatched speeds.. For example, your engine is turning 3000 RPM, but based on the speed at which the car is traveling at and the new gear you're in, the engine should be turning lets say 2000 RPMs.. So technically, you're dumping the clutch from 1-2.If you slow down a little bit on how soon you take your foot off the clutch, it will help your engine and transmission match speeds a little smoother. Which is smoother on you're driveline and your suspension.

And like Big Carot mention, not every shift is going to be perfect. I have my good moments and I have my bad. I find that when I am not sooo much in a hurry, the ride in the car is much smoother. One thing I've noticed is that our cars ride so smooth that we might not realize that we are accelerating at a fast rate. Maybe slow your acceleration down a notch and you might find that will help also..

[Blu Ray]

Originally Posted by 1BADLS3

Exactly. 2nd-6th should be about matching engine/trans speed together based on your driving skill, and if you do it right, you don't need to use the clutch to shift. (IMO, still do it for good practice, and there will be times when you're slightly off and you'll get a grind if you don't use the clutch).

Shifting and not using the cluth....explain this a little more

[FRSTR90]

Originally Posted by Izach26

Shifting and not using the cluth....explain this a little more

I wouldn't recommend this to anyone unless you had a crashbox... A clutch is much cheaper than a transmission. There is no way, if I were GM, that I would cover your warranty if you had damaged your transmission due to not using a clutch..

[Rob21sf]

Try adjusting your seating position. Meaning if you left foot is on top of the clutch back it up a bit or if your foot is fully stretched out when pushing in the clutch move the seat up a little. Find a equal ground where your not stretching out when pushing the clutch and your not pressing all the way down to the floor board when engaging the clutch. Might help! My 2 cents.

[Topher]

I've never had any issues with the 1-2 gear shift. The first week I had my Camaro I did stall out a few times, but that's bound to happen when you go from a very stiff clutch in a Jeep Wrangler to a sports clutch in a Camaro

[Blu Ray]

Originally Posted by Rob21sf

Try adjusting your seating position. Meaning if you left foot is on top of the clutch back it up a bit or if your foot is fully stretched out when pushing in the clutch move the seat up a little. Find a equal ground where your not stretching out when pushing the clutch and your not pressing all the way down to the floor board when engaging the clutch. Might help! My 2 cents.

Yea that does help, i just want to be sure I push it to the floor, I get afraid when its to far back that it wont catch

Not once have i head that GRINDING SOUND

[1BADLS3]

Originally Posted by Izach26

Shifting and not using the cluth....explain this a little more

So, first a disclaimer: It's probably best that you don't do this on your brand new Camaro, but you can. Shifting without the clutch puts additional stress/wear on your syncros and is only advisable in emergency situations like if your clutch cable snaps, etc. You're not going to hurt anything doing it a few times, but it's not meant to be an alternative driving style or for regular, consistent use. Make sense?

The clutch is what connects the engine power to the transmission. In order to get the car going, you have to slip the clutch a bit. That's because the engine flywheel, which is turning usually about 600-1000 rpm at idle, has to get the transmission gears and wheels moving from a stop. So, you slip the clutch to apply power until they're moving at the same speed. (Keep in mind, your wheels aren't turning at 600rpm, it's significantly reduced because of your first gear ratio, and also the gear ratio of the rear differential, in that gear combination.

So there you are, humming along in 3rd gear around 2000rpm, let's pick an arbitrary speed of 30mph. And now you want to shift to 4th gear. You know that if you're in 4th gear at 30mph, the RPM's will read around 1600.

Without using the clutch, you can ease up on the gas, pull the shift lever out of 3rd (just like you're shifting), but watch: You're not going to pull the lever into 4th until you know the engine is right around 1600rpm. Easily and gently pull the lever into 4th at the right spot. If you've done it right, there's NO grind, and it all happens while the drivetrain is kind of in slack-mode right after easing up on the gas. The reason this works is because the engine and transmission are "spinning" at the same speed in 4th gear at 1600rpm, and the gears sync right up.

Why is this cool? It can help you become a much better driver because the more you start memorizing where gears engage, and at what speeds, you can REALLY start to time your upshifts and downshifts and rev-matching not only for performance driving, but also for very smooth, very "professional" everyday driving. And when you're doing this WITH the clutch, it makes it so there's zero clutch slippage at all. In my example, since the clutch isn't required to engage the gears when the engine/trans are in sync, when you DO use the clutch, there's no feathering or slipping. Engage the gear, let out the clutch instantly, and there should be no bucking or herky-jerky, just seamless integration as you get back on the gas and accelerate. The goal of it all is to make your clutched-shifts seamless with as little wear as possible on the clutch and related components. The only time you should ever have to slip the clutch is to get the car moving. This is why some people can make their clutches last 100,000, 150,000 or more miles, just by learning how to pay attention to what's going on behind the scenes with their cars.

For examples, both good and bad, you can Youtube "clutchless shifting" and entertain yourself for hours.

[usnavydoc]

I had the grind problem too on my LS3 - had dealer and GM involved when I read somewhere in this forum that problem was greatly reduced if car is allowed to warm up. I have since let the car warm up for 5 min to let transmission and engine temp to go up and haven't had the 1-2 gear grind after I started to do that.