MT Drivers: What Gear Do you Leave Your Car in When Parked?

[jaehshim]

i've seen so many dumb ppl with the manual, leaving 1st gear in for downhill...

best would be 1st gear in for almost every parking except downhill you wanna do reverse

During the winter especially when I leave my car outside the lot or even in my own garage for 3+ days, I don't use hand brake but use just 1st gear in, during this cold weather and long term parking hand brake isn't the ideal way as it will bite the brake for a long time.
keep in mind this is a flat level/surface parking, not downhill or uphill
the whole beauty of manual is that you can simply put in gear when parking, and is a way better way than using hand brake.

[mdosu]

the only time I park it in gear is if I'm on a hill or uneven parking surface. In this case 1st gear, but just b/c that's what I'm used to.

[AbuArije5]

You guys are old school only on hills i put it in first gear just use my e brake for now

[nbennettksu]

Originally Posted by Ghetto2315

Always in 1st and no rhyme or reason to it, but I'm curious as to why leave it in 2nd?

because once you start the car, if you forget it is in 1st and pop the clutch, the car will lunge forward... pop the curb... go down an embankment... etc... where as will stall out in 2nd.

and maybe I am speaking form experience from when I was learning how to drive a MT, or maybe I'm not . Now I leave the vehicle in "N".

[nbennettksu]

Originally Posted by jphughan

The 6MT M3 has a gear specifically designed to be used while parking, regardless of incline and direction. It's undocumented, but you put the shifter in the hidden gate directly underneath Reverse.

Seriously though, 1st when pointing uphill, Reverse when pointing downhill, and I'll typically put it in 1st when level just out of habit. I don't think there's much difference between 1st and 2nd except that 1st gives more resistance, with the tradeoff that it could theoretically put more strain on the gearbox.

Leaving it in Neutral definitely will NOT cause any problems with the gearbox (just the opposite in fact, Neutral is the easiest on the gearbox of all options), but if you want maximum hold resistance AND very little strain on the gearbox, when parking on a hill, follow this procedure:

1. Get your car parked and your wheels turned whichever way is appropriate for the direction of your incline.

2. Clutch in, foot on the brake, shift to Neutral.

3. Pull parking brake all the way, release foot brake. The car will roll slightly and rest on the parking brake.

4. Shift into 1st or Reverse as appropriate, turn engine off, clutch out.

That way you put all of the resistance load on the brakes rather than the gearbox, but the gearbox is still engaged to provide a backup source of resistance if the brakes fail somehow. If you park the way most people do when lazy, i.e. turning the engine off with your foot still on the brake and the car in gear, the car will stop rolling sooner after you let off the foot brake because the gearbox catches faster than the parking brake (assuming you even set the parking brake), but then you've got strain on your gearbox.

Note that the above procedure minus the clutch work and shifting to P in the end would deliver the same benefits to a car with DCT or even a slushbox too.

[Vic311]

Hill facing up - 1st gear

Hill facing down - reverse

Flat surface - neutral

[peeti]

I'm chuckling to myself because regardless of reverse or first, the hill direction won't matter - engine is off, it'll spin whichever way it wants when it finally does actually spin.

But mine was 1st or R depending on which way I'd be departing. Backing out of space next time - R, driving forward, 1.

Now I still can't get used to the fact that I shut my car off in N. (on DCT)

[canadian stig]

Originally Posted by jaehshim

i've seen so many dumb ppl with the manual, leaving 1st gear in for downhill...

best would be 1st gear in for almost every parking except downhill you wanna do reverse

During the winter especially when I leave my car outside the lot or even in my own garage for 3+ days, I don't use hand brake but use just 1st gear in, during this cold weather and long term parking hand brake isn't the ideal way as it will bite the brake for a long time.
keep in mind this is a flat level/surface parking, not downhill or uphill
the whole beauty of manual is that you can simply put in gear when parking, and is a way better way than using hand brake.

It's a misconception that you choose 1st or Reverse according to the hill. It doesn't matter either way. also you should ALWAYS have the parking brake on. A car can actually pop out of gear by itself, especially if the gears didn't hook up properly in the first place, or there is a lot of wear and tear in the gearbox. You need the parking brake as a fail safe measure.

[XeroZeus]

Originally Posted by canadian stig

It's a misconception that you choose 1st or Reverse according to the hill. It doesn't matter either way. also you should ALWAYS have the parking brake on. A car can actually pop out of gear by itself, especially if the gears didn't hook up properly in the first place, or there is a lot of wear and tear in the gearbox. You need the parking brake as a fail safe measure.

The more you know!

[jaehshim]

Originally Posted by canadian stig

It's a misconception that you choose 1st or Reverse according to the hill. It doesn't matter either way. also you should ALWAYS have the parking brake on. A car can actually pop out of gear by itself, especially if the gears didn't hook up properly in the first place, or there is a lot of wear and tear in the gearbox. You need the parking brake as a fail safe measure.

Like I mentioned, parking brake must be on for downhill or uphill, but on flat level surface, parking brake isn't so neccessary once the geat is in.

maybe you misunderstood my point about long term parking and i did take it too far by considering 3+day parking as "long term parking"

many people store their M3 for the winter, and some store 1 month, some store 3 months. They ask if parking brake should be on. The answer is actually no.

Especially in cold winter and long term parking, the parking brake bites onto the brake for a prolonged period and this is not good. It's best to use some gear in and use wheel chocks to safely secure in position.

The whole reason I elaborate on different occasions like this is that new manual drivers, at least those I saw around me, who just moved from automatic tend to think parking brake is everything because they don't have "P" anymore, and frequently refuse to use gear but just rely on parking brake for all situations, whether incline or decline, whether short term or long term storage. For automatics there's only one choice, for manuals, there's many choices & BETTER choices.

[sensi09]

I never do neutral.

I can make a guess, but what's the point of putting it in reverse on a downhill.

[thekurgan]

I leave it in 2nd. No reason other than laziness; I pull it rearward then pull the brake.

[brava09]

Always 2nd and the hand brake.

Easier to leave it 2nd than any other gear.

[BLACK OPS]

I rarely leave it engaged in gear when I park unless there is a substantial slope, in which case my habit is either 1st or reverse.

[i001947]

2nd gear

[Peahi]

Parking brakes can slip ( as many have eventually done on a bunch of my cars). parking in gear is a must. It goes without saying that brake plus gear absolutely on a hill or even slight incline

[MKE_M3]

This thread is weaksauce. Thanks to those that posted serious and accurate responses to this question. you are patient and kind.

[SenorFunkyPants]

I left my bosses Audi in gear after I borrowed it for an errand..he caught up with me latter absolutely fuming as he had started it without checking and it hit the wall a couple of feet in front....Who starts an MT without putting their foot on the clutch first!

[Car54]

I use the last gear I'm in and no handbrake.

If I'm on a decent (+\- 5 degree) hill I use all the standard tricks; turning wheels, ebrake.

I think I hear some of you suggesting that parking in gear will hurt the transmission? No more than driving it around would. There's a lot more strain using the motor to propel the car vs the car sitting in the gear....all assuming your not on a big incline.

Also how many times does your car pop out of gear while driving? There's no mechanism to hold it in gear that runs when the engine is running.

[jphughan]

Originally Posted by SenorFunkyPants

I left my bosses Audi in gear after I borrowed it for an errand..he caught up with me latter absolutely fuming as he had started it without checking and it hit the wall a couple of feet in front....Who starts an MT without putting their foot on the clutch first!

I doubt he could have started the car without pushing in the clutch -- but he probably released the clutch before checking the gear lever. That's a really unfortunate situation for all involved; I've had two close encounters with walls due to this exact brain fart. Now it's just sort of muscle memory to jiggle the shifter left to right to confirm it's in Neutral before I let the clutch out.

[dreamspeed]

I always put it in first regardless of uphill downhill or flat. I always clutch in, start car check, shifter to put it in neutral, and then clutch out. Been doing the exact same sequence every time for over 15 years.

I don't see why I wouldn't put it in gear. It's like a second "safety" hand brake.

[Sleeper519]

I demand my 5 minutes back...