[Zappo]

I would say that 1st gear it is when I start rolling from standstill. There is that very small aberation, when I am standing on a downwards slope (even if the gradient is very less) and have to start moving I at times start straight from 2nd. At other times I prefer not to lug the engine and strain the clutch.

Half clutch though a bad thing at times is inevitable. When you have to stop all of a sudden on a steep slope and then have to start moving you need to do half clutch. If you do not do so the moment you take your foot off the brake pedal the car will roll backwards and may even hit something. This is when you need to use half-clutch trick to "hold" the car for that brief period till you start pressing the accel pedal.

@Ravetech, tell me about this 1st gear problem... My car never had this thing (problem?) till it came back from its 1st service last week. All of a sudden I find that if I try to shift to the 1st gear at any speed above 5kmph the lever simply refuses to budge!! I do not know what has happened. Maybe some trick they incorporated to prolong the clutch life?! I don't know.