It is very common to start a motorcycle by depressing the clutch and cranking the engine. Regarding this phenomenon, there are currently two opposing viewpoints. Some people consider it a completely wrong practice, while others believe it is a necessary skill for experienced drivers. 

In my opinion, motorcycles can definitely be started by holding the clutch and shifting into gear. It's not a bad habit of using the vehicle; instead, it can avoid some unnecessary troubles and make your first ride safer. The reasons for this can be found by reading the second paragraph. You will get the answers you are looking for. 

The Origin of Bad Habits 

The core viewpoint that "engaging the clutch and starting the engine in a gear" is a wrong operation is put forward. In the end, it all boils down to "too much starting resistance". They believe that motorcycles should be started in neutral gear instead of engaging the clutch and starting the engine in a gear. If a gear is involved during the starting process, it will increase the resistance of the starter, thereby causing unnecessary wear. 

At first glance, this statement seems to be correct. Using a clutch with a lock-up feature does indeed cause a certain increase in the starting resistance. Especially when the clutch is not fully disengaged in a cold engine condition, at the moment the crankshaft starts rotating, the gearbox will involuntarily follow along, and even transfer power to the rear wheels (this does not occur in a hot engine condition). 

But do you think that without depressing the clutch, the gears of the transmission won't rotate? The reason why the transmission has a neutral gear is mainly because the main and secondary shafts are not linked together, rather than the gears being stationary. 

In other words, the internal structure of most side-by-side motorcycles causes the clutch to rotate along with the crankshaft. However, since there is no gear shifting, the power does not reach the rear wheel. 

Even taking the most extreme case into consideration, the so-called starting resistance here is simply insignificant when compared to the safety of starting. You know, for manual transmission cars, whether in neutral or other gears, you still need to depress the clutch and start the engine. So, could it be that the starting resistance of these cars is not significant? On the contrary, the design of their structure actually makes the starting process smoother. 

2. Activation of Safety Measures 

The core viewpoint that holding the clutch while starting a motorcycle in "gear" is the correct operation is that it can effectively prevent potential safety hazards caused by "false neutral gear". 

For sidecar motorcycles, the probability of encountering false neutral gears is relatively high. Even some new models may have this issue. 

The reason for the "false neutral position" in motorcycles is mainly related to the gap between the gear positions of the transmission. Of course, it is also possible that there was an error during the shifting process, and the gear position did not fully return to its original state. Therefore, this is inevitable. 

Suppose that when the gearshift indicator light of the motorcycle is on, but the gear position of the transmission has not reached this position, then attempting to start the vehicle would result in a jolt upon starting, or even the possibility of a rollover. 

In order to avoid the occurrence of such uncertain factors, experienced drivers usually choose to start the engine by depressing the clutch and cranking it instead of looking at the gear display. 

In conclusion, using the clutch lever to start a motorcycle is not a bad habit. On the contrary, it makes the start smoother. The gear position during this process is not important, but you must shift into first gear when starting. Of course, you can also start in a higher gear, but it will damage the clutch and the success rate may not be high.

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