Originally Posted by spearfish25

Yep, 1st gear allows you to feel the engine's torque the most. Drive along in 1st gear at 3k RPM and then floor it. You'll spin the tires and your neck will snap back. Do that in 6th gear and you'll slowly accelerate. The lower the gear, the more torque you'll be experiencing. This can make the herky-jerky feeling if you aren't smooth on the accelerator and also makes the 1-2 shift the most challenging for smoothness. This is also why you should start off in 2nd gear from a stop when driving in snow so you don't spin the tires as readily.