On all the NFS games I've ever played, the shift was "A" for up and "Z" for down. It takes some getting used to but it's actually in a nice place. Also, you should be able to select automatic from the options menu before the race. Love those games, NFS 4 has M5 police persuit vehicles and real damage...fun stuff. Check out this site, they may have some kind of instructions, plus there's cool cheats, special cars, etc.... -alan 83 320i 79 329i