Here's what works for me:
1. ESP off.
Gears in maunal shift mode.
2. Hold brake with left foot.
3. Do a burnout run up first by applying throttle with some brake on. Let the car walk forward. Create lots of wheelspin. This step is to warm up the tires.
4. Do your timed run immediately after your run up. Use the left foot on brake. This time, the trick is to avoid too much wheelspin.
5. Let the car shift up in manual mode on its own. You may need to do this a couple of times, so the computer learns your intentions.
I think 5.3 is optimistic, but under 6 should be reachable with a bit of practice.
