Learning to Drive a Standard

[Spooner]

Damn..... I'm getting the hang of it, but it's really annoying to do the little things:

- stop at a redlight on a hill
- parallel park
- inch forward (1st gear has a tendency to jump for me)
- go slow (need to kind of jump between 1st and neutral)

I do see how this type of driving can be more fun, but it takes all sorts of concentration

 

[StageLeft]

Yes it takes practice to be as cool as me, but in time you can go from a deadstop on a steep hill with minimal rollback and without spinning the wheels.

 

[MajesticMoose]

once you get the hang of it there isn't a concentration really needed

 

[GTaudiophile]

Hills are really a b!tch.

 

[Spooner]

how long does it typically take to "get used to it" ?

 

[Jimbo]

That will go away with practice. Keep at it. I remember when I was 16 I learned to drive a ?stick? when I was driving home my Porsche 924 (16th birthday present, almost a year late) from the dealer in Santa Monica to my home in Eastern Ventura County, at 5 PM on a Friday, through the most congested freeway traffic that Southern California has to offer.

 

[csiro]

You'll just have to keep using it. I was about to sell my car with the stick shift after getting so frustrated during the first month. But now I've gotten so used to it, that I much prefer driving a manual.

 

[cwjefferys]

<< That will go away with practice. Keep at it. I remember when I was 16 I learned to drive a ?stick? when I was driving home my Porsche 924 (16th birthday present, almost a year late) from the dealer in Santa Monica to my home in Eastern Ventura County, at 5 PM on a Friday, through the most congested freeway traffic that Southern California has to offer. >>



Your Jerbois Brother?

 

[Thegonagle]

All of these things become a non-issue with practice.

In fact, with a stick, parallel parking is quicker for me because I don?t need to wait for the automatic to disengage and reengage between drive and reverse before I can move.

Going slow, try letting it just idle along in first.

BTW, my first driving lessons from my parents were in their stick-shift cars. I'm glad they were. I plan to do the same thing if I ever have kids that I need to teach how to drive.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Yes, practice is key. I learned to drive a 5-speed on a 1991 BMW E30 M3. My fvcking parents sold it right before I got my licence. The replacement was an automatic, so I was out of practice for about five years until I got my Miata last year. In the last 4 months, I've become pretty good with the exception of starting on hills.

 

[Rallispec]

<< Going slow, try letting it just idle along in first. >>



what do you mean by this? how do you idle in first without stalling out?

 

[Lucky]

Try going up into/out of pittsburgh with those nice mountains in heavy stop and go traffic. Now thats something that annoying, even though I've driven stick for 5 years. :disgust:

 

[GTaudiophile]

He means slowing letting out the clutch to the friction point without adding gas so that you just creep along in first. I guess a key part is letting out the clutch very slowly, and just as you hit the friction point, start adding a little bit of gas. Think of it as like a rolling action with your feet.

 

[Rallispec]

<< He means slowing letting out the clutch to the friction point without adding gas so that you just creep along in first. I guess a key part is letting out the clutch very slowly, and just as you hit the friction point, start adding a little bit of gas. Think of it as like a rolling action with your feet. >>



so you would drive with your foot kind of half down on the clutch? i thought that would be bad for it?

 

[mithrandir2001]

<< how long does it typically take to "get used to it" ? >>


Depends on the driver but it could take a couple of months. It's not something that just hits you one day and you can drive stick no problem, but rather something that you gradually ease into. You are at the point where all your moves are deliberate and that's normal at the beginning.

Learn to use your parking brake as a "third foot". When starting from a stop on a hill, keep the parking brake pulled up and try to accelerate as normal. When you feel the engine trying to break the parking brake's grasp, push the parking brake down and your car will go forward without sliding backwards. Use the parking brake to control speed when both of your feet are on the clutch and accelerator.

To inch forward or go slow, just use the clutch...no need to use the accelerator. If you let the clutch out ever so slowly, you will feel the point where it engages and you can get the car to go forward without using the accelerator (just like how an automatic car will go forward after you let off the brake, even though you don't apply any gas). You might stall the car doing this at first, but if you are slow about releasing the clutch, you won't pop it.

This stuff just takes a lot of time. Even after a year of driving a manual, you may not feel completely proficient with it. This is not to scare you, but to let you know that it isn't expected for you to become an ace overnight.

 

[Pundit]

Spooner, here's the secret for stopping on hills: there is a point when releasing the clutch that when reached, the car will not more back. Slowly release it until you notice the RPMs starting to go below idle and the engine sounds as if it's about to stall.

Also, the key to a smooth neutral --> 1st change is a slow left foot, while trying to keep the RPMs at about 1000 or so. gl.

 

[mithrandir2001]

<< so you would drive with your foot kind of half down on the clutch? i thought that would be bad for it? >>


No, you let the clutch completely out after it engages and you car will inch along at about 3-5mph. It's just like driving an automatic where the car will inch forward even though you apply no gas. Of course, when you have to stop be sure to push the clutch all the way in or you'll stall.

 

[Rallispec]

<<

<< so you would drive with your foot kind of half down on the clutch? i thought that would be bad for it? >>


No, you let the clutch completely out after it engages and you car will inch along at about 3-5mph. It's just like driving an automatic where the car will inch forward even though you apply no gas. Of course, when you have to stop be sure to push the clutch all the way in or you'll stall. >>



okay, might have to go out and practice this later (i've only been driving stick for a month now, i can get around now with no problems at all, but i'm still not great at it)

so i let out the clutch slowly, give it a little gas to get it going, and then just let my feet off the gas and clutch and the car *should* coast along without stalling?

 

[Jimbo]

<< Your Jerbois Brother? >>



And your point would be???

 

[Thegonagle]

No, I mean that you can roll along in first at about 5-7 MPH with the clutch fully engaged, giving it no additional throttle. A modern car?s idle speed controller won?t let it stall (it tries to keep your idle at a specific RPM no matter what the load, be it the AC, alternator, or rolling along in first), unless you?re on an incline that requires more throttle than the idle speed controller is designed to give. Try it sometime.

If you want to get a really good feel for your clutch, try to get moving a few times without giving it any gas at all.

EDIT: I amaze even myself with my slow responses!

 

[rh71]

So hypothetically speaking, how many of you with stick shifts let a complete newbie learn with your car ? I think the primary reason people would say hell no would be because of the wear on the clutch (nevermind the possibility of banging up the car). Will the clutch wear a great deal if you're just starting out ?

 

[Spooner]

I'm learning on my brother's old leased car that is due back July 6th.

But I'm willing to say that learning does take its toll on the clutch.... I know I've stalled on hills a bunch already :frown:

 

[GTaudiophile]

Mithrandir2001 is right. You SLOWLY let out the clutch past the friction point without adding gas. Engage the clutch fully. Unless you're on a incline, the car will inch forward slowly. You should know how to do this to move in tight spaces, like while parallel parking.

 

[Migroo]

I wouldnt let any newbie near my car. Theres a reason for driving school cars.

But yeah main reason (assuming they dont crash the car) is damage to the transmission.

 

[Thegonagle]

I learned in 1990 on my mom's 83 Rabbit. And the first thing she told me was not to ride the clutch. She watched my feet and reminded me to move my foot away from the clutch unless I was starting or shifting until it became habit.