Learn Manual For This Car?

[SVTinAR]

Oddly while I agree it shifts better when warm. I find when the car is hot it stalls very easily and the clutch engage gets weird.

My first thought would be that you still have the stock clutch spring in it. I drove mine about 2 or 3 weeks with it and never cold get used to that over-center, variable resistance feel. If not then not sure why you would be experiencing that.

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[gearhead2685]

Im dying to get into a GT350 the engine alone is worth the price of admission! Ive said that since the car came out. If you have to learn how to drive a manual then do it itll be worth it!!

 

[oldbmwfan]

Okay, since you've clearly decided to learn manual by now <g>, here is the cliffs on how.

1) Get in a flat parking lot.
2) Car in gear. Foot off brake. Engage clutch *without* using the throttle. Feel where the car starts to move.
3) Disengage clutch (pedal in). Bring car to stop. Repeat about 20 times. No throttle - engage clutch until car starts to roll, hold it so you don't stall, fully engage clutch (pedal all the way up) so you're rolling along at idle pace.

Once you can do that every time without a stall, then add the throttle. Shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd is easy, as you can delete the slight "pause" at the engagement point. That's it. Again, my wife was able to effectively drive around in my manual cars after one session of this. In the time since she has become a very good driver of manual trans vehicles.

 

[SVTinAR]

After you have mastered the preliminary steps of starting the car from a stop, go someplace that has little traffic but where you can still get up to 40 mph or so and practice some up shifts and down shifts to get familiar with where the gears are and when you need to engage each one. Selecting the proper gear after slowing down or turning a corner is something that needs some practice and can be flustering.

Old 4 speeds were pretty easy to drive since excluding reverse, there were only 2 gates to be concerned with 1-2, and 3-4. Even if not paying attention when downshifting you could hardly mess up. Modern 6 speeds can be a bit more confusing since now there are 3 gates which requires paying a little more attention to what you're doing. It's not uncommon to momentarily hesitate when turning a corner or similar and briefly get confused as to where you need to move the shifter if you have been thinking about other things. I've been driving manuals since 1971 and a 6-speed for only 5 years but I occasionally catch my self not paying attention and turning a corner, shifting and as I let the clutch out realize I wasn't paying attention and momentarily wondering what gear I just engaged. It usually becomes apparent in a second or two. A wandering mind may have to do with age.

 

[R3v]

Are you serious? $400 for learning a manual? Just watch a YouTube video, buy your GT350 a learn it by yourself in 30 minutes. What the heck is this lol. Here in Europe every 18 yo teen can drive a manual on any car and you're acting like it's a rocket science. Just get in the car and do it.

 

[IMDNS]

If you have never drive a manual and have no idea about how to drive a manual....
Paying $400 to practice on someone else' car isn't bad to me.
To me getting the basic skills on YouTube vs. real driving experience is very different.
I still remember how I felt when I stalled my car on public road, over and over....

 

[johnny1]

Or grow up in the late 50's/early 60's like me. Took drivers ed driving a three on the tree. To pass you had to stop part way up a hill. Set the emergency brake, let out the clutch enough for car to start to pull and pop off the emergency brake and go on without the car rolling back any. Those were the days ha ha.

 

[Wine dude]

Took a summer job on a farm picking cabbage, had to drive the harvest from the farm in northwest Ga in the mountains to farmers market in Atlanta, you learn real fast or kiss your ass good bye!

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