Manual transmission

[CommyO]

Just don't be like the guy who burned the clutch in the car wash the day he got it. Now that was funny.
PS Don't worry about people laughing, gotta learn somewhere right? I'd practice on some beaters like others have said though to get a good understanding and basis

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[Ecoboosted]

Get a friend or family member that can drive a manual transmission and let them drive it home for you so you can get it home safe. Then practice at home or in a parking lot not far from home and don't have to go into too much traffic etc.

 

[whysoblu]

1. Can you even rent a car? 2. You definitely need to practice before driving this day 1 at dealer or you will stall no doubt about it and 3) what the hell is creep assist? If I give our '15 GT no gas after letting out the clutch in 1st gear it stalls


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[Shift]

I think the most important factor is that you have to truly love manual cars to DD it. I grew up playing those arcade racing games with shifters, and I loved it. My first car had to be a manual, and my second, and my current, and so will the next.

Why do I say you need to love driving a manual? For those PITA times you are stuck in traffic. Clutch, grab 1st gear, release clutch/step on gas, clutch, brake. Rinse repeat about 100x+ in traffic every day(if that's what you hit everyday to work). Doing that day in and day out, for as long as you own the car can get real tiring if you don't have the tolerance or passion for driving manual cars.

Driving a manual for a day or week is nothing. It's learning and loving to live with it every day, no matter how shitty the traffic is. As for me, driving manual is like breathing. It's just what I do.

 

[GT Pony]

Just don't be like the guy who burned the clutch in the car wash the day he got it. Now that was funny.
PS Don't worry about people laughing, gotta learn somewhere right? I'd practice on some beaters like others have said though to get a good understanding and basis

The rest of the story in that thread is that he missed a downshift from 5th to 2nd at 70 MPH .... BOOM goes the clutch disk! :doh:

 

[fionic]

Always clutch when you brake!

This is where the clutch just starts to slow the engine down.

no

 

[DeltaMobile]

Do not drive it from the dealership yourself.

A motorcycle salesman told me he has seen several guys buy high performance bikes as their first motorcycle and wreck it in the first mile.

 

[Chameleon]

no

This. No need to engage the clutch right away when braking.

 

[Joe 5.0]

My 2015 GT was also my first ever manual car. I had my dad drive it home for me, but as soon as I was home, I practiced driving on my own.

I suggest you learn the basics as well, then try to apply them on a beater car before hand. You'll eventually master it! My tip to you is DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED! Before you know it, you'll jump in the car and start banging gears without even thinking!

Also, when you start down shifting, read up on "rev matching" and watch some videos on youtube.

 

[mnm4ever]

I recommend finding a manual car and practicing first. If all else fails, go test drive a used car with a manual. And props for ordering a manual for your first car ever, but you really need to make dang sure you actually want to daily drive a manual when you have never even tried one before. This car with a stick is a handful for even decently experienced drivers. It is very fast, and things happen very quickly when you aren't expecting it. Plus, I find it to be kind of tedious having all this power in normal traffic. Its not as "fun" as zipping around in our MR2 for example. The manual is "easy" to handle standing starts thanks to the torque and easy clutch, but just driving around, upshifting, downshifting, traffic, etc, this thing is no Honda Civic. You screw up in this car and its not just people laughing you have to worry about, you can end up wrapped around a tree. The automatic is actually quite good, and even a bit faster, better gas mileage too.

 

[brandonsmash]

I've said it before and I'll say it again:

You should really, really learn on a car with fewer consequences before jumping into this one. There have been a couple members here who've roached clutches and chowdered flywheels with only a couple hundred miles on the car.

Spend a grand and buy a beater Toyota Corolla with a manual. Learn to drive it and then sell the car for a few hundred dollars less. The money spent on that vehicle will serve as your instructional fee, and the lessons you learn on driving a stick in a non-hi-po car will save you thousands of dollars and weeks of grief and stress.

 

[jasonstang]

In order to properly understand how to drive a manual you need to understand how it works.
Clutch disengage and engage the engine from the transmission so every time you change gear you need to press in clutch.
Now the clutch is not just a switch, it has the ability to gradually let force being transmitted to the transmission for occasions like moving the car from standing still.
Now before you get on the road, feel the biting point on the pedal. Start the engine, press the clutch, put in 1st gear. Slowly let out the clutch until you can hear the engine vibration and the car wanting to move. Press down the clutch again, and slowly let out again a couple of times to get the feel. Next step is slowly let out the clutch till the car starts to move, keep it there and until you can feel the car is not getting any faster, let out the clutch completely without stalling the car. This allow you to feel when it's fully engaged. The next one is to do the previous one with gas. Raise engine rpm to 1500-2000, do the previous step to get the car moving. Then, let off gas while press in the clutch, move the shifter from 1st to second, and gently let out the clutch again while slowly applying gas. Clutch comes up, gas goes down, gas comes up, clutch goes down.
1st and 2nd gear you need a bit of finesse because the torque multiplication. When slowing down, press down the clutch before the engine hits idle. I would only use 1st gear when starting out from fully stopped, otherwise slip the clutch a bit in 2nd gear unless in stop and go traffic. Also, get a feel of which gear you should use for different speeds.
Now after you been driving that for a week or so, you can move onto things like rev matching and heel and toe.
And ALWAYS keep your left foot off the pedal unless you are using the clutch.

 

[brandonsmash]

The manual is "easy" to handle standing starts thanks to the torque and easy clutch, but just driving around, upshifting, downshifting, traffic, etc, this thing is no Honda Civic. You screw up in this car and its not just people laughing you have to worry about, you can end up wrapped around a tree. The automatic is actually quite good, and even a bit faster, better gas mileage too.

Generally, this.

I find that with the gearing in the PP I'm often irritated while driving in traffic. The auto IS faster through the 1/4 mile, has longer gearing for better fuel economy (and top speed), and can shift quicker than I can.

However, I wanted a manual/PP car for AutoX. It's certainly a tradeoff.

 

[jasonstang]

Generally, this.

I find that with the gearing in the PP I'm often irritated while driving in traffic. The auto IS faster through the 1/4 mile, has longer gearing for better fuel economy (and top speed), and can shift quicker than I can.

However, I wanted a manual/PP car for AutoX. It's certainly a tradeoff.

You want a manual for autox? Most autox courses are set up to be driven in 1st or 2nd gear mostly 2nd.

 

[DIBstang]

I know this will sound really dumb, but I remember learning to drive ,as well as drive a stick, back in the day. In addition to the actual driving and shifting, i would sit on a chair with eyes closed and visualize shifting, braking, turning wheel, etc.

I am sure alot of it was the sheer excitement of getting to drive rather than discovering a new learning technique.

I would suggest this....as long as you don't mind looking goofy in the living room....

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