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I'm learning to drive a manual car

Golf Chick

Golf Chick

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My good friend's husband is teaching me to driver his truck that's a manual. My BF would, but then one of us would end up killing the other person, and its just so much easier for someone else to do it. So, we went for our first drive over the weekend, I didn't do too bad. I only struggle with from a dead stop to go but once I get going, its smooth sailing. I guess it just takes practice and you'll eventually get the feel for it. Our next lesson, we'll be going around the block :) Eventually working up to hills :nailbiting:

Its good to learn to drive a manaul. I have a automatic that does both, but it could come in handy. And its always nice to being able to drive both.
 
Good for you, GC. I think that driving a manual is a good skill to have. You are right that over time it will be easier. You just have to get a good feel for how much pressure you need. One thing that helped me was going in reverse. Since you tend to go slower backwards, you are less likely to jump the gun and stall out. It's a good way to get the feel down.
 
Been driving a manual for about 12 years now...3 of my last 4 vehicles have been stick shift, but I learned the hard way- in my father's old F-150 with him screaming at me in the passenger seat...

"GAS! GAS! CLUTCH! SHIFT! GIVE IT MORE GAS! BRAKE! G#? D&*^ IT...PULL OVER AND GET THE F*%$ OUT!"

Best of luck to you, and hopefully your lessons are going better than mine went...
 
ken419 said:
Been driving a manual for about 12 years now...3 of my last 4 vehicles have been stick shift, but I learned the hard way- in my father's old F-150 with him screaming at me in the passenger seat...

"GAS! GAS! CLUTCH! SHIFT! GIVE IT MORE GAS! BRAKE! G#? D&*^ IT...PULL OVER AND GET THE F*%$ OUT!"

Best of luck to you, and hopefully your lessons are going better than mine went...
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You made me laugh haa haa haa And that's the reason why the BF isn't teaching me :D

I only stalled once and didn't jerk at all, so I'm proud of myself. The hardest is from stop to go :nailbiting:
 
I can drive standard but am very shaky at it, I just learned a couple months ago but haven't tried since. I get really sketchy when coming to a stop, I hate that part.
 
Good work! It's a good skill to have because you never know if/when you'll get put in the situation. Hills might be a little intimidating but you'll get em figured out. Have fun with it because it's a thrill to fly through the gears on occasion. Just wait till you get so good that you're powershifting and only have to use the clutch when starting and stopping.

I've been using manuals since I was 12 with tractors, farm/work trucks and motorcycles. I didn't get any instruction because I didn't want to listen to my dad bark orders and he knew I wouldn't listen anyway. I just got "Here are the keys... good luck." It was a definite bonus growing up in the country.
 
I remember teaching my kid sister how to drive stick in her '90 Mustang in Orange County. I remember sliding down, out of view, when she stalled four times in a busy intersection, lol. Good times!

My second and third cars had manual trannies, so I drove stick for about 19 years. The last four vehicles I had didn't have a manual tranny option, so I haven't owned one since 1997. I drove a friend's car that had a stick with no problem just a few months ago. Just like riding a bike. GC, once you you learn, it's a skill that's cool. Girls who can drive sticks are sexy! :thumb:
 
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I learned on my own, much like DG did. My gpa tossed me the keys to an old pickup and sent me to the back 40, lol. It's fun to learn, just not sure most women will ever really need the skill, but enjoy it.

Watch out Southern Cali, lol.
 
Erica's soon-to-be-former car is a manual tranny Cavalier. She actually wanted it that way when she bought it. I agree bonk, sexy skill for a lady to have ;)
 
ken419 said:
Been driving a manual for about 12 years now...3 of my last 4 vehicles have been stick shift, but I learned the hard way- in my father's old F-150 with him screaming at me in the passenger seat...

"GAS! GAS! CLUTCH! SHIFT! GIVE IT MORE GAS! BRAKE! G#? D&*^ IT...PULL OVER AND GET THE F*%$ OUT!"

Best of luck to you, and hopefully your lessons are going better than mine went...
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Ahhh... I remember those days.... quite fondly actually!! NOT!!! I did learn though, that's the important part.

Good for you GC!! It is a valuable skill to have!!
 
I was lucky and learned on the farm like some of the others have commented. A stick is a lot of fun once you figure out how to feather the start up.
 
Too bad there isn't country out this way...I could bump into hay bales and it'll be soft and cushy :) So far, he's just taken me around a small parking lot and first gear only since we weren't fast enough to go to 2nd. But the most important part is getting it going. That's been the hardest part for me :)
 
You say you'll be working on hills later.

IMO the way to learn to drive a stick is to stop it on a good incline (30° to 45° if you can find one) and stay there until you can get it moving without rolling back very far and without burning off the tires. That's what I did after getting stuck on a smaller incline with a semi behind me at a stoplight. I went through 4 or 5 lights before I got going! After the steep incline trick, I never had an issue again. Just make sure it's at a place where no one will come up behind you unless they have another lane to get into.
 
Smallville said:
You say you'll be working on hills later.

IMO the way to learn to drive a stick is to stop it on a good incline (30° to 45° if you can find one) and stay there until you can get it moving without rolling back very far and without burning off the tires. That's what I did after getting stuck on a smaller incline with a semi behind me at a stoplight. I went through 4 or 5 lights before I got going! After the steep incline trick, I never had an issue again. Just make sure it's at a place where no one will come up behind you unless they have another lane to get into.
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For beginners, getting off the line with a stick on an incline is easiest using the parking brake.
 
bonknhead said:
For beginners, getting off the line with a stick on an incline is easiest using the parking brake.
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Yes, but I wanted to learn as quickly as possible! And using the parking brake didn't seem like I would figure it out very quickly!

And I didn't think of that during the panic of having a semi behind me honking while I was stuck!
 
I learned stick in an old crappy 70's Mustang II, the clutch would let out 12 inches before grabbing on the last 1/2 inch. Very challenging to learn, I can now drive anything with a stick, including an old U-haul with a crash box.

Both my sons will learn to drive stick, it seems to be a skill that is vanishing.
 
every car ive ever had was a stick till i got my cherokee... now im too lazy to go back... i can actually eat drive thru food while driving now... muahaha

im glad youre learning GC and im glad its not your bf teaching you especially after hearing about you guys at the range/course... hahaha
 
I learned when I bought a brand new RX7 on Good Friday in rush hour traffic. I was getting honked at so much I decided to get a six pack of beer. By the time I finished the beer I had it down pat. Back then it was OK to drink and drive, but only if you are learning to drive stick.
 
I taught my gf how to drive a manual, and I only stained my pants once! She was awesome. My Cusco clutch was begging for mercy though.
 
I learnt something new about the U.S from this thread. In the U.K pretty much everyone learns in and drives a manual car. I'd never really considered it'd be different elsewhere.
 
I SWAG that less than 50% of drivers can drive a stick, and the rate is decreasing quickly with the younger generation.

fen_boy said:
I learnt something new about the U.S from this thread. In the U.K pretty much everyone learns in and drives a manual car. I'd never really considered it'd be different elsewhere.
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jdjanda said:
I SWAG that less than 50% of drivers can drive a stick, and the rate is decreasing quickly with the younger generation.
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It doesn't help that fewer and fewer models are available with a standard shift.
 
I learned to drive a 1950 something VW that had all of maybe 40 horsepower. It had vacuum operated windshield wipers, the heater only put out warm air if you were moving and it had a top speed of 70mp or so. How times have changed. Lol.

I still drive a stick and you will get used to driving one pretty fast. As others have mentioned getting off smoothly when starting on an incline is the hardest thing to do. I use the e-brake if I'm on a pretty steep hill. With practice it becomes easy as pie.

Good luck.
 
If I have any control over it, I will never own an automatic car. I love my stick shift too much to give it up.

It is sad that even "sports cars" now are only available with an automatic option (Yes, I am talking to you Dodge Challenger)
 
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