The Energon Pub

So I may be in the market for a new car soon, and in order to save some cash I am thinking a manual is the way to go. Problem is? I never learned to drive stick and EVERYONE I know drives automatic. I've called all the local rental car companies and they all have automatics only. On top of that, I even contacted the local driving schools and they also use automatics. I'm out of ideas. I'm not COMPLETELY new to a manual, I spent a year driving a ten speed semi, however the mechanics are a little different (pretty sure you can't skip multiple gears in a car or shift without using the clutch; for that matter i'm pretty sure you only press the clutch ONCE per shift in a car, unlike a truck.) Well, there you have it. That's my situation and I am out of ideas. If you can think of anything i've missed, by all means throw it out there; it will be appreciated.

My advice? Somehow, find a manual-trans car, and a big, open parking lot and go for it. If you've driven a 10-speed semi this will be easy for you.

Oh, and skipping multiple gears without the clutch? I wouldn't recommend it!

I kinda knew the basics of a manual transmission from watching my Dad, but I had to learn it myself on the fly. My car broke down and the only way to get to school was my Dad's piece of sh*t 1979 Chevy truck with a 3-speed manual! Yeah, I stalled it a bunch of times but learned it in no time.

Depends on the car, depends on the clutch.

I learnt in a 1982 Ford Cortina on country roads and if that car was a transformer I'd be apologising profusely for the amount of time it took me to get the clutch gear accelator motions right.

But then my mum's car, a little Mitsbushi [sp?] that thing was easy.

Frankly, I hate automatics, I especially hate how more and more people and schools are going for them. Cars are for driving! I'd never trust my life to a car that decides what gear to change into.

The advice I can give? Be patient, hope like hell whoever you get to instruct you is patient, and maybe some ear plugs, the grinding sounds of stalling can be rather unpleasant. Good luck!

Yeah. Basically, that's my plan, but I seriously don't know anyone who owns a stick. Well, correction, i DO have one friend who owns an old trans am and IF she ever gets it working then i can learn on that. Maybe.

If you find someone to lend you their manual, they might be able to help you out. Give pointers, explain some things etc...

I bought my first 5 speed this spring. I knew 'how' to operate it, but that didn't stop me from stalling it a dozen times the first day. But honestly, after a week I was totally comfortable with it. Like others have said, it depends on the vehicle. I learned on my own '08 G5, which was pretty easy to get the hang of. After a few weeks of driving standard, my old man let me take his C5 corvette for a rip, and let me tell you, my G5 felt like an automatic compared to that beast!

Good luck! driving a standard is pretty darn fun once you get the hang of it!

P.S. there are some decent Youtube videos around to help out, but nothing beats sitting in the drivers seat.

okay... so if you learned on it, how did you manage to test drive it?

Aluus wrote:okay... so if you learned on it, how did you manage to test drive it?

I didn't haha. It was a lease buy back from the GM dealer, it still had the factory warranty on it, so I wasn't afraid of any unseen trouble. I got a friend to drive it home for me lol. If you have experience driving a vehicle with a much more complex tranny, I'm sure you'll have no trouble picking it up.

The way I learned was to have my father in the passenger seat screaming at me everytime I F'd up.

It's a real motivator to not F' it up.

Rules that help for learning:

At first, you can apply the accelerator a bit, prior to releasing the clutch. You may be riding it a bit, but at least you're not stalling out and making the car lurch.

Gas up, clutch down, shift, clutch up, gas.

Clutch down when braking to a stop.

Downshift into 2nd after significant speed reduction on local roads, and downshift into 3rd after significatn speed reduction on the highway.

Vary accordingly by the "feel" of the car.

Also, a man that can't drive manual ain't no kind of man. Women get a pass. (but bonus points if they can drive manual.)

I learned on the '84 Fiero I bought years ago, that car was fun until I cracked the head. Anyway I had never driven a stick before and was lucky enough to have a friend that could teach me on the car. It took a couple of days of driving and stalling it out, but after you "get it" you should be fine. I found it was easier to skip 1st gear if I didn't want the tires to screech.
If you've driven a truck the mechanics should be about the same, there is a certain feel to the gears.

If you could drive a truck, a car should be easy.

Or do what I do, get the revs up to 6500, and just let off the clutch!