What was your worst stick shift fuck up?

"Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire" (arch-duke-maxyenko)
10/15/2013 at 23:24 • Filed to: questions

When we're learning to drive a stick mistakes were made, admit it, none of us are perfect (say you are in this post and I'm deleting it, so none of that!) So, oppo, what's your worst?

Here's mine: It was supposed to be 1-2 shift but I accidentallied into 4, so I tried shifting into 3, but I fucked that up and ended up pulling off a 1-4-1 shift. As I said, I was still learning.

DISCUSSION (61)

NoahthePorscheGuy > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:28

I'm still learning, but a couple of weeks ago after I had been driving alone for about a week, I was driving my attractive friend who is a girl home and had to do a hill start. This focus was up my ass and I was so nervous I stalled and almost hit it. At that point I was like fuck smoothness and turned the car back on, floored it and dropped the clutch. She was not impressed.

YSI-what can brown do for you > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:28

I ground a gear, when shifting frmo 3rd to 4th. I didn't put it into 4th all the way. It lasted for maybe 1/2 a second but it was the scariest thing ever. I had to pull off to the side and go "alright, just don't do that again, and you'll be good"

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > NoahthePorscheGuy
10/15/2013 at 23:29

Stalling will get ya. Did you use your hand brake?

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > YSI-what can brown do for you
10/15/2013 at 23:31

Kinja'd!!!

blackchair > YSI-what can brown do for you
10/15/2013 at 23:31

This is my first car and I've done it three times. I get so mad at myself every time, and increasingly so each time. I hope it never happens again.

Ramblin Rover - The Vivisector of Solihull > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:32

say you are in this post and I'm deleting it

"you are"

Kinja'd!!!

More seriously, making wheel contact in a parking lot because my VW's shift linkage sucked and first/reverse fail to differentiate occurred.

blackchair > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:33

Before I had my own car to drive, I drove my mother-in-law's, but not at the time, car to a friend's house with my fiancée. I was stuck in the middle of an intersection because I kept stalling out. It was about like 4 or 5 times before I realized I was trying to start in 3rd and not 1st.

blackchair > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:34

Serious question though. How bad is it?

NoahthePorscheGuy > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:35

nope... I actually haven't learned how to use a handbrake for a hillstart yet. The Fiesta is supposed to have some Hill Start Assist feature but it doesn't appear to work...

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > blackchair
10/15/2013 at 23:35

Just don't make a habit of it.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > NoahthePorscheGuy
10/15/2013 at 23:37

My dad took me out to Ault Park and forced me to learn. It's surprisingly easy. Hold the brake until you get going and release it.

blackchair > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:38

Got it. I bought this car back in April because I was determined to own a manual. It has been a great learning experience, for sure. I just feel uneasy about how much I'm wearing the car while learning to drive stick properly. I feel I am very good right now, but hope the first few thousand miles didn't screw anything up.

ASheep > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:38

When I was 16, my mum taught me how to drive in her brand new Impreza WRX wagon. I bunny hopped it a couple of times when I first started driving...

Biggest fuck up was coming into a toll booth (I feel old now) I forgot I was driving the manual rex... I pulled up to the toll booth, completely forgot to clutch.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > ASheep
10/15/2013 at 23:39

Stall.

NoahthePorscheGuy > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:39

Any it won't cause any damage?

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > blackchair
10/15/2013 at 23:40

You should be fine, it's not a Vintage Ferrari

edjr5041 > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:40

Anytime I miss the 2 - 3 upshift. Slow is the key...

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > NoahthePorscheGuy
10/15/2013 at 23:41

Dusty Ventures > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:42

Not sure I can pick a worst, but I still stall the rally Subaru on occasion, which is embarrassing because everyone's always watching. Grabbed third when going for fifth a few times (fifth's a stubborn gear in that car). Oh, and the handbrake on the Subaru is dead so we've been leaving it in gear instead (it took me about five in-gear starts to remember to check and make sure it was in neutral before turning the key), so I got used to not putting the handbrake down. Today I get in the Yaris on the trailer, put it in reverse, and I'm revving the nuts off of it trying to get it to back up but it's going nowhere. Took a good ten seconds to realize the handbrake was on.

banjo cat ghost of oppo past > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:44

Easy: I had a mint Audi CQ out of highscool, practically never driven by its previous owner. ..gray leather, heated seats, Tornado red...it lasted that one first college year in Denver over one fatal design flaw: a tiny plastic fucking timing gear most knew to replace with an aftermarket brass replica.

I did not, missed a gear merging on to I25 from the Denver skate park, shoved it into the wrong gear in my haste...the car bucked, valves met pistons and I never saw her again.

I believe I was cursed by the cute asian skater chick named Kazoo I declined to let sleep in my apartment whom I gave a ride to said skate park ..for some reason.

Nibbles > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:44

The worst is actually one of my most recent. A good buddy of mine purchased a 2013 MazdaSpeed 3, which he let me tool around in. No problems whatsoever.

Then this good buddy (also known as asshole because jealousy) goes out and purchases a MazdaSpeed 6 for his wife. Again, I get to take it for a spin. He trusts me, knows my abilities and likes to see what happens when someone who knows what they're doing pushes a car. Well, I completely missed the 2-3 upshift when getting on the freeway. I didn't accidentally 5th gear, I ground 3rd. First time I've ground a gear in ages and not proud of it at all.

Osiris - I can haz Euro spec? > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:44

Copy/Pasted mine from another conversation:

"Ha ha nice. I remember the first time I ever drove a stick. Successfully pulled off driving in 1st, got excited, foot slipped off the pedal, got slightly scared, hit the brake instead of the gas, stalled. Pretty sure I'm the only one in history to stall a car that's in motion!"

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > YSI-what can brown do for you
10/15/2013 at 23:44

Pretty much the same for me too. My car has a pretty heavy clutch and the shifter won't quite connect sometimes, so it happens every once in a blue moon...

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Dusty Ventures
10/15/2013 at 23:46

My 5th is located about a mile away to the left and up from 4th, so I've done the 4-3-4-5 before, I'm never going fast enough for it to matter much though. The revs jump but the car doesn't.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > banjo cat ghost of oppo past
10/15/2013 at 23:48

"cute asian skater chick named Kazoo" was your reason. Poor Audi.

nobody > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:48

When I was first learning stick, I forgot to shift first coming to a stoplight. When I went to drive away, I stalled because I was in 3rd gear.

Another time I was driving on a road trip and all of my passengers were asleep. I wanted to change the music, so, being a good driver, I pulled off the road, but forgot to put the clutch in and stalled.

bhardoin > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:48

The time I was tuning my carbs and thought... "Man, how did I manage to just now kill off so much power?"

By taking off in 3rd instead of 1st, that's how. I probably got to 10 mph before realizing I fucked up.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > Nibbles
10/15/2013 at 23:49

Oooo

NoahthePorscheGuy > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:49

Ah okay. I was always worried because trying to get the car to move with the parking brake engaged seemed like a bad idea.

BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:52

Ok, I won't say that, but learning to drive and learning to drive manual are the same thing in Brazil, so I can honestly say I've made more mistakes learning to drive auto than learning to drive altogether. Like slamming on the brake thinking it was a clutch, yeah, I did that. More than once. Or missing reverse because the shifter pattern is a straight line, as opposed to a tree, I did that too.

But yeah, I grind gears every now and then, mostly when trying to find reverse.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > NoahthePorscheGuy
10/15/2013 at 23:52

Nah you release it just as you move.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > bhardoin
10/15/2013 at 23:53

Wamp wamp.

D > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:53

Starting merging into traffic, uphill, accidentally in third gear. Did it though (sorry clutch!).

banjo cat ghost of oppo past > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/15/2013 at 23:56

I did not, missed a gear merging on to I25 from the Denver skate park, shoved it into the wrong gear in my haste...the car bucked, valves met pistons and I never saw her again.

I believe I was cursed by the cute asian skater chick named Kazoo I declined to let sleep in my apartment whom I gave a ride to said skate park ..for some reason.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > banjo cat ghost of oppo past
10/15/2013 at 23:58

You double posted sir.

RotaryLover > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:07

A few months after I bought the miata, I was coming back from work on the highway. I decided, why not push it? 3rd gear, 7100 rpm, going to shift to 4th. My hand said no and got into 2nd. First time it happened to me and I pressed the clutch fast enough to evade further damage. Now the engine make a noise like if a loose metal part is rubbing/ jumping on the tarmac when I brake enough that the front end dives. I wanna change the transmission and engine with a JDM one because of that and multiple other reasons...sigh

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > RotaryLover
10/16/2013 at 00:08

LS Swap. For science and shit.

The Prince of Peugeot > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:18

On a motorcycle having a sequential gear shifter means I'll occasionally (once every 3 months or so) find spaces that feel like a neutral between gears, or twilight zones as I like to call them. Usually they seem to be completely harmless as long as you don't rev when in them and get to the nearest applicable gear as soon as possible. The second time I found one of these twilight zones I wasn't quite familiar enough with them to know what to do so of course I, with the clutch fully engaged into this twilight zone, tried revving a little to see what it would do. At this point the twilight zone between 2nd and 3rd decided it didn't want to exist anymore and dropped me into 3rd gear. Straight-Cut gears are not at all forgiving for this kind of thing.

promoted by the color red > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:21

I downshifted from 5th to 2nd at 45 MPH because I over-estimated the distance to fourth. Ah well, it sure beats grinding reverse...

YSI-what can brown do for you > BlazinAce - Doctor of Internal Combustion
10/16/2013 at 00:22

Mine was totally driver error, my clutch is super easy to use, and the shifter is nice and smooth as well.

RotaryLover > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:22

I would better like a 13b or 20b. I got a NA 13b + a diff sitting in my rx7 that would like a better chassis.

Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire > RotaryLover
10/16/2013 at 00:24

LS the RX 13b the Miata

Jayhawk Jake > YSI-what can brown do for you
10/16/2013 at 00:27

That's it? I've done that at least 4 times, various gear combinations. Scares the shit out of me every time, that's a loud and unpleasant sound

ASheep > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:31

Yep.

That feeling when the engine stalls, and your brain goes "hey wait.... did I miss something?" DERP

Jayhawk Jake > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:34

Fun one - ever turned the car off while a gear is selected and the clutch is depressed, then released the clutch? Stall the engine when it isn't even running. Done that at least twice.

In public, the worst was probably stalling due to hill start assist on a slight incline in heavy traffic. Definitely made a whole bunch of cars miss the light

The Real Dacia Sandero > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:44

I've crunched the gears a couple times by mis-shifting. Once early on, I put it into 2nd instead of 4th. Thankfully, it was only at about 45-50 and I caught it before I let the clutch all the way out.

Stef Schrader > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 00:57

I haven't driven a manual in a while when I co-drove a friend's Focus ST last month at an autocross.

Usually I'm fine with this, but I got stopped behind someone farting around to park on a hill.

Needless to say, third time's a charm! First, second, and third tries were all pretty roasty, though. Usually I'm in something a lot lighter and easier to start, but nooooooo.

Bonus: this was all right next to the timing trailer at the front of the paddock. Everyone, come point and laugh at the n00b. Yessss. Yes.

RotaryLover > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 01:26

It's gonna make my rotary engine look like a LS engine alternator. :(

banjo cat ghost of oppo past > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 01:28

Indeed it was.

Close 2nd worst was the day I picked up the Audi leaving the car dealer lot and stalling about several times because the entrance/exit was on an incline, with my dad waiting behind me in his A6...steps out "...Git out the car!!" To drive it back to our house himself.

...Mmmint I'm telling you, with the spoiler and the rarest fucking wheels

Kinja'd!!!

Stupid kinja on cellphones 404 not found my ass

banjo cat ghost of oppo past > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 01:39

goddamned kinja

Bird > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 01:39

I guess my worst would be forgetting push in the clutch when starting this:

Kinja'd!!!

No safety switch here! No harm no foul though, bumped a plastic bumper'd Monte Carlo. It was several years ago and my daily was an auto, so it was natural to just hop in and try to start it. Dumb move after driving manuals for many years though.

It's a 1966 my grandfather gave me. Him and his brother bought it new to use as a work truck. It took a couple different engines, but they got 500k out of the chassis. They parked it in the woods, and I played on it as a kid. When my grandfather retired he fixed it up. Took a lot of donor sheet metal, and my grandfather was fond of bondo, so that needs to be addressed, but it's not a bad looking truck if I do say so myself. I don't have good digital pictures (grandparents...film...), but my grandmother re did the upholstery. And by that I mean the only upholstery in it...the seat. She also made a white canvas for the bed. The bed's oak my grandfather cut himself (as in, cut down the tree) and had sawn into lumber...lot's of sentimental value.

It's still at my grandfathers place since I have no where to keep it in California. I'm usually only there in the winter when it's less than ideal to pull it out and take pictures. I'm hoping to get the opportunity to give it some love soon though.

So I guess really this is a story about my truck...but thanks for making me think about it!

Zipppy, Mazdurp builder, Probeski owner and former ricerboy > YSI-what can brown do for you
10/16/2013 at 01:54

same thing happened to me, except it was from 2nd to 3rd, when I was learning in a parking lot. good news is, I haven't had it happen to me again 2 years later..

Dogapult > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 02:26

Money shifted 3-2 on the on-ramp. scared the fuck outta me. I limped it to the next rest stop and checked it for leaks and waited for my heart to stop pounding.

Spasoje > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 03:11

Driving school Civic. Waiting to turn left through a large intersection, I see a reasonable gap and begin to make the turn. As I do, the car stalls - with me in the middle of the intersection and traffic approaching...

My instructor thinks fast, reaching over to crank the engine, and calmly commanding "Steer!" as he uses his set of pedals to get us out of there.

So why'd I stall, you ask? I forgot to take it out of third after I came to a full stop. :/

philipilihp > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 07:44

I parked, went into the store, did what I had to do, came back, and my car is leaning its butt against the curb opposite to where I had parked... Oops.. Forgot to pull the handbrake before getting out. Let me tell you how much I wanted to just be like, "who is this dumb asshole who forgot his handbrake?" and walk away.

Walk of shame.

quarterlifecrisis > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 09:03

This sort of counts...the C6 has a push button start, and is really quiet at idle (need to buy an exhaust one of these days....). Needless to say there have been several mornings where I pull into a parking spot at work, put the car in reverse (05 only thing that the cars had to be parked in reverse for the car to fully power down), then promptly take my foot off the clutch to get out. I seem to forget that key part where you turn the damn car off.

Either that, or when I somehow did a 1-2-3-2 in my buddy's Miata when merging onto the interstate in PA this summer. Whoops.

eovnu87435ds > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 09:55

I had just bought my Impreza Wagon, my first manual. I had the hang of it pretty well, or so I thought. I was driving my father somewhere and he had a cup of piping hot coffee with him. To make a long story short, I let out of the clutch way too fast and bunny hopped real bad, causing him to spill about half the cup of coffee over his face, hair, lap, and even the headliner of the car. He then proceeded to pour the rest out of the window, since he was in no mood for that to happen again. A cop pulled me over because he saw my dad dumping the coffee out the window. When he looked inside and saw my dad, he just laughed and let us go.

Hydrochloric > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 10:23

I suppose I wasn't technically learning anymore... Which makes it worse. I stalled my 1966 VW Squareback... At the Canadian Border Station. And since it's an old 6-volt VW, it wouldn't start on the key, so my navigator had to get out and push it across the station.

Kinja'd!!!

The plus side was that the border guard was laughing so hard he didn't delay us at all, just waved the car right through.

tromoly > NoahthePorscheGuy
10/16/2013 at 10:51

Make sure to hold the button in so that the parking brake doesn't latch, that's the biggest key. It really isn't hard, you'll feel the car lurch slightly as the engine tries to torque the car over, at that point fully release the hand brake and you're fine.

Kugelblitz > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 10:54

Senior year of high school, english final. Parking my 67 Jeepster Commando. Locked the hubs, dropped it into reverse (4wd high) to back up a dirt slope to park (and get rubber in a four wheels!) revved the v6, dropped the clutch, loud bang, lunched the transmission so bad it would only move in 3rd gear.
Spent the entire summer paying my father back for the repair bill. Seriously stupid move which wound up making me buy a 73 Mach I 351 Cleveland. So it wasn't all bad.

You can tell a Finn but you can't tell him much > Arch Duke Maxyenko, Shit Talk Extraordinaire
10/16/2013 at 10:56

Once I borrowed my brothers F-150 with a stick. At around 45 I did the 5-2 downshift while slowing down. Went into gear fine, but the tires didn't like it at all.