"Matthew Phillips" (flatsidewaysfl)
01/01/2016 at 12:55 • Filed to: how to, Manual, noobs
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"Matthew Phillips" (flatsidewaysfl)
01/01/2016 at 12:55 • Filed to: how to, Manual, noobs | 4
| 9 |
If you’re like me and have never had any formal training on the art of standard driving I can’t help you.
What I can do is give you a few tips, I’m one of the lucky ones. My roommate and I have been tooling around in this old Fox body he brought home one day and he decided to teach me and the rest of the group how to drive stick.
Here is what I’ve learned in the few times I’ve been out.
Don’t freak out
Don’t freak out
Clutch all the things.
You see you’re going to stall out, it’s inevitable, but what can save you and your instructor some pain is the second you realized you screwed up, punch that clutch back in and pray you caught it in time.
The hardest thing for me is when you’re engaging the clutch and giving it gas upon takeoff, I’m learning that the car will tell you when it’s time for what and at what time. You just need to listen, she’ll tell you.
“You can feel her talking to you, telling you what she wants what she needs. All you gotta do is listen.”
Although I don’t recommend closing your eyes at any point of time when driving, this part I can confirm. When you’re releasing the clutch you can feel the engine drop in Rpm’s and this is where the tachometer come in. In the fox body, the Rpm’s will drop a tad below 1K and then you can start giving it gas while you ease out the clutch.
Try and learn the car and when your instructor is driving look how they drive it, especially In different traffic patterns. Ask questions all the time.
The hardest thing is if you’ve been driving automatic for awhile you’re going to have a tough time adjusting to all the extra things you need to do, it definitely teaches you patience, timing, and makes you more attentive to the road.
I just went out for my first time by myself today and only around the neighborhood, I’m taking this slow but in a few more weeks I should have the ability to go around town.
Btw F&F is a bad influence, nobody drives stick like that in real life. It’s gratuitous car porn.
Urambo Tauro
> Matthew Phillips
01/01/2016 at 13:03 |
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Don’t freak out
Don’t freak out
Clutch all the things.
This is the absolute FIRST thing any beginner must learn. I call it “panic mode”. Disengage the clutch if something doesn’t feel right, whether it’s trying to lurch or trying to stall. This needs to be ingrained as the new driver’s first reaction while trying to learn everything else about operating a manual.
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Matthew Phillips
> Urambo Tauro
01/01/2016 at 13:11 |
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If it wasn’t for my friend with the Fox body I would not have learned this, I have another room mate with an 07 Wrangler and he took me out on runs before the fox body and he just cringed and cringed everytime I stalled out. I’m still not allowed to drive it for awhile.
My friend with the fox body just kept on telling me to catch it with the clutch and eventually I got it.
Roadster Man
> Matthew Phillips
01/01/2016 at 13:12 |
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Personally, I disagree about looking at the tach. Look at the road. Ignore the tach completely, and learn how the clutch engages by how the car feels, not by what a dial says.
The #1 mistake I made when learning to drive stick (in a parking lot) was to stare down at the tach when I was getting started in 1st. It’s what everyone wants to do at first, it’s instinct. But it’s wrong. You just gotta feel it man. FEEL IT.
Tokyo Drift taught me everything I needed to know about driving a manual.
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Matthew Phillips
> Roadster Man
01/01/2016 at 13:20 |
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I agree
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Urambo Tauro
> Matthew Phillips
01/01/2016 at 13:24 |
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When teaching a new driver, I try to keep terminology clear by describing the clutch as engaged or disengaged .
“Clutch in” often means pedal-to-the-floor, but I’ve also heard it used to describe the mechanical act of the clutch connecting. The same discrepancy goes for “clutch out”, so I prefer to avoid that confusion altogether.
The clutch is engaged. And it stays that way until the driver disengages it.
Jarrett - [BRZ Boi]
> Matthew Phillips
01/01/2016 at 13:40 |
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For me it was about going easy on the clutch. I was semi-dumping it when I was learning. Little chirps all the time! with practice, came finesse.
Jonee
> Matthew Phillips
01/01/2016 at 14:03 |
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I don’t know how available that car is, but the best way to really get it is to drive it a lot. Like a whole day of driving it all over the place. Using a clutch is all about feel and it should become instinctual, so you just have to keep going until it becomes second nature. An underpowered car is easier to learn on, too.
Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo
> Roadster Man
01/01/2016 at 14:07 |
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Agreed. My first two manual cars didn’t even have tachs. You have to get a sense of what the car wants you to do. Listen to the motor, feel the pedals.
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Matthew Phillips
> Jonee
01/01/2016 at 15:09 |
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I have the keys to it actually, but The owner is visiting family so I’m not comfortable taking his car out on long drives yet.