In what vehicle did you learn to drive a manual? 

"Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius" (rex-imperator) 06/20/2016 at 09:29 • Filed to: None

1

82

Alanis had a story yesterday about dads and cars. faaipdeoiad posted a story about learning to drive a manual in a big flatbed. I did too, but it looks like my truck was about 20 years older.

It was a 1979 GMC flatbed with the deathtrap ‘side-saddle’ gas tanks

Yep. That was my office. 350 V8 with a three-speed on the floor. With no load on level ground, I could basically just let the clutch out.

Party-vi > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:32

2

1988 Toyota pickup like this one.

PartyPooper2012 > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:34

1

My dad tried teaching me in his Moskvitch. Failed miserably - yelling, grabbing. Basically learned nothing other than I want my dad to teach me NOTHING.

Then when I got my first car - Acura Integra... I sat in a driveway about 100 feet long and practiced going forward and reverse... basically same process - The hardest part about driving manual is getting going. After that, it’s pretty much easy.

CalzoneGolem > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:35

1

I learned on essentially the same truck except the bed had a fence around it. Same color. I needed to borrow it from my dad to move and had never driven stick before. He threw me the keys and I was on my own. The clutch went on the way back to his house. He was like, “No big deal I’ll just get another clutch from the junkyard again.” Thanks Dad!

FSI - alcohol enthusiast with a car problem > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:36

1

I still torture the poor thing.

Your boy, BJR > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:37

1

‘93 Saab 900S

Leon711 > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:38

0

Classic mini, then a 2007 Suzuki Swift.

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Party-vi 06/20/2016 at 09:38

0

I’m not too far off. I learned in my dad’s 98 Tacoma. It had th V6 and eventually became my third vehicle.

JEM > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:38

2

1981 VW Rabbit POS that I bought for $500 and had to figure out how to drive home. In the rain of course.

Tekamul > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:39

1

An 88 Dodge Shadow.

I had to learn with one hand, too, as the other was busy fighting off all the hot tail wanting a piece of my sweet ride.

Clemsie McKenzie > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:39

1

Fiat 500F!

Not that one, but same color combo. I was about 12 I think. On an empty parking lot, and never farther than 2nd gear. Also I didn’t downshift because it had no synchros, and really I can’t learn to double de-clutch on my first drive. Great times!

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > PartyPooper2012 06/20/2016 at 09:39

1

Our first married car was a 1998 Jetta.

The trick for teaching my wife was she understood downshifting, but she thought that every time she turned a corner, she had to start all the way back at first, brake, turn, clutch in, clutch out RAAAAAAAAR!!!

Honeybunchesofgoats > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:40

1

1991 (I think, definitely fourth generation) Civic. I really only ever drove it during the period that my mom made me learn to drive a manual, but I miss that car (I don’t miss trying to get the defroster working by getting into the passenger seat and kicking behind the glove box).

Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:40

1

Closest thing I can come up with, but it was a ‘98 and a TDI, not whatever this is.

Colour is correct though. But not the black trim pieces.

Michael > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:40

1

Liam Farrell > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:42

2

My 71 Rover. It’s almost impossible to stall and its pretty easy to row through the gears.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:42

2

1986 4 cylinder 4 speed Mustang.

Damn did that thing need another gear lol

And it was my older sister who taught me.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > Honeybunchesofgoats 06/20/2016 at 09:42

3

My 1987 Pontiac Sunbird had a bad switch for the wipers. They would run all the time no matter what the switch said. I basically learned exactly which fuse was the wiper fuse. I would very gently pull on the it and the wipers would stop, but the fuse wouldn’t fall out.

jjhats > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:43

0

miata lyfe

m

Party-vi > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles 06/20/2016 at 09:43

2

I remember our Toyota was pretty much the perfect little truck - ice-cold air conditioning, great gas mileage, and it could haul anything you fit in the bed. The only issue was traction in the rain or snow because there was no weight to it at all.

ADabOfOppo; Gone Plaid (Instructables Can Be Confusable) > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:43

1

My best friend in high-school’s FC RX 7 (non-turbo).

Tripper > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:44

2

I traded my first car (hand me down Ford Explorer) for a Mazda Protege 5. Right after the deal was done the salesman hopped into my old Explorer and backed it right into another car on the lot! Lol it was awesome!

Anyway, my dad drove the Mazda to a parking lot and spent 5-10 minutes showing me how to get myself into gear and use the e brake if I found myself lacking confidence on a hill. The he left and told me to drive it around the lot a few times until I was comfortable enough to drive it home. Once I got the basics down, we took a lot of rides together and he taught me to drive properly. We agreed that it would be better if I got though the stalls and tire chirps by myself before we moved on to real driving.

PartyPooper2012 > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:44

0

That’s not how it works? You take a corner at 70mph, you don’t throw it in 1st?

Just the thought of that makes me cringe

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > jjhats 06/20/2016 at 09:44

0

Excellent choice

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > Tekamul 06/20/2016 at 09:45

0

My wife had an 1989 Shadow convertible. 3 speed auto.

I promise you, for being a shit bucket, the Shadow droptop was 100% better built car than the 24 minutes of LeBaron.

yamahog > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:45

1

My dad’s POS fox body convertible (similar model shown, his was much rougher). I was not a weak teenager and it was a struggle muscling the thing into gear, and he (understandably) never let us do any sort of fun driving with it. This was the car that started my distaste for convertibles.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > JEM 06/20/2016 at 09:45

0

rain isn’t a bad choice.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:48

0

After some exposure to tractors and lawn mowers, a Toyota Truck and an ‘85(?) Volvo 240DL. After that, an ‘82 Rabbit diesel and my Land Rover.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > PartyPooper2012 06/20/2016 at 09:48

1

It doesn’t work well! I can assure you of that. Good thing it was a lease.

The valves and piston rods may or may not have exceeded the elastic phase and entered the plastic phase.

PartyPooper2012 > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:49

1

good thing it wasn’t yours for long. I’ve been contemplating getting el manuel for a while, but I am petrified of my wife driving it... or basically putting it through a meat grinder.... :(

TysMagic > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:49

0

Late 90's purple/redish 4 cylinder Ford Ranger. Dad took me out in the middle of a field and let me just rip roar around on it until I got it figured out. I was feeling good until I came out of the field and parked it on our steep gravel driveway...same driveway in a white similar era v6 ranger, I learned how easy it was to roll start in reverse.
The first manual car I legally drove on the road was an early 90's 4Runner. No problems getting going, but I pulled the wheel too much when I shifted from 1st to 2nd, swerved all over the place.

jariten1781 > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:50

1

Drove little dirtbikes from before memory so that’s the first vehicle.

Learned on car style controls on farm trucks (we had all brands, don't remember which one in particular) when I was 10 or so. Grandpa was working a fence told me to go get a truck with supplies and I had to just figure it out.

First actual on-road vehicle once I had a license was a 91 Prelude.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > Michael 06/20/2016 at 09:50

1

Wow. Learned?

Hi-spun 4-cyl, no mass flywheel and a clutch pedal the weighs as much as a dumbbell. That sounds like an adventure.

crowmolly > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:51

1

‘99 Trans Am. Not this one, but similar.

OPPOsaurus WRX > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:51

0

.

Tekamul > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:51

1

I’m sure it was. I mean, a LeBaron, ugh.

I remember the convertible. And the turbo. Both so much more desirable than my slo mo shadow.

415s30 W123TSXWaggoIIIIIIo ( •_•))°) > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:52

1

Similar to that, it was a stepside.

Shankems > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:52

6

My father taught me 3 months ago. Salesman thought it hilarious that I could not drive my own car off the lot.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Liam Farrell 06/20/2016 at 09:52

0

My cousin is teaching his girlfriend stick with his ‘64 I helped him rebuild. No synchros on 1st/2nd like yours, but it really is an excellent learning platform.

MPA > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:54

1

A ‘81 Accord hatch, that I bought before knowing how to drive a stick :)

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > Shankems 06/20/2016 at 09:55

2

Good choice, sir.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > MPA 06/20/2016 at 09:56

0

It gives you powerful motivation doesn’t it?

yitznewton > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:58

1

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > Tekamul 06/20/2016 at 09:58

0

This was a slowmo Shadow as well.

Her mom bought her that car. They had a black turbo shadow ‘vert but my wife (girlfriend at the time) was frightened of the stick so she passed.

Little Black Coupe Turned Silver > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:58

0

An 87 Cavalier. In a pasture. Only the driver had a seatbelt, you had to turn the headlight switch on to run the radiator fan, only one rear passenger door opened. We had 4 people in the car, 1 friend teaching me and 2 other friends. At one point someone coasted it backwards down a hill, causing the exhaust to get clogged with a lot of dirt and mud. Sooo it was cut off at the downpipe.

The next summer the car was used in a demo derby.

yitznewton > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 09:58

1

TheRealBicycleBuck > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:06

0

I learned the basics on a dirt bike. I learned to shift an automobile by sitting in the passenger seat and shifting for my mom in her ‘83 Mazda truck. I put it all together in a one-ton flatbed Chevy when my buddy’s dad used us as slave labor around his shop. We were responsible for moving trailers in and out of the shop so his dad could work on them.

Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:10

1

This is the best image I could find of one in the same color scheme -

beat-up, rusted, 1979 Bronco XLT with the silver plastic grill, plastic fender flares, and 15" “wagon wheels” with 31x10.50 tires. 3+granny and a clutch so stiff I had to pull on the steering wheel to push the pedal in the first time I pulled it out of the driveway.

interstate366, now In The Industry > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:11

0

My dad has a '94 Ranger with a 5-speed and the 4-cylinder. My stepmom taught me how to drive it. Later on I bought my first manual car and haven't permanently owned an auto since.

shift monkey > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:20

0

we’ve always had at least one manual trans car at home, but I never really learned how to drive one til I got a job at a dealership. I learned on a late 90s integra and a busted up 911.

WilliamsSW > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:24

1

Basically this, except the cab was a ~1980 Ford Courier. 4 cylinders and 4 speeds. I got a summer job running cars and trucks for an accessory installer/U-Haul dealer, and the manager taught me to drive stick on my first day. It was also the first vehicle I had ever driven without an inside rear view mirror - so no visibility directly behind you. Fun times!

Hey Julie > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:28

0

Tried to learn on my dads 400k mile 4 runner with the original clutch and transmission and couldn’t. Then I bought a race prepped FC rx7 and taught myself on that

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > WilliamsSW 06/20/2016 at 10:39

1

I’ve driven medium duty trucks since I was legal to do so. Learning to drive your mirrors is a skill that will last a lifetime.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:43

2

1930 ford model a. No tach

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas 06/20/2016 at 10:44

0

Yowza. That’s cool.

FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:47

1

First attempt moving 10 feet in parking lot:

Trial by fire - had to move it from the parking lot into a garage service bay while working at a shop:

That didn’t go smoothly (no damage, but a lot of bucking), so then got actual lessons and finally got on the road one in this (actual car):

WilliamsSW > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:49

1

Absolutely - this was in the summer of ‘87, when I was 19. By mid-summer, I was backing up the 28' trucks into their spaces. It’s rare that I have to do that now, but I use those mirror skills whenever I drive anything. Worst thing I drove that summer was a brand new GMC7000 - was destined for a dump body, but I was driving the cab/frame only. 5x2 trans (I think), and air brakes that were nearly useless. Pedal was an on/off switch with about 1/2 inch of travel and 'on' meant the rears were locked. Shifting was fun though!

Die-Trying > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 10:51

0

not this one..... but one REAL close to it

1965 chevy truck, with a 307, and a muncie 4 speed. best uncles ever....

those old work trucks sure feel safe though......

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > WilliamsSW 06/20/2016 at 10:54

1

Yes, airbrakes have their own rhythm as well. They are the light-switch of brake pedals.

The other is when you get to class 8 trucks (over 33,000 GVW) they fifteen speed transmissions and the like. If you push the clutch in half way, it only works the clutch. If you push the clutch in all the way, it releases the clutch, but also puts a brake on the transmission gears.

Newbies get into a big truck and try to drive it like a car, pushing the clutch in all the way every shift horrible evil sounds come from spinning gears trying to mesh with stopped gears.

Daily Drives a Dragon - One Last Lap > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:00

0

E46 330 CI

Roundbadge > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:02

0

‘86 Ford Escort L. No tach, learned to listen to the engine and figure out when to shift. This is a lesson I can’t seem to teach my gf, when trying to teach her to drive a manual. “You don’t need to watch the dash to figure out when to shift. Just listen. Don’t take your eyes off the road.”

I was less eloquent when she had my 5spd Tacoma going 35 in second gear. “Do you hear the engine? It’s literally screaming ‘PLEASE UPSHIFT’.”

Michael > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:12

1

There was... a lot of stalling.

It was my dad’s. Shortly after I learned the basics on the S2K, I got my own ‘90 CRX Si 5spd, that we went and dropped a JDM B16A + LSD Trans into. Much easier to refine my finesse with the clutch in the CRX.

WilliamsSW > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:13

0

Luckily, I never had to deal with anything that big - think it was all classes 3-6, as I recall. I always had the advantage/disadvantage of driving them empty, as well. Made shifting much easier (from a dead stop, 2H or even 3H was just fine in that 7000), but air brakes are much happier with a load, that's for sure!

Liam Farrell > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht 06/20/2016 at 11:15

0

Mine, has synchros, but they aren't very good. It is a very easy vehicle, because you can easily see the pedals, there are only 4 gears, it tops out around 50 so you can practice shifting in all the gears, no tach so you learn to be more connected with the it, and it is really hard to screw up on. The truck is made to take a beating so you don't really have to worry about breaking anything.

asindhidude > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:16

0

In my WRX that I bought on a whim. In the parking lot. With the salesman. At age 28.

Urambo Tauro > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:19

0

1990 Chevy half-ton pickup (V8).

My father came to pick me up from work one day in the family truck, and had me take the wheel. After briefly showing me the basics, he had me get on the road. (I don’t know what I was thinking. I was the one driving; I should have practiced some more in the parking lot first.)

But we made it home without incident. Just a little bucking here and there. I started driving the truck more, and worked on my shifting.

Unfortunately, I developed bad shifting habits. The dashboard had a shift light that I interpreted as a warning light. As I kept driving, I learned to anticipate when it was about to light up, and shifted before that happened. I didn’t have a heavy right foot, so this warning light taught me to shift into 3rd @ 15mph, 4th @ 25mph, and 5th @ 35mph.

My first few cars were automatics, but once I decided to get back into driving a stick, I had to unlearn all that early shifting. No wonder the truck never felt very powerful!

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > Liam Farrell 06/20/2016 at 11:22

0

I’ve got one, my cousin has one, and we have another two in need of bodywork and two that have been torn down for frame-up rebuilds. No late IIAs or IIIs, all II and early IIa. My mom once had a late IIa to drive, but she preferred the early IIa shift feel - better no synchros than weird synchros or something like that.

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:30

0

First time ever driving a manual was some crappy Ranger on a used car lot. I honed my skills moving Porsches around the parking lot of an independent shop that I worked at for two summers.

leicester > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:59

0

1971 Ford F100.

And a 1949 Dodge 5-ton for double-clutching.

Wacko > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 11:59

0

Me it was a 1985 manual sentra Wagon. back in 1995

LOREM IPSUM > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 12:07

0

An 1980 something land cruiser in showroom condition. Pretty much identical to this:

JawKnee > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 12:39

0

1999 sunfire gt

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > JawKnee 06/20/2016 at 12:56

0

I had one of those

Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection > Tekamul 06/20/2016 at 13:29

0

I had an 88 Sundance in that light blue.

had the 5-speed Getrag behind the 2.5 n/a.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > Roundbadge 06/20/2016 at 13:30

0

Learning/teaching to clutch-less up and down shift is a lesson in mechanical listening skills.

PetarVN, GLI Guy, now with stupid power > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 13:31

0

1990 VW Golf MK2 Diesel; non turbo. 45hp when new, and a top speed of like 70mph made sure I couldn't fuck it up

That's gonna leave a mark! > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 13:56

1

But no where near this condition. The roof was off for several years outside so the floor pans rusted away, as did much of the rest of the car. Cost $200.

Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius > That's gonna leave a mark! 06/20/2016 at 14:02

1

I think they come from the factory with rusted out floors. That wasn’t neglect, it was standard equipment.

Roundbadge > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 15:35

1

So true.

I had the pleasure of driving a GMC TopKick with a failing clutch, while trying to deliver a load of lumber. Roll-off beds don’t work well in that situation. My god...one of the longest days of my life.

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 19:55

0

my dad goes “well the clutch is going, today your’re learning how to shift”

ranwhenparked > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 22:26

0

My first car, ‘71 Super Beetle.

Wagon, semi manual, not brown, turbo because volvo > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 06/20/2016 at 23:37

0

89 civic si 5speed. I managed to wear down the trow out bearing in the first year and a half of my owning it. It was the original factory clutch with 160k.

FordFE 390 > Drakkon- Most Glorious and Upright Person of Genius 09/07/2016 at 18:23

1

1976 f350 custom flatbed. Inline 6 with 4 speed granny low