Anyone know how to drive a stick, or own one?

[Don Vito Corleone]

Cybermax, your statement is absurd.

Cars with a stick are obviously easier to stall, but this is not a design flaw and it is not inevitable with ANY car. They just each have their own feel, and each takes a few minutes to get used to. The fact that your dad was stalling an M3 just means he was unused to it (or is just not an experienced driver with a stick), and this would go away in no time as long as he knows how to drive whatsoever.

Also, the increased performance with a stick is in no way small, even if it is not always obvious from 0-60 times.

The flexibility in gearing with a stick means you can always choose the right gear, rather than waiting for the tranny to decide - this means performance when you need it. Admittedly some of the better autostick trannies nowadays can compete with a manual transmission in terms of overall performance, but there is ALWAYS some performance deficit with an autobox (even including the exotic Ferrari F1 autostick, which is in fact more akin to a clutchless manual). On small-displacement 4-cylinder engines (which so many of us drive), a manual is considerably quicker than an auto.

One more strong argument for manuals: they are MUCH safer in slippery conditions, as you can safely decelerate by downshifting without hurting anything (this is detrimental to auto trannies).

 

[CatWoman]

I am just learning how to drive a stick right now. I dont have my license yet though. I am 22, and it's kinda hard, but it only took me a day or so to learn how to shift, and use the clutch. I'm learning on country roads right now, so I don't have any of those embarrassing moments.
I still don't get some things...like that you HAVE to use the clutch when stopping...LOL It took me a couple times stalling to figure that one out. You'll get it...if I can learn it...ANYONE can! LOL

 

[warlord]

<< You can't effectively hold that female's hand while driving >>


I have no problems, use your knee to hold the wheel, shift with left hand, keep holdin' the ladies with your right. my gf hates it when I do it though, she gets nervous.



<< I went for a test drive on a BMW M3 with my dad, who was doing the driving, and the damn thing kept getting stalled on expressway off-ramps. >>


no offense to your father, but he must not drive a stick very well. a good driver can feel the engine getting close to stalling and then compensate.

first time I drove a stick, I was 13, and had stolen my parents car :Q oh man did my buddies and I have some fun that night

 

[Harvey]

I love driving a stick on smaller cars. I drive a '93 Mazda MX-6, and that little four banger moves quite nicely. I've driven the same car with an auto, and it's a slug. I also like the tighter feel and better control with a stick. I can drive canyons far easier, and I don't have to burn up the brakes on the downslopes.

I wouldn't want to drive a fully loaded van with stick, and driving my Mom around in her big Buick is easier with an automatic, but for my personal car, I'll take a stick, any time.

 

[CyberSax]

One more strong argument for manuals: they are MUCH safer in slippery conditions, as you can safely decelerate by downshifting without hurting anything (this is detrimental to auto trannies).

There?s all this nonsense posted here about only being able to do ?engine breaks? on a stick, or being able to downshift on a stick; you can do both a lot more easily on any automatic transmission car. That?s what the D, O/D switch, 2, L settings are for.

 

[lowtech1]

It not that hard to learn...I got my driver license at 16 on a stick shiff.

 

[Redneck]

I think you mean'y push starting Viper
I don't have any personel experience, but I think it would be better to learn on something like a large truck if you could, because they seem to be more foregiving with shift speed.

 

[Ferocious]

Adding to my previous post....

I have one interesting experience with a stick. Once I and several others were helping a mutual friend move out of his big apartment. Last minute sort of thing. The only truck available for miles was one of those HUGE Uhaul's. The real big and long one. That mofo was long and old, real old. That battleship had a stick shift on the steering wheel column! Like a lot of trucks and vans had 30 or more years ago. I tell ya that was NOT fun to drive around winding and hilly roads!

 

[Sacotool]

Ferocious, that's called &quot;Three on the tree&quot;

 

[bUnMaNGo]

sacotool: are you joking? my friend says that he saw one of his friends do it on his accord, but I don't believe him... the only thing I can do without the clutch is slowly slip my car out of 4th gear... you think anything is wrong with my car? oh yea and as for driving stick being fun, it certainly is- about a week ago I test drove the new Lexus IS300 (Toyota Altezza for all you riceboys ) and althought it was a very nice car (handles VERY well and was pretty fast), the fun factor wasn't there... I feel that my Integra GSR is way funner to drive just because of the fact that it's a 5spd... my friend's '99 M3 is just as fun to drive as well... but Lexus is supposedly bringing a stickshift version of the IS300 to the US in 2002... oh yea btw sorry for being a little off topic ok back to the topic of driving stick- I learned on an '81 Subaru DL stationwagon... I'll just tell you this- burned clutches smell nasty I got my car in Sept of '97, but I didn't know how to drive stick until a month or so after, so it just sat in the garage for a month but then I tried teaching a few friends how to drive stick in my car, which lead to a brand new clutch being replaced under warranty by Acura at 18k miles cuz it started sqeaking on another note, Hondas and Acuras are the best cars to start out on- 91-92 Civics and Integras are EXTREMELY easy to start driving (well, depending on the clutch) since there is very little play- the engagement point is very low. IMO, BMW's, VW's, and Fords are a little harder to start out with since the &quot;sweet spot&quot; is a little high, and it takes longer to get used to, but once you get the hang of driving stick, driving ANY stickshift car will become second nature to you... one final thing- GIRLS THAT DRIVE STICK KICK ASS I remember reading in my sister's Seventeen magazine about &quot;things that turn guys on&quot;, and one of the top things was &quot;a girl that knows how to drive a manual transmission&quot; (it also gets rid of the pain you have to endure when teaching your g/f how to drive stick ) damn what a run-on sentence eh?

 

[CatWoman]

So does that mean I kick ass? LOL

 

[Sacotool]

You can shift any car without using the clutch, you can pull it out of any gear as long as your foot is off the throttle. You have to rev the engine a little until the rpm's are matched, then just slip it into the appropriate gear. If you do this correctly, you won't grind the gears and you'll save some wear and tear on your clutch.

 

[PCAddict]

In my younger days, I worked at a few auto repair shops and I had to learn to drive a stick. I do enjoy it and am very capable. In heavy traffic they annoy me. In the area I live there is too much traffic for me to consider one. In the past, I wasn't happy with automatics however, but I lived with them. That has changed. The 5-speed electronically-controlled automatic transmission in my Ford Ranger 4x4 is very slick. It always seems to find the right gear, and it always seems to shift just when I want it to. It's sweet.

 

[20_MuleTeam_Borax]

I have never driven a stick, but I want to learn. Am I liable to royally screw up the transmission on whatever car I learn on? Do I need to find somebody w/ a POS car that don't care about?

 

[duke]

Can someone explain &quot;heel-toe&quot; shifing and how to do it? What is the purpose? What is the advantage, if any?

 

[Viper GTS]

20MTB...

You shouldn't do to much damage as long as you don't excessively slip it, or try to start out in to high a gear. You'll make the car shake, &amp; probably knock some fillings loose in the poor fool who decided to teach you to drive a stick, but you won't hurt the car. On the fillings issue, a friend of mine's dad opted to teach him in a parking lot... from outside the car.

Viper GTS

 

[creedog]

duk, heel -toe is when you use your heel to keep the rpms up for more power. AS you are breaking ith your tow, especailly around an corner, you can use you heep to keep the rpms above 3000, so then you put it back in gear you don't have to wait for the engine to wind up again from low rpms

 

[warlord]

creedog, as someone with racing experience I can confidently say that you do not put your heel on the gas and toe on the break, its the other way around. two reasons:
1)try turning you leg that way and use the pedals comfortably
2)your toes have a greater ability to move freely than your heel, and since you are concerned about keeping up the rpms, you use your toe on the gas

your reason was also somewhat correct, but usually when race car drivers do this (and I can't think of a good reason you would use this method off the track), it is so they can accelerate while braking. I know that sounds like a contradiction in terms, but its hard to explain if you've never driven into a turn on a track, you just don't want to loose momentum or you will lose you position.

 

[highme]

6. I think they're better for driving in snow because you're more aware of your rpms, but some differ with me on that.

I prefer a stick in the snow because in times of poor traction, you can start in second gear and you're less likely to spin. You are also able to brake with the tranny, but that can be done in an auto as previously noted.


As far as women and sticks go. My girlfriend in high school taught me how to drive a stick, and my wife will drive nothing but. We own 2 cars, a VW Corrado, and an 85 Subaru wagon. Worlds of difference in those transmissions. You have to try to stall out the Subaru, and the VW is super touchy.

 

[megatexel]

I am just 16 and I drive a '99 Mustang 5-speed. My dad and I share that and a Jeep '00 Limited.

I have stalled like once or 2wice acidentally having it in 3rd instead of 1st. (and that was when I was learning) But we live in a small town (3,00 biatch's) and it is great.

And no I am not a teen-age guy who has no skills and drives like he knows all. I have been driving performance cars since I was 14 and have had leasons on handling-driving in conditions-track racing.

 

[atom]

Well, for one thing, you can't drift well (if at all) in an automatic.

Just curious, but how did you all learn how to drive a stick? When I was 15, I was surprised that a lot of driving schools in my area don't offer training with a manual. Too many burnt clutches I guess. So I had to get my training with an auto. About a year after I got my license I learned to drive a stick.

Back to the original question, www.learn2.com has a very (and I mean very) basic run through of what it takes to drive a manual. If you actually like driving, you'll enjoy a stick.

 

[amb#cog]

I kinda taught myself, but just couldn't get it to take off smooth. So a guy that worked for my dad explained it to me (after a good laugh at my expense) once, and off I went smooth as glass. My dad used to own a body shop. So I had access to cars at an early age, and we had a big private lot. I learned to drive a stick at 11 years old.

Of course I stalled my car yesterday after running my big mouth.

I deliver pizza's for a living, and was leaving a house on a dead end street with all these kids around. Well I was leaving there at 1 MPH when one of the kids just starts to walk in front of my car while I was turning around. I slammed on the brakes real quick, but couldn't get the clutch in, on time. The first thing I thought of was this thread, and how I jinxed myself.