stick shift drivers, how do you deal w/stoplight on an incline angle?

[tjaisv]

Originally posted by: PurdueRy
gas pedal FTW

:thumbsup:

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: maximus maximus

Originally posted by: jst0ney

Originally posted by: senseamp
Handbrake. Give it a little gas, slowly release clutch when you feel it start to catch, release the handbrake.

only way to do it on a steep hill

Wrong !!! I have driven a stick shift for more than 6 years now. I use gas + clutch and no brakes. Yes, you heard me right. No brakes.

Just give it a little as and release the clutch just a little. The accelaration pushes the car forward and the incline pushes it back negating the forces.

Once the light goes green, I just increase the gas and release the clutch a little more.

Practice this and it will be a peice of cake to stop on inclined surfaces.

This is called "riding the clutch". If you do that in driveing schools (in countries that people actually learn stick to begin), you fail the exam.
Also, it's written on my car's manual stating it would damage the clutch, and it is recommended to use the parking brake on inclines.

 

[KK]

Originally posted by: homestarmy

Originally posted by: dmcowen674
Good topic

I can't count how many times clutch drivers have rolled into me on an incline.

Sometimes I've just had to keep the nose up on their rear to stop them from rolling.

Wow. I have never seen anyone roll into someone in this manner.

You know what that means? You're an asshat and don't give the poor guys enough room. They shouldn't need any room, correct. But as with every portion of driving, you need to give a little extra just incase.

You heard it here first folks, he's an asshat.

No, we didn't hear it here first. He's had 20,000+ other useless asshatish posts. No wonder his ex left him, ****** I wouldn't be surprised if she is in a looney house because of that idiot, I know I'd be.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Originally posted by: KK
No, we didn't hear it here first.

You may want to edit your post. I am no fan of Dave's, but he enjoys special favor from the mods.

 

[ijester]

Originally posted by: Lucky

It's illegal in most states NOT to keep the car in gear while at a stop.

Hi, can you please post the revelant law for most states that say this please? if not STFU.

Yes, Indeed. It is illegal to 'Coast' along with the car in neutral in many places, but not at stoplights.

 

[Rayden]

Originally posted by: senseamp
Handbrake. Give it a little gas, slowly release clutch when you feel it start to catch, release the handbrake.

Only way to do it on some of the streets in my city. This particular street is so steep there are stairs in the sidewalk next to a driveway.

 

[jagec]

Originally posted by: jst0ney

Originally posted by: senseamp
Handbrake. Give it a little gas, slowly release clutch when you feel it start to catch, release the handbrake.

only way to do it on a steep hill when you're a newbie

Fixed. Even on the steep hills, I don't roll back more than a couple inches. The only time I use the handbrake technique is if traffic is slowly creeping forward on an incline (go forward a bit, pull and hold the parking brake, release parking brake and go forward a bit more...), or if I'm parallel parking on a hill in a REALLY tight spot, and I've gotten within an inch or two of the low car and need to go the other direction without rolling.

Originally posted by: 5150Joker
My clutch hasn't been replaced in 6 years since it still works great so your warnings are falling on deaf ears.

I drive an 89. I replaced the ORIGINAL clutch a couple weeks ago, at 150,000 miles.

There are benefits to not abusing your clutch.

Originally posted by: DonVito
The "quick feet" technique also seems unnecessarily risky to me, since you're trusting that a) the person behind you isn't too close, and b) your foot won't slip off or miss the clutch or gas pedals at the critical moment (this last issue may sound fanciful, but if you live where there's significant rain and snow, it isn't). Also, having lived in San Francisco, there is no way the "quick foot" technique wouldn't also lead to decreased clutch life on a truly steep hill, since you're creating a lot of completely unnecessary spinning against the clutch disc under high tension. "Quick feet" just seems dopey to me, even if it works the majority of the time, since there's a superior method readily available.

If you're good at it, it really ISN'T risky. You roll back a couple inches maybe...remember, if you hit the guy behind you, it's HIS fault, and the police report will indicate that 😀

As for slipping off the pedal...I've never, ever done that, even when driving with flat-soled dress shoes in the rain. If you have a problem with your feet slipping off the pedals, it's time for new pedals or new shoes. And "quick feet" puts almost exactly the same amount of wear on your clutch as using the handbrake...only "not quick enough feet" would require you to slip the clutch any more than usual.

Handbrake is not the superior method, it's the backup method.

Originally posted by: quasarsky
its easy. just buy an automatic and tap the breaks 🙂

AOL, too, is "easy", and in much the same way as an automatic.

 

[bleuless]

its amazing how many ppl posted to this simple question.

one simple answer PRACTICE.

once you "know" your clutch and gas, the car will not slide back much before it moves forward.

practice on flat first, then on slope, that's all.

 

[Kalvin00]

Originally posted by: DonVito

You may want to edit your post. I am no fan of Dave's, but he enjoys special favor from the mods.

Because he is one...

 

[imported_Phil]

Originally posted by: Witchfire
Sorry... No, it doesn't add safety. It adds unnecessary steps to a simple process. Using the handbrake is actually one of the more serious errors that can be done. It has the potential for locking up the brakes, due to the mechanical locking mechanism built into them.

The handbrake is to ONLY be used for parking. Other uses are a common misconception. The correct terminology for the 'handbrake', as you put it is Parking Brake, not 'handbrake', or 'Emergency Brake'.

This information is actually part of the Commercial Drivers License test.

Wow, you wouldn't last five minutes with a UK driving instructor.

[Edit] Oh, and I'm fairly sure that the manual for my Focus refers to it as a handbrake.

 

[alimoalem]

Originally posted by: DivideBYZero

Originally posted by: alimoalem
well for one, you need more gas (as has been stated by others). i haven't read through the thread so excuse my post if it's been answered. i would recommend using the parking brake until you're more used to stick shift.

pull up your parking brake, get the gas up to around 3k rpm and let go about half of the clutch. start letting the parking brake down slowly and if you start moving backwards, apply more gas. if you're already a 3-4k rpm though, let go of some of the clutch. then just do the normal clutch release/gas application you would do on level ground. it's hard describing but yea.

the other option is push hard on the gas, let go of half the clutch, once you hear the rpm drop a little apply some more gas, and then eventually let go of the clutch completely. hope this helps.

3-4k?! LMAO!

Sucks to be your clutch.

i never said i take up to that. i'm recommending it to the OP because he's new to the method. whe he gets comfortable with it, he can do it at lower RPMs. the idea is not to stall

 

[alimoalem]

i won't quote all of jagec's last post but same applies for me. and i'm not referring to mini hills...i'm talking about the steepest san francisco hills and mountains that steep/steeper. the handbrake is just for beginners and, as jagec stated, used when there's heavy traffic.

when one gets good with their feet and knows how to drive manual correctly, they shouldn't move back more than 2 inches but until they get good enough, they need to be given aids, such as the hand brake.

i just recently joined this thread and it seems there's a lot of issues with who's driving technique is "better." if it's suited you fine, then good. if the other person's method suits them fine, then that's good too. let the OP decide which method to use. i'm sure he'll try more than one way to see which one is most comfortable for him

 

[Shawn]

Originally posted by: kmrivers
i put my foot on the brake.

same here. I press the break and shift into neutral.

 

[Bobalude]

I have learned how to step on the brake/gas at the same time by shifting my heel over onto the gas with the ball (near the toes) of the foot on the brake. My foot is angled like this:

In the situation you described, I keep my foot on the brake, slide my heel over onto the throttle slightly, and I let go of the clutch slowly to slip it, and slowly release the ball of my foot off the brake and slide it over to apply more gas as I release the clutch some more.

Takes practice and not everyone I know can coordinate heel/toe on the brake/gas, but it works and I don't have to resort to the handbrake or to make any sudden movements like jabbing the gas hard and slipping the clutch fast to avoid rolling back.

 

[AntaresVI]

Wow, I had never even heard of the handbrake method. When I was learning stick, my dad just took me out to a steep hill on a road that no one ever used and wouldn't let me leave until I could get up it from a stop a bunch of times in a row. It really isn't that hard to do the brake-gas jump without rolling back if you've practiced it enough.

 

[imported_Phil]

Originally posted by: alimoalem

Originally posted by: DivideBYZero

Originally posted by: alimoalem
well for one, you need more gas (as has been stated by others). i haven't read through the thread so excuse my post if it's been answered. i would recommend using the parking brake until you're more used to stick shift.

pull up your parking brake, get the gas up to around 3k rpm and let go about half of the clutch. start letting the parking brake down slowly and if you start moving backwards, apply more gas. if you're already a 3-4k rpm though, let go of some of the clutch. then just do the normal clutch release/gas application you would do on level ground. it's hard describing but yea.

the other option is push hard on the gas, let go of half the clutch, once you hear the rpm drop a little apply some more gas, and then eventually let go of the clutch completely. hope this helps.

3-4k?! LMAO!

Sucks to be your clutch.

i never said i take up to that. i'm recommending it to the OP because he's new to the method. whe he gets comfortable with it, he can do it at lower RPMs. the idea is not to stall

With that method, by the time he's learned how to perform this manouveur, he'll need a new clutch.

 

[domsq]

Originally posted by: senseamp
Handbrake. Give it a little gas, slowly release clutch when you feel it start to catch, release the handbrake.

QFT

 

[domsq]

Originally posted by: Phil

Originally posted by: Witchfire
Sorry... No, it doesn't add safety. It adds unnecessary steps to a simple process. Using the handbrake is actually one of the more serious errors that can be done. It has the potential for locking up the brakes, due to the mechanical locking mechanism built into them.

The handbrake is to ONLY be used for parking. Other uses are a common misconception. The correct terminology for the 'handbrake', as you put it is Parking Brake, not 'handbrake', or 'Emergency Brake'.

This information is actually part of the Commercial Drivers License test.

Wow, you wouldn't last five minutes with a UK driving instructor.

[Edit] Oh, and I'm fairly sure that the manual for my Focus refers to it as a handbrake.

Exactly... here, in South Africa, if you don't use your handbrake while getting clutch control, during the driver's test, you WILL fail. Even if your car rolls back a couple of mm's worth, that's classed as an instant failure.

I agree that you do, with time, get a feel for the accelerator\clutch relationship, but I still use my handbrake when starting off up a hill with a reasonable incline.

 

[BD2003]

I personally concentrate more about communicating to drivers behind me to give me a reasonable amount of room. Unless the hill is a massive incline, you dont even need quick feet, you just need normal feet, as long as you have a foot or so of space behind you.

I was in this situation yesterday...came up to a massive hill, and there was a dumb broad in a mecedes SUV just riding my ass as we got to the stop sign. I made sure there was at least a car length in front of me before I stopped. She gave me maybe 2 inches behind me. I revved and creeped forward a bit - obvious I was driving a manual. She creeped onto my bumper again. Then I put it in reverse, kept the clutch down, and revved the hell out of it. Apparently that scared her. She gave me all the space I needed after that, and I leisurely took off with the not-so quick feet. Its rare enough that a car is on your ass so bad that you need to worry about bumping into them behind you - most of the time drivers understand to keep a little distance, especially from cars that look like theyd be stick. Some dont - and they get bumped with no remorse given they had a warning. Using the handbrake is probably the "right" way to do it, but so is going 55 on the highway, and who the hell does that anymore really.

 

[TheLonelyPhoenix]

I use the "quick-feet" technique most of the time. I'll occasionally use the handbrake on the steeper hills (steep meaning 25-35 degrees) around where I live in PA. While I'm at college in VA, I never have to do it.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Originally posted by: BD2003
I personally concentrate more about communicating to drivers behind me to give me a reasonable amount of room. Unless the hill is a massive incline, you dont even need quick feet, you just need normal feet, as long as you have a foot or so of space behind you.

I was in this situation yesterday...came up to a massive hill, and there was a dumb broad in a mecedes SUV just riding my ass as we got to the stop sign. I made sure there was at least a car length in front of me before I stopped. She gave me maybe 2 inches behind me. I revved and creeped forward a bit - obvious I was driving a manual. She creeped onto my bumper again. Then I put it in reverse, kept the clutch down, and revved the hell out of it. Apparently that scared her. She gave me all the space I needed after that, and I leisurely took off with the not-so quick feet. Its rare enough that a car is on your ass so bad that you need to worry about bumping into them behind you - most of the time drivers understand to keep a little distance, especially from cars that look like theyd be stick. Some dont - and they get bumped with no remorse given they had a warning. Using the handbrake is probably the "right" way to do it, but so is going 55 on the highway, and who the hell does that anymore really.

This sounds like a lot of hassle to me (not to mention that you're presuming the driver behind you isn't so oblivious that he or she will eventually get the message), when there's a perfectly easy way to get up that hill without rolling back even an inch.

In San Francisco, where I used to live, there are lots and lots of ultra-steep hills with stop signs at the top (obligating you to stop, over and over, on a steep-ass hill with cars in front of and behind you). These are some of the steepest paved hills on Earth, with stairs on the sidewalks. I guess I am still at a loss to see how the "quick feet" technique wouldn't lead to added clutch wear in that situation (since the car is fighting rolling backwards as you're engaging the clutch), not to mention opportunities for failure. Even if you use "quick feet," the parking brake just seems like an added measure of safety and protection to the clutch. I'll agree that in most situations "quick feet" probably works just fine, but having driven in extremely hilly conditions, I think the handbrake is just a superior technique.

 

[imported_goku]

Originally posted by: AntaresVI
Wow, I had never even heard of the handbrake method. When I was learning stick, my dad just took me out to a steep hill on a road that no one ever used and wouldn't let me leave until I could get up it from a stop a bunch of times in a row. It really isn't that hard to do the brake-gas jump without rolling back if you've practiced it enough.

Friction point FTW! 😉:evil:

 

[BD2003]

Originally posted by: DonVito

Originally posted by: BD2003
I personally concentrate more about communicating to drivers behind me to give me a reasonable amount of room. Unless the hill is a massive incline, you dont even need quick feet, you just need normal feet, as long as you have a foot or so of space behind you.

I was in this situation yesterday...came up to a massive hill, and there was a dumb broad in a mecedes SUV just riding my ass as we got to the stop sign. I made sure there was at least a car length in front of me before I stopped. She gave me maybe 2 inches behind me. I revved and creeped forward a bit - obvious I was driving a manual. She creeped onto my bumper again. Then I put it in reverse, kept the clutch down, and revved the hell out of it. Apparently that scared her. She gave me all the space I needed after that, and I leisurely took off with the not-so quick feet. Its rare enough that a car is on your ass so bad that you need to worry about bumping into them behind you - most of the time drivers understand to keep a little distance, especially from cars that look like theyd be stick. Some dont - and they get bumped with no remorse given they had a warning. Using the handbrake is probably the "right" way to do it, but so is going 55 on the highway, and who the hell does that anymore really.

This sounds like a lot of hassle to me (not to mention that you're presuming the driver behind you isn't so oblivious that he or she will eventually get the message), when there's a perfectly easy way to get up that hill without rolling back even an inch.

In San Francisco, where I used to live, there are lots and lots of ultra-steep hills with stop signs at the top (obligating you to stop, over and over, on a steep-ass hill with cars in front of and behind you). These are some of the steepest paved hills on Earth, with stairs on the sidewalks. I guess I am still at a loss to see how the "quick feet" technique wouldn't lead to added clutch wear in that situation (since the car is fighting rolling backwards as you're engaging the clutch), not to mention opportunities for failure. Even if you use "quick feet," the parking brake just seems like an added measure of safety and protection to the clutch. I'll agree that in most situations "quick feet" probably works just fine, but having driven in extremely hilly conditions, I think the handbrake is just a superior technique.

Eh, to me, involving another pedal/brake is more of a hassle than psychologically signaling to the people behind me to not be a dick.

Besides, when it comes down to it, its all academic. If there is an inch of room behind me, and I bump into the car behind me, it isnt even going to so much as scratch it. If theres enough room for me to roll and gain enough speed to do damage, then I had more than enough room to slow foot it.

 

[alimoalem]

basically a summary: handbrake technique is the "safest" and the recommended way..."quick feet" or even "normal feet" is basically when you're lazy and do have enough control over your car not to turn it off or roll back too much.

OP, have you attempted using any of these techniques? any success stories? any failure stories?

 

[jjyiz28]

Originally posted by: alimoalem
basically a summary: handbrake technique is the "safest" and the recommended way..."quick feet" or even "normal feet" is basically when you're lazy and do have enough control over your car not to turn it off or roll back too much.

OP, have you attempted using any of these techniques? any success stories? any failure stories?

no not much hills where i live. only a small mount exiting a parking lot. im still need major work from a dead stop to moving the car in 1st w/o stalling