Driving Standard

Yeah, that too. I wasn't privileged inexperienced lucky bad enough to completely make the thing cry, but yeah, the wallet's going to hurt too if you mess up.

 

Learning in a truck and then switching to a car wouldn't be hard.

I learned on two cars: a 1967 (I think) Porsche 912, where the gears were laid out in a W with a curlicue off to the right; and a 1955 VW Bug, which had no syncromesh, meaning you could only downshift into first at a dead stop. And this was in 1983, so they were both antiques. And it wasn't really all that hard.

I always drove a stick until just about a year ago. I just got sick of driving it in stop and go traffic -- that's easily the biggest downside (unless you live in an area like San Francisco, where the hills would be a bitch). I've got a Honda with an automatic transmission now. Haven't regretted it for a second.

 

I learned to drive manual shortly after I got my license and of the six cars I've owned five have been manual. There's just no better way to drive and the gas mileage is always better. It's just a matter of getting a feel for the clutch/gas/shifting thing.

I was lucky in that my first car had a very friendly transmission. I taught to friends to drive stick in college and they couldn't believe how smooth that transmission was (a '74 Mustang II). When the clutch went on it, I was able to drive it 50 miles home without a clutch. That's how easy that transmission was. If you were going the right rpms, shifting from first to second to third to fourth was no problem. If you had to stop, you'd just put it in neutral, turn the car off, put it in first and turn the key and away you'd go. I haven't had a car like that since.

Practice in a big, open parking lot for a day, then you should be able to take it on the road. After a week you should be pretty good, after a month it will be second nature. You'll know you've really got it when you can hold the car on a hill with just the clutch and no foot on the gas or brake or start on flat ground without using the gas at all. I'll never buy an automatic by choice again.

 

I've driven stick for all but two of the last 25 years. When I bought a car with automatic transmission a few years ago, I almost put myself through the windshield going for the clutch.

 

It is easier to learn initially on a stick. But it is possible to learn it later. It will be very frustrating, but stick with it. It is a skill, that once learned, you will never forget.

 

I learned how to drive on a stick shift (my uncle's 1984 VW Jetta), and once made the mistake of buying a car with an automatic. I've never owned a car for a shorter period of time -- it was gone in two years, replaced with a car with a manual.

 

This is something every driver should know. You can learn the basics in a couple of hours in an empty high school parking lot. You'll need to fine-tune things on the road, but there are always deserted country roads for this kind of thing. Go for it.

 

I learned after I bought my first car--a '69 Volvo. After about an hour you'll get the hang of it and after a couple of days it'll be second nature.

Panic only sets in when you're at a stoplight--going uphill--and there's a guy who's 10" off your back bumper. Gotta practice that move ahead of time with no one around

I love manuals but they're a pain in the ass when you're driving in stop and go traffic --like most of the time in Toronto.

Good luck!

 

I had driven my friend's five-speed a couple times, but only in neighborhoods where I couldn't get out of 3rd.

Six months later, I needed a new car, found one, but it was a five-speed. Bought it anyways. It forced me to learn. The first week or so, I killed it often. Eight years later, I'm still amazed at how I wouldn't need a tach or shift-light to know when to shift. I can just tell by engine noise/road speed.

 

I learned when I was 14, taking my mom's car out on the neighborhood's roads before either of my parents came home. I had studied how my parents drove their cars, and I eased right into it. I have always favored manual transmission since then because it makes me feel like I am more involved in the process and keeps me focused better. However, I might make the next one an automatic because it will be my first car bought in the stop-and-go traffic of D.C.

 

I parked cars for three years at a county club in the early 1990s.

Worst clutch - Taurus SHO. I hated seeing that guy pull up. Hated it.

Best Clutch - Acura NSX. It felt like a jet plane.

Worst common clutch - VW Bug or anyone that was not properly installed. The Porsche is no picnic either.

I have had the resistance about an inch off the floor board or as high as my knee in my chin.

A guy I work with wanted to get the roadster Pontiac or Saturn or whatever it is. I then told him about the Honda roadster that is out now.

"All it comes in is manual."

I made a comment about balls after that.

 

I loved driving a stick, once I learned how to drive. It sucks in stop-and-go traffic, but you feel so much more in control of your car with a stick.