Anonymous
06/28/2020 17:34
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Anonymous wrote:Sit in the car in the garage and practice shifting up and down and up and down.
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 -3 -2 -3 -2 -3 -4 -3- 2 -3 - 4 -3 -4 -3 -2.
1 -2 -3
1 - 2 -3
1 -2 -3
etc.
Don't need to have the engine running. Just close your eyes and feel the pedals and the gears.
Once you feel comfortable with that, then you can find a quiet parking lot to practice the stop - 1 -2. Stop. 1 - 2. Stop 1 - 2.
Once you feel comfortable with that, you can find a quiet road to practice going up through the gears and back down. Practice downshifting smoothly and matching the revs for the lower gear. (For example, if 40mph in 4th gear is 3000RPM, in 3rd gear its' probably 4500 or something. So clutch in -> add gas to get RPMs to 4500 -> shifter to 3rd -> clutch out.)
Once you feel comfortable with that, you'll be better than most people on the road.
Get REALLY good at it and you can shift without even using the clutch! Because when there's no load on the clutch, you'll just slide the shifter out of gear. (So, previous example, just the *tiniest* amount of gas in 4th and you can just slide the shifter into neutral. Throttle *exactly* to 4500RPM and you can just slide the shifter into 3rd without even using the clutch.) Note the above is not really useful for most day-to-day driving, but an excellent way to feel good about yourself and how well you know the car and gears.
GOOD LUCK! I MISS HAVING A MANUAL.
This is great advice. Yes, step one is to develop "muscle memory" which above poster is suggesting you do. The shifting practice with use of clutch pedal, do that every day for 10 mins while the car is turned off for a week or so before trying to drive, will be easier
Signed, manual-only driver past 28 yrs.
Anonymous
06/27/2020 10:03
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
I learned on a manual and my dad told me I will just "feel" when I have to shift. It was easier to have a "speed" to know when to shift. He, of course, didn't know what speed might require a new gear because manual transmissions were all he knew, and he's right, you learn to "feel" when to shift. But he drove one day in it and I watched what speeds he hit before shifting, and memorized those. That helped me start off. And then once you get the hang of it, you realize that you also feel when you should shift, and it works out.
Manuals are safer, in my opinion, especially in the snow. You can down shift instead of hitting breaks, and just going in a lower gear down hills is helpful for keeping the car steady. So I'm a big fan of them everywhere but beltway commutes!
In any event, I Drive Smart is a company that teaches you to use a manual transmission, but I believe they expect you to know how to drive an automatic first.
Manuals are safer, in my opinion, especially in the snow. You can down shift instead of hitting breaks, and just going in a lower gear down hills is helpful for keeping the car steady. So I'm a big fan of them everywhere but beltway commutes!
In any event, I Drive Smart is a company that teaches you to use a manual transmission, but I believe they expect you to know how to drive an automatic first.
Anonymous
06/26/2020 17:10
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Also, practice slowly bringing the rpms up to about 1750 (although the precise number depends a bit on the car), holding it there for a bit and then backing it down while in neutral. Practice shifting in an exaggeratedly slow and deliberate manner. I'm in the middle of teaching my daughter to drive manual on my jeep. One thing that helped her get it is to start by crawling in first (let clutch out until moving slowly forward, no gas or brake) before giving a bit of gas and then getting up to speed to shift into second. Of course, this only works on a vehicle whose transmission is set up to be able to crawl.
Anonymous
06/23/2020 17:19
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Anonymous wrote:Learned on a manual. Made me a much better driver. I thought I was a really good driver, until I learned how to ride a motorcycle. That made me an even better driver of cars. Then when I started towing horse trailers, THAT makes you a great driver.
People who only know how to drive cars with automatics are the left side of the driving ability bell-curve.
Except it's not a bell because very few adults can drive anything other than an automatic. So it's a huge hump on the left of people who can only drive automatics and a tail on the right.
Anonymous
06/22/2020 22:57
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Sit in the car in the garage and practice shifting up and down and up and down.
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 -3 -2 -3 -2 -3 -4 -3- 2 -3 - 4 -3 -4 -3 -2.
1 -2 -3
1 - 2 -3
1 -2 -3
etc.
Don't need to have the engine running. Just close your eyes and feel the pedals and the gears.
Once you feel comfortable with that, then you can find a quiet parking lot to practice the stop - 1 -2. Stop. 1 - 2. Stop 1 - 2.
Once you feel comfortable with that, you can find a quiet road to practice going up through the gears and back down. Practice downshifting smoothly and matching the revs for the lower gear. (For example, if 40mph in 4th gear is 3000RPM, in 3rd gear its' probably 4500 or something. So clutch in -> add gas to get RPMs to 4500 -> shifter to 3rd -> clutch out.)
Once you feel comfortable with that, you'll be better than most people on the road.
Get REALLY good at it and you can shift without even using the clutch! Because when there's no load on the clutch, you'll just slide the shifter out of gear. (So, previous example, just the *tiniest* amount of gas in 4th and you can just slide the shifter into neutral. Throttle *exactly* to 4500RPM and you can just slide the shifter into 3rd without even using the clutch.) Note the above is not really useful for most day-to-day driving, but an excellent way to feel good about yourself and how well you know the car and gears.
GOOD LUCK! I MISS HAVING A MANUAL.
1 - 2 - 3 - 4 -3 -2 -3 -2 -3 -4 -3- 2 -3 - 4 -3 -4 -3 -2.
1 -2 -3
1 - 2 -3
1 -2 -3
etc.
Don't need to have the engine running. Just close your eyes and feel the pedals and the gears.
Once you feel comfortable with that, then you can find a quiet parking lot to practice the stop - 1 -2. Stop. 1 - 2. Stop 1 - 2.
Once you feel comfortable with that, you can find a quiet road to practice going up through the gears and back down. Practice downshifting smoothly and matching the revs for the lower gear. (For example, if 40mph in 4th gear is 3000RPM, in 3rd gear its' probably 4500 or something. So clutch in -> add gas to get RPMs to 4500 -> shifter to 3rd -> clutch out.)
Once you feel comfortable with that, you'll be better than most people on the road.
Get REALLY good at it and you can shift without even using the clutch! Because when there's no load on the clutch, you'll just slide the shifter out of gear. (So, previous example, just the *tiniest* amount of gas in 4th and you can just slide the shifter into neutral. Throttle *exactly* to 4500RPM and you can just slide the shifter into 3rd without even using the clutch.) Note the above is not really useful for most day-to-day driving, but an excellent way to feel good about yourself and how well you know the car and gears.
GOOD LUCK! I MISS HAVING A MANUAL.
Anonymous
06/22/2020 14:28
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Learned on a manual. Made me a much better driver. I thought I was a really good driver, until I learned how to ride a motorcycle. That made me an even better driver of cars. Then when I started towing horse trailers, THAT makes you a great driver.
People who only know how to drive cars with automatics are the left side of the driving ability bell-curve.
People who only know how to drive cars with automatics are the left side of the driving ability bell-curve.
Anonymous
06/21/2020 13:52
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Anonymous wrote:I think it’s better to learn on a manual if you can. I did, although it was years ago. Once you have that mastered, learning automatic is very easy. And I’ve found that my manual driving skills return very quickly after long hiatus of driving automatically only - you don’t forget how even if you get a little rusty.
Exactly. It's like riding a bike. Once you have learned it, you can't forget it.
Anonymous
06/21/2020 11:35
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
I think it’s better to learn on a manual if you can. I did, although it was years ago. Once you have that mastered, learning automatic is very easy. And I’ve found that my manual driving skills return very quickly after long hiatus of driving automatically only - you don’t forget how even if you get a little rusty.
Anonymous
06/21/2020 10:42
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
sources = aspects
Anonymous
06/21/2020 10:36
Subject: Re:Driving School - Manual cars
Anonymous wrote:Yes, I think I will learn on an automatic. My husband is great, I’m just scared of getting into an accident with the car!
Learning automatic first is not a bad idea, but you could also do extra time in an empty parking lot with manual only and you'll get there. It's a matter of building the muscle memory to shift without overthinking it so you can focus on other sources of driving.
Anonymous
06/21/2020 10:25
Subject: Re:Driving School - Manual cars
Yes, I think I will learn on an automatic. My husband is great, I’m just scared of getting into an accident with the car!
Anonymous
06/21/2020 10:19
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
It's harder to learn on a manual, but definitely possible. Is your husband a good / patient teacher? If not, maybe try driving school on an automatic first or get a new husband.
Anonymous
06/20/2020 22:07
Subject: Re:Driving School - Manual cars
Thanks. This person is me, 40 yo woman who does not drive either automatic or manual, but my husband has a manual car (that I nearly totaled).
Anonymous
06/20/2020 00:35
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
If the person already knows how to drive automatic, then I suggest just taking them to an empty parking lot to practice. Also a steep hill where they can practice out of the way.
I couldn't find a driving school that taught manual, but I wanted to teach my wife. So we bought a used manual car.
I couldn't find a driving school that taught manual, but I wanted to teach my wife. So we bought a used manual car.
Anonymous
06/18/2020 09:34
Subject: Driving School - Manual cars
Not sure this is the right forum, but I was wondering if someone could recommend a driving school that can teach on manual cars and have dual controls. Are dual controls for instructor cars standard in the US?