Alright, i am almost 17, been driving for about a year and a half (including when i had my permit) on ONLY AUTO's. No one in my family or close friends have manuals. The one time i got to drive stick was 2 times with an '85 subaru station wagon, and i didn't so too well. Anyways, i am looking into cars like a Firebird Formula and with any car with power i want a stick for fun and because the car deserves it. My worry is about messing up the clutch a lot learning on the car i get. How did you learn?

I learned on my wife's (girlfriend at the time) old '89 Nissan Pulsar NX. Now I never want an auto tranny again. :D.

Just find a friend that has one, and make 'em show you how. :licker:

I learned on a standard as I learned to drive, when I was 13 in my old '73 Vega:)

I learned by driving crappy-ass manual-transmissioned cars in the Philippines...

Always have driven them, can't stand auto. Tractors, trucks and cars were all manual when I was a kid.

I just can't live without heel/toe and double clutching :D

I learned in the car in the picture below. Learning on a car with a turbo isn't always fun.

Back when I was 14 my dad trained me on a Subaru. I dont remember what kind - its been a couple of decades and the beer has killed off that brain cell.

I'd like to thank UPS for my knowledge. While on my breaks and times that I would arrive early to work, I used to race their trucks up and down the West Side Highway.:D

Originally posted by DVSNCYNIKL
I'd like to thank UPS for my knowledge. While on my breaks and times that I would arrive early to work, I used to race their trucks up and down the West Side Highway.:D

:hehehe::hehehe::hehehe:

That'd be quite a sight, 2 UPS trucks racing down the highway! :D:D

DVS, just curious, but what do UPS guys make? I have always thought it was a fairly nice salary, but never new a UPS man to ask. :)

Well I leartn how to drive hard in the White GTS-T below \/

It was an Auto but we changed it to 5 Speed... oh the amount of times I spun it around.. and in the wet..

It's a wonder I am still here, or have a licence..

I learnt to drive on a Lada 2109 (obviously a manual). I didnt think it too hard at the time. Then I drove some better cars and it was heaven compared to the Lada. I dont mind autos, I like both transmissions.

You learn by stalling. Sooner or later you can control that with right amount of foot pressure.

Originally posted by F20C
You learn by stalling. Sooner or later you can control that with right amount of foot pressure.

I agree wholeheartedly. I never think much of people that say "I never ever stall". They're the people that, when a light turns green, give it some revs, slowly let the clutch out, and still have a jumpy start. I'd rather risk a stall in order to learn to get the clutch out quicker and smoother.

I learnt by destroying the gearbox on a friends Opel Vectra...........

I learned by buying my own car and practicing.

Okay, so I had one lesson on my ex's Honda Civic before I decided I really thought I would like it.

But in all honesty, the one thing that would have lowered my learning curve would have been if I had first been told to feel where the clutch let out. My jumpy starts were the direct result of letting the clutch out too quickly. I had 2 lessons with my dad in the car, and the last lesson, I drove out to a parking lot and played around a little bit by myself. I was doing well enough after a week to be on the road, but I did sometimes stall--especially when trying to get started on an uphill...

After 2 months I'm doing pretty well, but there's always more to learn :)

Believe it or not, I've never learnt to drive a manual. I've never need to until now (my husband's just bought a manual Skyline). I guess I'd better learn soon!!! ;)

just drive, the more practice you get, the more you better at it. every car is different, u can learn all of them. Some ppl are good with cars and some ppl r not....

so..... its a instinct as well i guess

I learn on a old 60's jeep. 3 speed, 1 reverse. On off road.:D

Ok, i notice a lot of people learn on older cars and not so important ones. Well, this is going to be my car for a while and i wanna keep it from the damage of learning if possible.

After driving for a year w/my permit, I got my car('95 camry, 5spd). Learned in a couple weeks, 3-4 30 minute sessions w/my dad and one of his friends. Probably stalled about a dozen times, and ended up killing the battery(it may have been in bad shape when we got the car). I've stalled twice in the 4 months that I've been driving. The car already had 115k on it when I started driving, and the tranny still seems great to me. I've tended to over-rev(an extra 1000 or so) more often than not leading to a few unexpected chirps, but relatively few stalls. I'm not the most "coordinated" of people, but with a little practice I don't think there's anything at all to be feared in manuals. I've come to appreciate how much I dislike driving auto now, because I see how my dislike of reving(in normal traffic, past 2k, 3k if accelerating) and my desire for acceleration just aren't practical in an auto. Now I'm able to do as much as the cars around me will allow, do it very smoothly(the way I drive auto is much less smooth), and keep my rpms around 2k nearly all the time.

I learnt in my parents 1990 Ford Laser, Ive never driven an auto so i had to learn everything at once.

Modern cars are alot more forgiving, trying to learn on a 30 yo car will only do more damage to the car and increase the time it takes to learn. Use a newer car if possible

I'm an old fart, but I learned any kind of clutch action on a friend's dirt bike. After many years later I was driving muscle cars (went to school in the 70's) I didn't find out whether I could drive a manual trans car until I bought a 76 Ford Pinto. I guess the dirt bike riding paid off!

http://www.fortunecity.com/silverstone/boot/66/17465720.jpg
Personal Website (http://www.fortunecity.com/silverstone/boot/66)

I learned the day I got my car (4*15*01). Was pretty easy actually :) Only stalled 2 times while trying to put the car in a different parking spot at my dad's shop.

This was many moons ago.

It was in a early 80's Subaru wagon. My buddie and I had been at a party drinking Everclear and beer. I told him he was too drunk to drive when he almost ran us over a cliff while puking out the window. I was drunk, but at least not puking. Pretty easy car to drive. I think I only stalled it about 6 times.

Well, i learned in my car, which was pretty easy. The clutch is pretty crappy and worn so i have to let it out fast. I have stalled it about 4 times since i first learned. However my dad's 2001 Accord is a touchy queen biotch. Its got the best clutch i have ever used unfortunately, i stall that one about once a trip. I prefer my crappy "stick in a bag of rocks" tranny to my dad's hyper smooth shifter...

I learned to drive a 5-spd when I was 12. I'm not 17, and can drive any manual with no problem. It's better when you start young. :)

i learned to drive a manual by watching mommy when i was like 12....then took it for a spin when i was 13 :coolguy:

Update: I found out a friend with a '94 Toyota 4x4 was willing to let me drive it around for a bit, and of course it had a 5 speed. Well, i learned how to not make it stall, but since i have only driven it for 5-10 minutes each time for about 4-5 times, i haven't gotten it completly down (for that car). I have the fundamentals down, its just getting used to the clutch on the car i will get and driving it around a bit. Oh ya, in my friends truck i decided to take it to the largest hills i could find and practice starting on them....i wasn't that hard, i didn't stall when i started on the hills.

I had been driving an auto for over a year. And last weekend I learned how to drive a manual on my 86 VW jetta. This car doesn't have the reverse lock because my shifter is really dumb. Plus the throw is longer than shit. Anyways, My uncle taught me. My Dad's temper is very short so I didn't want him to teach me. Like everything I do I'm a natural. It took me an hour. Then I drove home and ate a sandwich and drove to work that night all by myself. Only killed it a few times on the way. There's about 5 light and a couple stop signs. all on hills so I think I did fine for the first time. But that's about it.

I first found out when I was about 6 what happens if you put the car in gear and then turn the key, :D

My first car was an auto, but I used to race Moto Cross so switching to a manual car was pretty easy. I did how ever burn the clutch out in the first month. Once I got it down all but 1 of my last cars were manual. I will never go back as you can really get the most out of your car with a manual.

find someone with an old beat up truck take it to a parking lot and drive around till you get a feel for it. try to learn with no help from anyone this way you will learn the best way for you. since the car is a beater you dont have to worrie about anything

I was teaching my son how to drive my F-150 manual yesterday on a dirt road. He must have stalled it 30 times, plus on top of it he let it roll backwards twice while in gear, motor dead... Thank heavens for timing chains! Had this been an older belted motor I would be out retiming the crank, cam and distributor!!

I learned drunk, but the finishing touches were done by myself. I think that helps alot. Nobody in your ear trying to tell you what to do.

i learned how to drive manual from practicing on my dirtbike. well it isn't really the same because on the bike yuo use your hands and on the car you use your feet, but its the same concept.

I never did really "learn" how to drive manual. I got a lesson from a friend who tried to teach me in his VW Jetta. It was about a 30 min lesson and I stalled around 7 times or so :eek:

The crunch time came when I had to take my car in for service work. I needed a ride downtown and asked a different friend if he could give me a ride in his truck. Instead he tossed me the keys and said "you do know how to drive standard right?, just be easy on the clutch" I was like "umm, yea, thanks."

I knew the basics from my lesson in the VW, but the clutch feel, and shift points were ALOT different between the VW and the pickup. It was one hell of a ride, but fortionatly I got the hang of it pretty fast. Had trouble with an uphill start, but all in all I did ok.

i first drove a car when i was 14, it was manual. i've only ever driven one auto and didnt like it. i was pretty mad about cars from a very young age so unlike most people i knew how everything worked. i wont say i was great or smooth but i didnt stall once on my first lesson. My cuz was teaching me in his modified prelude. he made me reverse down a narrow little mountain road with nothing either side 10 mins into my lesson. i was like "are you sure" and he was adamant that i do it. so i did, and to my surprise it worked out ok, i.e. no crash, no one died :D.

cheers,
jay

I learned in a '90 Ford Bronco II when I was 16,I relearned myself in my buddy's '89 Acura Integra when I was 19.Although most of my cars have been automatics,I have no personal preference betwen the two.

Learned on my dads 92 Ferrari 348 ts when I was 13. Hah, that was a sight to see, a 13 y/o zooming down the streets, turned a few eyes. It was hard to learn on a powerful car, gas was so sensitive, but I got the hang of it after 2 weeks.

Your dad actually let u drive his FERARRI when you where thirteen, man your one lucky kid.*sigh*:eek:

Yeah, not on main roads or anything, around our neighbourhood, it was like 10 block by 10 blocks. After driving that, almost everything else seemed weak lol! Yeah my dad is really nice, but I operated the wheel when I was like 6, then slowly boved up to driving auto cars, then a stick. ;)

well i learned off and on from many diff people.. which was bad cause they taught diff...
anyway one was in a civic hatch ... a nice ride to start on .. and the other was a 4 spd. pos ford something.. he let me kill that thing.. it was fun .. but i would never go back ..

would never go back to auto that is.. perhaps later when i have a fam ..

U have to admit autos are cool in the city... there have been numerous times when i wished for an auto box while stuck in traffic

i ended up learning on one of my parents manuals... the gear was not that bad after i'd finished, because its one designed to handle a 253 but it was only powered by a 4cylinder at the time... the clutch was a bit messy afterwards tho

I learned a couple months ago in my dads 1987 jeep cherokee... well we were driving down the train tracks home and i asked if i could learn to drive it... we started on an uphill so i rolled down until the car was in a balenced place and i notice u cant let the clutch out 2 quick without given it gas so i stalled like 5 times then i figured it out and my dad kept makin me stop and try again its really not that hard! now i move the truck whenever he need it move and most the time i start on a hill kinna tricky. but his truck dont have the power for a good spin! now its a breeze:o

my dads truck, standards arent that hard once u get the hang of it

i learned/learning on my truck ( its actually my dads but we all call it mine cuz when i get my liscence its officially mine :D ) And im pretty damn good. I have only stalled like 5 times in a year. My moms 4runner I HATE i hate the feel of the auto. i mean its great for stop and go but i cant stand it on the highway ... im only 15 and havent DRIVEN on the highway.. but when she drives it takes what seems like forever to shift. i love standards ..so much control. you can shift when you want not when the car wants. I cant wait till i get my liscence!!!!!!

I learned in my '88 Accord which was a great car to begin with. The clutch was very forgiving.

1971 Ford Pinto in Washington DC. I liked it so much, I bought one just like it when I was 18. I've had manuals until I bought my 1992 Subaru SVX. No manual. Now my Acura CL doesn't have it either. I am thinking of the VW GTI as my next car with a manual. It will be weird driving one after all these years.

You don't learn to drive on a manual's ? How do you get your driving license ? on an automatic ?
Personnaly, I ever drive on manuals (I learned on a Peugeot 206 at "auto school"). Then I drove only one automatic... in the USA (an Honda Accord) and I hated it.
You can't controll well your car with an auto (braking with motor/gears, go up in the rpm, etc.). It's only a good think in traffic jam.

Nothing like a manual box for a bit of spirited driving. No auto, no steptronic.

THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE

You're perfectly right !

I only ever drive a manual- and I learnt in a drivers ed Nissan Almera


MY Jetta taught me how to drive a REAL car:D :D

Moss : Do you have a pic of this famous Jetta ??! ;)

Originally posted by Stefanel1
Moss : Do you have a pic of this famous Jetta ??! ;)

I took a fresh batch earlier today- keep a look out for them- I will post them here :D

Ok, I'll be waiting for it :D

I've never ever driven a car with an auto 'box...

Well, i think i started this thread, and it'll be a year i'll have had my car, a manual.

I've figured out a few things. 1 is that there is only one way to learn, go out and do! The second is that trucks are SOOO much more forgiving than my car (firebird formula, 6 speed). I drive any car that is a manual any chance i get, but with trucks i never even have to think about getting used to the clutch. Oh well...

Originally posted by tallpaul81
I've never ever driven a car with an auto 'box...

i only like driving an auto in heavy traffic. stick to manual

in the traffic jam, it could indeed be great...but only in this cae ;)

Originally posted by -cy-
Ok, i notice a lot of people learn on older cars and not so important ones. Well, this is going to be my car for a while and i wanna keep it from the damage of learning if possible.

Just buy the car you want, you'd have to be really, and I mean REALLY crap to do any serious damage. But if you do end up doing damage, you'll have to replace what... the clutch, and the gearbox, whoop de doo. If you damage more than that, it would be from idiotic driving rather than unskilled learning.

Originally posted by Route666
But if you do end up doing damage, you'll have to replace what... the clutch, and the gearbox, whoop de doo. If you damage more than that, it would be from idiotic driving rather than unskilled learning.

I've had my formula (6 speed) for about a year and a half, and i'm fine with manual, and have been for a long time.

Anyways, the car did need a new clutch and some tranny rebuilding (syncro's and a shift fork or 2) which was due to the first owner, being that the tranny was already screwed up when i got it. Thats not a cheap, little deal. A decent clutch runs around $800, and a GOOD one will run up to $1000, not including install price (i install my own stuff, so that doesn't matter for me though)

The rebuild, not including the clutch, ran me $1200...a tranny isn't a cheap thing to work on.

Like everything I do I'm a natural.

Showoff! :D ;) :o

Im gonna be doing my test in a few months time, so Id also like too know:

-Is it neccesary to downshift when stopping too a halt, if so, does it get confusing too downshift when braking, as in too much work and things get on top of you?

Originally posted by Blitzen


Showoff! :D ;) :o

Im gonna be doing my test in a few months time, so Id also like too know:

-Is it neccesary to downshift when stopping too a halt, if so, does it get confusing too downshift when braking, as in too much work and things get on top of you?
Where I did my test drive,in Belgium, it was necessary to be able to downshift when braking, but only when nearing a red stop light and slow moving or stopped objects.

I don't think it gets confusing at all ; downshifting is the only thing you have to focus on in the beginnning, and just use the brake to stop from 20 mph to 0 and to make your brakelight light up.

But I guess if you practice, it will go as a blast and love it in no time !

As said before, The manual tranny is way better for enjoying driving.

Peace , Olivier

I took my test in an auto tranny car, i dunno about the rules for downshifting while coming to a stop in a manual.

As far as getting confusing, it ca be kinda weird at first. Once you drive some and get used to it, you'll be able to go from gas to brake and downshift smoothly. Just practice.

I learned to drive manual trannys on a Vietnam era 5-Ton military truck. Training for the Marines required it, yet soon after learning to drive these huge POSs they phased them out...the trucks are all auto now (to my dismay!). They had the longest clutch ever...I was practically kneeing myself in the stomach with each shift! And it didn't help to have a pissed off instructor all over your ass about stalling...but you can't help stalling. So I got him a little more pissed, lol!

I learned by driving an automatic like a standard, but My integra is a automatic, cause my rents gave it to me, I crashed my Honda Civic which was a standard, just make sure u let off the clutch and press on the gas at equal intervals, or else it could stall, nothing is more embarrassing then stalling on a road or a hill:bloated:

dave

I learned on a 86' 323, which wasn't hard, but i did manage to accidentally lay a patch on my first attempt at starting(quite a feat in that car, even purposely). You'll stall lots, bounce lots and maybe even spin the tires a few times, but don't worry about damaging the car.

i learned manual when i was about 6-7 years old back in poland. i drove a tractor which was manual ofc so i got the experience that way..when i first drove my grandpa's audi (when i was 11) it was manual aswell and i had no prob driving it. (it was out in the country so you never ever see cops)

Most cars here in Brazil are manuals, so that's what I learned with. I can't stand auto cars, just too boring... I feel old when driving an auto car, lol

Alright, i am almost 17, been driving for about a year and a half (including when i had my permit) on ONLY AUTO's. No one in my family or close friends have manuals. The one time i got to drive stick was 2 times with an '85 subaru station wagon, and i didn't so too well. Anyways, i am looking into cars like a Firebird Formula and with any car with power i want a stick for fun and because the car deserves it. My worry is about messing up the clutch a lot learning on the car i get. How did you learn?


Try this http://www.10w40.com/individual/100186.asp

Me and my brother worked in restaurants when we were fifteen and managed to put our money together and buy a 90 4 door integra. We actually bought the car before we got our liceances. He learned how to drive manual from a friend and he taught me in a church parking lot. Even though he was still pretty new at it, I got the hang of it on the first day. I won't own anything other than manual. You feel like you have more control over the car.

I learned how when I was looking for a Mustang to buy. I just went to little dealers that had them and they let me test drive them by myself! I do feel bad for who-ever bought those cars though....man did I ride the clutch when I was getting used to the manual!!!

Originally I was gonna go with an automatic when getting ready to buy my '02 TA, but everyone said I'd be much happier getting a 6-speed especially in a sports car. They sure were right! I had a crash course driving a stick in a Jeep Wrangler exactly one weekend before buying the TA. So, I pretty much learned on my new car, but it didn't take long at all... call it incentive, I guess... (however stalling can get quite embarrassing at first). :iceslolan

I remember test driving a 6 speed T/A. I did it for a friend because she was 17 and you had to be 18 to test drive it. Much different from the little Japanese cars i'm used to. It gives your left leg a good work out.

i learned on many cars. i didn't have the luxury of learning in one car. i learned back when i worked for a jiffy lube. i learned in customer cars. and every clutch really is different.

i learned on many cars. i didn't have the luxury of learning in one car. i learned back when i worked for a jiffy lube. i learned in customer cars. and every clutch really is different.


No offense but....one reason why I never go to Jiffy Lube!

I first got a good feel for a clutch on dirt bikes, then the transistion was easy. My first car was a '78 Subaru spray painted camo that I picked up for $138. It ran fine and all it needed was an air filter and a radiator cap. I used this car to hone my manual transmission driving skillz. Almost everything I ever wanted to in a car, I did with my Subaru. I drove through ditchs, on quad trails, through the trees, and over curbs. I jumped on the roof, beat it with a pipe, and even shot it with one of my rifles. I would redline the bitch and then dump the clutch just for kicks. I even had a cop called on me for a noise violation after one tire smoking episode. The one thing I really wanted to do, though, was to build a big jump and drive off it at an angle so I would catch air and then roll it. But my fun was cut short when I let my friend drive out on a gravel road in the hills. We came sliding around a narrow corner only to see a car coming at us headon. That was the first accident I was involved in. I had some good memories with that car though.

Ma Duke would be proud... :lol:

Lmao B16 siRII !!

oh yeah well i learned on a kia rio hahahahahah
now i get to stall my friends 240

i learned on the fuel truck at my work (airport). and i also learned on my dads toyota t100 truck. i learned how to race with a manual in my brothers saturn (right now he has cold air intake, performance spark plug wires, crankcase breather, and moved the battery in the back for better handling). i am getting a manual 300zx soon, i have an automatic right now. i cant stand automatics, they piss me off.

i learned on the fuel truck at my work (airport)
So you learnt how to drive in a fuel truck on an airfield eh?
:uhoh:

So you learnt how to drive in a fuel truck on an airfield eh?
:uhoh:

oh yeah, you can speed shift and everything...lol. i actually have tried racing it before, it didnt go so well. it tops out at 40. the tranny is a pos so it was really hard. but hey, it got my brother to let me start driving his car. but when i first drove his car with his mods, when i speed shifted from 1st to 2nd, it almost ripped the steering wheel out of my hands, but now im fine with it, until he gets his exhaust and headers :evillol: . if you wanna see his car, its at http://www.cardomain.com/memberpage/471467

well i "learned" 3 times.. and the last time i was successful
the first time was with my friends car.. i duno what car.. some old european one.. i stalled the shit outta his car the first few tries so he wouldn't let me anymore..
the second time i "thought" i would be able to drive it.. i went to a toyota dealer.. and tried it on a 6 speed celica.. i kept going into reverse instead of first.. and i finally got it in first gear.. then i miss shifted into 4th.. the car died..
the last time.. which was the sucessful time.. i asked my uncle to borrow his 89 accord.. i had all the time in the world.. but this time it was weird because i got it right away... i took the rest of the time to perfect my driving.. but one thing is i still drive an auto accord.. so i hope i can drive it when the time comes..

i learned by nearly driving an 86 Toyota pickup into the ground...

now i drive a 90 BMW 525i which is luxurious

i'm 15 now, but i learned last year on my dad's '98 maxima on a parking lot. now he we go to that same parking lot but now it's in an RX-8 6 speed. that shifter is amazing...

oh god i love the rx-8 shifter (my friends mom owns one). it just feels so good in your hand. and the throws are so short. but to bad the car doesnt live up to the rotary heritage. c'mon mazda, under 250 hp?!?!?!?!?! and foor doors?!?!?!?!

I learned on a very shitty 72 Toyota P/U. My dad made me drive it from where he works to the house. I had never driven a stick, but I had read enough car magazines that i kinda understood. My advice on learning would be like a Walmart parkin lot late at night. Just practice on an easy clutch first, like an accord.

I learned in a 2.0si 88 prelude, on a very steep hill with a trucker in a hurry behind me behind a grocery store


vrrroooooooooom, screeeeeech, gauh. I stalled it. no, but I can't stand auto's, people complain about there foot hurting in traffic but thats cause they are to dumb to shift into nuetral like they should, Those poor clucth bearing hurt on most cars so make sure you shift to nuetral.

I learned driving my dads sod trucks in the sod fields at age 12...man of few words said..."when the wheels start turning...get your foot off the clutch..."

i learned in my first car a 74 super bug i been driving stick since i was thirteen

damn i miss that car!!!

."when the wheels start turning...get your foot off the clutch..."

the wheels dont usually spin until you let off the clutch... oh unless you are one of those idiots that rides the clutch all the time.

."when the wheels start turning...get your foot off the clutch..."

the wheels dont usually spin until you let off the clutch... oh unless you are one of those idiots that rides the clutch all the time.
Actually the wheels start turning at biting point.

How about being a little nicer to people on your 3rd post, eh noob? :rolleyes:

Learned in one of Papa's car...
And was threatened that if I couldn't drive a stick, I couldn't get my own car from him.

haha, learned it with the crappiest of ALL:
I BOW TO THEE FIAT PALIO 1.4 :P

i dont have my licence, im 15, but my sister wanted to show me how to drive manual when i was 14. her car was parked in front of my lawn and she wanted me to park it in the driveway. first I pulled the handbrake so it wouldn't move, put the car in neutral, clutch in, start the car, put it in first gear, clutch out to slow, gas in to fast, revs go up, clutch out, SQUEEEEEEEEEL. forgot to remove the parking brake lol. the second time i went to fast and almost hit a wooden post, she hasn't let me touch her car since (it's a '89 accord). later my dad took me to the Corel Center (the ottawa senators hockey statium in ottawa canada for you americans who might not know the sport) and i only stalled twice in 1-2 hours.

Well i am still wet behind the ears when it comes to driving a manual. The first time was on my sixteenth birthday (5 months ago). The guy driving just pulls over on the side of the road and says "your driving" i was like what!!!! I didn't know what the hell to do so the guy starts telling me when to put my foot on the clutch, let off shift then put foot back on the gas. So i still need a few tips or someone who has been driving stick for a while :D

My cool friend who thinks he's a genius tried to teach me to drive manual. I can drive it well now but he did not bother to tell me at first that I have to keep the clutch in while pushing the gas instead of pushing the clutch, letting off, and THEN pressing the gas. So sometimes I would do fine, other times, when I did not press the gas soon enough, I stalled out without understanding why. Then he told me to drive on my own while he watched and I nearly got my friend and I killed. DEFINATELY ran a car off the road :bricks1: I should have just had my Dad teach me from the start. I don't know why I let someone try to teach me how to drive who also tried to tell me that eating mashed potatoes would make my boobs bigger...

I showed my girlfriend how to drive a stick so she could drive home when I was wasted.

The first car I tried it on was my friends 85 Honda CRX. That car had no low end power so I had a hell of a time getting it moving. I got comfortable driving a Ford Medium Duty flatbed at my old job. All the numbers were worn off the knob, but my coworker told me it was a "standard H-pattern". So I put in first, let out the clutch and it goes. It had a granny tranny so you don't need to give it gas in first and reverse. I went to shift into second and i hear a loud "DONG" and the stick is jerked back into neutral. I try it again and again I hear a "DONG". So I put the stick up and to the right and it goes into second. Turns out 1st and Rev are across from each other, lol.

I learned to drive stick at the age of 9 by watching my step dad do it in the company tow truck. Many years later I picked up a stick shift car and I'm one of the few that can say I've never stalled out during the learning process. Many fast and jerky starts but never stalled out.

My dad taught me when I was 15 on a 1976 Chevy Chevette many moons ago. Now I look forward (hahaha..ya right) to teaching my son when he gets his permit next month (September).

I'd suggest using a low geared truck or tractor to start with, something thats basically impossibe to kill to give you an initial feel for the clutch.

i learned on a my friends damn saturn, but now im getting a talon tsi w/ a 16g turbo, thats about 20 psi, how will it be diffently driving stick on a turbo because im not that good yet

pretty similar to the way i learned auto's

first time was my dad saying can you move my truck (didn't tell me how) i reversed down the driveway and clipped the fence... it fell over... dad had done it the week before and had just fixed the fence... we needed a wider gate anyway...

i learned auto when i was 6 or 7 (about 3 months before manual) my dad just moved over one day when i went to get in the car and said "it's your turn now" (again no instruction) and on a public road....we lived in the country

my brothers friend taught me in his truck. i learned in 5 minutes.
didn't drive a stick anymore after that for 4-5 years. but for some reason i still knew how to drive a stick.
so 5 years later, i got in a talon and just drove. its like riding a bike

i learned when i was 10( 3 years ago) in my brothers 89 maxima se. then i learned how to get out of first gear about a year ago in my dads nissan hardbody, now i can drive stick fine.

that makes me wonder what people mean when they say they can drive....sorry dude we all learn some time...

i learned how tod rive a manual the hard way... i had bought a saturn to learn how to drive a stick and get good gas mileage.. well long story short my turck broke down and i was later for work and the saturn was all i had to get there... had to learn pretty damm quick.. lol

My step dad's VW rabbit (diesel).

You wanna talk about had to learn fast...I learned how to drive stick when I bought a Subaru and had to drive it home, I learned on the way, only stalled once!! But did burnouts everytime I had to leave a stop light lol.

I learned by leaving a 10 foot mark in front of my grandpa's driveway. That was the first time I drove a manual. Now I drive a 91 CRX with a manual transmission. The day after I bought it I just got plates for it, so I decided to take it for a drive. I was coming up to this steep hill on a 4-lane highway, and the light was red. Did an illegal u-turn, I knew that I would hit someone if I stopped.

ok now thats a situation i find hard to visualise....

hang on... do you mean you'd roll back into them?

Did you even drive manual? When you get off the brake and the clutch is pressed to the floor, the car will immideatly start going down the hill. There were cars behind me. I was still a beginner, so I had a hard time finding the spot where the clutch starts sticking. The way you're supposed to do it, is release the clutch to the point where it starts to stick, get off the brake, accelerate, and let the clutch out. But when you're learning how to drive, it's pretty hard to get that spot right. If you don't release it enough, the car will roll down the hill, if you let it out too much, the car will stall

i've been driving manual since i was 10 or 12, i guess i take it for granted now. usually one of the first things you should learn is a handbrake start though...till you get that feel. It's also handy for if you have a loaded truck.. or a drop off behind you... or...

Learned on my aunts 92 Corolla...My and my dad were in the parking lot for 3 hours the first day getting my starts perfect...then i just took to the roadand learned as i went

i learned on my dads jeep wrangler.. now i got that bad boy offroading and driving just fine on the roads

I learned on a Suzuki Vitara ( mini SUV) the summer of turning 16... i can remember my neighbors standing in the road counting out how many times i stalled it trying to put it into the drive way on a slope of about 20 degrees... they got up to about 8 before i got it into the driveway... while this was with my mom.. my grandfather got in and made me start and go like 20 times before he let me shift above 2nd... i think he was the reason i finally figured it out... give the car some gas then just slowly let off the clutch after sometime i finally got it down...

i learnt on an 89 galant, first day i bought it i got straight into it, stalled a dozen times but after about half a day i was able to drive it on my own and to my friends place, it's all about clutch pressure, find the catch point where you can feel the car rolling forward a bit, and then just balance it out with the gas pedal, you will get used to it naturally anyway

i learned in a 89 civic with 121,000 miles on it, stalled a dozen times then got a hang of it, lowest hp car i have ever been in.

I learned in my dads old 01 Saab 93 lol

I've only driven a stick once. My dads friend took me out in his 2004 jetta and taught me in that. I drove around trying to get the hang of it. I could shift gears and stop and everything just fine. But i couldnt get going so well. Its because i let the clutch out too far before pressing the accelerator and it would just die. So finally around the end he made me stop and go stop and go and i started getting the hang out that. Im hoping that my first car is a manual and i will continue to learn on that. I get it soon. But my uncle is giving me a camaro later and its a 4 speed but i think he said it has to be double clutched so that should be fun.

I learned on a motorcycle, then driving a manual car was a piece of cake.

i learned on an 85 honda civic that would die on idle. that was fun. at a stop light you had to use all three pedals or it would die. To learn though.... it's easy just DRIVE IT! for me it was like this... after 5 minutes with my step dad i was driving down the street by myself. then the next day i was going out of town. for a week or so i would occasionally stall it taking off from a stop but after about 2 weeks I was already heel to toeing around corners and rev matching my downshifts.

In the Driving School. The most Cars in Germany have a Manual Transmission. For a car with Auto you must pay more and I like manual Transmission. I don´t like many automatic transmissions ( losing Power and Speed, losing control, higher Price, more Gas consumption ) and I hate Continously Variable Transmission.

Continously Variable Transmission - http://www.lukusa.com/products/index.phtml?page=cvt

First stick I drove I flipped over in a gravel pitt. Dude told me to get in and learn so I started cuttin doughnuts stalled about a million times before I could get it right, and right after I got it down in my head I flipped the fucker. 94 chevy cheyenne LWB 4.3L V6. then I burned up the engine with it flipped on it's roof. Needless to say I never drove another one of jims trucks!

i first learned to drive a stick was when my auto. tranny died in my ford probe. i did a transmission swap to manual trans. got in and drove

I was out hunting with my dad when I was 12 and I was laying down in the truck a '90 F-150 with I6 300. Then he got in and told me to drive around to another part of the woods so I did. It took me three times to get it going but I did.:biggrin:

i learned how to drive stick when i went to LA to pick up my car. LA sucks for stick. i already knew how to start and stop, though, because my dad taught me that when i was like 8, so the rest pretty much came naturally. i learned with the short shifter i have in my car now.

Couldn't drie stick until i decided to buy a car with it. After an hour of practicing on a none busy road i got it, i haven't been able to go back to auto b/c i have a habit of hitting the brake thinking its the clutch.

Early in my automotive career, I took a job at a parts store. Part of the job was delivering parts to other garages, and picking up parts at the main warehouse. All of the company trucks were standards. The owner had me go out with this elderly guy who was driving for the company PT and he took me to a church parking lot that was vacant at the time and taught me. It was snowing pretty hard at the time, but I quickly learned how to drive standard that day.

My sister's boss, gave me a '86 Toyota Tercel, 4 speed, my dad drove it to our house, than I took the keys, and asked any adivice? He just said, release the clutch slowly, and left. I stalled many times, got the hang of it, but I sold car after a few weeks, and never drove it on public roads (only drove it around my farm, where I used to work).

Finally, 2 years later, my aunt sold us an 89 Eagle Vista, once again my dad drove it home, and I did same thing, but drove it around some public roads. I havn't driven it much, but I rarely stall now. Only problem I have is downshifting really, havn't driven in busy enough traffic to really get the feel for it. When i buy my next vehicle, I'll be getting a standard.

I gotta say, stalling is so frustratingthough , really keeps your confidence down, but I found that practicing alone, was the best, no pressure or anything.

my first experience was driving my dad's 88 Jeep Commanche, He did some things to that truck that made it slightly more powerful than stock, so everytime I popped the clutch it about damn near gave us whiplash b/c it had so much torque.

i learned by having my dad teach me in his nissan spec-v, fun car to drive, he got mad everytime i spun the tires lol, but he tought all my brothers and sister to drive manual because he says "its necessary" :sly:

I learned when i was 14, my dad taught me in his 81 VW rabbit pickup. Now it is rotting out in the back yard. it is too bad, those cars are getting rare.

I learned the fine art of double clutched downshifts in my dad's '70s International Pickup. It had synchros, but they didn't do any synchro-ing, so you had to rev-match anyway. It was alot of fun....that nice v-8 had power in any gear. I accidentally started in 3rd one time.....didn't even stall, let out the clutch, got on the gas, she got up and went!!! tried that in my subaru the other day.....didn't work so well.