Learning standard

[rtsen]

Hey all,

Just wondering how you guys learnt how to drive standard or what you guys think would be the best way to learn standard is.

I’m thinking about getting a buddy to drive to a mall at night and just practicing there until I feel comfortable driving on the road.

[Ben]

WHen learning standard, the best idea is finding a vacant parking lot and practicing starts and stops.

Getting the car rolling and shifting from first to second is the hardest, but once you find the friction point, it comes naturally.

I taught a girl who'd never driven standard in her life on her new car, I had to do all the test drives and drive it home, haha. Anyhow, she picked it up right away. Showed her how to drive a standard in about an hour, including hill starts and downshifting to stops. Just takes an open mind and dont get frustrated.

Just push the clutch in, put the car in gear, let the clutch out slowly, and when you feel the car move forward and the rpm's drop, add more fuel gradually with the accellerator pedal.

Practice that and you wont be granny shifting and double clutching like you should.

[HRD2PLZ]

I learnt the basics on a friends car in an empty parking lot. After that, we would go and test drive cars from the smaller used car lots (they never went with you) and perfected my skills on there. I ended up buying myself my first manual when I was 17, a new (2000) Acura 1.6 EL. I test drive the automatic and bought the manual. Lets just say, it was a learning experience driving from the dealership to the house:rofl: But it doesn't take long, practise and some guidance from someone who knows what they are talking about and your set!

Good Luck! :thumbsup:

[Pihsiak]

parking lot plus a friend with a car he doesn't mind you beating on.

if you know how to drive auto then great, you don't have to worry about the rules of the road (signaling, shoulder checking and all that crap), tell your friend every fear you have (stalling from X situaltions, rolling back, going in reverse, over reving, everything) and have him explain what to do in those situations.

learn how to start the car.... (stupid clutch...)
find the point of friction (starting, stopping)
get comfortable with where all the gears are... (you don't want to shift into the wrong gears)
learn to shift up, learn to down shift
learn to go backwards
uphill starts (with handbrake/without handbrake)

parellal parks and that's about it...

and if there is time, "HEEL TOE DOWNSHIFTING!!!"

[SiG Baby]

Just get in and play around with it...make sure you got like 2 hours then you should be good to go. I forced my best friend to learn when i got my first stick car so that she could drive if i ever got drunk ass, and it only took her 2-3 hours to get it down pat.
Its really not that bad and this is comming from a girl so you should have no trouble

:) :thumbsup:

[carzcraz]

I bought my 89 CRX Si just to learn standard on.

The previous owner had replaced the clutch (48xxx km's ago), so I figured there was still a lot of life on it lol. My bf and I would drive around his acreage in Bearspaw on little hills and cul-de-sacs till I finally worked up the courage to drive it on the main roads (after a week of 1/2hr driving each day).

When I finally got the hang of 5-speed, I sold the car lol.

Good luck

[statick]

when i learned standard, i just went out in my friends integra for a lil bit, and then a couple of days later when i got my standard car, i took a lil bit of time to get familiar with its tranny...all good after that.

[3G]

I went out to Graham Auctions and learned to take off on the cars, then bought an 87 accord and learned on it by driving aorund the block and shit

[black_2.5RS]

Find the cheapest driving school in the city and buy 2-5 hrs worth of driving time. It's better to destroy their car than your (or a friend's) car. I did that it several years ago and I don't remember it costing too much.

[philipoo]

drivers school cost about 900$

[3G]

Originally posted by philipoo
drivers school cost about 900$

wtf i payed $265 for mine

[philipoo]

Originally posted by 3G


wtf i payed $265 for mine

well... T_T it's 900$ says people in bc.

[Skyline_Addict]

^^ maybe the main course, but not a refresher class or an extra class to learn manual.

[trikypenguin]

ya i taught a girl i used to worik with how to drive standard in my car in the silvercity parking lot late one night after a movie, lol she ended up driving all the way back to her house!! she picked it up really quick

[Fez_turbo]

you dont need to spend money to learn standard..

just ask a friend from work that has a standard and that your not to close to........ or really close to.......... that wouldnt mind showing you or teaching you standard...

it honestly only takes like an hour to get used to. plus its better to do it on someone else's car.

if you dont have friends.....just go to the dealership with a friend that knows how... test drive a car........in standard... get a friend to drive it off and then take over and learn on that....

you should get the hang of it quickly....


i learned it in like 20 minutes of just driving around.

[skyline19]

ya i first learned on some back road and then started to start on hills and what not.

after some practise its like riding a bike.

and after learning you can do these:burnout:

[rtsen]

Thanks guys,

Sounds like an empty parking lot will do the trick.
For a more advance technique, my buddy told me to find an incline road (like a ramp to 2nd level parking) and try not to go downwards while accelerating from stop.

[Raz]

back in non gay rental countries - where it's pretty much impossible NOT to rent a standard, we used to just rent cars all over the place and beat on em to learn standard ;) It went well :D

I bought my GF a car and told her to go drive it, she pretty much didn't do anything but burnouts for a week, but she's doing great now :)

- Rasmus

[Kobe]

Sorry for the hijacking of the thread..


Say I'm going 80 and in 4th gear, I'm coming to a red light... After first I was told i can just pop it into nuetral..

But thats wrong, isn't it... I should be downshifting threw every gear, just incase...


Or is neutral fine?

[Raz]

Just throw it into neutral, downshifting is redundant.

- Rasmus

[ryder_23]

^
reason for street driving you keep it in gear, is incase you gotta make an evasive maneover. I never really coast to a light in neutral or whatever, but alot of people do.

[Kobe]

Originally posted by ryder_23
^
reason for street driving you keep it in gear, is incase you gotta make an evasive maneover. I never really coast to a light in neutral or whatever, but alot of people do.

Some days i'm sooo fucken lazy i'll put it in neutral, but most of the time, I keep it in gear just incase...


If your taking your road test its mandatory to shift threw gears right?

[Weapon_R]

Downshifting can cause you problems and premature synchro wear. Throw it in neutral but be prepared to put it in gear if the need arises.

[rtsen]

I heard downshifting wears out your transmission, putting it to neutral wears out your brakes.

so if this is true, wearing out your brakes is a better choice

[jumperman8]

what is double clutching exactly>?

[A2VR6]

Originally posted by jumperman8
what is double clutching exactly>?

basically clutch in ---> shift to neutral ----> clutch out ----> clutch in ----> shift to gear ----> clutch out.

[b_t]

Downshifting up to a light burns no gas. Your motor actually gets like perfect mileage when you are using engine braking to stop the car. If you were to coast in neutral for 100 miles and engine brake for 100 miles, the engine braking car would have more gas in it when all is said and done.. but the difference is small, and transmissions cost more then gas.