sablescort said:Driving a stick is pretty simple if u know a few basic rules to it:
1) There's an additional pedal to the left of the brake pedal. It's for the clutch
2) When starting a stick shift car for the 1st time, push the clutch pedal FIRST before u start the car. (It's to prevent the car from going forward with the clutch engaged-u dont want to end up hitting anything if that ever happened!)
3) It takes COORDINATION between your left foot (clutch), right foot (gas), right hand (the shifter) to make a smooth, not jerky move. When u move the clutch, do it slowly at the same time u push the gas with ur right foot. That way u don't kill the motor if u pull the clutch without feeding it a bit of gas.
4) Stick shifts are a bitch to move when ur on top of a HILL. I have a much easier way to move a stick-shift when on a hill if u have a E-brake in the car. What I do is pull the E-brake after stopping on the top of the hill. then when its time to go, I move the E-brake down SLLLOOOWWLY at the same time I let the clutch out and feed the gas. It takes practice, but u will get used to it.
5) Watch your RPMS -I shift up on my ZX2 Escort between 3,500 to 5,000 RPM all the way to the 5th gear. There are other methods to knowing when to shift up or down: If ur motor vibrates thru the floor, then its time to shift up. Another is a "SHIFT" or up-arrow light that lights up on the dash to let u know when its time to change gears. When its time to down-shift for example 5th to 4th, I would usually shift when the RPM's drop way down to 2K.
6) At a stoplight, keep ur clutch-pedal pushed in or put the stick in "N" so the motor doesn't stall on you.
7) When parking a stick-shift, I like to keep the shifter locked in Reverse not Neutral because if I forget to pull the E-brake before getting out of the car, it may roll forward or backwards when its on N. Putting it on Reverse locks the trans and keeps the car from rolling and adds extra security to the E-brake.
8) Shifter patterns VARY between cars. What my ZX2 Escort's shift pattern would be like goes:
1 3 5
2 4 R
On some cars it may go like this: (That was from my '85 Dodge Daytona)
R(Pull ring at bottom of shifter to engage) 1 3 5
2 4
The pattern is usually on top of the shifter. Study it and get familiarized with the pattern until u can remember which gear it is supposed to go.
And I should add that stick shifts are great when it comes to either a dead battery or starter. U dont have to jump start the car if the battery went dead on you. What I usually do to start a stick shift goes like: 1) Turn the ignition switch on but DONT start the car yet. 2) Have someone push you while u have the clutch pedal pushed in and the sifter in 1st gear. When the car reaches about 5 to 10 mph, just let the clutch out quickly and the car should start by itself! Use that ONLY as a last resort if you dont have a jumper cable. I started my POS '85 Dodge Daytona that way for 5 months after its starter died and I couldn't afford a new one.
This comes from 14 years stick shift experience and 5 stick shift cars that I have owned and driven myself.
Hope this helps
:roll: I understand a little (honest I am not good reading) I hope my friend will teach me how to manual
