[hehateme]

whats the best way to learn how to drive stick. how did you guys learn? Should i just go to a driving school and learn stick cuz i figure that's the safest way to learn anything about driving.

[OMGHIyori2U]

Should i just go to a driving school and learn stick cuz i figure that's the safest way to learn anything about driving.

yes

[90th.degree]

If you have a buddy with a manual car, and is willing to put their clutch on the line, try asking them for lessons. It takes time to REALLY get used to manual, but I've heard of some people getting the basics down in about 2-3 hours.

[Kenstr]

It would be best to learn from a driving school. Unless you have some friends who do drive manual, then you could maybe prompt them to teach you. My friend got the hang of it in about a week and getting the basics in a couple of hours or so.

[kelvin6]

I only learned just the very basics from a friend who had a beat up old stick shift mazda. I really wish i spent more time to actually get used to it, but if i ever want to learn again, (or continue to learn) I would stick with a driving school. Although I don't have a stick shift car, I always want to keep my options open so that if I had to get a stick shift, I would be able to drive it.

[ngtl3nic]

Driving school would actually provide the car and teach you solely on that aspect? Would they charge a lot? My first time driving a manual was with a porsche boxster s. It freaked me out because the car was too nice, and I was totally afraid that I might mess their car up :\

[v8subie]

I learned in my crusty 1990 honda accord with no clutch that I left behind in Maine somewhere

[OMGHIyori2U]

Driving school would actually provide the car and teach you solely on that aspect? Would they charge a lot?

just look up in the yellow pages and look for an ad that says they teach stick. The majority of the ads are for automatics obviously. When u call, just ask for stickshift lessons, otherwise they'll send an automatic lol.

I took a lesson and it was $200 for 2 hours. You'll get the hang of driving stick on a flat road within those 2 hours easily. Heck, within the first 40 minutes you'll get the hang of it. Once u get the hang of it, I would ask the instructor to do some uphill starts and some parallel parking, otherwise you'll just be driving around on flat surfaces the whole time.

[justwildbeat]

^The uphill start is pretty important lol unless you have a car that has that uphill assist option. A majority of the people that I know learned to drive manual from their other friends or from random people (cross-country running coach haha)

[minjapinja]

I learned how to drive stick when i was learning how to drive and got the hang of it after stalling a couple times. You just need to find the catch point and you're set.

[switchlanez]

Can you already drive an auto? If so save money and find a friend or relative to teach you for a couple hours in an empty lot. When you're comfortable with moving from a stop and coming back to a complete stop and moving again, move on to neighborhood streets only and practice up shifting. When you're comfortable with up shifting move on to the local streets with not-so-much traffic.

Also spend half an hour every night just going up and down a steep sloped part of an empty parking lot. You might need to use the handbrake at first to keep from rolling back from a stop. When you mastered that slope move on to other slopes with different grades. That's how I mastered slopes quickly.

Helps to understand the concept of manual gearbox operation on howstuffworks.com.

[contro]

I learned the best way possible, I bought a new golf and stalled mad times but i learned real fast how to drive stick.

[nubbie]

My boyfriend taught me by telling me how its done. I asked a ton of questions and he answered them for me and then I finally understood how to do it. So I basicly knew how to do it in my head before I got behind the wheel. Then he let me get behind the wheel and I had no problem with it at all

[ZiGeNX77]

My dad daught me how to drive and I learned manual at the same time. Not the best way to learn IMO. You should learn to drive an auto first, then when you're comfortable with that, learn to drive a stickshift so you can focus on that. The best thing to do is find someone who is willing to let you drive their car.

[switchlanez]

My boyfriend taught me by telling me how its done. I asked a ton of questions and he answered them for me and then I finally understood how to do it. So I basicly knew how to do it in my head before I got behind the wheel. Then he let me get behind the wheel and I had no problem with it at all

EXACTLY. Once I understood the concept I'd sit on the couch going over the motions with my hands and feet with empty water bottles as the pedals/shifter. Even laid in bed practicing before falling asleep all before I even had a car to practice on.

Wanted to do it sooo bad. o_o

[visuelz]

just look up in the yellow pages and look for an ad that says they teach stick. The majority of the ads are for automatics obviously. When u call, just ask for stickshift lessons, otherwise they'll send an automatic lol.

I took a lesson and it was $200 for 2 hours. You'll get the hang of driving stick on a flat road within those 2 hours easily. Heck, within the first 40 minutes you'll get the hang of it. Once u get the hang of it, I would ask the instructor to do some uphill starts and some parallel parking, otherwise you'll just be driving around on flat surfaces the whole time.

Damn that's expensive. When I first learned how to drive it was 120 for 10 lessons, 1 hour each.

[zantac_2]

learning the concept first is the key. i learnt it when i started learning to drive, you don't need to learn auto before you learn stick. i got it down in a couple of hours. infact it was harder to learn how to turn for me lol.

if you're an auto driver learning stick, just remember to press the gas lightly. a light touch goes a long way.

[coreansurfer]

put car in gear
very slowly release clutch
when car starts rolling give a little bit of gas

repeat
win(or fail)

[Orange bananA]

+1 for easing the gas. Too much and it'll get really jerky if the clutch hasn't caught yet.

I bought a manual car and drove it, no time for lessons.

[PjCphatty89]

i would say this:

Ease off the clutch while easing on the gas. Its almost kinda like a balancing act between those two pedels. If you mess up, the car will stall and/or the car will shake.

Its funny how some of my friends just completely blow at it, and then others get it in a snap.

Its even funnier when some girls try it and.....they do it so badly the car shakes violently and stalls. wahh....even i get scared...but for my car...

Oh and i'm wondering if anyone else does this to make the drive more comfy for passengers and possibly for yourself. I dont just slowly ease off the clutch at 1st gear, but i also ease off the clutch after i get into the rest of the other gears to prevent any sort of jerking sensation whatsoever. Alot of people tell me that i make the ride smoother than any of my other stick shift driver friends. =P

But also i probably know i'm wearin out the clutch more so than other people. Iono. any opinions? lol