A manual transmission car consists of a clutch located to the left of the brake pedal and a gear shifter in the center of the vehicle (“Brain,” 2000). The main goal of a manual transmission car is to be able to change gears at will.
“To change the gears, there is a little pedal under the seat next to where the brake and the accelerator are located, known as the clutch. Every time you will want to shift the gear, you have to press the clutch and then move the gear stick in its groove” (“Kulkami,”2010). The tricky part of driving a manual transmission car is utilizing the gas, clutch, breaking, and shifting in order to prevent stalling and a bumpy, uncomfortable ride. It is best to find an open parking lot to practice this skill. With practice and patience driving a manual transmission can be second nature.
“Adjust your seat so that you find all the pedals perfectly accessible with either foot. Adjust the rearview mirrors so that you can see the cars behind you. Before starting the car, I would advise you to learn shifting the gears first. Different cars may have different shifting patterns, and hence, you wouldn’t want to find yourself searching for where the higher/lower gear is while you’re driving!” (“Kulkami”, 2010). Alright let’s get to driving. First thing is first; make sure the car is in neutral and push the clutch with left foot all the way in. “Make sure the gearshift is in neutral by wiggling it. It should wiggle side to side easily. Now turn the key and start the car” (“how to drive”, 2010).
With the clutch still pressed move the gear shifter to first gear with right hand. Now slowly, and I mean slowly, with the left feet gradually depress the clutch. “You will hear the engine slow a bit and the car tries to move as you let it out. You have found the point at which the clutch “catches.”"(how to drive, “2010). Practice a few times to get a feel for the clutch and experience what “stalling” feels like when not enough gas is being received by the engine and the car suddenly jerks to a stop.
“Clutch to the floor, right foot on the gas, gives the engine just a little extra gas – not much. Now slowly let the clutch come up. As you feel that catch point, the RPM’s will start to drop and the car will start to move forward a bit. Slowly give it more gas to keep the RPM’s constant as you let the clutch out. This is the key to the whole thing. Give it enough gas to keep the RPM’s constant until the pedal is all the way out. Now push in the clutch and brake to a stop. Repeat three or four times until that “catch” point starts to feel comfortable” (how to drive, “2010″). Make sure to practice until going from a complete dead stop to smoothly rolling and letting the clutch all the way out in less than three seconds.
First gear is usually eco friendly and less wear and tear on an engine at around fifteen miles per hour or at twenty-five hundred to twenty-seven hundred revolutions per minute until having to shift gears. In order to shift the vehicle into second gear: make sure to release the gas while in first gear, slowly press in the clutch with the left foot, and with the right hand move the gear shifter into second gear, and then slowly release the clutch all the way while giving a little more gas on the right pedal. “Every car is different but in general each gear has a good range: first gear is from 0 to 15 mph, second gear is from 3 to 25 mph, third gear is from 15 to 45 mph, fourth gear is from 30 to 65 mph, fifth gear is from 45 to top speed of the vehicle” (how to drive, “2010″). Remember to release the gas pedal and utilize the clutch every time shifting gears. Make sure to practice until gears are shifted smoothly.
“When it is time to stop, just do like before, push in the clutch and use the brake pedal to stop. Later on we’ll talk about using the engine to slow you down. For now, just keep working on making it second nature to press in the clutch and using the brake pedal when you want to stop. Always go back into first gear to start out again” (how to drive, “2010″). It is okay to depress the gas pedal while in gear to coast down to a lower speed as long as the car is still moving at a fairly decent rate of speed.
Downshifting is when shifting a vehicle at a higher gear to a lower gear in order to slow down. An example of downshifting is when shifting the gearshift from fourth gear to third gear. Downshifting is a useful tool when at traffic light, while the engine is slowing down; the vehicle is automatically in the right gear to take off again when the light turns green. “A word about first gear. Never downshift from second gear to first while moving. Yes, you can do it and you won’t really cause any damage, but it is generally not a good practice because of the potential for over-revving the engine” (Brain, 2000).
Downshifting is when shifting a vehicle at a higher gear to a lower gear in order to slow down. An example of downshifting is when shifting the gearshift from fourth gear to third gear. Downshifting is a useful tool when at traffic light, while the engine is slowing down; the vehicle is automatically in the right gear to take off again when the light turns green. “A word about first gear. Never downshift from second gear to first while moving. Yes, you can do it and you won’t really cause any damage, but it is generally not a good practice because of the potential for over-revving the engine” (Brain, 2000).
Driving a manual transmission is a useful skill to possess in the everyday world. When traveling outside of the United States or when applying for a valet position most vehicles is usually diverse knowing how to drive a stick-shift car could be beneficial. As a person who drives a manual transmission vehicle half my life, this tutorial should help explain how to drive a manual transmission car better.
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