Difficulty driving a manual recently :(

[79sunrunner]

My first car I drove was a manual, so was the second, and the 3rd (Fiat). I studied online how they work, and looked at many diagrams on their mechanics. And while I enjoy the pleasure driving manuals more than almost anything else, recently, I've got pretty bad at it Smooth shifts are more difficult (no matter what car), rev matching has a slight jerk (100-300 RPM off) and now I'm worried that the clutch, trans, and drive shaft components may not last as long as I was hoping for. It's uncanny, I just went for a random drive a few minutes ago just trying to perfect myself, but I keep making more and more mistakes.

I also alternate between thin sole shoes, and hard solid loafers (my fav for normal walking

) And my driving ability was equal between them. What are your guys favorite driving shoe types?

Another issue, if I really work the clutch and throttle slowly, I have traffic backing up behind me, and in the rural location I live, I often get the finger from lifted pick-up truck drivers

Any suggestions. I wish Jillian Michaels had a 30 gear shifting work out DVD

 

[01rangerxl]

My guess is you're over thinking it. Relax and don't worry about every shift being perfect.

 

[79sunrunner]

yea, I just don't want to find myself in a position in the the future when I really need to use the car's full potential, and then have issues. But then again, not many people think that way.

 

[Dave Sherman]

My first two cars were stick, and my Midget is a stick. Every once in a while, I'll stall it or make a jerky shift or stall it.

 

[HardbodyLoyalist]

Double-clutching, rev-matching, and floating gears is cool and all... but granny-shifting still gets the job done. Yaknowwhatimean?

 

[79sunrunner]

Same here, a mistake every once in a while, but man, I feel like a 15 year old on a driver's permit driving dad's 1960 rust bucket with a clutch on its death bed. Maybe its time to give up driving, buy a Rolls Royce, and just hire a chauffeur

 

[79sunrunner]

Originally Posted By: HardbodyLoyalist
Double-clutching, rev-matching, and floating gears is cool and all... but granny-shifting still gets the job done. Yaknowwhatimean?


What is floating the gears? I've heard the term many times, just never cared to google it.

 

[redhat]

With your comment on the lifted pickups and rural-ness, sounds like my area here in Western New York... on a side note, cannot get a good night of sleep 'cause of all of the no exhaust diesel trucks.

In regards to your shoe question, I have found that the type of shoe doesn't really matter for me. The more important factor is that the shoe is properly tied and snug on my foot. If I slip shoes on and off for a few days and allow them to become loose fitting, I find myself not able to accurately gauge the friction point of my clutch.

 

[HardbodyLoyalist]

Originally Posted By: 79sunrunner
Originally Posted By: HardbodyLoyalist
Double-clutching, rev-matching, and floating gears is cool and all... but granny-shifting still gets the job done. Yaknowwhatimean?


What is floating the gears? I've heard the term many times, just never cared to google it.


"Floating the gears" refers to shifting without clutch engagement.

"Double-clutching" refers to rev-matching the engine and transmission for easier engagement.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_clutch

 

[Chris142]

Try it w/o the clutch. I only use it to get moving.my ford shifts like butter if I shift @1600 rpm.

 

[bvance554]

Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl
My guess is you're over thinking it. Relax and don't worry about every shift being perfect.


Thats what i'm thinking. You know how so just drive it. In 22 years of driving i've never owned anything other than a manual (which may come to an end because they're getting harder and harder to find). You can critique the heck out of yourself over what is a smooth shift, but as hard as i sometimes try its never seemless. Just don't give it to much gas and ease the clutch out between shifts or you'll wear it out.

 

[Andy636]

2 weeks in city stop and go/bumper to bumper traffic will cure your problem sire

 

[The_Jeff]

Once you're rolling use the clutch like an on/off switch. You'll find yourself either dragging the car down with too slow an engine speed or kicking yourself in the trunk with too high of one. Either way, what's done is done. Hopefully eventually it will train your right foot to match the engine speed to what's needed.

This will be easy on the clutch but harder on the u-joints, though they should be able to take it.

As for the shoes, I like a hard sole.

 

[supton]

I think you are over thinking it. The occasional missed shift hasn't seemed to hurt my vehicles, and even poor rev matching doesn't. The clutch is a wear item, it is meant to deal with a bit of slip and wear.

Some cars are harder to drive smoothly though.

 

[Falken]

I am so rusty at driving manual that with all the city driving I do, the trans wouldn't last a week.

But, I'm getting older, I don't mind as much about things like that anymore.

I think you are just getting performance anxiety, man!

The way the gears in a trans are designed today, a missed shift won't harm it.

Driving like a douche canoe is what kills a car. Not a missed shift here and there.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl
My guess is you're over thinking it. Relax and don't worry about every shift being perfect.


Agreed. Just relax and drive it-there's nothing magic or special about a manual transmission, especially in modern vehicles.

After all, my 60 something wife drives a Subaru with a manual, and never has any problems.

 

[sciphi]

Relax and drive. Don't get caught up in perfectly smooth shifts every time. It's a manual, and meant to deal with the occasional hard shift.

 

[Smoky14]

I don't know what kind of car you drive BUT it might be you. My experience has been that DBW throttles don't play well with the driver. I have one car with a throttle cable and can drive it quite well. The second car has drive by wire and being smooth in it is accidental at best. The computer controls the throttle and if you just slightly change your mind and throttle position it can't keep up and there goes a smooth shift and can cause stalling on take off, by the way it's a Ford Fusion.
Don't get too frustrated, it might just be what, not who, is driving.

Smoky

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: 79sunrunner
Another issue, if I really work the clutch and throttle slowly, I have traffic backing up behind me, and in the rural location I live, I often get the finger from lifted pick-up truck drivers

This fix for this (in my opinion anyway) is anticipating about 3-4 seconds before you have to start moving, and let the clutch out JUST to the point where it starts to engage. You'll feel it in the car/engine. This way, you've taken all of the "slack" out of the clutch pedal and as soon as you need to go, you're ready for the throttle/clutch transition.

 

[gofast182]

Originally Posted By: Smoky14
I don't know what kind of car you drive BUT it might be you. My experience has been that DBW throttles don't play well with the driver. I have one car with a throttle cable and can drive it quite well. The second car has drive by wire and being smooth in it is accidental at best. The computer controls the throttle and if you just slightly change your mind and throttle position it can't keep up and there goes a smooth shift and can cause stalling on take off, by the way it's a Ford Fusion.
Don't get too frustrated, it might just be what, not who, is driving.

Smoky

^ absolutely this. I used to have a 2006 Civic Si (it was the car to have at the time so I ordered one the minute I could) and while it was an awesome car in many respects it had one really annoying quirk, the revs would stay the same or sometimes increase 50-100 RPM for almost a second when you depress the clutch to shift. It was DBW lag. So tricky it took the better part of a year for me to really adjust. What you have to do is slow your shifting and then just start to figure out whatever timing you need to adjust, it's trickier than it seems to adjust these habits/timing. Good luck!