How well do you drive a stick?

[Stewart Fan]

I've owned 7 different manual transmission cars in the 22 years I've been driving. For the most part driving a stick is second nature for me.

My Subaru is a bit of a PITA. I'm not sure what it is,but even after driving it daily for 5 months,I find myself really having to pay attention to shift it smoothly.

 

[sciphi]

Just fine. My Cruze can get a little wonky at times, and feel a bit notchy. I'm thinking a fluid change should help some.

 

[Nick R]

I could probably drive one, as I know how it works. I know how to modulate a clutch, from the motorcycle. I've driven exactly one manual. It was a custom built transmission in my dad's friends Jeep. That was hard, it had an old 5.4L Ford Carb'ed engine. the real problem was the throttle tip in was hard. As in, moving the gas pedal off the idle stop was very difficult.

 

[tig1]

I learned to drive when I was 14 on a 49 Chevy pickup, 3 on the tree, in a 10 acre field in the Ozarks of Missouri.

 

[Chris142]

I dont know how to drive an automatic. I can drive anything thats a stick shift. I only use the clutch to get rolling, once rolling I upshift and downshift w/o ever touching the clutch.

I've driven a 3 on the tree, 3 on the floor, 4sp,5sp,6sp,7sp,8sp,9sp,10sp,13sp,15sp,18sp,5+2,4x3,4x4,5x3,5x4,6x4 and a Super10.

 

[earlyre]

not well @ all i'm afraid...
never owned one..and my sole experience was my failed attempt @ getting my CDL, so stepped into a 10speed double clutch, never having driven a manual before....that was fun....

the first car i actually bought myself i wanted to get a manual, but the fates didn't work out that way.
replaced it with car I'm driving now, which I bought off my brother, who won't buy a stick for his DD,b/c of Dallas rush hour.

 

[Dakota1820]

Second nature. Love sticks and really don't like the idea of having an automatical ever.

 

[edhackett]

'54 Chevy for me, but I was only five. OK, that doesn't really count as I couldn't shift. I'd stand on the seat and steer down the field while dad was in back throwing hay to the cattle. I was driving the '65 Ford(HD four speed) by myself at 12.

I got my baptism by fire when I was 15. I was working at the airport washing and waxing planes to make a bit of spending money. Both of the "gas boys" got the flu at the same time. The airport manager asked if I could drive a clutch. I told him yes and spent the next three days driving 1500 gallon fuel trucks fueling aircraft. There hasn't been a situation on or off road that I haven't been able to handle after that time.

Ed

 

[Rand]

Originally Posted By: Stewart Fan
I've owned 7 different manual transmission cars in the 22 years I've been driving. For the most part driving a stick is second nature for me.

My Subaru is a bit of a PITA. I'm not sure what it is,but even after driving it daily for 5 months,I find myself really having to pay attention to shift it smoothly.


its a subaru thing.

its not helped by the gl-5 gear oil. Subaru has one of the worst feeling sticks ever.. can be notchy. clunky grindy... etc if you dont pay attention esp when its colder out. I've owned 5 MT cars and its by far the worst.. that being said..

Its not terrible and I'm used to it. My 2007 focus shifted better by far... and thats a focus.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: Stewart Fan
My Subaru is a bit of a PITA. I'm not sure what it is,but even after driving it daily for 5 months,I find myself really having to pay attention to shift it smoothly.

heh... reminds me of my 530i when I first got it. These cars had this evil contraption called CDV (clutch delay valve) installed from the factory. It was a solution to the problem that did not exist. BMW installed it to supposedly protect the driveline from excessive wear in case the driver did not know how to drive manual properly. All it did was made clutch release unpredictable. I got rid of the CDV soon after I bought the car. Now it feels much better, although the clutch engagement point is still not as forgiving as at some other cars I've owned. Very little room for error.

 

[rjacket]

Learnt on a stick shifting with my left hand. First car I bought was an automatic as I was always driving in traffic.

I'm sure I could get used to it again but maybe not as easily if I had to shift with my right hand.

 

[4D-56]

Like a champ!....started on a Massey Ferguson 135 tractor at 13....on hills!

all my cars in England were manual gearbox, its much more fun but i have got used to my lazy cruisin auto

nothin like heading for the red-line in second and third!!

 

[Spazdog]

Took my driving test in a '65 Chevrolet van with a 3 speed on the column. It didn't have seatbelts but you wouldn't have been able to wear a shoulder belt anyway. To get to Reverse or Second you had to lean pretty far forward in the seat.

The overwhelming majority of my cars have had manuals.

I've driven all manners of military vehicles from when military vehicles were manuals. Most of them were as old or older than I was at the time and had a varying degree of problems.

After years of Japanese bikes, I had a BSA Starfire that forced me to shift with my right foot. I also rode a V45 Interceptor with the shifter linkage crash damaged so we put a shifter on the shift shaft backwards forcing the pattern to be 1 up - 5 down. Ridden a "suicide shift" bike. Ridden a few twist grip shift Vespas, Bajajs, BML Stellas etc... Point is, I can clutch and shift with both my hands and feet.

I would say that I am fairly competent...

 

[97f150]

Originally Posted By: Chris142
I dont know how to drive an automatic. I can drive anything thats a stick shift. I only use the clutch to get rolling, once rolling I upshift and downshift w/o ever touching the clutch.

I've driven a 3 on the tree, 3 on the floor, 4sp,5sp,6sp,7sp,8sp,9sp,10sp,13sp,15sp,18sp and a Super10.


This pretty much sums it up for me. I do use the clutch in a regular 5 speed though for shifting. I havent had the chance to drive the rest in the original post (4+2 etc) but would love the chance and know I could.

 

[Colt45ws]

I can drive manual tolerably as long as Im not in a city. I start getting aggravated having to shift all the time then my capability rapidly degrades.

 

[SLCraig]

Well.
I've never actually owned an automatic car other than a hand me down which I did not pick.

All 7 of my cars have been manual trans, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Automatic sucks, seriously, I do mean that. LoL

 

[Cristobal]

I have an automatic, but you never forget how to drive a stick shift.

 

[Lead Shoes]

I do not plan to own another automatic ever.

It is really sad to see so many cars only offering automatics these days, and the alarming amount of people that do not know how to drive stick, not one out of 25 people on my dorm floor can drive stick besides me... and of my friends, 2 of them can, out of dozens.

 

[UncleS2]

Hmmm. Learned at age 13 on a 1958 Ford pickup with badly underpowered 6-cyl engine & 3 on the tree. Dad said if I could drive that I could handle anything, & he was right!

Later drove Dad's "new" pickups, a '60 Ford, then later a 69? Chevy, both 3 on tree. And the old Jeep of course, 3 forward speeds on floor plus transfer case.

The others? Lessee- '58 Opel Rekord sedan & '60 Opel station wagon, Stoopidbaker Lark V8 SW, and 53 Chevy Bel-Air, all 3 on tree. 57 Chevy, 283 V8 & 3 on floor. 65 Ford sedan, 289 V8 & 3 on tree. 71 Opel Rallye, 4 on floor. 71 Volkswagen bug(wife's car), ditto. 56 Chevy Panel truck, 3-tree. 66 Volvo 122S, 4-floor, put about 200,000 miles on that one over 21 years. 63 Ford pickup, 3-tree. Chevy citation, V6, 4-floor. 97 Neon DOHC, 5-floor, over 200,000 miles driven on that one.

I think I drive a stick shift pretty well.

 

[user52165]

Originally Posted By: tig1
I learned to drive when I was 14 on a 49 Chevy pickup, 3 on the tree, in a 10 acre field in the Ozarks of Missouri.


You were ancient! I have a nephew - in the Missouri Ozarks - who was driving a tractor at 5. And a $150K+ combine at 10 (alone) including on the road to move from field to field. This was 25 years ago. Oh, those farm kids.

True story.