Idea For Learning Stick

[The Critic]

I have an idea that I would like some thoughts on.

I would like to learn stick, but I do not have any friends or family members who own a manual-equipped car. About two months ago, I almost purchased a beater BMW 325 to fix up and learn stick on, but the transaction fell through. Looking back, this was a blessing because I did not have the time to work on a beater nor was I truly interested in owning a permanent beater.

Therefore, I am currently considering the idea of taking over another person's lease from swapalease.com (or another site). My target would be something < $500/mo with 4-6 months left on the lease. Yes, I would have to register the car and insure it, but this plan would give me more time to learn stick (and practice it) and it would also eliminate the risk issue associated with borrowing someone's car. When I am done, I would just return the car. If anything happens, my insurance would cover it since I would have an insurable interest.

I definitely do not mind paying the money for this (whether I should though, is a different question), and I also like the idea of using this as an opportunity to drive a car that I would not otherwise buy.

Thoughts?

 

[JT1]

Well, i don't know much about that whole lease deal but, when I teach folks to drive stick I tell don't even bother using the gas pedal until you get the feel of the clutch pedal. Just start the car, push in the clutch, engage first gear, slowly release clutch pedal until car is rolling then you can push the gas, accelerate and re engage clutch at proper rpm, shift next gear. That should get you started.

 

[Lead Shoes]

Buy a cheap Honda to learn stick on then either keep it when you done or sell it, you can get a early 90's civic 5 speed for $1,000 no problem, get 30+ mpg and learn to drive a manual.

All of this lease swapping stuff sounds expensive, buy a beater 5 speed and learn.

 

[rjacket]

^ is good advice. Clutch control is key.

I would go further and say practice just clutch and brake with no gas ie go to a parking lot and just practice taking off in first gear using the clutch and then come to a stop using the brake while not forgetting to put in the clutch. Then repeat. Get it into your brain that you need to do this each time you start and stop.

Then you are ready to use the gas and to use the stick to move into second gear.

A while ago, I saw some cars that came with clutchless sticks. The clutch was automatic and in the stick. I think it was a Porsche. Now that would be fun without the hassle.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: Brenden
Buy a cheap Honda to learn stick on then either keep it when you done or sell it, you can get a early 90's civic 5 speed for $1,000 no problem, get 30+ mpg and learn to drive a manual.

All of this lease swapping stuff sounds expensive, buy a beater 5 speed and learn.

Where can I get one that actually runs (to my standards) and does not require a ton of work? Plus reselling the car will be a major pain in the rear. By the time I am done with the $1,000 car (because knowing me, I'll end up doing a ton of reconditioning), it would not be much cheaper than the lease idea.

 

[JimPghPA]

I would go to a junk yard and tell them you are looking for somethin to lear to drive a stick on. Tell them you want something that runs, and will pass inspection after (enerer amount in dollars)worth of work.

Drive it for a few months and return it to the junk yard.

That way it will not sound like big bucks when you grind gears and burn clutch.

 

[JT1]

Originally Posted By: JimPghPA


That way it will not sound like big bucks when you grind gears and burn clutch.


Oh ye of little faith,

my brother and I learned to drive stick just fine with nary a burned clutch, nor damaged transmission.

 

[user52165]

Originally Posted By: JimPghPA
I would go to a junk yard and tell them you are looking for somethin to lear to drive a stick on. Tell them you want something that runs, and will pass inspection after (enerer amount in dollars)worth of work.

Drive it for a few months and return it to the junk yard.

That way it will not sound like big bucks when you grind gears and burn clutch.


Whoa....... you haven't been to JY lately - like the last 20 years maybe. JY cars have no battery, no gas, no coolant, etc. It's the law. Even if they did, they wouldn't/couldn't let you drive. Get one that will pass inspection!!!!!! Sure.... They are not a used car dealer.

 

[david_ES2]

Didnt know we needed a car to learn "STICK"

....oh you guys meant a manual transmission car, silly me.

 

[eljefino]

Take a weekend motorcycle class. The bikes have clutches. Very easy to modulate wet ones, at that. Couple hundred bucks.

 

[greenjp]

Learning to drive a stick shift is not a months long process. It's barely a day long process. My friend taught me in his parents' Bronco II in about 2 hours in a junior high parking lot when I was 17. Sure you're not great at it but you can get the car to go, shift, stop, etc. Like anything you get better with practice.

Someone learning to drive stick isn't going to destroy the car. You don't really "grind gears" anymore as they're all synchronized to begin with and clutches are pretty tough.

As someone else said, motorcycle classes take people who have never been on a motorcycle before and have them zooming around a parking lot in 1 day (I was one 10 years ago). It's not rocket science.

So blah blah blah, yeah just get a beater and see what happens.

jeff

 

[exranger06]

1. Go to your local Napa (or other parts store) and see if their delivery trucks have manual transmissions.
2. Get a part time job as a delivery driver

That's how I learned stick!

Oh yeah, when the manager asks if you already know how to drive stick, just say, "yeah, no problem!"

 

[JHZR2]

Actually, I think your idea is an out of the box good one!

The thing I found was that learning stick was contingent upon having a good feeling clutch. I tried learning on an integra (a different one than my wife owned for many years), and the clutch position and feel on it is so poor, that it was tough to learn.

I bought my 91 318i specifically for learning to drive stick, figuring that if I wrecked it, Id just sell it. 10 years later, Im still driving it regularly, it still has its original clutch, and not only did I learn on it, but my brother did too.

The issue I see is that with a leased car, you will be insuring will collision and comp, figure an extra $2-300 for that. $500 for 6 months is $3k.

Go find a nice E30 for $2500, and learn on it, and sell it at the end. Or not. And just carry liability. IMO it will be cheaper.

Im sure you could find a hyundai accent lease or something like that, but personally, I wouldnt want the liability of turn-in costs, tires, etc. on a lease return.

 

[jigen]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2

Im sure you could find a hyundai accent lease or something like that, but personally, I wouldnt want the liability of turn-in costs, tires, etc. on a lease return.


Exactly. And since you have a car that is your brand-new, daily driver. You can pick something up cheap that you don't have to worry about repair-wise. As long as it runs and passes inspection.

You were thinking about paying 400-500 a month for a car you might only be using for 4-6 months? And how often will you actually be using it? I would scope out craigslist for a few days and pick up something between $1000-$2000.

As far as selling it when you're done with it? Throw it right back on craigslist. I bought my '96 Ford Escort on CL for $1200. Put on new brakes and rotors and sold it 10 months later for $1300. I literally sold that car in less than 12 hours. Selling a car and transferring titles only takes 5-10 minutes tops. It's a very fast procedure. Quicker on the buyer and seller too when the price is so low and they have the cash to pay you up front.

If it's running and inspected, people will buy up those little $1-$2k vehicles really fast.

Good luck! And like others have said, stick isn't something that takes months to learn. Maybe to perfect, but one full day will get you comfortable enough to keep at it.

 

[Artem]

Although you can learn how to "operate" a manual transmission in an hour, it will take at least a few weeks of daily driving to really master the art and become completely comfortable with it.

I won't even start with proper downshifting techniques that take a while to nail properly each and every time (when first learning how to drive stick)

The OP's idea to pickup a car with a few months left on a lease is excellent. He would be driving a nice car with a good clutch, engine, etc that he could really enjoy and in the end, that happiness is worth $500 a month for a few months.

It's such a good idea that i might actually go pick something up just to have some fun with someone else's car.

 

[thr_wedge]

I've bought cars for under $100, you just have to look. Find the cheapest standard that drives, learn to drive it, wash it, change the oil, sell for profit. No need for any work on the car.

A running car under $1000 will be sold in less than 60 minutes on craigslist.

Takes an afternoon to learn to drive a stick. Start out on a hill and by the time you roll all the way to the bottom you'll have figured out the friction point.

 

[IndyIan]

Do you have a buddy that knows how to drive a manual? If so, go test driving. A buddy and I did this when we were in our early 20's at some semi shady used dealers and they didn't really seem to mind at all. You'll learn in the first car without any real wear on the clutch as its not really that hard to get the basics down. Then the next car you buy can be manual and then you can master driving it. Snapping off heel and toe downshifts while under hard braking, starting smoothly on a steep uphill, etc.

 

[01rangerxl]

If you don't mind parting with the money for the lease, it doesn't sound like a bad plan. You'll get a newer vehicle with no burden of selling it when you're done. The only downside is you won't get any of that money back, so it is an expensive way to learn stick, but doesn't carry a ton of risk either.

You are somewhat of a perfectionist with your vehicles, so I could see how the temptation to fix everything you can on a beater might make it more of a project than you want to take on right now. But, the upside is there is the opportunity to make your money back. You'd probably end up restoring a '92 Civic to showroom new condition though, so maybe just go for the lease, lol.

 

[saberz]

Driving stick is quite easy. Don't think about it to much.

When I was a kid my Uncle would let me row the gears while he was driving in back streets, I got the gist of it from that, but never owned a manual until i was 27, my 08 tC being the first stick. I bought it new, stalled it out in 1st numerous times but got the gist of it that day, within 2 hours I was driving fine. Practiced around the block, went to the main road when i was more confident.

For hills when stopped I would neutral the stick, and ebrake. Then put it into gear and let up on the clutch till it began to catch and let the ebrake go. Think of it as a training wheel.

You'll be fine bud, also doesn't help to read about it too(which I do to get the fundamentals of it as I like to know what I am doing as I am doing it and how things are working behind the scenes =)


Now for the lease swap, I am not too sure about it. If you do go that path don't get BMW or any higher end vehicle, stick to a lower end stick just for the sake of a clutch replacement if its ever needed and the dealer/warranty won't change it due to saying it was abused(this can happen, 2nd Gen Xterras were known for clutch failing prematurely, documented on forums).

 

[Chris142]

Just fly down here. I will take you to a dry lake and with my Jeep teach you. From there we can move up to my 73 International pickup with it's super stiff clutch and T19 trans with no gates. You can't feel the gears in this one.
Then on to the old Peterbilt with it's 5x3 transmissions.

If you don't shift this one square you will hang up the linkage to the auxillary transmission. When you do this you get to crawl under the thing with a pipe and unjam the linkage.

In exchange for these lessons we can go to Harbor Freight and buy some rope. I want to lower you down some of the old mineshafts in my area so you can tell me whats in the bottom of them.

J/K but you are welcome to come learn on my Jeep. You can"t stall it unless you try.