hi guys,
i've been driving stick for 3 weeks now..and soo far i'm enjoyiing every moment of it..just not the 9 o clock traffic time but other than that...Its great!
I have couple of questions though,
When i back off from my garage, i usually hold on the clutch half way for a while cuz i'm scared soon as i let go of the clutch, the car will pick up speed and i might hit something. Is this okay?

When i'm changing gears, i let the clutch out reallly slowly to avoid any sort of jerk. Which i know is bad for the clutch, how quick do you guys take off your foot the peddal?

At which RPM do you guys change gears? I am changing them at 3000-3500.

Just last question, Someone told me when i'm changing gears i dont have to press down the clutch all the way down, just to the point where the friction point is. I Like to press the clutch all the way down just to insure i'm not grinding any gear etc. Is this okay?

sorry for the long post.

thanks

 

Clutch all the way down every shift. It is better for the car and there's no reason not to do it.

I shift around 3-4k, like you. Reversing w/ clutch feathering is fine. I usually do that with little to no revving of the engine (at or near idle) when backing up.

I let the clutch out pretty quickly during normal shifts -- once you get the timing down it is actually smoother/less jerk to do it quickly in rhythm than slower. If the revs come up while you are coming off the clutch you are doing it too slowly and if you get a little thunk and the revs dropping hard then youare doing it too quickly. It is just a timing thing. LIke guitar hero with your eyes closed

 

M-
yes on the garage part. With experience you'll get better. Keep the revs low and you're not doing harm.

when you switch gears don't go real slow, just slow enough to minimize a jerk

I shift at different rpms depending on my acceleration, traffic, my mood etc. normally at about 2500 unless I'm driving harder

Press the clutch to the end point. You can't gauge the friction point perfectly while in motion and risk periodic gear grinding. Anything else isn't correct.

 

Hey,
thanks for the reply guys, that explains most of the confusion. Just last question,
what do you guys do when coming to an stop sign or where you had to stop for a sec and take off again. do you ever shift from 2th to 1th? or is it 2th to N...

 

^I just stay in 2nd and do a rolling stop without disengaging. Saves the clutch, but could risk an improper stop ticket. :P

I usually dump the clutch when shifting, no jerk if you know how to match the rpm.

As for going up driveways, I always ride clutch to prevent rear ending my mom's Jetta (happened a couple of times with my previous car when I first learnt manual. Good old license plate bolt dings.)

Forgot to mention. I shift at 6600 rpm with the Z, but now with my current car, I shift at 7700rpm .

 

don't go 2 to 1. only shift into 1st if you are stopped or going very slowly (i.e. 5 km/h or less). i would either do a "vancouver stop" (rolling though a stop sign slowly) and never leave 2nd, or i would come to a complete stop and go from 2 to N then start in 1st.

i normally shift ~2500-2750. keep in mind that if you are shifting at 3000-3500, like you are, that you can skip shifts to save shifting effort and reduce wear and tear. just be sure to shift a bit slower than normal. if i'm not in a huge rush i frequently shift 1-3-5 or 1-2-4 etc, unless i'm going up a significant hill.

 

there is an amazing thread on this....

https://g35driver.com/forums/g-spot/169286-how-correctly-drive-mt.html

I wish i could benefit from this thread, but i drive an a/t, heheh

 

+1

similar style to mine