Driving a stick shift

[diesel2029]

Hi all, after 10 years of driving various automatics, I would like to learn to drive a stick shift, so I'm going to take some lessons soon. I know the general layout of a manual transmission with the various gears, but I have a couple of questions:

1) If you are merging onto a highway, can you shift directly from 1st to 4th or 5th gear, bypassing 2nd and 3rd gears, without damaging the engine ??? What about downshifting (bypass or no bypass) ???

2) While you are shifting gears, do you have to take your leg off the gas and keep it on the clutch or can you have one leg on the gas and the other on the clutch ???

Thanks.

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Hallo diesel2029,

 

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[thepolarfoxqx]

goes like this

you can jump from 1st to any gear you'd like, so long as you shift well without damaging anything. Do NOT go from 1st to the highest gear (the overdrive gear) directly until you have it down, that shift is especially prone to things going wrong. There is no trouble with a 2nd to 5th though when merging. You have your right foot over the gas and your left foot on the clutch to shift. You let off the gas to shift (else grind). Just use common sense and pay attention to how things feel. the car will tell you everything you need to know if you pay attention to it.

[imported_Aston Martin]

Going from a lower gear at low R.P.M to a higher gear (say 2nd to 5th) will probably put un-necessary strain on the engine and gearbox. It's not advisable, and wouldn't do much to make the car accelerate unless you were in something like a Diablo. The car would struggle to pick up speed.

As for shifting gears with your foot on the accelerator - this is power-shifting. Unless you want a totally wrecked gearbox and engine, I'd take your foot off the accelerator, depress the clutch, and change gear then. Once you've played around with a clutch for a while you'll get used to making the changes smooth, so you'll not be able to tell any difference from an auto 'box (plus, changing gears for yourself is a lot more fun!).

[GIR]

And always remember this, 1st gear is only for getting the car roling from a standstill. If your car is rolling never select 1st, go for 2nd. Once your car is rolling go to 2nd ASAP. If your car has a revcounter check the usersmanual for the optimum rpm to shift.

When decelerating always make sure you press the brales hard enough before selecting a lower gear. If you don't you'll put too much stress on the clutch and it will wear out very quickly. When your car makes a highpitch noise while decelerating you know you haven't pressed the brakes hard enough.

What I do is rev the engine in 2nd gear and from there go to 4th. During the learning process it's best to go through the numbers, your car will live longer and won't use as much fuel. Remember the higher the rev count the more fuel you use and the more stress you put on your engine and drivetrain.

Finally, keep practicing. At some point it will all come natural and you won't even have to think about it.

[imported_jztypeR]

I wouldn't suggest doing any down shifting over mutiple gears at once unless you are EXACTLY sure that your engine will not rev past the redline when doing so.

For example, if youshift at highway speed (100Km/hr, 62 mph), from 5th gear to 4th gear in my Integra, you go from about 3000 RPM to 3500-4000RPM instantly. From 5th to 3rd would go from 3000RPM to 5000- 5500RPM.

Therefore, if you jump directly from 5th to 2nd gear you would likely get a change of; 3000RPM to 6000-7000RPM (maybe 8000RPM), and since most cars can't rev anywhere near that high, you can easily damage the engine or even the transmission.

Once you get used to it you can relieve the strain on your transmission during downshifts by depressing the throttle quickly while down shifting (just prior to releasing the clutch), in an effort to match the engines RPM to the speed it will be reving in the new (lower) gear. If you do this at the same time as braking (putting you toe on the throttle and heel on the gas, or visa versa, toe on the brake, heel on the throttle - whatever is comfortable) you get what they can heel-and-toe (go figure) downshifts, used extensively when racing to decelerate as quickly as possible.

[imported_jztypeR]

Remember the higher the rev count the more fuel you use and the more stress you put on your engine and drivetrain.

Reving an engine does not put stress on it unless you dump the clutch (depress and/or release it very quickly) when shifting. As long as you shift smoothly, and you are not exceeding the specs for you specific vehicle. (See the owners manual)

[thepolarfoxqx]

well, actually, the bearings are under more load, more friction head is created, and everything has to change direction much more often and with more force, so it is stressful on say like conrod piston pins and the like.

It is much easier on the crankshaft and con rods if you are a smooth shifter, but revving up is usually not a problem as long as you aren't too awful. Engines are typically very solid and you shouldn't have to worry. And about more fuel, not really true, my BMW 318 for example gets better gas mileage if you leave it in low gear, up to say 3,500 rpms vs finding higher gear, mostly because it isn't make torque very efficiently at low RPMS, and has to answer with more fuel.

[GIR]

I was reffering to the higher rpm band, lets say 5k rpm and up. While accelerating it's best to rev it upto 1k before the redline (again reffer to the usermanual for the optimun shift point) for an optimum use of the torque band. But if you aren't accelerating anymore and want to maintain a constant speed then it's best to select the highest gear possible, in the city this usual is 4th gear.

Like Fox said if you shift to a higher gear before the car has enough kinetic energy (or simpely isn't going fast enough) then in a higher gear it will have to work harder to get upto speed. The only real way of doing this is using more fuel.

[imported_Aston Martin]

I was reffering to the higher rpm band, lets say 5k rpm and up. While accelerating it's best to rev it upto 1k before the redline (again reffer to the usermanual for the optimun shift point) for an optimum use of the torque band. But if you aren't accelerating anymore and want to maintain a constant speed then it's best to select the highest gear possible, in the city this usual is 4th gear.

Like Fox said if you shift to a higher gear before the car has enough kinetic energy (or simpely isn't going fast enough) then in a higher gear it will have to work harder to get upto speed. The only real way of doing this is using more fuel.

It depends on where the torque band lies. Some engines have much of the torque available at the lower end of the rev scale. It depends on the car where the optimum place to shift gears is. The best way to do it is not to read the manual, but to just feel the car for yourself.

[thepolarfoxqx]

you put a lot of faith in the manual. just drive the way the both you and the car are comfortable with and just excercise common sense.

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Hallo diesel2029,

 

schau doch mal hier zum Thema Verschiedenes über Autos (Anzeige)? Eventuell gibt es dort etwas Passendes.

 

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[diesel2029]

Which gear should you normally be in if you are driving at a constant speed of 65 mph. Is it the third or fourth???

[thepolarfoxqx]

on a 5spd at 65, best fuel economy is usually found in 5th in a 5 speed tranny.

[xiola]

hi this is my first post... I just bought a 5 speed and I am wondering about driving a 5 speed. I know how to shift, for the most part it is a smooth transition... but couple of time I went to 5th instead of 3rd.. I of course realized right away... will this hurt my engine? I have only had the car for 3 days and am still getting used to it. Also what about shifting into neutral and coasting? Is it bad to do this? My husband says that I should not shift into neutral while going downhill. Is this true? What are some no no's that will help save a clutch? Thank you in advance.

Xiola

[bleh]

will this hurt my engine? I have only had the car for 3 days and am still getting used to it. Also what about shifting into neutral and coasting? Is it bad to do this? My husband says that I should not shift into neutral while going downhill. Is this true? What are some no no's that will help save a clutch? Thank you in advance.

Xiola

depends on a few other conditions: the car and the rpms you are shifting at. my father regularly uses on 2nd and 5th gear and his car has well over 140k miles.

the reason you shouldnt shift into neutral while going down hill is safety. if the car is in gear you have much more immediate control of the car and avoid unwanted acceleration. leaving the car in gear and downshifting generally does help your brakes out a little giving them a little longer life.

no no's: never ever downshift too far.

[xiola]

when shifting I make sure the engine isn't straining and I am not going past 3-4 RPM'S... ok so neutral while downhill or coasting in general is not safe... give me more no no's... don't shift into 2nd while you are going like 55 MPH... got that I can only imagine that would tear your engine to pieces...thank you for your input...

xiola

[PorschePlayboy928]

remember not to use your gears as your brakes. Brakes are easier to replace and less expensive then a clutch job.

[LateNightCable]

Not to mention less expensive than replacing a transmission full of chewed up gears.

Working a manual becomes very intuitive after awhile, you will learn the pattern and become attuned to the sounds of your engine.

Congratulations, you are now becoming a working member of your

automobile!

[thepolarfoxqx]

yeah, welcome to the world!

once you've mastered stick shift, the world is yours. I was lucky, i learned stick in an old alfa romeo with a bad 2nd gear synchro, a non fully engaging reverse, and a stiff performance clutch. After that, life is easy on anything.

but i think stick shift was the most meaningful think i've learned on a car.

[izzyloveslizzy]

It's funny to hear people complain about driving Alfa Romeos, whatever the problems might have been.

Aside from this, did anyone here learn to drive with an Auto?