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What % can get by, can start off from a stop without stalling (but at the expense of burning up *way* more clutch material than I do), what % can get over 200K miles out of a clutch like me, what % can drive non-syncromesh without grinding any gears, what % can do a clutchless shift without any gear grinding?
What kind of techniques do you use to get 200k out of your clutch? I used to think I was great at driving clutch, but my last car was just starting to slip at 60k (I bought it used with 15k). I didn't even notice it actually, but the dealership who did my 60k maintenance said the clutch was worn. Granted it was Kia, but seeing as how clutches have been pretty high quality for many years now I thought I'd get more life out of that clutch than I did.
I think I stalled the car twice in 5 years of ownership.
What kind of techniques do you use to get 200k out of your clutch? I used to think I was great at driving clutch, but my last car was just starting to slip at 60k (I bought it used with 15k). I didn't even notice it actually, but the dealership who did my 60k maintenance said the clutch was worn. Granted it was Kia, but seeing as how clutches have been pretty high quality for many years now I thought I'd get more life out of that clutch than I did.
I think I stalled the car twice in 5 years of ownership.
Most important technique is not living over in the wet-side metroplex! I drive a lot of back-country "blue" roads, I plan my routes to avoid uphill stop signs and lights. I *never* use the clutch as a hill-hold. I drive like a mechanic, because I am one (a high-end DIY mechanic, I'm a nuclear engineer by trade).
Hard to describe in words - what I do is just to get the clutch out quickly, giving just enough gas to keep from stalling. Typically I go from stationary to just above idle with the clutch all the way out in about half a second. I can do this with my Scirocco. Different cars would require a different touch. Frequently I'll not quite stop completely at a stop sign, if no cops are around. The difference between just barely rolling, slow walk speed, and a complete stop is big in terms of how much you have to slip the clutch. The Scirocco has a low first gear, and as an 8-valve with CIS it makes good torque right off idle.
True, I could not get 200K out of a clutch driving in Seattle. Just not possible.
As for your car, you don't know how it was driven the first 15K. An idiot can trash a clutch in 30K of "normal" urban driving, so it might have been half gone when you got the car.
I learned how to drive on a manual / stick shift car. And the first car I bought was a stick shift. I have owned many cars through the years and still prefer a manual. But I gotta admit, my daily driver is an automatic. I drive a lot for work and easier in this bad traffic.
I drive a manual because I prefer it. They are getting harder and harder to find. That being said, I don't have a lot of bumper to bumper traffic where I live; I know it's not preferable in that kind of scenario.
Truth is, fewer and fewer people know how to drive one. I took my car to Auto Bell a couple of weeks ago to get it washed, and they had a hard time finding an attendant that could drive the car from the car wash to the area where they dry and detail the car. NONE of the young guys working there knew how to drive a manual car!
I have a 88 CRX Si and it has a cable operated clutch. It also has a revvy little engine, you just touch the throttle and its at 4 grand. Also the clutch starts to engage when the pedal is half way out. So its difficult for good throttle, clutch coordination and smooth driving. I have 2 other stick shift cars.
I want to keep this old thread going. I have driven stick shifts manual transmission all my life. I currently drive a six speed, and I am 50 years old. I am afraid there are few of us left that drive manual transmission especially very young people.
I want to keep this old thread going. I have driven stick shifts manual transmission all my life. I currently drive a six speed, and I am 50 years old. I am afraid there are few of us left that drive manual transmission especially very young people.
My son who is 24 does not like driving anything but manual. He has some additional good reasons that I had not heard before, but I cannot remember them - sorry.
OTOH of my other four kids only one learned to drive manual decently but she prefers automatic. One son learned manual from the other son, but has never really driven a manual anywhere. He just drove up and down our street to learn from his brother. He could probably get to his destination in a manual, but I would not call it driving decently.
I want to keep this old thread going. I have driven stick shifts manual transmission all my life. I currently drive a six speed, and I am 50 years old. I am afraid there are few of us left that drive manual transmission especially very young people.
In the US - about 2% of cars sold are manual. And about 20% of cars are offered in manual.
I don't think there is a real loss of anything here. Sure, those of us that prefer it have that option. But it's not like a valuable skill where not having it will put you at a disadvantage. It's like those videos of kids having zero clue how to dial a rotary phone or load paper in the typewriter. As funny as it is, it's not like they're missing a practical skill.
It wouldn't surprise me if, 20 years from now, there will be professional race car drivers that have never driven a manual transmission.
In the US - about 2% of cars sold are manual. And about 20% of cars are offered in manual.
I don't think there is a real loss of anything here. Sure, those of us that prefer it have that option. But it's not like a valuable skill where not having it will put you at a disadvantage...
I've read that cars with manuals are less likely to be stolen because wannabe thieves can't drive them.
As for me, my first car back in HS was an auto, but all 20+ since then have had manual transmissions. I recently bought an SUV which was only offered with an auto because I now have a nerve injury in one leg and this is a little easier to manage, otherwise I wouldn't have considered it.
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