wow. after about a week of BSing with lustine toyota in woodbridge Va, i finally purchased a RS1 (from Miller in manassas.) Lustine has been nothing but trouble, whereas i walked into Miller, told them what i wanted and walked out with my car.

I traded in a 2000 mustang (auto) for the hot lava, which i decieded to get in 5spd. I have minimal experience with manual transmissions, and was wondering if you guys could give me any tips. I know the basics, but its things like what to do on hills that have me confused. I have a friend whos taking me out this coming weekend to give me a refresher before i take delivery of my lava. How long does it usually take to get the hang of. I dont want to have to replace the Xb's cluth the first week I get it.

oh, and some background information. Im 20 y/o and live in manassas VA, going to George Mason.

If it feels like it's about to stall, give it more gas.

I was driving to school the next day after first getting behind the wheel of a manual. It just depends on mental capacity and how able you are to learn something entirely new.

I would study the basics of the manual transmission first.

Welcome!

Andrew

I learned to drive a manual transmission in a parking lot of my local target when I was about 19 years old, and it took me about 2 nights to finally get a real good grasp of it--good enough where I was confident enough to take the car on a public roadway at least!

Some tips on hills...I usually put the car in neutral and am on the brakes the entire time while stopped. When it's time for you to go, clutch in while still on the brakes, shift to first and quickly move your right foot off of the brake and onto the gas--and give it more gas than you would at a normal stop on a flat surface though, so you don't let the car rock back too much and hit someone behind you.

Another way to do this, is while stopped at the hill, apply the Ebrake. When you are ready to drive, clutch in, shift to first, rev the car up a little, let the clutch out some and then let the ebrake down...that way you get less of that roll back.

Personally the ebrake method would be safest, but most of the time i'm just too lazy to bother with it!

Good Luck, shoot us any more questions you may have.

I learned to drive a manual transmission in a parking lot of my local target when I was about 19 years old, and it took me about 2 nights to finally get a real good grasp of it--good enough where I was confident enough to take the car on a public roadway at least!

Some tips on hills...I usually put the car in neutral and am on the brakes the entire time while stopped. When it's time for you to go, clutch in while still on the brakes, shift to first and quickly move your right foot off of the brake and onto the gas--and give it more gas than you would at a normal stop on a flat surface though, so you don't let the car rock back too much and hit someone behind you.

Another way to do this, is while stopped at the hill, apply the Ebrake. When you are ready to drive, clutch in, shift to first, rev the car up a little, let the clutch out some and then let the ebrake down...that way you get less of that roll back.

Personally the ebrake method would be safest, but most of the time i'm just too lazy to bother with it!

Good Luck, shoot us any more questions you may have.

The best way with the e-brake is to disengage the clutch till the car starts to pull forward, then drop the e-brake. I usually keep the car in first gear at redlights, just incase something pops up and you have to get out of there quick.

Andrew

Congrats on the purchase. Sounds like Miller has turned around there business practices. Good to hear. It doesn't take long to get the hand of a 5 speed. It just takes time to get the technique down. If you have a problem putting it into reverse, then just put it into 2nd and then go to reverse.

I learned to drive a manual transmission in a parking lot of my local target when I was about 19 years old, and it took me about 2 nights to finally get a real good grasp of it--good enough where I was confident enough to take the car on a public roadway at least!

Some tips on hills...I usually put the car in neutral and am on the brakes the entire time while stopped. When it's time for you to go, clutch in while still on the brakes, shift to first and quickly move your right foot off of the brake and onto the gas--and give it more gas than you would at a normal stop on a flat surface though, so you don't let the car rock back too much and hit someone behind you.

Another way to do this, is while stopped at the hill, apply the Ebrake. When you are ready to drive, clutch in, shift to first, rev the car up a little, let the clutch out some and then let the ebrake down...that way you get less of that roll back.

Personally the ebrake method would be safest, but most of the time i'm just too lazy to bother with it!

Good Luck, shoot us any more questions you may have.

The best way with the e-brake is to disengage the clutch till the car starts to pull forward, then drop the e-brake. I usually keep the car in first gear at redlights, just incase something pops up and you have to get out of there quick.

Andrew

If possible I leave the car in first at stops...but in So.Cal we have such jacked up streets that none of them are flat, so you spend time either rocking back and forth looking like you don't know what you are doing, or just keep the gas guzzling while trying to hold the car steady at a low RPM.

I love california, yet at the same time hate it. haha.

quick tip.. if ur revving above 2,000 RPM, you're reving too high.. teh scions have excellent low end torque (thanks to VVTi) ..

you should honestly be able to start the car rolling (on level ground) without touching the gas..

a good practice is this:

turn on the AC (this keeps rpm levels up near 900/1000RPM without gas pedal application) and then practice starting and stopping without using the gas pedal.. you'll save thousands of miles of clutch this way.

[quote="CivicEater"]quick tip.. if ur revving above 2,000 RPM, you're reving too high.. teh scions have excellent low end torque (thanks to VVTi) ..
quote]

I have to disagree with that statement, on soooo many levels, hahaha :D :wink:

It took me a week to get the hang of it. Dont worry, once you have it, you'll be shifting so much it wont take long before youre a pro

wow, so many replies in only an hour. thanks for the help guys. Yeah, miller did not let me down. I got $500 more on my trade in than any other dealership in the area offered (including a ford dealership....) The lava should be here this saturday, i hope i dont get sick of the LOUD color. ;)

on a side note, there is a lava xb always parked at Potomac Mills mall (im assuming they work there...as do i.) anyone on the forum?

Dang, thats like the 4th RS1 that Miller has sold. I bought a 5-speed there and had great service as compared to other dealers in the area. Added incentive from Miller was the coupon booklet that gives you 1 $25 gift certificate and 4 15% off entire purchase coupons that can be used on all over-the-counter parts. Save yourself some money and use these coupons to order the floormats, tail lights, CAI intake or any other accessories you plan on purchasing through the dealer and install them yourself. Their price lists for parts are signifcantly cheaper than the accessories price list (which includes installation labor, what a joke esp. on floormat or cargo covers which requires no labor at all)

Congrats again, maybe I'll see you around!

they sold 3 last week. im assuming your sales consultant was austin...he said he sold all 3. thanks for reminding me about the coupon book. I am ordering the tcy taillights, but i can easily intall those myself.

ok, here's my tips–

learn on mostly flat areas-- begin in first gear with clutch in.
don't worry about giving it any gas at this point
SLOWLY let the clutch out til you either see your rpms drop just a little bit, or you hear the engine rpm drop, or you feel it start to move
Then apply a little gas as you let the clutch out .

After you master this-- then you just apply the same principle to taking off on hills-- it may take you a while to master this but, I think it's the best way. (E brake is for sissies)

keep this in mind for longer clutch life
When you are stopped, keep the clutch or in neutral. The worst thing you can do is sit in traffic or at a light with clutch engaged just a little

they sold 3 last week. im assuming your sales consultant was austin...he said he sold all 3. thanks for reminding me about the coupon book. I am ordering the tcy taillights, but i can easily intall those myself.

Damn, whats with all the RS1....but thats another thread. I bought mine about a month ago from Kirk, he was great. I think they had only sold 1 before me so i guess were up to around 5. TYC tail lights were a breeze to install, took less than 30 minutes.

Driving a stick isn't difficult. Just practice keeping the RPMs as low as possible while the clutch is slipping. The quicker you can get the clutch engaged and the lower the RPMs of engagement, the longer your clutch will last.

Hills are doable in one of two ways. You can either use the parking brake to hold the car while you get ready to release the clutch, or with a bit more skill, you can operate both the brake and throttle with your right foot, heel on one, and toe on the other.

You can also do the quick swap from brake to throttle, but this will always let you roll backwards a bit, which is harder on clutch and perhaps on your rear bumper and insurance rates.

Practice hill techniques with no traffic. Don't head for San Francisco before you know what you are doing!

George

[quote=CivicEater]quick tip.. if ur revving above 2,000 RPM, you're reving too high.. teh scions have excellent low end torque (thanks to VVTi) ..
quote]

I have to disagree with that statement, on soooo many levels, hahaha :D :wink:

not many hondas you can simply let out the clutch on dude..

compare ANY OTHER 1.5, and you'll be amazed at the torque availability of the 1NZFE

As someone that took delivery on their xB just last Friday and didn't really know how to drive stick, let me tell you that you'll be fine. I learned to drive stick on an SRT4 and I have to say the xB is sooooo much easier.

10 mins driving and ull be fine. given proper coach

Don't make it too complicated -- it ain't that hard.

Those who said you don't need the gas to get rolling are right

Do use your parking brake on steep hills, anyway

Two other things:

When stopped, put it in neutral and keep your hand off the shifter and your foot off the clutch.

Likewise, when you are cruising, keep your hand off the shifter and foot off the clutch until you need to shift

Both will help you avoid excessive, unnecessary wear

Enjoy

As someone that took delivery on their xB just last Friday and didn't really know how to drive stick, let me tell you that you'll be fine. I learned to drive stick on an SRT4 and I have to say the xB is sooooo much easier.

Yeah, the manual on the SRT-4 sucks. Granted, it feels firm and tight like a Ferrari, but it's a pain in the a$$ to drive. I found it hard to get into gear properly...they should just remove the boot with a gear layout. I prefer the more forgiving "spongy" feel common to cars. Modern BMWs, Audis, VWs, and our Scions have excellent feeling sticks in my experience.

I have had a tough time on occasion to get into 2nd, 3rd, and Reverse. Seems the tranny has to be forced into gear with more effort than most.... its not way near as silky smooth as some honda and pretty much any other toyota for that matter.

The biggest piece of advice, THAT BEEN REPEATED A THOUSAND TIME BY NOW, is not to expect those epa gas milage numbers (31-35) and to keep shifting around 3K in typical driving to preserve the economy idea behind the box. Above 75MPH on freeway in the 5-spd the gas milage drops like a rock.

SInce you've got a week to wait, make the rounds of the used car dealers and "test drive" a few stick shifts. That way you're not starting your lessons in your new ride. :twisted:

Tear it up man! After driving in N. VA traffic for 1-2 hours, you will have first and second gears down pat.

And technically, you did not walk out of Miller with your new car if you are waiting to take delivery still.

thanks for everyones help. I took out a 92 explorer this weekend and picked it up right away. The only time I had any problems was trying to get into first on a incline. Im not sure if it was his clutch, or if i was paranoid of over-reving, but i def. stalled a few times. Hopefully picking up my lava in less than 12 hours.

Tear it up man! After driving in N. VA traffic for 1-2 hours, you will have first and second gears down pat.

And technically, you did not walk out of Miller with your new car if you are waiting to take delivery still.

Im sure most people knew what i was "technically" talking about. I am jut impressed that miller came through when most dealers were more interested in me picking another color since most of the 5spd lavas are gone.

learning is easy... took me about 20 minutes, never reading anyhting or anyone telling me, maybe it was because I had to drive it to work school the next day or maybe it was just because I loved the car so damn much (galant VR4), but just jump in and trial and error it, you shouldnt drop a clutch the first day.

my xb came in today, but i didnt have a chance to pick it up (dealer was closed when i got off work!) I've been practicing driving m/t every chance i can get. I've gotten it down pretty good, other than a few little details. I was wondering what is the proper parking technique. I know to park it in first, but if its in first, and you brake to a stop, wont it stall? if anyone could clear this up, i need to know SOOON. thanks.

When you come to a parking spot move in it slowly and push in the clutch as if you were stopping at a stop sign and keep the clutch in put the e-brake on and shut the car off, then it will be in first gear once your parked. At least thats what my sister does.

This is what i have been doing, but the car stalls when you let the clutch out in first at a complete stop. I am assumming that stalling can't be good on the engine, but i can not think of another way of parking.

um then... keep the car in first until you're about to shut it off then put it in nuetral. Shut the car off, put e-brake on, then just put it back into first once the cars shut off. I
m pretty sure that is the way i was trying to remember.

Sometimes the best way to learn how to drive stick is to see how a clutch assembly actually works. Check out this site and it will show you exactly why you should or should not do certain things with a manual transmission. Hope this helps!

BTW, first post, I just joined. Love these forums.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/clutch.htm

Parking is the same as stopping at a light or stop sign or whatever. Just depress the clutch any time you're stopping or even crawling so slowly the engine seems about to stall.

Think of the clutch like a kind of safety valve. It's always there and you can always use it to keep from stalling. That's what my Dad told me a hundred years ago when he taught me to drive (back roads, New Hampshire, late at night and one memorable close call) and it always helped.

Have fun and don't worry about hurting anything.