• The pedals from right to left are: accelerator, brake and clutch or C, B, A.
• The clutch engages and dis-engages the motor and transmission
• Depress the clutch pedal, and locate the gears in the transmission. When the transmission is in neutral the selector will move side-to-side. Know that the selector rests between the middle gears;
• Put the transmission into 1st gear - to the left and up. Isolate the clutch. In other words, use just the clutch to get the vehicle going;
• The friction point (biting point) is where the clutch engages the drive train and the vehicle begins to move;
• Learn where the friction point (biting point) is by both feeling the vehicle and watching the tachometer;
• To learn where the friction (biting point) is, apply the parking brake and release the clutch slowly. Push the clutch back in when you see the tachometer dip and feel the feel want to move forward.
• After you've practiced with the parking brake applied, release the parking brake and allow the vehicle to move forward without applying the accelerator.
• Control the clutch through the friction point to prevent stalling;
• After you've confidently located the friction (biting) point and can move the vehicle forward without stalling the engine, move to lesson two which combines the clutch and the accelerator.
Hi there, smart drivers.
Rick with Smart Drive Test, talking to you today about driving a manual transmission.
This is the very first lesson that you need to put in place in order to learn how to drive a manual transmission or a stick shift.
One of the reasons that students have difficulty driving a manual transmission is, first of all, they don't take the time to learn clutch control.
You have to isolate the clutch and learn how to use the clutch by itself without-- before you add in the throttle and you add in the brakes.
So take the time to learn how to use the clutch.
The pedals for a manual car are the same whether you drive on the left or right: clutch, brake, & accelerator from left to right.
The next thing you have to do is you have to find out where the biting point, as they call it in Europe, or the friction point is on the clutch.
The friction point is where the clutch comes out, and it begins to engage the engine with the drive train and the vehicle begins to move forward.
One of the reasons that students have so much difficulty with that task of finding the friction point on the clutch is because you've got big, huge leg muscles that are trying to do fine motor control.
When learning how to control the clutch in a manual car you have to train big leg muscles fine motor control.
Big leg muscles are used for running and jumping and kicking.
They're not used for fine motor control.
That's what our fingers are for.
So that is one of the reasons why you're having difficulty, because of the limitations of our body.
So it takes time to train muscle memory in our big leg muscles to get that fine motor control and fine clutch control.
Once you find clutch control, the rest of it is easy.
The two hardest gears for learning how to drive a manual transmission are first and reverse, so practice in first and reverse.
Go to a parking lot-- this is where you're going to start out for your first lesson in a manual transmission-- and learn clutch control.
Figure out where the biting point is.
Figure out where the friction point is on the clutch.
Make sure you wear running shoes.
drive a manual car, sneakers will give you best contact with the pedals and allow you to control the clutch." width="500" height="333" />
When learning to drive a manual car, sneakers will give you best contact with the pedals and allow you to control the clutch.
Don't wear work boots or hiking boots.
It's just too hard.
You need something that you can feel the clutch and figure out where it is.
As well, I'll give you other techniques to be able to find the friction point or the biting point.
I'll give you a visual as well as an audible aid for learning how to find that and listening to the vehicle and figuring out how to find clutch control.
This is the basics.
This is the fundamentals.
And this is-- for new drivers, I cannot emphasize this enough.
It's the same thing as what I talk about driving, turning, holding the car in the center of the lane, and those types of things.
If you're having difficulty with that, go back to the fundamentals.
And I'll put a card up here for you in the corner about the fundamentals of learning how to drive.
So this is the fundamentals of learning how to drive a manual transmission.
where your vehicle is in space and place." width="" />
Work with pylons in a parking lot to learn learn the fundamentals of driving - mastery of the primary controls and where your vehicle is in space and place.
We're going to go over that.
We're going to give you some tips, techniques, and exercises that you can do so you can learn how to drive a manual transmission.
Stick around, we'll be right back with that information.
