Celica Forums General Discussion General Offer

Ok I'm desperate. If anyone local to me agrees to teach me how to drive a stick shift, I'll give you my Philips 4100k HID kit. Even swap. You teach me stick until I get it, I'll give you my HID kit before I sell or trade in the car. Any takers? I already had a few lessons. But I need MORE practice. Don't have friends that have a stick and driving schools around here don't have manuals. I'm in Elizabeth, NJ

Is this your first car?

I'm way up in Igloo country, I wish I could help ya.

Just to clarify. I do not own a stick. I currently have an Auto Celica and an Auto Civic. I'm purchasing a Z in Mid August and have to learn. If not I'll say F it and get an Auto Z.

.. just go buy a pos beater for a couple hundred and teach yourself, it's easy as hell, don't puss' out and buy a automatic Z.

Well, stick is definately faster. I would say its mainly personality that should determine your choice.

If you are the type that does not panic while driving & you feel at home with machines like dirt bikes & motorcycles then its an easy choice. But if you are never going to be confortable with shifting a manual you shouldn't do it.

I taught myself how to drive manual one night when my brother lent me his dodge van. In about 4 hours I was racing through the gears. But then again I have owned dirt bikes & motorcycles so it felt natural. I understand engines & it feels natural to me.

Auto is smoother and more convenient. It also allows my better half to operate it if need be.

I agree with the whole Beater idea.

Whad I did was this:

I never touched a stick shift car EVER. But I know that I wanted a stick shift car. I used to drive an Auto Celly. So I went and bought a 6 Speed GTS. Keep in mind that I have no idea on how to go about driving one. I asked around but still have never actually drove one.

Got inside the car and just started the engine. Stalled twice before being able to get out onto 1st. My neighborhood is all hills so it was a bit more frustrating. SO yeah, after a couple of hours with me stalling and etc. alone in the car, I got used to it. Kept on driving about half an hour daily for about 2 days. Then I had to bring the car to work since no one was able to drop me off, so yeah, got the courage to go on the freeway the night before and everything was cool. The next day, I drove it to work and after that, I am comfortable driving my car. I just need to master it now.

This was all a week ago.

I first regreted getting a stick shift because it was frustrating, but after you get it down, it is SOOOO much better.

OOO BTW, no matter how or what people tell you when they try to teach you, it is really all up to you. You really don't remember what anyone says when you are actually behind the wheels, you just gotta adapt and feel for the car.

And that whole "You gotta feel the car" comment, before I was like "That is not helpful at all" but to tell you the truth, that is exactly what it is when you drive a stick shift.

I'm not exactly a great teacher, and I live in California, but hey...
When you have a stick to mess around with, I recommend practicing the take-offs a bit first, as that (for me) was the hardest part to learn (It took the longest to get it down, I mean).

How I first started -
Push the clutch all the way to the floor, stick it in first.
Rev the engine to a constant, fairly low RPM. (2-3k tops, for my GTS)
Let the clutch up veeerrryy slowly (don't let up too soon, or you get the nasty little jump/stall)
You'll feel the engine as it starts catching, the car will begin to move, and the RPMs will start to drop - try to keep these fairly constant, so give it a little more gas when it starts dropping to get it back to the place you want it... Just be gentle, don't over-rev

Once you're up and moving, don't forget to make sure you've let the clutch all the way back up

Practice that several times until you have a fairly smooth take-off, then go into switch first to second, then second to third, then downshifting back to second, as you feel comfortable.

This is how I first learned, and the slow take-off method, while terribly slow, will work on just about ANY stick shift you drive. Of course, as you practice with your vehicle, you will get the feel for when the clutch catches, how much gas you need to give it, etc. Your take-offs will get much quicker with practice, but, like with most things, you should start off slow until you're more comfortable with it

I'd teach ya but I don't want to use my car

how much would you sell ur HID kit if you were to?
i would have taught u, but cali cali cali

the only way to learn is doing it, just get in and drive. just remember your learning, your gonna mess up so dont let it bother you, and dont let other drivers make you nervous, as long as you dont panic and freak out the worst that can happen is you stall. which we all do from time to time

I'm not too far from you about 30 - 40 mins. and could teach you maybe. PM me and we can figure something out. I'm guessing you want to cruise around in traffic, highways, and stuff?

I totally agree!