How to Drive a Manual Transmission Car

In the simplest terms, the manual transmission is one in which you have to change the gears yourself. In the automatic transmission, the car itself is able to detect at some time that there is a need to change the gears. But in the manual transmission mode, you yourself need to understand that you need to change the gears. So understandably, you need to realize when to change the gears yourself and then do the needful. As someone who's been driving manually all my life, I certainly hope that I will have something positive to offer as I teach you the basics.

How to Drive a Car with Manual Transmission

Right, so now that I have established that a manual transmission car will require you to shift the gears yourself, let us get down to understanding the gears system in how to drive manual transmission car. So while it seems that it is decidedly more difficult to learn how to drive a manual car, have you ever wondered why manual transmission cars have enjoyed so much popularity?

Basics: The Gears and the Clutch
Most cars come with 5 gears. And depending on the power of the car, as you drive, you have to change the gears. To change the gears, there is a little pedal under the seat next to where the brake and the accelerator are located, known as the clutch. Every time you will want to shift the gear, you have to press the clutch and then move the gear stick in its groove.

Why is the clutch there? Well for starters, in a way it helps regulate the speed of the car. Suppose you shift the gear to late or too early, pressing the clutch helps neutralize this problem. You might, of course now be tempted to press the clutch all the time while driving, but it is inadvisable to do so as you might ruin the clutch line. Pressing the clutch for too long also consumes a lot of fuel, hence, I would advise you to use the clutch only when necessary. The only when necessary is when you need to change the gears.

Why do you need to change the gears? Gears are designed so that the engine power and fuel can be used more effectively. Each gear has its speed and power limit. Hence if you want to cross that limit, you have to put the car in a higher gear. Suppose you don't want to drive the car at a high speed, then you drive the car in a lower gear so that the fuel consumption is only as much as the car needs. Hence, you change the gears to increase or decrease the fuel consumption and engine power.

Driving Stick

Now let's get to the driving part. First things first. Adjust your seat so that you find all the pedals perfectly accessible with either feet. Adjust the rear view mirrors so that you can see the cars behind you. Before starting the car, I would advise you to learn shifting the gears first. Different cars may have different shifting patterns, and hence, you wouldn't want to find yourself searching for where the higher/lower gear is while you're driving! Hence learn the gear shift pattern in a non-moving car till you are really sure of the gears.

Start the car in neutral gear. If the car is in the first gear, and you haven't pressed the clutch, it might jump. So start it in neutral and then press the clutch and put it in the first gear. The first gear in most car simply sets the ball (or in this case, the car) rolling. Now when to change the gears? When you realize that the car has revved up a lot, then shift the gear box one step higher. Or simpler, look at the RPM monitor on the dashboard. If the RPM indicator has gone above 4 or 5, then change shift the gear one step higher. Follow the same for each successive gear.

Now you're accelerating just fine, but a signal, or a slow moving car comes up in front of you? Press the brake, and the clutch and bring it a step lower. I'd recommend beginners to keep the clutch pressed till the speed of the car and the gear are synchronized, till they get used to gear shifting. And then successively lower the gears. When the car comes to a halt, do not forget to put it in neutral or else it will stop. Most people prefer to keep the clutch pressed and keep the car in the first gear, but this makes the car consume a lot more fuel.

A few more tips: use the clutch sparingly. I tend to insist a lot on this because a lot of people do it too often and it completely ruins the clutch line. It also consumes a lot of fuel. Second tip, beginners ought to not go beyond third gear too often, because you when you want to stop at a signal or something, it will take some time to get used to stopping the car and shifting the gears lower successively. Third tip, while you're learning, have a person who already knows manual driving sitting next to you, so that he/she can monitor your driving and progress. And lastly, drive safely!