Learning to drive manual trans?

[ab_slack]

Yep, perfect reason to drive a stickshift! Read this article:

http://jalopnik.com/three-would-be-...ource=jalopnik_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow

That's great. I would have loved to seen the expressions on their faces and hear what they said when they found themselves stuck like that.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Engine braking on the modern vvt engines is no big who-hoo either... I don't know if it is much better than an auto. It feels like they dump a lot of compression without engine load, I don't know what the reasoning is.

Starting a load or up a steep incline, a torque converter is a brutal beast to contend with.

 

[MastuhWaffles]

I learned from my jeep, 3 speed, heavy clutch pedal, go or stop gas pedal, temperamental shifter, and it likes to pop out of gear. But I always enjoy driving it much more than automatics, which is sad cause my truck is an auto.

 

[ricardo93]

I hate autos they just bother me because theyre boring I love my truck even though its in pieces right now I will never own an automatic unless I lose the ability to drive stick fuel efficiency and high speed is way more fun than a lame ass 3-4 speed auto I prefer a 4-6 speed manny any day

 

[tmcalavy]

The sale of any vehicle only represents about one-third of what the manufacturer wants to make, and plans to make, off of any of its individual products. Standard trannies don't fit the long-term plan of service returns over time. Don't give your customer a choice, give them what is best for long-term economic returns...put it in the right kind of shiny wrapper and they won't know or care. The future is here...welcome to third world Omerica.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

The sale of any vehicle only represents about one-third of what the manufacturer wants to make, and plans to make, off of any of its individual products. Standard trannies don't fit the long-term plan of service returns over time. Don't give your customer a choice, give them what is best for long-term economic returns...put it in the right kind of shiny wrapper and they won't know or care. The future is here...welcome to third world Omerica.

Or why make crap that the masses don't want?

As far as repair costs there would be a fortune to be made in clutch work for all the people that don't know how to run one.

 

[simpler=better]

I hate driving automatics. Cooling lines, vacuum lines, servos, lockup clutches, erratic RPMs, inability to hold speed when the tires are slipping, etc.

Bunch of snow in the 2wd? Fine-put it in 2nd gear and keep the rpms steady. The rear wheels will figure themselves out sooner or later.

Whenever I'm driving my Wife's trick I push the gas just a little too hard, and bam we're down 2 gears redlining at 25mph. Going up a hill, it won't hold 3rd-it would rather lug in 4th and slowly loose speed or run at a ridiculous speed in 3rd or 2nd. Autos always seem to be in between gears at 60mph.

I don't mind old automatics that don't downshift-like the 80's Mercedes 4 speeds. If you're above 30, it's in 4th and you've gotta either floor it or pull it back into 3rd to downshift.

And of course, a heavy tow work truck/plow truck needs a torque converter to slip at takeoff.

 

[Haywire6000]

I don't want to knock the guy to said he keeps forgetting to shift but really?
If you need a light on the dash to shift.... You are probably better off with a slosh box aka automatic. I'm not saying I'm the worlds greatest driver but I don't need a tach or a light to how to drive my standard.

 

[ab_slack]

I don't want to knock the guy to said he keeps forgetting to shift but really?
If you need a light on the dash to shift.... You are probably better off with a slosh box aka automatic. I'm not saying I'm the worlds greatest driver but I don't need a tach or a light to how to drive my standard.

You know, I learned stick on a car without tach. Nor did the car I had after that one. It's funny but it wasn't till the late mid late 80s or 90s that cars started to regularly have tachs when, in all irony, the shift in favor of automatics was in full swing. What is the pint of having a tach with an auto trans?

I remember the 78 Surban we had. The instrument cluster had two big areas. One was the speedo. The other seemed like a natural for tach, but no, it was...a fuel gauge. For a 30 or so gallon tank. It only used a a small portion of the area. Now it is true, with a 454 cu-in engine and a 4 bbl carb, if one hit the fuel hard enough you could literally watch that fuel guage move as the engine swallowed fuel at some incredible rate.

 

[tmcalavy]

Yep

True, but clutches are cheap compared to a slush-box rebuild...plus a lot of uncles, etc., out there can do a clutch at home. Think maximum return over time...

Or why make crap that the masses don't want?

As far as repair costs there would be a fortune to be made in clutch work for all the people that don't know how to run one.

 

[tmcalavy]

This one made me chuckle...one of my college roommates and his dad were big bass guys...had the Burban and fancy boat, the whole nine yards. Roomie beat hell out of that suburban...by the time we went off to college it had been bored out to a 472 with quadrajet...we could afford to fill it up, sometimes...with go juice less an a buck a gallon. But you could watch the gas gauge drop going down the road...about 6 mpg was its best.

I remember the 78 Surban we had. The instrument cluster had two big areas. One was the speedo. The other seemed like a natural for tach, but no, it was...a fuel gauge. For a 30 or so gallon tank. It only used a a small portion of the area. Now it is true, with a 454 cu-in engine and a 4 bbl carb, if one hit the fuel hard enough you could literally watch that fuel guage move as the engine swallowed fuel at some incredible rate.

 

[simpler=better]

You know, I learned stick on a car without tach. Nor did the car I had after that one. It's funny but it wasn't till the late mid late 80s or 90s that cars started to regularly have tachs when, in all irony, the shift in favor of automatics was in full swing. What is the pint of having a tach with an auto trans?

I remember the 78 Surban we had. The instrument cluster had two big areas. One was the speedo. The other seemed like a natural for tach, but no, it was...a fuel gauge. For a 30 or so gallon tank. It only used a a small portion of the area. Now it is true, with a 454 cu-in engine and a 4 bbl carb, if one hit the fuel hard enough you could literally watch that fuel guage move as the engine swallowed fuel at some incredible rate.

That reminds me of the 240D (~3600lb car, 80hp). They had a clock instead of a tach because it's faster to watch the minute hands move than watch a tach climb.

 

[ab_slack]

This one made me chuckle...one of my college roommates and his dad were big bass guys...had the Burban and fancy boat, the whole nine yards. Roomie beat hell out of that suburban...by the time we went off to college it had been bored out to a 472 with quadrajet...we could afford to fill it up, sometimes...with go juice less an a buck a gallon. But you could watch the gas gauge drop going down the road...about 6 mpg was its best.

Ugh, the Suburban wasn't that bad normal driving. Had a 411 rear end as it was configured for towing tho. Good thing, fuel was down around $1 per gallon.

My 72 Dodge Dart has a non-functional gas guage. When you drove fast however, the gauge would come off empty and start climbing. Always seemed to indicate proportional to the amount you were over the speed limit.

That reminds me of the 240D (~3600lb car, 80hp). They had a clock instead of a tach because it's faster to watch the minute hands move than watch a tach climb.

lol that's great. Yes that reminds me big analog clocks that always seemed to run slow were often the "big" second gauge.

And then there was those foot or so wide rectangular speedos cause I guess they needed something to fill all that unused space in the dash. Always seemed to me the needle on those would bounce around no matter what by about 10mph.

 

[wildbill23c]

I don't want to knock the guy to said he keeps forgetting to shift but really?
If you need a light on the dash to shift.... You are probably better off with a slosh box aka automatic. I'm not saying I'm the worlds greatest driver but I don't need a tach or a light to how to drive my standard.

Those shift lights are pretty stupid. I tried shifting with the light in my Dodge Ram, and if you want to lug an engine down follow that light LOL. That light bulb was quickly removed because it was extremely annoying, especially driving at night and have an amber color light come on. So that light bulb like I said it didn't stay operational very long. That's the only vehicle I've ever had that had a shift light in it. My bronco 2 is a manual but they never had shift lights in them, and mine doesn't have a tach either.

 

[racsan]

i drove something once with a "shift light" , think it was a '86 escort 4 speed, got it up fast enough in top gear that the shift light came on again...shift up to what? lol