It's Been Rough

Just sign up? Feel free to tell your fellow Standardshifters about yourself, your car or anything else.
ahyum
Junior Standardshifter
Posts: 13
Joined: Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:37 am
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada
Contact:

It's Been Rough

Post by ahyum »

Last week I just got a 2007 Toyota Yaris, the sedan variety with 5-speed. It's brand new but I've already had a long story with this car.

I bought the same model late March with a 4-speed automatic, but that car was total-lost when I was rear-ended by a drunken woman. In the end I came out $1,000 short because of a deductible they put on me because they couldn't yet contact or fine the drunken driver, and because they said I bought some dealer-installed packages for too much. Basically I had to settle with the 5-speed because I couldn't fork out the automatic-transmission money, which now would go to my start-up company's advertising campaign, despite being likely reimbursed in the coming months.

I had very limited experience with stick over the years. I test-drove a 1998 Volkswagen New Beetle at that year, spent an afternoon early this year in a 1995 Honda DelSol, and briefly test-drove a 2007 Toyota Yaris--I had the salesman dig it up from the compound because they only had 2 of these with stick out of some 500 cars. I only managed to not stall in this brief test-drive, but it was jerky and very stressful.

This Monday I took the day off to pick up this car, and spent the whole day pretty much in boot-camp. I drove far into the industrial area at 6PM and in a parking lot practiced stop-and-go and imitated left and right turns at intersections; the ride was still very rough between 1st and 2nd because I don't have a good grasp of the friction point and didn't gas steadily enough between shifts. On the way out of the lot I stalled before turning left, before I knew I wasn't clutching-in far enough for ignition there was already a huge semi honking behind me.

What's been tough for me is crawling in commuter traffic and frequently doing so uphill. Green light, cars move, I choke, I stall, then the drivers behind me curse at my mother. Another hard part is parking near my office, where much of the street parking is tight and also uphill; I used to do this with ease and precision, sometimes even bother going back and forth six times just to slot in. Now I just put the car in, one morning I had the rear slanted about 2 feet out from the curb. What a shame!

Quite a depressing noob-story. But in the end I will stick with it, all the way. I've read in other threads where people have said when you give it a few weeks then you will learn to appreciate it. I also find a lot of helpful pointers around the forums.

Thanks for helping out us newbies.
2007 Toyota Yaris Sedan
magnus_1986
Master Standardshifter
Posts: 1166
Joined: Thu May 18, 2006 2:01 pm
Location: Muscat, Oman
Contact:

Post by magnus_1986 »

I wish you the best of luck. It took me six months to master the basic techniques but I never gave up. Hopefully, you'll be a much better learner and learn in a few weeks!
Do not try to find 3rd, for you may not always reach it. Just go up and let it reach you!
Johnf514
Moderator
Posts: 8574
Joined: Thu Feb 24, 2005 3:59 pm
Cars: '07 Mazda3, '06 Ninja 636
Location: Orlando, FL
Contact:

Post by Johnf514 »

You've come to the right place, ahyum. We'll get ya going. :wink:

Good move on buying the stick. You'll save money in reduced fuel costs and less repairs in the long run. The Yaris is also an excellent model to choose.

It sounds like your N-1st and 1st-2nd shift are rough. No worries, this is normal for new standardshift drivers. Best thing to do is keep up what you were doing - practicing.

Take the Yaris to an empty parking lot and practice no-gas starts. Simply clutch in, put the car in 1st, and slowly clutch out. As the car begins to move, slightly pause your clutch release. Once the car is rolling at 3-5 MPH, continue your release until finished.

This exercise will help you learn the dynamics of your clutch and where it engages. As you get comfortable, add a small amount of gas to accelerate starts.

1st-2nd is probably the hardest upshift, yet it can be mastered. The key is timing.

When in 1st at 12 MPH, shifting to 2nd, clutch in, shift 1st-2nd, and clutch out to the friction point. As you hit the friction point, pause your release and add a small amount of gas. Continue your clutch release after that pause and continue to add gas. This shift should take place in about a second's time, and you'll get there as you practice.

Good luck, and welcome to SS.com! :D
Last edited by Johnf514 on Thu Jul 13, 2006 12:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
2007 Mazda3
Mods: 15% tint, Eibach ProKit
2006 Ninja 636
Mods: NOS & sidecar
User avatar
jomotopia
Moderator
Posts: 10230
Joined: Fri Mar 24, 2006 1:01 pm
Cars: 04 STi, 05 Matrix XR (AT)
Location: AWD Turbo Nirvana
Contact:

Post by jomotopia »

welcome to the site :D quite a story you've got there, but once you get the hang of manual i bet you will actually be glad you were that $1000 short and had to get the stick. just stuck with it and ask any questions you have here :D

+1 for no gas starts.

for the 1-2 shift John said to pause at the friction point. i think pause is a bit of a misnomer b/c i don't think you should really stop the pedal release, just slow it down a lot.
2013 Subaru Impreza WRX in Orange
dklkse
Master Standardshifter
Posts: 1935
Joined: Tue May 16, 2006 11:22 am
Location: Planet Irk

Post by dklkse »

Welcome to the site! :) Good to know you're going to 'stick' with it (pun).

Try practicing some late night hill starts and such.
Since you're a noob, you should probably begin by using the e-brake method on hills. It would be strongly recommended by many here.
Meaning: With the car in 1st, keep the e-brake on until you release the clutch enough to reach the FP, then as you add gas, release the e-brake and the clutch. It's all about timing, which you will master in time.
Eventually, you may be able to forgo the e-brake, and just use the FP for a quick hold.

Just relax. Most importantly, have patience with yourself.
Check out the F.A.Q. section for more detailed info.
chrono
Senior Standardshifter
Posts: 628
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2006 2:07 pm
Cars: Peugeot 306 XSi 2.0 8v
Location: Israel

Post by chrono »

Johnf514 wrote:Take the Yaris to an empty parking lot and practice no-gas starts. Simply clutch in, put the car in neutral, and slowly clutch out. As the car begins to move, slightly pause your clutch release. Once the car is rolling at 3-5 MPH, continue your release until finished.
You've got quite a strong netral here, John ;)
John meant 1st, of course.

Considering hill starts, I advocate that there is nothing different between them and regualr starts, conceptually - the only difference is in quantities. That said, after you practice no-gas starts and are comfortable with quick starts on flat terrain, starting on a hill will be a breeze as long as you don't get nervous and believe there is nothing special about it.
'96 Peugeot 306 XSi 2.0L 8v
Johnf514
Moderator
Posts: 8574
Joined: Thu Feb 24, 2005 3:59 pm
Cars: '07 Mazda3, '06 Ninja 636
Location: Orlando, FL
Contact:

Post by Johnf514 »

chrono wrote: You've got quite a strong netral here, John ;)
John meant 1st, of course.
Edited. That was before my morning tea. :lol:
2007 Mazda3
Mods: 15% tint, Eibach ProKit
2006 Ninja 636
Mods: NOS & sidecar
Ironichumour
Master Standardshifter
Posts: 1288
Joined: Sun Dec 11, 2005 7:31 pm
Location: Montreal, Canada
Contact:

Post by Ironichumour »

Johnf514 wrote:
chrono wrote: You've got quite a strong netral here, John ;)
John meant 1st, of course.
Edited. That was before my morning tea. :lol:
+1 for morning tea! :wink: :P
It's not what's on the outside, it's what's under the hood
User avatar
jomotopia
Moderator
Posts: 10230
Joined: Fri Mar 24, 2006 1:01 pm
Cars: 04 STi, 05 Matrix XR (AT)
Location: AWD Turbo Nirvana
Contact:

Post by jomotopia »

-1 for tea, +10 for coffee!! :P
2013 Subaru Impreza WRX in Orange
magnus_1986
Master Standardshifter
Posts: 1166
Joined: Thu May 18, 2006 2:01 pm
Location: Muscat, Oman
Contact:

Post by magnus_1986 »

I guess I'm the only one who starts his morning with a minisucle bar of galaxy chocolate washed down by a can of coke.


Everybody else here takes tea or coffee.
Do not try to find 3rd, for you may not always reach it. Just go up and let it reach you!
Ironichumour
Master Standardshifter
Posts: 1288
Joined: Sun Dec 11, 2005 7:31 pm
Location: Montreal, Canada
Contact:

Post by Ironichumour »

jomotopia wrote:-1 for tea, +10 for coffee!! :P
Oh, I do that too - depends on the day :wink:

Tea AND coffee FTW! :P haha :lol:
It's not what's on the outside, it's what's under the hood
ahyum
Junior Standardshifter
Posts: 13
Joined: Thu Jul 13, 2006 5:37 am
Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada
Contact:

Post by ahyum »

Thanks for the kind words and encouragement. Heeding John's advice, I've improved a bit this morning. I already frequent the Manual Driving Tips section and will continue to. See you guys around.
2007 Toyota Yaris Sedan
Johnf514
Moderator
Posts: 8574
Joined: Thu Feb 24, 2005 3:59 pm
Cars: '07 Mazda3, '06 Ninja 636
Location: Orlando, FL
Contact:

Post by Johnf514 »

jomotopia wrote:-1 for tea, +10 for coffee!! :P
Bah, you caffeine-dependent junkie! :badgrin:
2007 Mazda3
Mods: 15% tint, Eibach ProKit
2006 Ninja 636
Mods: NOS & sidecar
User avatar
jomotopia
Moderator
Posts: 10230
Joined: Fri Mar 24, 2006 1:01 pm
Cars: 04 STi, 05 Matrix XR (AT)
Location: AWD Turbo Nirvana
Contact:

Post by jomotopia »

pfft... are you drinking decaffienated tea then?
2013 Subaru Impreza WRX in Orange
dklkse
Master Standardshifter
Posts: 1935
Joined: Tue May 16, 2006 11:22 am
Location: Planet Irk

Post by dklkse »

Guess I'm the only one who starts the day with water. :biggrin:
Post Reply