I tried to teach my 15 year old how to drive the '97 GST and it has gone as you would think it would for a normal 15 year old girl. My 16 year old also thinks that she should be driving because she has been driving her boyfriends Mustang with a stick and thought she was a pro. She did all right. We only tried to burn the clutch 3 good times where you could actually smell it and began rolling into the car behind one time and spun the tires and wheel hopped a couple. I taught myself how to drive a clutch in about 2 hours, is it always this hard to teach people or are these cars a bit harder for the beginners? When I drive it for smoothness it is like butter taking off and between gears, it doesn't seem like it should be that hard.

 

no, it is always that hard to teach a GIRL!!! from my experiences.... including me, all of the GUYS i know learned in about an hour... i only stalled 2 times, then i had it down. never burned the clutch... AND that was when i was learning how to drive, not just learning a clutch. bear with it... girls do not catch on very quick!

 

I think it's just these cars. I learned to drive a stick in my dad's 85 Mercury Capri (I think it was an 85). It was pretty simple, I stalled once...the first time trying to move it. I think there is more play or that it's more of a "loose" clutch system than others...unless you buy an aftermarket clutch, then it's engaged or disengaged as soon you you try for either, lol....ok, it's not that extreme, but you get the point.

Our cars being so loose may have something to do with having a resevoir right before the slave too. I don't understand that. It's not needed, I no longer have mine (put in an SS clutch line instead) and I don't have issues without it.

 

****. i just promised this girl i was gonna teach her stick.. im ****ed, good bye new clutch.
ya ive tought 2 girls and 1 guy to drive stick on my car before, both of the girls i was working with for over an hour and they still sucked, and the guy i tought cought on in under 20 minutes lol. something said there..
when i learned my mom tought me in her 5 speed ford escape. we just drove around in the local mall parking lot for a half hour then she made me drive home (a 10 minute drive) thats where i really learned. but it all went well on the way home accept for me stalling it once and laying down a nice patch in the driveway haha, shoulda seen the look on my moms face.. priceless.

 

you know what i did when i taught my friends how to drive my car. i took them to a "deserted parking" lot, remember this one. it is VERY importnant. haha. i usually tell them to feel out the clutch. just slowly lift it up until they feel the car start to move. from there you can see how the car reacts. then start using the gs and what not. good luck teching you daughters.

 

I taught my best friend TJ in about half an hour. He didnt first understand the concept.. but once he understood... more clutch = RPMs dip can = stall... more gas is needed... he got the hang of it and then he started practicing aggressive launches. The clutch was also on its way out so i didnt actually care.. but he did make a couple mistakes... burning the clutch a little. Theni bitched at him and he never did it again.

Also he had a job getting it into reverse lol...Damn DSM trannys

 

every single person that has tried driving my old awd talon, stalled it at least twice...even if they have been driving stick for years.

 

I've got hours with both of them and went through everything imaginable on how it works and what you do why it does it, but it could be information overload. And my girls could care less about mechanics, they just want to drive the Eclipse, the family van is too ugly.

 

the way i ussually start people with the clutch is to have them start going without gas because then they get the feel of letting off slow and the grabbing point of the clutch. Then you slowely have them add a little gas as they get more used to it. But gasless starting is definetly the best way to do it

 

i LEARNED how to drive one in about 2 mins... i was driving one just fine within about 10 mins and was launching within about an hour lol. <- quick learner.