I don't know if I'm supposed to say this, I'm only 13 (14 on sept 13th), and my dad

found a big empty parking lot, and he taught me a little.

All of our cars are sticks, so I got some extra to learn.

This is what he taught me: (this is just moving forward, breaking, etc. no mirrors or

anything, no parking)

1st. Put your feet completely down on the break and clutch.
2nd. Push the button and push down on that hand break thing.
3rd. Start car.
4th. Lift foot off of break. Foot still on clutch.
5th. Foot still on clutch, push foot on the gas to about a steady 1000/2000 rpm.
6th. Very slowly lift foot off clutch, put in 1st, push gas more if needed to maintain rpm.
7th. foot should now be off clutch (for now), and push gas for speed you need.
8th. keeping speed, put foot all way on clutch, put in 2nd, slowy let go of clutch, push gas more.
9th. do this more to go faster and don't Over rev engine.
10th. Breaking, get foot off of gas, and SLOWLY put on break.
11th. 'till stopped, do step 1, 4, etc.

I only was aloud to goto 2nd gear. Didn't do reverse.

My feet we shaking SO much! I kept stalling the car, jerking when going into first gear, a lil shaky on breaking.

He wants me to perfect this before doing this w/ friends, or they'll get mad at me or something. I don't know.

This is what I remember.

Using an automatic must be cake!

EDIT: the car I was on is a 2000/01 Hyundai Elantra. He got this for $12,000 in the day.
He bought a Ford Mustang '06 GT convertible. He says the shifting in the hyundai is "Spong-ee", in the 'stang you have to put it in a gear.

The only way to learn is to do it. After a while it will be second nature.

He said once I get use to shifting, It will become like breathing. I won't even know I'm shifting, etc.

He has been doing stick since he was my age.

everyone stalls the first time. I stalled 4 times getting my first stick-shift car home. You won't have to think about it at all once you get used to it. It's more fun, better for towing and better on your gas mileage. It's great that your dad is getting you into it.

I always was really interested in sticks. Everything about them are better, 'cept you got to get use to it. But once you got it, it doesn't matter.

In a game, I like to select manual, cause I can shift when I want to. The automatics in the game like to over rev the engine and takes forever to get high speed.

But, I don't have a clutch in the game. And the clutch pedal in the car goes down really far, so when I got the right RPM, I do the clutch half way and let go 'cause I think it is a lot shorter, and the start is really jerky.

Also, I've sat in the passenger side for my whole life. Now I got to get using it all backwards. Maybe I should get an european car? lol. (shifter was always on my left, it's on the right side in the driver's seat)

I can't believe the amount of automatics in the US. Over here maybe 1 in 5 cars is an auto, tops. Everyone else drives a manual, maybe it's because we struggle less to do more than one thing at once, not sure...

I see lots of autos. All the mustangs at the ford 'ships are always autos.

What would happen If I had the car in 1st, before even turning on the car? Could I do that and just push on the gas, then shift up? I tried going into 1st w/out jerking and everytime it jerked or stalled. I don't stall as much now. I only got it to go smoothly once, and it wasn't the last time I tried. Maybe since I'm probably not so nervouse, I could probably keep the RPM steady.

I turn really good, and my dad got scared out of his wits when I pushed on the gas and turned.

No comment, I have one, but will no give it.

My dad made me learn to drive a standard at about 11 (a truck around the yard then on the dirt roads at 14). I could barely touch the pedals. I have been driving one thing or the other since I was 9. I hate driving now, lol.

I am very tall. I'm always mistaken for a high schooler. I range from 5'10"-6'2". I'm taller then my dad by an inch or two, and my mom by a foot (exagerated, but 5-10 inch). All the other kids in my school are shrimps (or is that normail? lol)

Oh also forgot, I also make the tires chirp sometimes. One time I did a long squeel lol!

Can't wait untill my liscence! I wanna burn some rubber at the metering light! I'm gonna drive like a maniac, good thing this car is cement colored!

The key for this car is soo worn, it is pretty much a master key for all hyundai elantras from the time. Good thing we made a fresh, new copy.

Once at a field trip at school, they had a car game w/ shifter. This one kid claimed that he knew stick... yea right. The game only had 4 gears, and when he was at 4th gear, he put it in 3rd, then 4th again saying "It makes the car go faster". Nooo kid, it slows it down and destroys the transmision. He got last place, I did it the right way and got 7th. It is hard to control cars in those games! The steering wheel practically turns the car around just by bear-ly touching it. Driving a car in real life is way more fun.

My mom tried teaching me stick, back before I got my license. I didn't take to it too well, and we didn't have a whole lot of time. I personally am not sure I'd be able to learn a stick, after driving and automatic for 2 years. I mean, I'm sure it's possible, but it'd be like learning how to drive all over again.

That's why you gotta learn stick before automatic. You could try, but it is too late. If the car could shift automatically, what is there to learn? When I get the stick workin' I have no problem moving and turning.

Firstly... your dad is an honorable man. Driving an automatic is so ridiculously easy... I was "experimenting with them" when I was 12... and got in quite a bit of trouble for it, too. You don't really learn anything except stop and go with them. The trannie takes care of the rest for you.. as a result, it usually goes a lot faster than manuals.

Secondly, he wants you to perfect it not because your friends will get mad at you, but they will laugh at you. Not only will they laugh at you, but they will razz you about it and claim to drive it better than you can... ultimately leading to the "Let me drive it so we don't die" garbage that makes me want to leave them on the side of the road..... okay.. bad memories.. sorry.. Plus, you'll have bragging rights if you can do it properly and confidently. Your dad is a smart man

He is also teaching you very well. I'm assuming the parking lot is flat as paper with no hills or other cars. It's also cool that he's relegated you to 1st and 2nd only. Once you get up into 3rd gear you can start going at a pretty good clip. Plus... 1st and 2nd are the hardest gears to get used to at first. Seriously though... once you can get used to 1st and 2nd, the rest of them are ridiculously easy. Reverse can be an different animal altogether depending on the car... but really the hardest part is steering the car without losing control. I actually did a 540 spin trying to reverse down a hill. DO NOT ATTEMPT!!!

This is not meant to be discouraging... actually more like something to look forward to... but you could spend up to a year getting your clutching technique just right. You will be able to drive the car just fine very shortly... don't worry about it. But there are certain things about driving a manual that simply cannot be taught or verbalized in any way. I taught my girlfriend how to drive a manual thinking that my expertise would make it simple... but... but... it just isn't that easy. After explaining the same basics you were taught I explained to her over and over that she just needs to go out and DO it... it's the only possible way to become good at it. Once you become comfortable getting around.. not stalling.. not revving the engine... not grinding the gears, then you get into the other things. You'll figure out how to do a "clean" shift every time.. with no "hopping." You'll figure out how to get an extra 20 miles out of your gas tank. You'll realize the fundamental awesomeness of keeping your foot off the clutch as much as possible... the usefulness of downshifting and neutral. And you'll realize that giving the gas a little poke before putting it in any gear has its benefits. But you gotta work it out yourself... and it's different for every car.

But 1st, 2nd, reverse, turning and stopping are the fundamentals. Don't worry about those. Practice practice... I don't know how long you have where you are... but here in Rhode Island you would have a good 4.5 years to get it right. Plenty of time to get to moving from stop to go up the side of a hill. My driving test had me go up the steepest hill on the island. I wish I were taught so damn early!!!

The best advice I can give would be to become an extension of the machine. The clutch is instrumental in this. Getting the fluidity of the clutch versus the gas pedal is very key to success. Just make sure you go easy on them both. And get get used to "feeling the clutch-plate catch the flywheel." You'll know what I mean.

Plus, you have the power of linux in you. You're used to making a machine do what you want it to do... and not necessarily what other people want it to do for you.

I drive a hyundai accent... and I first drove it I thought that it like a "toy car"... what your dad describes as "squishy." He basically means that you might not want to JAM it into gear when it doesn't want to give... just ease it in. Not to mention that it doesn't have a tachometer and everything needs to be done through "feeling" the car. Lots of fun... you'll learn to feel the car and only look at the instrument panel when there are cops around..

People in the United States drive automatic transmission cars and use Microsoft Windows because individuality is dying fast. In other parts of the world, Linux and manual transmissions are popular because the people still have a grasp on what it is like to be an individual. They don't like the idea of being "sheeple," where the US is the primary breeding ground... and yes... I'm depressed for my country. It hurts being a linux and manual user when 1 out of 10 people around you don't even know what linux is and manual transmissions "hurt their legs..."

Oh well... good luck and have fun!

When I was 6 years old, my father used to have me sit on his lap and he'd let me do the stearing wheel while he did the accelerator and brakes. That was fun.

You have to be 18 in RI? that sucks. colinstu can get a learners permit and start driving legally at 15 1/2 here in wisconsin.

My dad had to teach my mom. But when he was teaching her, they lived in San Francisco! All those hills, that must've been interseting. A while before that, he had a stick and Reverse didn't work, So he had to throw it in N, and push it (this was also on good 'ol hilly San Fran. He had sometimes jump into the car and hit the break, before it rolled down the hill)

Our Hyundai has a Tachonometer. But I could do w/ out it (yea, sound. You'll know when to shift).

Yea what you were talking about friends is exactly what he said, lol.

The parking lot we're in is pretty flat asphault. It has some tar and cracks too. Not a lot of obstacles. If I got into 3rd, I won't have a lot of room to turn, and he starts acting as if I'm going to flip that car. Maybe that is why? We're doing this slowly, I'm not going to figure it all out in a day.

The 'stang has a tiny, very stiff looking stick, and it only works if it is in a gear. The hyundai, it just kinda goes anywhere and it works.

When I was younger my mom and Dad, whould want me to shift for them sometimes(im in passenger seat). (they held down the clutch, etc). I didn't want to because I thought I'd screw it all up, somethin'.