Teach Me How to Drive Stick

Do you wish you had someone to ask, Please teach me how to drive stick? These days most cars have automatic transmissions, so there is a good chance that you might not know anyone who has ever driven a stick shift car before. If that is the case, you have come to the right place. This article will walk you through the steps on how to drive a stick shift car. By the time you read the information provided below and take some time to practice a little yourself, you'll be ready to help someone else if they ever ask you to, Teach me how to drive stick.

If you're ready to learn how to drive stick, follow these simple steps to get up and running.

1. Find an Area to Practice – One of the most important things you need is a good place to practice driving stick. You need a flat, remote place that doesn't have a lot of traffic so you can figure out what you're doing without worrying about getting in an accident. Empty parking lots are perfect, but little traveled country roads can also work well.
2. Get Comfortable With the Car – Once you are in a good location to practice, get behind the wheel and have a look around. Look down at your feet. The clutch is the pedal on the far left, the brake is in the middle, and the gas is the pedal on the right. You'll quickly notice that there are three pedals and you only have two feet. One of the most challenging things about driving stick is getting your feet coordinated. Now check out the shifter. There are probably five gears as well as reverse on your shifter. First gear is in the top left, second is below it, third is up and to the right from second, fourth is below third, and fifth is up and to the right from fourth. Reverse is typically below fifth gear, although it can sometimes be down and to the left from first gear in some European cars.
3. Run Through the Gears – To get a feel for how the car shifts, try to run through the gears with the car off. First, put on the car's parking break so the car doesn't move anywhere. Next, push the clutch down all the way to the floor with your left foot and lightly press down on the brake with your right foot. With the clutch in, move the shifter through the gears starting with first gear. Get a feel for how the car's shifter works and how it feels to move through the gears.
4. Start the Car – Now you're ready to try to get the car moving for the first time. With the parking brake still on, the clutch pressed all the way down to the floor, and your right foot on the brake, turn the key of the car until it starts. Once the car is running, release the parking brake and put the car in first gear. Make sure the clutch is still pressed to the floor. Once the car is in first gear, let the clutch out slowly at the same time you press down very lightly on the gas. As the clutch releases, you will feel the transmission start to catch and the car will start to move. At this point you want to give the car a little more gas so it doesn't stall. This is the absolute trickiest part of learning to drive a stick, so be patient. If you don't give the car enough gas, the car will stall. If you give the car too much gas, the car will jerk forward. Again, this is a process that you must get the feel of through practice, and everyone struggles with it at first.
5. Get Up to Speed – Once you get the car moving in first gear, you need to keep moving through the gears to go faster. Shifting from first to second is almost the same as starting the car, except it's a little bit easier because the car is already moving. You will know when to shift when you feel the car's RPMs increase, meaning the car is going as fast as it wants to go in first gear. When your car gets to that point, you need to remove your foot from the gas, press the clutch to the floor, and shift the car into second. Once the car is in second gear, release the clutch slowly and press on the gas again. The transmission will engage, and the car will continue on in second gear. You continue this process as you move through all the other gears.

Now that you understand how to get the car up to speed, you need to know how to slow the car down. When you are ready to decrease your speed, the first thing to do is press the clutch to the floor. This disengages the transmission and puts the car in neutral. Once you have the clutch in, you can press the brake and slow the car down. When you are ready to speed back up, you will have to put the car into a lower gear to start moving forward again.

When people ask, Teach me how to drive stick, they are often nervous about what can happen. When you first start driving a stick, it is not uncommon to grind the gears a bit and stall the car. This is ok. You are not going to hurt the car, and you are not doing anything wrong. Learning to drive stick takes time, and you can do it. Just take your time, relax, and follow the steps above and you'll be up and running before you know it.

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