actually i do; at least that's what friends told me... but i need to practice my rev-matches more and I don't hit the perfect RPM from 1st to 2nd every time yet. the first time i sat in the driver seat is about a year ago though, so i still have to learn a lot
I agree with the generational fact, my father doesn’t revmatch downshift and I never knew it was a thing until I got into backroad driving and realized how important it was
It’s like we live the same life. My dad says “why do you need to rev match? If you downshift it’s to slow down so the clutch should take it”, but I’d rather replace breaks than a clutch
@@opmike343 I've been driving manuals since 1998 without revmatch downshifting and I have never wrecked a clutch. I drove a 96 5-speed Corolla from around 2007, the clutch was trash when I got it, replaced it then and to this day it's still rocking the same clutch. Still drives smooth as silk blows cold A/C as Scotty would say 😆. I'm not arguing against revmatching, if that's your thing, go ahead, I'm just stating my experience.
@@ChrisBanda I don't think a Corolla is the best car for determining if doing or not doing a certain thing increases or decreases wear, considering with oil changes and brakes most Corollas will roll past the 300,000 mile mark without issue.
Driving manual made me be more mindful and respectful of driving. It made me pay more attention to drivers habits, my own driving inputs and how the car behaves and being more safe while observing others driving habits as well. I give people more space than needed (rolling back), and at 4 way stops, I always give others the right of way because drivers are unpredictable and people do california stops more often than not instead of stopping all the way
100% agree. Also learning how to ride a motorcycle has helped raised my awareness to another level when I'm driving a car, and i'm a much safer driver as a result of learning to appreciate both driving a stick and riding a motorcycle.
Agreed… Cycling in the city throughout my 20’s increased my hyper awareness also. The anticipation and seeing things developing before actually happing has been priceless.
Got my first manual just last night. Still learning and my shifting is pretty rough. Took the wife for a ride, she felt it and asked what's wrong with the car. I had to tell her nothings wrong with the car, it's me.
Haha, I felt "called out" during the overshifting portion, lol. I'm always shifting unnecessarily between 2,3,&4 on a backroad for the fun of it. There's something about banging off a couple of perfectly timed heal toe downshifts while trail braking towards an apex that makes me feel like a mini driving God, lol.
@@andreamusso1469 Also gives good practice for heel-toe and rev-matching when moving at a brisk pace. Timing and the amount of throttle application needed changes when you're driving quickly and higher up in the RPM range. You're also deeper in the brake pedal, which affects of how your foot interfaces with the throttle during the blip. Just driving on your usual commute doesn't give much opportunity for this kind of thing.
Quite literally every older person I drive with is so blown away by downshifting and how smooth the downshifts feel with it. It’s weird that the people that taught me how to drive don’t know about this skill.
I think the most important lesson I was given when I was learning was that it's actually okay to not be perfectly smooth and to make mistakes, so long as you understand WHY it was a mistake. If the car is lurching but you don't understand why it isn't liking your inputs, then you should research what is mechanically happening in a manual trans. That way, next time you make a mistake, you will know what caused the car to lurch and you can correct yourself over time. IMO there is way too much criticism/pressure for new manual drivers to feel like their shifts need to always be perfect otherwise they are a terrible driver. Like playing a musical instrument, mastery comes after years of practice, and even then "mastery" does not equal perfection. Even the most experienced driver makes mistakes every once in a while.
For sure. Mistakes are okay. Just improve from them. I'd have situations where I'd be having a really off day so I wouldn't be paying as much attention to my inputs and I'd make mistakes, then I'd proceed to get even further frustrated and make even more mistakes lol. We're only human, mistakes happen.
I've been driving manual since I started driving in 2020.i have some mornings I question what the hell I'm doing! All 3 cars I've had have been manuals.
You have no idea how much these videos helped me get into driving a manual. Before I got my first car I had never had access to a manual of any kind. Everyone told me it was a mistake buying something I didn't know how to drive. But I bought it anyway. I hopped in, started it, and drove off right away (albeit a bit shakily.) I drove an hour back to my house based only on the experience I got from these videos. And today I'm shifting and rev matching like a pro. A couple people who've ridden with me actually admitted that they forgot it was a manual half way through the drive. But for real, I don't know what it is about a manual transmission that makes any car fun to drive. Even my econo box dodge dart is a blast to drive with a stick shift.
I was incredibly surprised on how temperature affected the shifting. In the morning or in winter my Twingo RS shifts just really uncomfortably. You really feel whats happening inside the box. But as soon as temps are over about 15-20 degrees (the right ones), it like a whole new gearbox. It really feels like putting it into butter.
Yeah. That something I learned quickly after getting my '19 mustang gt. It feels like straight trash driving it first thing in the morning which sucks cause I don't get to drive it long enough to warm up. Probably putting a lot of wear on transmission and such.
Same thing, my fiesta ST doesnt want to go into first gear pretty often when its cold. Some people say that changing the gearbox oil helps(generally if the car is a few years old, but even in newer ones ), and that in some cars specific brands work better than the OEM. I think I will give it a try before the winter cause sticky gears really drive me nuts
The smoothest stickshift car I ever had was a 1989 CRX Si - super easy to drive smoothly in all conditions. Modern stickshift cars with rev-hang require completely opposite shifting technique - shift quicker at lower revs/smaller throttle inputs, and shift slower with higher revs/more throttle. My 2018 Accord Sport drops the revs pretty quick when driving slowly, so if I take my time with the shift I also have to feed throttle back in to bring the revs back up to where they need to be, but if I rev it out, I have to allow 2-3 seconds for the revs to fall to where they need to be.
it's not just a new car thing. I've got a 95 Miata and the Lower the rpm the faster you're gonna have to shift if you don't want to adjust the throttle at all. if you wanna shift at high rpms you're gonna have to let the rpm drop a little bit.
I didnt know about this i thought i turned into a shit driver since my last manual was a smooth shifting subi over 6 yrs ago. U are right about how to shift these. Im barely getting the hang of it after afew weeks of driving the si. I dont like the 1-2 on these i worry about the clutch when i have to be quick
I would like some positive advice. I currently own an 05 civic 5 speed. Been through a clutch already, but I feel like I premature wore it. Watched videos on how to properly engage clutch and sometimes I buck around. The transmission of the car was already at 278k miles and sometimes shirting into 1-3 is almost like it wants to pop out. Not sure if this was a good car to learn manual on, but I'm already invested. Car's been great to me since purchase, I just feel like I'm not driving her properly. For example, I did a similar clutch out to you, but I still buckle going into 1st and sometimes 2nd. Like, I'll hit the biting point, and accelrate, but still buckle. I hardly give her any gas too, it's a honda, like you said hardly has any torque to begin with. Any tips/videos to help me out? Thanks! Edit: I usually keep RPMS between 2.2k-3k in between shifts as I noticed she likes that sweet spot. Was told by mechanic that the PCM computer is bad, not sure if that could have an effect on timing of clutch since it's a manual. Thank you.
My 07' Alfa Romeo Mito 1.4 shifts nicer then my fathers BMW 318i or my Mom's Alfa Romeo 147. Next car will most likely be a civic type-r, but damn do i often miss my car when trying out other vehicles. The clutch is just SOOOOO nice.
Picking up my first manual today at the dealership (this exact car). Been practicing for months now on my mom's car and this video was great man, truly appreciate it.
@big channel it's awesome! I love it. I'm actually selling it to get the 2023 Type R. Would you be interested? It's blue, blacked out front and back honda logos, and all the HPD spoilers. It'll have 11k miles when I'm back in Wisconsin early May.
I absolutely love how my Prelude sounds when I get the downshift just right. I bought this car 8 years ago not knowing how to drive manual and taught myself. Plus perfected watching Tedward and Topher s videos. I love you two ❤️
Dudes living the dream - Hopefully in a couple months ill be able to buy a 4th gen manual as of now im driving a automatic focus my father gave me so i cant complain XD
@@umithi6251 Yes. I now own two manual transmission vehicles. I've been fortunate enough to find a limited edition convertible 1996 Toyota Celica GT. I take good care of it
Lots of good info here! One thing I would say to new drivers learning manual is that they will never be perfect. You mentioned this a bit in the video and I just want to echo it, because it's something I really struggled with. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and I felt like a pretty competent driver before I got a manual car after 9 years of driving an automatic. It was a difficult adjustment for me, and I obsessed over trying to get smooth shifts and felt like I was constantly fighting the car. As mentioned here, listen to the car and over time you'll recognize what it wants. There may be times where you have to compromise and shift quickly due to road or traffic conditions, and that's okay. Work on improving your skills, and accept that part of what makes driving a manual fun is that it's a human experience and every shift is just that little bit different.
I really wonder how weird my experience with manual driving was. I had my shifts perfected within 2 months of learning manual. Dunno if it's the norm for people who care to learn or
I recently started watching tedward and only started driving manual last year (I've improved a lot) and the reason I love tedward is because I have a very similar mindset when comes to driving manual, I love the whole you're always learning In a manual car because it's so true I'm wayyy past driving like a beginner my driving has become very smooth yet I'm still always watching videos about how to drive manual 😂😂
I taught myself to drive a manual when I worked at a VW dealership and my shifting was absolutely sloppy. It took me longer than I am proud to admit to make my shifting much smoother
The 22 civic si was my first manual and a year later I would say I've been driving it perfectly smooth for about month and about to start doing my own rev matching.
Hi Ted, I have mastered my technique years ago when I had a colleague who would very easily get car-sick with jerky driving. My driving is so smooth now that people have asked me whether my manual Volvo was in fact a slushbox! Plus I have to be very sweet with the Porsche when she is cold, and also the manual on my '74 Rover 2200TC is something else, and needs a whole lot of love and gentility. Smooth operator here!!!!
in Italy, the average driver (like 95% of people) doesn't even know what rev matching a downshift is, no one told us why it's important or how to do it, and also, the engine brake generated by not revmatching is widely and commonly used everyday by everyone as a valid and beneficial method to slow down the car approaching a red light, or a stop. maybe it's beacuse heel and toe on citycars is almost impossible to do, so everyone uses brake + engine brake to slow down? we'll never know.. love your content mate, keep it up!
So I thought there were some cultural differences between America and Europe. When I was watching a manual car driving from a guy in the UK, his definition of rev matching was different from what Americans define rev matching. Basically he was saying listen to the clutch when you downshift, and when you do the ‘actual’ rev matching with the throttle, that was considered a slightly advanced technique. So when he was teaching beginners to driving a manual, that was how he taught, and that was how the UK tests new drivers. The comments were also very much in agreement as well from the mostly European viewers. It was an interesting observation.
And that's completely fine, clutches ain't made of cardboard. Most of my friends and car enthusiasts I know actually know how to rev match but it's just inconvenient to use in casual/city drive unless you're on some empty open road where you can drive just for your pleasure.
@@karlowolf05 you sure do put less overall stress on the brakes using engine brake for slowing down... unfortunately, in most everyday cars, there is no way around it because you can't even do heel and toe, the position of the pedals just makes it impossible... so, if you are pressing the brake pedal, you can't rev match even if you want... it's just the way it is 😄
3:45 "Never trust the blinker" I felt that to a spiritual level, I'm originally from Brazil where manual cars are the norm and not the exception like here in Canada, and I was surprised when this happened to me while commuting back from work. Nice videos! I like your engagement with the viewers!
The fun/interesting part of all this is it’s often very specific to the car. I own three manual cars. My golf shifts nicest at 3k rpm with for around town driving. My truck has a very narrow rpm range (my 350 sbc redlines at 4500) so I have to ‘over shift’ around town. Rev matching is super easy. My 79 320, that transmission is perfection. Every shift is buttery smooth. Clutch bites up high and is pretty heavy.
Have you ever thought about doing a “tips and tricks” or “how to” video for new drivers? Your explanation is very easy to digest and adapt. I’m thinking about getting a stick shift car so I know how to drive all transmissions. Your explanations gives me the confidence to actually do it rather than talk to my buddies about it lol. I think you’ll help a lot of people if you make a “tutorial” video series
Great video Tedward! These were the things that were going through my head after I bought my manual car after so many years of driving automatics! Understanding the car so I can upshift and downshift smoothly was the goal! Thanks man!
Hopefully the manual transmission will never go away, shifting is one of the greatest parts of driving. The most satisfying manuals I’ve ever owned was on my 1977 Datsun 280Z and my Honda S2000. Honda’s in general have long had excellent manuals. The worst manuals I’ve had were (shockingly) on my 1973 Porsche 914/6 and a 1985 Countach I drove once. The trick is to remember that you have to master the clutch and transmission in each car, but when you do, it’s extremely addictive.
My dad taught me how to rev-match and im so happy he did. It feels so great when u release the clutch and it engages so smoothly. Also, in my opinion, it just sounds great, especially with a sporty exhaust😉
same bro. on my 4th month of driving my new car and im still not good but getting much better. I rarely stall it, if ever and I am confident now but hills still suck lol and some of shifts are jerky
You are the one who inspired me to get a manual car as my first car a few years ago. its a 1991 Toyota corolla with the 5 speed manual. It has no tachometer so I learned how to do everything my feel and ear. it had 200k miles on it when I bought it. it now has 445k miles on it and is still kicking. I pulled the engine to replace the clutch and throw out bearing at 400k (as well as the front and rear main seal and many other rubber gaskets hoses and seals while I was there.. Many people compliment me on my shifting and how smooth it is. (I can sit a glass of water on the dash while shifting and not a drop will spill. many of the techniques you mentioned in the video, I've actually taught myself to do. Since then I've taught many of my close friends how to drive manual as well and 3 out of the 5 of them liked it so much that they actually bought manual cars! That being said, Thanks Tedward for introducing me to the wonderful world of manual transmissions!
This is incredible! Really excited that I had some part in making this happen, and even happier that you've inspired some friends to learn and buy manual cars!
@@TedwardDrives Yes sir, and now I happily own several manual vehicles. While I stick to older manual vehicles, I have a friend I taught manual to bought a 2023 Honda Civic SI with the 6 speed manual. He upgraded from his 2000 honda accord with the 5 speed manual.
@@eccotom1 yea people typically don't like the mushy feeling shifter the corollas have. But honestly I like it because its accurate and easy to work with. My 1996 ranger with the 5 speed has a longer throw and more clicky shifter. I don't tend to be picky. Each transmission has its own personality and special characteristics.
I just recently got my first manual, a 2002 celica GT-S. Just when I was wondering "hmmm where is that happy shifting" You called it out by name. That blew my mind. Thanks for the video!
07:24 That advice saved my life, I always wondered why some experienced drivers that I know kept changing gears all the time and when I was driving I never felt like it was that necessary. I always thought I was missing something.
Another thing to point out about rev matching for a downshift... Do the clutch-in-blip when you're still in the previous gear (or shift to neutral, then blip), so when you downshift, the RPM is already closer (or perfect) for engaging the lower gear. If you clutch in, shift, then rev match, the synchros are doing more work. It is a very noticeable difference when you get it right. Less delay, and smoother engagement.
the thing u said about temperature affecting the shifts is something i noticed but i never pin pointed, i always felt like im doing something wrong in those few occasions, but this makes perfect sense
Thank you for posting this. I have never actually driven a manual nor have I ever been taught too, and there are a lot of good pointers to be had in this video. I recently bought a manual project car and am excited to learn how to drive a stick.
The highest form of praise I've received while driving is my drivers test instructor telling me it was the smoothest driving experience he's had in a long time :)
Great video and summary of “how to throw”. I’ve driven manuals for 25 years and I love every minute of it. I learned on a 71 Beetle where everything was manual, and you learned quickly not to stall it in the summer or the motor would vapor lock and you’d be stranded for an hour or so!
I am constantly trying to become smoother with my manual driving. I bought my Mazda6 because it had a manual and I wanted to improve. The car does have some rev hang which i have to fight, but i can still be pretty smooth. Just takes practice and understanding you might learn some tips and tricks from others like yourself Tedward. Not commuting to office for the past 2 years kept miles off my car but i got our of practice.
Awesome video. Thank you for your insights! I drive a 2012 Civic Si, so it’s nice to see someone show these things on a car very similar to mine. I’ve been experiencing a lot of the problems you’ve described, and it’s nice to find these solutions on day 2 of driving stick. Thank you!
bingo bango... did you mention skipping gears? engine breaking? coasting in gear to a stop light? stuff like that is really good for smoothness. best thing about manuals is that you can manipulate the gearbox, and not use breaks as mush.
I've been driving manual for 10 years but I'm self taught, that's why I'm listening to this. My teacher was literally a guy who never drove stick before, so it's good to see where to improve
I'll double clutch the 1-2 upshift in my 2010 Focus when it's cold just out of habit. I find the gears mesh so much smoother especially in the winter. My car has a ton of rev hang when it's cold. At least it goes away once the engine is warm. I really miss cable throttle. My old 1991 MR2 was so responsive with zero rev hang. It had a nicer shifter and a smoother clutch actuation too. That thing was a blast. Thankfully my Focus still has great pedal spacing for heel toe so that makes downshifting smoothly pretty easy. Also on the neutral wiggle. I always do that too. No idea why that'd trigger people lol.
Yep, never learned how to properly drive a stick other than the basics until I started looking into it. I have learned a lot and discovered a lot in my 2015 civic SI. One big thing that helped with using the clutch was actually learning to float gears.
0:54 Source? I disagree. When you start the car with the clutch engaged, the starter not only has to turn the engine and flywheel over, but it will have to turn over the entire input shaft of the transmission and rotate all the gears through potentially cold, thick fluid. In what universe is that "the best way" to start a car?
Yes it will add minimal load to cranking, but especially on older cars it introduces excess wear on thrust bearings. Any time I've use the clutch on a vintage car for start up in a video I've gotten an earful from old timers. Some research proves them correct. Will it kill the car? No. But it's a thing. Here is the reasoning from Grass Roots Racing "I prefer to start the car with my foot off the clutch to save the thrust bearing. Because when you put your foot on the clutch to start the car, you're basically trying to force the crankshaft out the front of the block. Your thrust bearing is there to prevent this, but before the car starts there's no oil pressure. Your thrust bearing does not appreciate this, especially if you've installed a heavier clutch with more crank-pushing power."
@@TedwardDrives I still disagree. Considering how many times the clutch is engaged/disengaged during normal everyday driving, one extra clutch press to start the car should not at all severely reduce the life of this thrust bearing. Clutches are designed to last thousands and thousands of miles. If you're that concerned about the life of the thrust bearing, maybe don't daily a manual? Regardless, most manual cars require the clutch to be disengaged to start anyway so its a moot point.
@@Not_Lewis Here's the thing, when you press the clutch with the engine running, the thrust bearing has oil pressure so there is no issue. When you are starting the engine, the thrust bearing has no oil pressure, and will be metal on metal for the few seconds it takes to build pressure.
I’m day 2 of my new si. First time with a stick. It’s been so humbling. Having problems with stop signs, stopping and going. Thanks for the vids. Desperately needed them
Update? I'm thinking about getting an SI, I really want it over any of the other sedans but of course it has no automatic option. Also can you elaborate on the stop sign issues? Thanks
@@mgstrip last saturday i went from never driven a stick to 6 days later, pretty competent at it. I literally just watched tons of vids. Practiced everyday different situations (stop signs in my neighborhood, finding the biting point over and over, speed bumps in an empty parking lot, going up a slight incline at the bottom of my drive way without rolling back), over and over. Pretty comfortable driving now. The stop sign issue was because i was a dummy and going straight from a stop to 3rd because i was putting the car in the wrong gear. This car is fun as hell to drive and the interior is so bad as. For the price i don’t think I’d be happy with anything else, and there are people driving 15-20 Hondas, so it’s very reliable. My wife actually traded in an 07 she got brand new for a 22 pilot last year. I highly recommend the car. Just practice. I suggest maybe go on a weekend so you have time to practice before work. That’s what i did. I had the pressure of having to figure it out so I can keep my job driving me
One more thing that’s worth mentioning is the difference in Turbochargers in each car. Every engine produces peak power at different RPMs, and gaining the muscle memory to account for each engine’s sweet spot for each gear shift is something I struggle with. A lot of modern cars, for example, produce little-to-no power until about 1500-2000 RPM in first gear, which is when the turbo kicks in and the car jerks forward uncomfortably, which makes deducing the sweet spot for switching into 2nd gear a bit of a challenge.
Hey Tedward, great video as always! I gotta say, FWD/RWD is far easier to drive smoothly even as a seasoned manual driver. I Have a WRX and that full time AWD is punishing for the wrong throttle / clutch inputs - but it has made me a far better driver for it!
Love the similarities in our driving habits and mindsets. Neutral wiggle, "don't trust a blinker", and of course hvac constantly pegged on 69. I'd love to see a candid recording of all the fiddling I do at startup. I am fairly sure I did some serious damage to my 235 clutch sticking it in ramped tiny corners of a Philly garage for 3 years.
i just got my 2022 si two days ago without knowing how to drive a standard, your videos helped me drive 400 miles home without a hitch, thank you so much
Would love to see a tutorial on how to drive manual. Planning on buying a Civic Si soon but don’t know how to drive manual. Can’t get enough of your Si videos!
Good luck on learning how to drive a manual. I plan on buying an 8th gen civic Si this weekend as long as no one gets to it before me. I will be learning how to drive a manual as well as this will be my first manual car.
Every time I get back into a modern e-throttle manual car after driving a cable throttle manual it takes me about 10 min to readjust and drive smoothly. Can’t say it’s the same vice versa, I can drive smoothly almost immediately in any cable throttle car. Old cars communicate much more clearly how they want to be driven.
i've watched this video so many time and also the how to drive manual video of yours and i dont even have a manual car. It's just so entertaining and informative for those who are beginners to manual driving like myself. Also, ive been shopping for one and hoping i can get one for a good price once I come back, either 2023 or 2024 (assuming there will be one at the end of the year) Thanks a lott for teaching us man! I'm sure there's a lot out there that learned how to solely by watching your videos.
I understand what you’re saying about not putting your clutch down on the foot to start the car but I do valet some cars I drive are old you have to put your foot down to start the car and give it gas when you pull off or drive off the newer cars you really don’t have to engage the gas because when you press the clutch it already somehow engages gas and get it rolling off when I really don’t have to use the gas when I was driving a Chevy SS all I do is hold the clutch to the biting point 5 mph off the clutch in the car just rolled and don’t even have to give it gas. Make sure when I pull off the clutch it’s a smooth engagement off not like a jerk emotion on the clutch as if I pulled off to biting point to Early.
He's just talking about staying at a red light, just leave it in neutral if you're gonna be stuck there for more than 5 seconds. Also the reason why it's "giving it gas" when you slowly let out without giving it gas is that the motor has enough torque to creep purely off the clutch and start off in 1st gear if you're slow and careful enough with the clutch movement.
He’s talking about cars literally not letting you start without the clutch pedal pushed in. This is a safety feature that you can’t get around unless you disconnect some wires. But technically, it is adding some wear to the throw out bearing to have the clutch pedal pushed in when the engine cranks.
@@owengrove5089 this is probably the worst feature added. I prefer doing the gas on my own and whenever i driven a new car I didn't really like it and my 2004 car is so much better to drive.
For me it's not hard to drive smoothly but it is tricky to drive both smoothly and fast, especially when accelerating from a dead stop at traffic lights on roads with like 55 speed limit (which means most people drive at over 60), which are pretty common around where I live. If I want to shift smoothly from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd, I'd have to wait for the rev to drop because of rev hang (I drive a Type R), and when I am waiting, I can literally see all the automatic cars around me either pulling away in front of me or getting REAL close to me in my mirrors. It gets a lot better once I am into 3rd and shifting to 4th and higher but if I want to accelerate faster in 1st and 2nd specifically to not get in the way of all the automatic drivers around me then it becomes a lot harder to maintain smoothness, while wanting a more seemless and faster acceleration at the same time because I have to let the clutch out faster to minimize lost time caused by shifting. I guess I shouldn't be too upset about it since the FK8 is kinda known to be jerky and not smooth in first and second gear, but still...
I sometimes go from 1-2-4-5 or 1-2-3-5 when needing to quickly and smoothly accelerate, idk if it's the right way to do it but it seems to work for me. I don't know if it will work on your car, like it might be better to skip second to go to third and then accelerate to the cruising speed and then put your cruising gear in
11:50 first time this happened to me was one of the best feelings ever. best part was he knew what a manual was bc his other friend had one too but was not smooth with it at all. I know more about cars than the average person, but not enough to hang with the "car guys", I just love the control & predictability that comes with a manual.
Great video and great points. I agree with all of these. I do want to add that if you are applying a lot of throttle before upshifting, especially in 1st gear, when you let go of the gas some cars will slow down a lot, causing everyone in the car to lunge forward due to engine brake, before you can depress the clutch pedal and shift to 2nd gear. I've seen this A LOT, even with someone who has been driving a manual all his life. It's important when you're shifting to ease off the gas pedal first, or modulate the gas so that you are staying at a constant speed BEFORE letting go of the gas pedal and depressing the clutch pedal to upshift. One more thing is that cars that drop revs quickly will require a bit of throttle before letting the clutch pedal up to the bite point (on upshifts) or else there is a little jolt as well.
I was a pretty smooth shifter when shifting down but when I was accelerating up to speed I experienced what you were saying. Then when I realized my mistake my shifting overall became much smoother.
What I can't smooth out are upshifts. Passenger always go forward when I clutch in. Seems like I have to ease off the throttle slowly before I clutch in for the passenger but feels so unnatural
yes peel off the throttle before you go for the clutch. Each car will behave differently so just find the sweet spot. Aston Martin manuals required almost a full second off throttle before clutching in lol. Very annoying!
The over shifting part is so true… people with paddles/dct’s do it a lot too, everyone’s obsessed with downshifting and hearing the downward revving and pops and bangs
Keep the clutch pressed for the long time is a really bad thing. But in Germany there are so many people which do this... it is terryfying. Good Video :)
As long as you don't rev the car and have the clutchpedal fully depressed, it is fine. It doesn't cause that much wear. I always have first gear engaged and i'm on the clutch, those 2 minutes (max here in Finland) won't break your bearing or wear anything that much. It's just a bit too much for normal everyday driving. Also makes inattentive drivers so damn slow off the lights. Ofc if it is a habit of going neutral, it ain't a bad habit.
My biggest issue is that no matter where you look for info on PROPER manual transmission techniques and scenarios, you’ll always find conflicting information, you’ll always see people saying opposing things and it’s hard to know which is accurate Edit: @Tedward just bought a ‘00 Celica GTS, it’s my first manual, any tips specific to that car?
How much you paid for it and how many miles???????? Also regarding information on driving manual, some stuff contradicting but also some information is an alternative. There is more than one way to throw a punch and it's the same thing with driving He has a gts video I believe, you should check it out
@@shinobusensui9395 Amazing deal, bought from original owner, extensive maintenance records, 96k miles for $5500. No issues mechanically, just cosmetic stuff like paint could use work and the drivers seat had a tear in the leather. Apart from that stuff it’s flawless as far as me and my dad can tell.
Couldn't agree more. But help me with this one thing. I drive manual for a long time, doing Rev matches and even hill toe downshift flawlessly. BUT whenever I turn on the A/C the car becomes sooo unsmooth, where the only way to shift nicely is by revving all the way to 3k every time. Do you find it the same?
Yes, depending on the car ac draws so much power that you can really feel it. So you do need more revs to get to the same bite point of the clutch. I had this with my 80hp Golf which was slow normally and if ac was on it was. just like you described, a pain to drive.
What car do you have? This sounds like an issue that would happen more often with cars that has low power. I would imagine that staying on the bite point longer will smooth out your shifts.
I just ordered a 22 Miata Club and my wife will be driving the car too. The ONE thing I try to explain is about staying in 1st at red lights. Let's see if I can sneak this video in for some light indoctrination. Also happy #topgunday :)
I think this habit is way more psychological than we give it credit for. When we sit in gear waiting its like we really don't want to inconvenience anyone behind us. When that light turns green we want to be off immediately! The feeling of turning green and still needed to put in gear makes us feel like we'll get a beep from the car behind. I think we just gotta let go of that haha.
@@TedwardDrives perhaps, I'm always trying to be aware of when the signal is going to change, so maybe that's my excuse -i usually (definitely not always) know when the light is changing.
I have never driven a car with automatic gearbox, but I have a feeling I would be bored by it. Shifting gears is an important part of the driving experience and just so satisfying. :D
It's interesting to see how US drivers see a manual transmission as something complex that has to be mastered, whereas in Europe the vast majority of people have learnt how to drive on one. From a Euro POV, everything in this video goes without saying
But I think I've had the clunkiest drives from drivers in Europe. The mentality is that "we only drive stick shifts so we know how" but those average drivers seem pretty messy
Finally someone is saying it. Many of the Ride shares (not all) I've taken in Europe have been very jerky and the drivers lug the engines in first gear
Honestly patience and doing things smoothly makes my ride enjoyable because I have the satisfaction knowing I am doing it right, and giving the mechanical parts a easy life!
This is the internet...they complain about everything. I'm a skinny dude...A runner. And guys will legit yell at me for "Skipping leg day". It's very strange that they want me to be more attractive to them lol
I don't understand this at all either. There's is a Top Gear clip back in the day where Richard Hammond parked a car and did the neutral wiggle before getting out. Every single person I know that has a manual currently does the neutral wiggle. Most of these people complaining probably are shit drivers or don't know how at all.
Do people get mad over the little 'neutral jiggle'? That's the first thing people tell you to do when you are learning to drive a manual. Foot on the clutch and shake the shifter to check you are in neutral. If people get triggered by that, I'm lost.
@@TedwardDrives The only reason I can think of to get triggered by the neutral jiggle is they never driven a single manual car and they’re just frickin’ triggered.
Oh, the buttershifts, yeah I have those with my Skoda, I can tell by how the car responds to me that I'm tired when driving. Shifts become more rigid and I tend to be a tad more aggressive on the throttle. Despite driving for over 10 years myself now, I can easily valuate myself on a good or bad day. Also depends on how the car feels. Some days shes in the right state and things go super easy. Other times, when its bad weather or cold out she tends to struggle on remaining that continuous comfort. Its always good to evaluate yourself and to work on your own skills accordingly. But always drive safe and if you wish to test your own skills more thoroughly, do it on a track or an abandoned area with no one around. Also helps to bring a friend or someone along with more experience than you do. Having someone else around can help you see or find out things you as a driver yourself may not directly see.
I learned how to drive manual with these kinds of videos all over TH-cam, so when my gf rented a Miata for my birthday for me my friend “taught” me how to drive it. But 30-40 minutes in the parking lot later. I’m driving on the road and he says “You shift smoother than me!” I was thinking “no shit” 😂
I'm a new driver in Ireland. Everyone here drives manuals, so while learning I got a lot of correct criticism. Even with only just under a year of driving, I drive smoothly now. I cringe when I see people on social media from places such as America where manuals are less common, flexing driving a manual, meanwhile driving wrong. This video is exactly what people should be doing and are good habits to get into quick.
Back when I had a '96 Integra GSR, the greatest compliment I was given was from a legally blind man that didn't know the car was a manual and commented how smooth my shifts were when he learned it was. To me, I was just taking proper care of my vehicle. I have a '23 Integra 6MT on order. Can't wait!
I am so happy my 2012 Civic Si doesn't have a turbo stock. But with all the torque of the 2.4L(plus some mods) I still get the jerkiness from time to time.
I'm doing everything you said, except for rev matching. I only rev match when I'm overtaking or want to drive more aggressively for fun. Otherwise, I don't do it because it can be noisy and might make other people in the car feel uneasy. Instead, I prefer to simply slow down a bit, shift to a lower gear, and slowly release the clutch to minimize any sudden jolts.
@@TedwardDrives I don't agree. It looks like you're racing all the time. And when downshifting, a lot of times I also want that slow clutch release to slow me down.
Do you Drive smoothly? If you like the video share with someone who has given you some clunky rides!
I don't drive yet unfortunately
Talk about double clutching on downshifts. I'm on my first clutch at 180.000Km on a hot hatch.
actually i do; at least that's what friends told me... but i need to practice my rev-matches more and I don't hit the perfect RPM from 1st to 2nd every time yet. the first time i sat in the driver seat is about a year ago though, so i still have to learn a lot
@Tedward What about staying centered in your lane
I'm currently in the doghouse at home. I'll send this to my wife and then I could have an entire weekend to myself! Haha!
I agree with the generational fact, my father doesn’t revmatch downshift and I never knew it was a thing until I got into backroad driving and realized how important it was
It’s like we live the same life. My dad says “why do you need to rev match? If you downshift it’s to slow down so the clutch should take it”, but I’d rather replace breaks than a clutch
@@matei3026 People who argue against rev-matching (usually they suck at it) are a big pet peeve of mine.
@@opmike343 I've been driving manuals since 1998 without revmatch downshifting and I have never wrecked a clutch. I drove a 96 5-speed Corolla from around 2007, the clutch was trash when I got it, replaced it then and to this day it's still rocking the same clutch. Still drives smooth as silk blows cold A/C as Scotty would say 😆. I'm not arguing against revmatching, if that's your thing, go ahead, I'm just stating my experience.
@@ChrisBanda I don't think a Corolla is the best car for determining if doing or not doing a certain thing increases or decreases wear, considering with oil changes and brakes most Corollas will roll past the 300,000 mile mark without issue.
@@bubbleman2002 I don't disagree
Driving manual made me be more mindful and respectful of driving.
It made me pay more attention to drivers habits, my own driving inputs and how the car behaves and being more safe while observing others driving habits as well. I give people more space than needed (rolling back), and at 4 way stops, I always give others the right of way because drivers are unpredictable and people do california stops more often than not instead of stopping all the way
I do the exact thing, relatively new manual driver, 1.5 years. Learned on my 2018 Si which is my daily driver.
100% agree. Also learning how to ride a motorcycle has helped raised my awareness to another level when I'm driving a car, and i'm a much safer driver as a result of learning to appreciate both driving a stick and riding a motorcycle.
Agreed… Cycling in the city throughout my 20’s increased my hyper awareness also. The anticipation and seeing things developing before actually happing has been priceless.
Sad thing is we need more people like you on the road, especially in my country 💀
“Wearing out our clutches on the used market”🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Got my first manual just last night. Still learning and my shifting is pretty rough. Took the wife for a ride, she felt it and asked what's wrong with the car. I had to tell her nothings wrong with the car, it's me.
Haha, I felt "called out" during the overshifting portion, lol. I'm always shifting unnecessarily between 2,3,&4 on a backroad for the fun of it. There's something about banging off a couple of perfectly timed heal toe downshifts while trail braking towards an apex that makes me feel like a mini driving God, lol.
Lol, same. I was thinking about it the other day, unnecessary downshifting has gotta be one of my favorite parts of driving manual
@@andreamusso1469 Also gives good practice for heel-toe and rev-matching when moving at a brisk pace. Timing and the amount of throttle application needed changes when you're driving quickly and higher up in the RPM range. You're also deeper in the brake pedal, which affects of how your foot interfaces with the throttle during the blip. Just driving on your usual commute doesn't give much opportunity for this kind of thing.
I feel like Takumi when I heel n toe
This guy gets it... overshifting is fine if you know what you're doing, trans doesn't care how much you shift it if you're smooth every time
I got called out on the downshifting part
Quite literally every older person I drive with is so blown away by downshifting and how smooth the downshifts feel with it. It’s weird that the people that taught me how to drive don’t know about this skill.
I think the most important lesson I was given when I was learning was that it's actually okay to not be perfectly smooth and to make mistakes, so long as you understand WHY it was a mistake. If the car is lurching but you don't understand why it isn't liking your inputs, then you should research what is mechanically happening in a manual trans. That way, next time you make a mistake, you will know what caused the car to lurch and you can correct yourself over time.
IMO there is way too much criticism/pressure for new manual drivers to feel like their shifts need to always be perfect otherwise they are a terrible driver.
Like playing a musical instrument, mastery comes after years of practice, and even then "mastery" does not equal perfection. Even the most experienced driver makes mistakes every once in a while.
yes but lurching all the time isnt the norm , and below avg and avg drivers make it seem that way and don’t want to improve
For sure. Mistakes are okay. Just improve from them. I'd have situations where I'd be having a really off day so I wouldn't be paying as much attention to my inputs and I'd make mistakes, then I'd proceed to get even further frustrated and make even more mistakes lol. We're only human, mistakes happen.
@@scoob66 YESSSIR THAT PART !
I've been driving manual since I started driving in 2020.i have some mornings I question what the hell I'm doing! All 3 cars I've had have been manuals.
Do I give gas once the clutch is all the way out or at the biting point when shifting from 2nd to 3rd?
You have no idea how much these videos helped me get into driving a manual. Before I got my first car I had never had access to a manual of any kind. Everyone told me it was a mistake buying something I didn't know how to drive. But I bought it anyway. I hopped in, started it, and drove off right away (albeit a bit shakily.) I drove an hour back to my house based only on the experience I got from these videos. And today I'm shifting and rev matching like a pro. A couple people who've ridden with me actually admitted that they forgot it was a manual half way through the drive.
But for real, I don't know what it is about a manual transmission that makes any car fun to drive. Even my econo box dodge dart is a blast to drive with a stick shift.
I was incredibly surprised on how temperature affected the shifting. In the morning or in winter my Twingo RS shifts just really uncomfortably. You really feel whats happening inside the box. But as soon as temps are over about 15-20 degrees (the right ones), it like a whole new gearbox. It really feels like putting it into butter.
Yeah. That something I learned quickly after getting my '19 mustang gt. It feels like straight trash driving it first thing in the morning which sucks cause I don't get to drive it long enough to warm up. Probably putting a lot of wear on transmission and such.
Same thing, my fiesta ST doesnt want to go into first gear pretty often when its cold. Some people say that changing the gearbox oil helps(generally if the car is a few years old, but even in newer ones ), and that in some cars specific brands work better than the OEM. I think I will give it a try before the winter cause sticky gears really drive me nuts
i lol’ed at the (the right ones) haha, metric OP
My 95 or 98 altima can't remember which one, wouldn't even go into second in the cold. I just went from 1st to 3rd.
@@tyrcipher8811 gotta change your oil more often as well
+1 for the neutral jiggle. IDK why that polarizes some people, it's such good practice
I never knew this was a polarizing concept.
the neutral jiggle is usually overdone by a lot of people. moving the shifter to one side is enough to know if its in neutral.
@@4ae109What's wrong with more jiggle?
The smoothest stickshift car I ever had was a 1989 CRX Si - super easy to drive smoothly in all conditions. Modern stickshift cars with rev-hang require completely opposite shifting technique - shift quicker at lower revs/smaller throttle inputs, and shift slower with higher revs/more throttle. My 2018 Accord Sport drops the revs pretty quick when driving slowly, so if I take my time with the shift I also have to feed throttle back in to bring the revs back up to where they need to be, but if I rev it out, I have to allow 2-3 seconds for the revs to fall to where they need to be.
it's not just a new car thing. I've got a 95 Miata and the Lower the rpm the faster you're gonna have to shift if you don't want to adjust the throttle at all. if you wanna shift at high rpms you're gonna have to let the rpm drop a little bit.
@@grantkendrick277 Newer models have massive rev hang by design due to emissions.
I didnt know about this i thought i turned into a shit driver since my last manual was a smooth shifting subi over 6 yrs ago. U are right about how to shift these. Im barely getting the hang of it after afew weeks of driving the si. I dont like the 1-2 on these i worry about the clutch when i have to be quick
I would like some positive advice. I currently own an 05 civic 5 speed. Been through a clutch already, but I feel like I premature wore it. Watched videos on how to properly engage clutch and sometimes I buck around. The transmission of the car was already at 278k miles and sometimes shirting into 1-3 is almost like it wants to pop out. Not sure if this was a good car to learn manual on, but I'm already invested. Car's been great to me since purchase, I just feel like I'm not driving her properly. For example, I did a similar clutch out to you, but I still buckle going into 1st and sometimes 2nd. Like, I'll hit the biting point, and accelrate, but still buckle. I hardly give her any gas too, it's a honda, like you said hardly has any torque to begin with. Any tips/videos to help me out? Thanks!
Edit: I usually keep RPMS between 2.2k-3k in between shifts as I noticed she likes that sweet spot. Was told by mechanic that the PCM computer is bad, not sure if that could have an effect on timing of clutch since it's a manual. Thank you.
My 07' Alfa Romeo Mito 1.4 shifts nicer then my fathers BMW 318i or my Mom's Alfa Romeo 147. Next car will most likely be a civic type-r, but damn do i often miss my car when trying out other vehicles. The clutch is just SOOOOO nice.
Picking up my first manual today at the dealership (this exact car). Been practicing for months now on my mom's car and this video was great man, truly appreciate it.
cool mom
if he is an American yes, if not...nothing out of the ordinary
YO! Any updates? I'm currently saving for a Civic Si myself, how is the car so far? Do you like it?
@big channel it's awesome! I love it. I'm actually selling it to get the 2023 Type R. Would you be interested? It's blue, blacked out front and back honda logos, and all the HPD spoilers. It'll have 11k miles when I'm back in Wisconsin early May.
@@austin9820 Sorry my bro, I'm going to buy mine fresh from the dealer
My future mother in law rode in my GLI for 15 minutes before looking over and going, "oh you drive a standard!" and got excited.
I absolutely love how my Prelude sounds when I get the downshift just right.
I bought this car 8 years ago not knowing how to drive manual and taught myself. Plus perfected watching Tedward and Topher s videos. I love you two ❤️
Dudes living the dream - Hopefully in a couple months ill be able to buy a 4th gen manual
as of now im driving a automatic focus my father gave me so i cant complain XD
Do I give gas once the clutch is all the way out or at the biting point when shifting from 2nd to 3rd?
I've seen so many videos about driving manual, and I never get tired of it.
It hypes me up for my eventual first manual car lol. Soon
lol i did the same thing before buying my first car
Hahaha, I still have to wait for some years until I get the opportunity to own a manual car; hopefully everyone here will have the chance to get one
My first manual car was a 98 dodge ram half ton pickup and that was a blast to learn in with the towing gears lol
Were u able to get it my man?
@@umithi6251 Yes. I now own two manual transmission vehicles. I've been fortunate enough to find a limited edition convertible 1996 Toyota Celica GT. I take good care of it
Lots of good info here! One thing I would say to new drivers learning manual is that they will never be perfect. You mentioned this a bit in the video and I just want to echo it, because it's something I really struggled with. I'm a bit of a perfectionist and I felt like a pretty competent driver before I got a manual car after 9 years of driving an automatic. It was a difficult adjustment for me, and I obsessed over trying to get smooth shifts and felt like I was constantly fighting the car. As mentioned here, listen to the car and over time you'll recognize what it wants. There may be times where you have to compromise and shift quickly due to road or traffic conditions, and that's okay. Work on improving your skills, and accept that part of what makes driving a manual fun is that it's a human experience and every shift is just that little bit different.
I really wonder how weird my experience with manual driving was. I had my shifts perfected within 2 months of learning manual. Dunno if it's the norm for people who care to learn or
@@LethalLuggage cool
this hits home after driving my first manual a week ago. love this comment.
I recently started watching tedward and only started driving manual last year (I've improved a lot) and the reason I love tedward is because I have a very similar mindset when comes to driving manual, I love the whole you're always learning In a manual car because it's so true I'm wayyy past driving like a beginner my driving has become very smooth yet I'm still always watching videos about how to drive manual 😂😂
bro you and topher are literally the best car reviewers at the moment. you both give such good commentary and fun pov driving content.
thank you!
I’ve been driving manual for 7 years and this still gave me some useful tips that I honestly never thought about 👍
I taught myself to drive a manual when I worked at a VW dealership and my shifting was absolutely sloppy. It took me longer than I am proud to admit to make my shifting much smoother
Thanks!
The 22 civic si was my first manual and a year later I would say I've been driving it perfectly smooth for about month and about to start doing my own rev matching.
Hi Ted, I have mastered my technique years ago when I had a colleague who would very easily get car-sick with jerky driving. My driving is so smooth now that people have asked me whether my manual Volvo was in fact a slushbox!
Plus I have to be very sweet with the Porsche when she is cold, and also the manual on my '74 Rover 2200TC is something else, and needs a whole lot of love and gentility.
Smooth operator here!!!!
in Italy, the average driver (like 95% of people) doesn't even know what rev matching a downshift is, no one told us why it's important or how to do it, and also, the engine brake generated by not revmatching is widely and commonly used everyday by everyone as a valid and beneficial method to slow down the car approaching a red light, or a stop. maybe it's beacuse heel and toe on citycars is almost impossible to do, so everyone uses brake + engine brake to slow down? we'll never know.. love your content mate, keep it up!
So I thought there were some cultural differences between America and Europe.
When I was watching a manual car driving from a guy in the UK, his definition of rev matching was different from what Americans define rev matching. Basically he was saying listen to the clutch when you downshift, and when you do the ‘actual’ rev matching with the throttle, that was considered a slightly advanced technique. So when he was teaching beginners to driving a manual, that was how he taught, and that was how the UK tests new drivers. The comments were also very much in agreement as well from the mostly European viewers. It was an interesting observation.
And that's completely fine, clutches ain't made of cardboard. Most of my friends and car enthusiasts I know actually know how to rev match but it's just inconvenient to use in casual/city drive unless you're on some empty open road where you can drive just for your pleasure.
@@karlowolf05 you sure do put less overall stress on the brakes using engine brake for slowing down... unfortunately, in most everyday cars, there is no way around it because you can't even do heel and toe, the position of the pedals just makes it impossible... so, if you are pressing the brake pedal, you can't rev match even if you want... it's just the way it is 😄
3:45 "Never trust the blinker" I felt that to a spiritual level, I'm originally from Brazil where manual cars are the norm and not the exception like here in Canada, and I was surprised when this happened to me while commuting back from work.
Nice videos! I like your engagement with the viewers!
The fun/interesting part of all this is it’s often very specific to the car. I own three manual cars. My golf shifts nicest at 3k rpm with for around town driving. My truck has a very narrow rpm range (my 350 sbc redlines at 4500) so I have to ‘over shift’ around town. Rev matching is super easy. My 79 320, that transmission is perfection. Every shift is buttery smooth. Clutch bites up high and is pretty heavy.
Have you ever thought about doing a “tips and tricks” or “how to” video for new drivers? Your explanation is very easy to digest and adapt. I’m thinking about getting a stick shift car so I know how to drive all transmissions. Your explanations gives me the confidence to actually do it rather than talk to my buddies about it lol.
I think you’ll help a lot of people if you make a “tutorial” video series
Great video Tedward! These were the things that were going through my head after I bought my manual car after so many years of driving automatics! Understanding the car so I can upshift and downshift smoothly was the goal! Thanks man!
I could've used this video back in 2019 when I got my first manual car! Anyways, better late than never 🤣
Hopefully the manual transmission will never go away, shifting is one of the greatest parts of driving. The most satisfying manuals I’ve ever owned was on my 1977 Datsun 280Z and my Honda S2000. Honda’s in general have long had excellent manuals. The worst manuals I’ve had were (shockingly) on my 1973 Porsche 914/6 and a 1985 Countach I drove once.
The trick is to remember that you have to master the clutch and transmission in each car, but when you do, it’s extremely addictive.
My dad taught me how to rev-match and im so happy he did. It feels so great when u release the clutch and it engages so smoothly. Also, in my opinion, it just sounds great, especially with a sporty exhaust😉
Do I give gas once the clutch is all the way out or at the biting point when shifting from 2nd to 3rd?
"blame the teacher" aye man im self taught😔
Same😭😭
same bro. on my 4th month of driving my new car and im still not good but getting much better. I rarely stall it, if ever and I am confident now but hills still suck lol and some of shifts are jerky
U blamed twice
You are the one who inspired me to get a manual car as my first car a few years ago. its a 1991 Toyota corolla with the 5 speed manual. It has no tachometer so I learned how to do everything my feel and ear. it had 200k miles on it when I bought it. it now has 445k miles on it and is still kicking. I pulled the engine to replace the clutch and throw out bearing at 400k (as well as the front and rear main seal and many other rubber gaskets hoses and seals while I was there.. Many people compliment me on my shifting and how smooth it is. (I can sit a glass of water on the dash while shifting and not a drop will spill. many of the techniques you mentioned in the video, I've actually taught myself to do. Since then I've taught many of my close friends how to drive manual as well and 3 out of the 5 of them liked it so much that they actually bought manual cars! That being said, Thanks Tedward for introducing me to the wonderful world of manual transmissions!
This is incredible! Really excited that I had some part in making this happen, and even happier that you've inspired some friends to learn and buy manual cars!
Driving an old Corolla too, and at first I hated it, but I rly appreciate how the transmission feels after getting used to it
@@TedwardDrives Yes sir, and now I happily own several manual vehicles. While I stick to older manual vehicles, I have a friend I taught manual to bought a 2023 Honda Civic SI with the 6 speed manual. He upgraded from his 2000 honda accord with the 5 speed manual.
@@eccotom1 yea people typically don't like the mushy feeling shifter the corollas have. But honestly I like it because its accurate and easy to work with. My 1996 ranger with the 5 speed has a longer throw and more clicky shifter. I don't tend to be picky. Each transmission has its own personality and special characteristics.
I just recently got my first manual, a 2002 celica GT-S. Just when I was wondering "hmmm where is that happy shifting" You called it out by name. That blew my mind. Thanks for the video!
07:24 That advice saved my life, I always wondered why some experienced drivers that I know kept changing gears all the time and when I was driving I never felt like it was that necessary. I always thought I was missing something.
Another thing to point out about rev matching for a downshift... Do the clutch-in-blip when you're still in the previous gear (or shift to neutral, then blip), so when you downshift, the RPM is already closer (or perfect) for engaging the lower gear. If you clutch in, shift, then rev match, the synchros are doing more work. It is a very noticeable difference when you get it right. Less delay, and smoother engagement.
the thing u said about temperature affecting the shifts is something i noticed but i never pin pointed, i always felt like im doing something wrong in those few occasions, but this makes perfect sense
literally just got a manual, thank you so much for posting something like this today
Thank you for posting this. I have never actually driven a manual nor have I ever been taught too, and there are a lot of good pointers to be had in this video. I recently bought a manual project car and am excited to learn how to drive a stick.
The highest form of praise I've received while driving is my drivers test instructor telling me it was the smoothest driving experience he's had in a long time :)
I can't blame my instructor, he asked me "What's the first thing you do when you start driving?" and I answered "Full throttle?"
Big toe!!! FLOOR IT
"Just enjoy the gear" truer words were never spoken 😂
Great video and summary of “how to throw”. I’ve driven manuals for 25 years and I love every minute of it. I learned on a 71 Beetle where everything was manual, and you learned quickly not to stall it in the summer or the motor would vapor lock and you’d be stranded for an hour or so!
Dude, you 're absolutely right, there are so many people who are rough with manual gearbox
I am constantly trying to become smoother with my manual driving. I bought my Mazda6 because it had a manual and I wanted to improve. The car does have some rev hang which i have to fight, but i can still be pretty smooth. Just takes practice and understanding you might learn some tips and tricks from others like yourself Tedward. Not commuting to office for the past 2 years kept miles off my car but i got our of practice.
Awesome video. Thank you for your insights! I drive a 2012 Civic Si, so it’s nice to see someone show these things on a car very similar to mine. I’ve been experiencing a lot of the problems you’ve described, and it’s nice to find these solutions on day 2 of driving stick. Thank you!
bingo bango... did you mention skipping gears? engine breaking? coasting in gear to a stop light? stuff like that is really good for smoothness. best thing about manuals is that you can manipulate the gearbox, and not use breaks as mush.
Always leaving some for the next video. There’s a million tips. Not sure people would watch a 2 hour video lol
@@TedwardDrives no i agree... bingo bango, good stuff.
bro I literally just bought a Civic Si 2 days ago and wanted to make my 1-2 and 2-3 shifts smoother. then you upload this vid with my exact car 🙏🏽
This video could not have come at a better time lol, I just got my first car with a manual transmission the other day.
I've been driving manual for 10 years but I'm self taught, that's why I'm listening to this. My teacher was literally a guy who never drove stick before, so it's good to see where to improve
I'll double clutch the 1-2 upshift in my 2010 Focus when it's cold just out of habit. I find the gears mesh so much smoother especially in the winter. My car has a ton of rev hang when it's cold. At least it goes away once the engine is warm. I really miss cable throttle. My old 1991 MR2 was so responsive with zero rev hang. It had a nicer shifter and a smoother clutch actuation too. That thing was a blast. Thankfully my Focus still has great pedal spacing for heel toe so that makes downshifting smoothly pretty easy. Also on the neutral wiggle. I always do that too. No idea why that'd trigger people lol.
Yep, never learned how to properly drive a stick other than the basics until I started looking into it. I have learned a lot and discovered a lot in my 2015 civic SI. One big thing that helped with using the clutch was actually learning to float gears.
0:54 Source? I disagree. When you start the car with the clutch engaged, the starter not only has to turn the engine and flywheel over, but it will have to turn over the entire input shaft of the transmission and rotate all the gears through potentially cold, thick fluid. In what universe is that "the best way" to start a car?
Yes it will add minimal load to cranking, but especially on older cars it introduces excess wear on thrust bearings. Any time I've use the clutch on a vintage car for start up in a video I've gotten an earful from old timers. Some research proves them correct. Will it kill the car? No. But it's a thing. Here is the reasoning from Grass Roots Racing "I prefer to start the car with my foot off the clutch to save the thrust bearing. Because when you put your foot on the clutch to start the car, you're basically trying to force the crankshaft out the front of the block. Your thrust bearing is there to prevent this, but before the car starts there's no oil pressure. Your thrust bearing does not appreciate this, especially if you've installed a heavier clutch with more crank-pushing power."
@@TedwardDrives I still disagree. Considering how many times the clutch is engaged/disengaged during normal everyday driving, one extra clutch press to start the car should not at all severely reduce the life of this thrust bearing. Clutches are designed to last thousands and thousands of miles. If you're that concerned about the life of the thrust bearing, maybe don't daily a manual? Regardless, most manual cars require the clutch to be disengaged to start anyway so its a moot point.
@@Not_Lewis I also disagree
@@Not_Lewis Here's the thing, when you press the clutch with the engine running, the thrust bearing has oil pressure so there is no issue. When you are starting the engine, the thrust bearing has no oil pressure, and will be metal on metal for the few seconds it takes to build pressure.
Randy from illuminate started is r32 gtr without depressing the clutch and it started just fine I forgot the video though
I’m day 2 of my new si. First time with a stick. It’s been so humbling. Having problems with stop signs, stopping and going. Thanks for the vids. Desperately needed them
Update? I'm thinking about getting an SI, I really want it over any of the other sedans but of course it has no automatic option. Also can you elaborate on the stop sign issues? Thanks
@@mgstrip last saturday i went from never driven a stick to 6 days later, pretty competent at it. I literally just watched tons of vids. Practiced everyday different situations (stop signs in my neighborhood, finding the biting point over and over, speed bumps in an empty parking lot, going up a slight incline at the bottom of my drive way without rolling back), over and over. Pretty comfortable driving now. The stop sign issue was because i was a dummy and going straight from a stop to 3rd because i was putting the car in the wrong gear. This car is fun as hell to drive and the interior is so bad as. For the price i don’t think I’d be happy with anything else, and there are people driving 15-20 Hondas, so it’s very reliable. My wife actually traded in an 07 she got brand new for a 22 pilot last year. I highly recommend the car. Just practice. I suggest maybe go on a weekend so you have time to practice before work. That’s what i did. I had the pressure of having to figure it out so I can keep my job driving me
I’m in the same boat as u brotha just bought an 08 si coupe and it’s fun I’m just really nervous to take it out first time manual learner here
@@vgetto6667 man I’m redlining shit now. 2 months in im pretty decent. Every week you really just get that much more comfortable
One more thing that’s worth mentioning is the difference in Turbochargers in each car. Every engine produces peak power at different RPMs, and gaining the muscle memory to account for each engine’s sweet spot for each gear shift is something I struggle with. A lot of modern cars, for example, produce little-to-no power until about 1500-2000 RPM in first gear, which is when the turbo kicks in and the car jerks forward uncomfortably, which makes deducing the sweet spot for switching into 2nd gear a bit of a challenge.
My 22 SI does that every now and then and will lug hard if it hasn't had time to build boost in 1st.
it’s kind of wild seeing a POV of someone driving without any controls in my hands😮😅gives me a fun vertigo.
Hey Tedward, great video as always! I gotta say, FWD/RWD is far easier to drive smoothly even as a seasoned manual driver. I Have a WRX and that full time AWD is punishing for the wrong throttle / clutch inputs - but it has made me a far better driver for it!
I really love this creator, can’t wait to get my first manual car. Pearl white SI 22 here I come baby🥰❤️
Love the similarities in our driving habits and mindsets. Neutral wiggle, "don't trust a blinker", and of course hvac constantly pegged on 69. I'd love to see a candid recording of all the fiddling I do at startup. I am fairly sure I did some serious damage to my 235 clutch sticking it in ramped tiny corners of a Philly garage for 3 years.
i just got my 2022 si two days ago without knowing how to drive a standard, your videos helped me drive 400 miles home without a hitch, thank you so much
Congratulations! Really glad this helped
Would love to see a tutorial on how to drive manual. Planning on buying a Civic Si soon but don’t know how to drive manual. Can’t get enough of your Si videos!
Good luck on learning how to drive a manual. I plan on buying an 8th gen civic Si this weekend as long as no one gets to it before me. I will be learning how to drive a manual as well as this will be my first manual car.
Is very fun to drive a manual transmission vehicle, I went for a test drive today and it was amazing.
Every time I get back into a modern e-throttle manual car after driving a cable throttle manual it takes me about 10 min to readjust and drive smoothly.
Can’t say it’s the same vice versa, I can drive smoothly almost immediately in any cable throttle car. Old cars communicate much more clearly how they want to be driven.
10000% true. Cable throttles are so much easier to predict
i've watched this video so many time and also the how to drive manual video of yours and i dont even have a manual car. It's just so entertaining and informative for those who are beginners to manual driving like myself. Also, ive been shopping for one and hoping i can get one for a good price once I come back, either 2023 or 2024 (assuming there will be one at the end of the year)
Thanks a lott for teaching us man! I'm sure there's a lot out there that learned how to solely by watching your videos.
Stop you’re calling me out 😂 but great video to keep me and my WRX (2020) in check. Thanks as always. I try to tell myself to drive normal everyday 😊
haha the wrx is a particularly clunky car and takes a bit of thought
@@TedwardDrives I did get praised tho from my friend... "you drive so smooth"
On a roll with these Civ vids. Thanks, Tedward
I understand what you’re saying about not putting your clutch down on the foot to start the car but I do valet some cars I drive are old you have to put your foot down to start the car and give it gas when you pull off or drive off the newer cars you really don’t have to engage the gas because when you press the clutch it already somehow engages gas and get it rolling off when I really don’t have to use the gas when I was driving a Chevy SS all I do is hold the clutch to the biting point 5 mph off the clutch in the car just rolled and don’t even have to give it gas. Make sure when I pull off the clutch it’s a smooth engagement off not like a jerk emotion on the clutch as if I pulled off to biting point to Early.
I believe in many modern cars the ECU's add gas/revs for you when you lift the clutch to the biting point. Certainly one of those car dependent things
He's just talking about staying at a red light, just leave it in neutral if you're gonna be stuck there for more than 5 seconds. Also the reason why it's "giving it gas" when you slowly let out without giving it gas is that the motor has enough torque to creep purely off the clutch and start off in 1st gear if you're slow and careful enough with the clutch movement.
All manual LS V8 cars just do that, they make enough low end idle torque that you can get them going without any gas
He’s talking about cars literally not letting you start without the clutch pedal pushed in. This is a safety feature that you can’t get around unless you disconnect some wires. But technically, it is adding some wear to the throw out bearing to have the clutch pedal pushed in when the engine cranks.
@@owengrove5089 this is probably the worst feature added. I prefer doing the gas on my own and whenever i driven a new car I didn't really like it and my 2004 car is so much better to drive.
Man I must say, the interior of that Honda is absolutely gorgeous!
For me it's not hard to drive smoothly but it is tricky to drive both smoothly and fast, especially when accelerating from a dead stop at traffic lights on roads with like 55 speed limit (which means most people drive at over 60), which are pretty common around where I live. If I want to shift smoothly from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd, I'd have to wait for the rev to drop because of rev hang (I drive a Type R), and when I am waiting, I can literally see all the automatic cars around me either pulling away in front of me or getting REAL close to me in my mirrors. It gets a lot better once I am into 3rd and shifting to 4th and higher but if I want to accelerate faster in 1st and 2nd specifically to not get in the way of all the automatic drivers around me then it becomes a lot harder to maintain smoothness, while wanting a more seemless and faster acceleration at the same time because I have to let the clutch out faster to minimize lost time caused by shifting.
I guess I shouldn't be too upset about it since the FK8 is kinda known to be jerky and not smooth in first and second gear, but still...
I sometimes go from 1-2-4-5 or 1-2-3-5 when needing to quickly and smoothly accelerate, idk if it's the right way to do it but it seems to work for me. I don't know if it will work on your car, like it might be better to skip second to go to third and then accelerate to the cruising speed and then put your cruising gear in
Give 1 a little bit of gumption (stout, but smooth throttle application) but shift early, wring out 2 and 3 and then your at speed
11:50 first time this happened to me was one of the best feelings ever. best part was he knew what a manual was bc his other friend had one too but was not smooth with it at all. I know more about cars than the average person, but not enough to hang with the "car guys", I just love the control & predictability that comes with a manual.
Great video and great points. I agree with all of these. I do want to add that if you are applying a lot of throttle before upshifting, especially in 1st gear, when you let go of the gas some cars will slow down a lot, causing everyone in the car to lunge forward due to engine brake, before you can depress the clutch pedal and shift to 2nd gear. I've seen this A LOT, even with someone who has been driving a manual all his life. It's important when you're shifting to ease off the gas pedal first, or modulate the gas so that you are staying at a constant speed BEFORE letting go of the gas pedal and depressing the clutch pedal to upshift.
One more thing is that cars that drop revs quickly will require a bit of throttle before letting the clutch pedal up to the bite point (on upshifts) or else there is a little jolt as well.
I was a pretty smooth shifter when shifting down but when I was accelerating up to speed I experienced what you were saying. Then when I realized my mistake my shifting overall became much smoother.
4 years driving a 1984 Subaru GL with worn synchros is the best learning experience you can get I think. Makes everything else feel easy!
What I can't smooth out are upshifts. Passenger always go forward when I clutch in. Seems like I have to ease off the throttle slowly before I clutch in for the passenger but feels so unnatural
yes peel off the throttle before you go for the clutch. Each car will behave differently so just find the sweet spot. Aston Martin manuals required almost a full second off throttle before clutching in lol. Very annoying!
The over shifting part is so true… people with paddles/dct’s do it a lot too, everyone’s obsessed with downshifting and hearing the downward revving and pops and bangs
Keep the clutch pressed for the long time is a really bad thing. But in Germany there are so many people which do this... it is terryfying. Good Video :)
As long as you don't rev the car and have the clutchpedal fully depressed, it is fine. It doesn't cause that much wear. I always have first gear engaged and i'm on the clutch, those 2 minutes (max here in Finland) won't break your bearing or wear anything that much. It's just a bit too much for normal everyday driving. Also makes inattentive drivers so damn slow off the lights.
Ofc if it is a habit of going neutral, it ain't a bad habit.
”half-clutch" is bad even for short periods.
These stick videos are great. Maybe even better than the cool new race cars you’re driving around. I’m going to learn next year and I’m so excited.
My biggest issue is that no matter where you look for info on PROPER manual transmission techniques and scenarios, you’ll always find conflicting information, you’ll always see people saying opposing things and it’s hard to know which is accurate
Edit: @Tedward just bought a ‘00 Celica GTS, it’s my first manual, any tips specific to that car?
How much you paid for it and how many miles????????
Also regarding information on driving manual, some stuff contradicting but also some information is an alternative.
There is more than one way to throw a punch and it's the same thing with driving
He has a gts video I believe, you should check it out
@@shinobusensui9395 Amazing deal, bought from original owner, extensive maintenance records, 96k miles for $5500. No issues mechanically, just cosmetic stuff like paint could use work and the drivers seat had a tear in the leather. Apart from that stuff it’s flawless as far as me and my dad can tell.
I've been daily driving my first manual for about 6 months now. This video was very helpful :)
Couldn't agree more.
But help me with this one thing.
I drive manual for a long time, doing Rev matches and even hill toe downshift flawlessly.
BUT whenever I turn on the A/C the car becomes sooo unsmooth, where the only way to shift nicely is by revving all the way to 3k every time.
Do you find it the same?
Yes, depending on the car ac draws so much power that you can really feel it. So you do need more revs to get to the same bite point of the clutch. I had this with my 80hp Golf which was slow normally and if ac was on it was. just like you described, a pain to drive.
What car do you have? This sounds like an issue that would happen more often with cars that has low power. I would imagine that staying on the bite point longer will smooth out your shifts.
That really surprises me because my car is a 1.4 tsi with 122 hp
I consider myself a skilled manual driver and I found this helpful. Thanks!
I just ordered a 22 Miata Club and my wife will be driving the car too. The ONE thing I try to explain is about staying in 1st at red lights. Let's see if I can sneak this video in for some light indoctrination. Also happy #topgunday :)
I think this habit is way more psychological than we give it credit for. When we sit in gear waiting its like we really don't want to inconvenience anyone behind us. When that light turns green we want to be off immediately! The feeling of turning green and still needed to put in gear makes us feel like we'll get a beep from the car behind. I think we just gotta let go of that haha.
@@TedwardDrives perhaps, I'm always trying to be aware of when the signal is going to change, so maybe that's my excuse -i usually (definitely not always) know when the light is changing.
I have never driven a car with automatic gearbox, but I have a feeling I would be bored by it. Shifting gears is an important part of the driving experience and just so satisfying. :D
It's interesting to see how US drivers see a manual transmission as something complex that has to be mastered, whereas in Europe the vast majority of people have learnt how to drive on one. From a Euro POV, everything in this video goes without saying
But I think I've had the clunkiest drives from drivers in Europe. The mentality is that "we only drive stick shifts so we know how" but those average drivers seem pretty messy
damn he rolled you
Finally someone is saying it. Many of the Ride shares (not all) I've taken in Europe have been very jerky and the drivers lug the engines in first gear
It kind of *is* a complex thing, you can ALWAYS get better
Because you people have better driving coaches.
Honestly patience and doing things smoothly makes my ride enjoyable because I have the satisfaction knowing I am doing it right, and giving the mechanical parts a easy life!
Why do people get mad when you neutral jiggle that so normal FYI must be noobs complaining.
This is the internet...they complain about everything. I'm a skinny dude...A runner. And guys will legit yell at me for "Skipping leg day". It's very strange that they want me to be more attractive to them lol
I don't understand this at all either. There's is a Top Gear clip back in the day where Richard Hammond parked a car and did the neutral wiggle before getting out. Every single person I know that has a manual currently does the neutral wiggle. Most of these people complaining probably are shit drivers or don't know how at all.
@@TedwardDrives Thank you for replying back I’m at work right now I wrote to you on my way to work.
It always gives you a good feeling when you found those sweet spots in each shift. 😊
Do people get mad over the little 'neutral jiggle'? That's the first thing people tell you to do when you are learning to drive a manual. Foot on the clutch and shake the shifter to check you are in neutral. If people get triggered by that, I'm lost.
They lose their minds. So many comments I can't count.
Shake it once, that's fine
Shake it twice, that's ok
Shake it three times...that's annoying
Shake it 4 times, I’m trolling
@@TedwardDrives The only reason I can think of to get triggered by the neutral jiggle is they never driven a single manual car and they’re just frickin’ triggered.
Oh, the buttershifts, yeah I have those with my Skoda, I can tell by how the car responds to me that I'm tired when driving. Shifts become more rigid and I tend to be a tad more aggressive on the throttle.
Despite driving for over 10 years myself now, I can easily valuate myself on a good or bad day. Also depends on how the car feels. Some days shes in the right state and things go super easy. Other times, when its bad weather or cold out she tends to struggle on remaining that continuous comfort.
Its always good to evaluate yourself and to work on your own skills accordingly.
But always drive safe and if you wish to test your own skills more thoroughly, do it on a track or an abandoned area with no one around. Also helps to bring a friend or someone along with more experience than you do. Having someone else around can help you see or find out things you as a driver yourself may not directly see.
How to drive a manual smoothly.. buy an automatic
I learned how to drive manual with these kinds of videos all over TH-cam, so when my gf rented a Miata for my birthday for me my friend “taught” me how to drive it. But 30-40 minutes in the parking lot later. I’m driving on the road and he says “You shift smoother than me!” I was thinking “no shit” 😂
I'm a new driver in Ireland. Everyone here drives manuals, so while learning I got a lot of correct criticism. Even with only just under a year of driving, I drive smoothly now. I cringe when I see people on social media from places such as America where manuals are less common, flexing driving a manual, meanwhile driving wrong. This video is exactly what people should be doing and are good habits to get into quick.
"but just drive like.. MONSTERS" i felt that when i was learning on my third or fourth session of practicing LMAAOOO
Back when I had a '96 Integra GSR, the greatest compliment I was given was from a legally blind man that didn't know the car was a manual and commented how smooth my shifts were when he learned it was. To me, I was just taking proper care of my vehicle. I have a '23 Integra 6MT on order. Can't wait!
I am so happy my 2012 Civic Si doesn't have a turbo stock. But with all the torque of the 2.4L(plus some mods) I still get the jerkiness from time to time.
this guy makes a lot of sense. I like this guy
I'm doing everything you said, except for rev matching. I only rev match when I'm overtaking or want to drive more aggressively for fun. Otherwise, I don't do it because it can be noisy and might make other people in the car feel uneasy. Instead, I prefer to simply slow down a bit, shift to a lower gear, and slowly release the clutch to minimize any sudden jolts.
Rev match always. Very amateur not to.
@@TedwardDrives I don't agree. It looks like you're racing all the time. And when downshifting, a lot of times I also want that slow clutch release to slow me down.
Nice to hear you mention about the rpm to shift. It varies from car to car and the car will tell you that.
the most relaxing driving video i've ever seen!
I love whip splashes man, my dad drives unsmoothly but thats what i love, driving smoothly is kinda boring + slower
“When you’re driving a Corvette this is gonna have some impact” *me, laughing in C8*