getting into 1st gear

[bmw4life13]

I’ve been driving stick for 7 years now and my girlfriend says she always gets sick after getting in the car with me =) she thinks I’m too harsh when I shift gears!!!! I admit I am pretty rough when I get into first but that’s because I have this weird need to peel off every chance I get in my bimmer. Anyone else have similar driving experiences driving stick?

 

[Bear6360]

I’ve been driving stick for 7 years now and my girlfriend says she always gets sick after getting in the car with me =) she thinks I’m too harsh when I shift gears!!!! I admit I am pretty rough when I get into first but that’s because I have this weird need to peel off every chance I get in my bimmer. Anyone else have similar driving experiences driving stick?

I'm always floorin' it from a dead stop. As for shifting smooth...the best advice I can give you without getting into a ton of detail......let the clutch out slowly. Also, make sure you're giving just the right amount of gas when you let it out. Pay attention to if you are jerking forwards or backwards to tell.

 

[Triv]

When you learnt to drive, wasn't clutch control part of the course?

In the UK about 90% of cars are manual (or stick), auto's are generally confined to larger cars (5 series and up).

The situation here is that you learn to drive manual unless you are unable to change gear due to some sort of medical complaint. You can then opt to take your driving test in an auto, but form that point on you are only licensed to drive auto's. If you pass in a manual, you can drive either type of car. Weird or what?

The strange thing is that in the UK, most people are nervous about driving an auto and as I understand it, the situation in the US is reversed. What a bizarre world we live in.

 

[bmw4life13]

yes i do know how to shift gears bear6360 i guess what i mean is whenever i do get into first gently my bimmer starts off slow as hell. it feels like even a jogger can blow by me. how smooth does your ride feel when you floor it from a dead stop? i imagine it must feel a little jerky.

 

[MrElussive]

That's something I notice a lot when I drive with friends. When I am changing gears, I see their bodies move forward, then back, due to the intertia. I think as a stick shift driver, you train yourself to sit more backwards into the seat, whereas my passengers sit a bit hunched over in the front and this causes them to move forward and backward more easily. Either way, I never get any complaints. Stick shift is just not nearly as smooth as an automatic, and your girlfriend is just being a girl.

 

[Bear6360]

yes i do know how to shift gears bear6360 i guess what i mean is whenever i do get into first gently my bimmer starts off slow as hell. it feels like even a jogger can blow by me. how smooth does your ride feel when you floor it from a dead stop? i imagine it must feel a little jerky.

I didn't mean to suggest that you don't know how to drive a manual....but my wife never complains about my driving (at least not about the shifting part ).
At any rate, my feels smooth from start to end. It is a little jerky if I let the clutch out too fast....but then again, you already know how to drive so I shouldn't bother telling you that. [joke]
...maybe it's your clutch.
....and I disagree with MrElussive. A manual CAN be smoother than an auto, but it usually isn't because of user error.