just wondering if anyone who didnt know how to drive stick got their car and burned their clutch already? my stang should be getting here any day now and well its stick. ive only tried one time and pretty much got the hang of it but still need alot of practice. also, if i would of burned the clutch, how much would it be? or would it be under warranty?

 

Clutches are NOT under warranty. Don't worry. The clutches on mustangs are great. Replaced mine on my cobra at 90,000 miles . there is no way you can burn out the clutch unless you ride it all the time. Just remember. let the clutch out slowly , but not too slowly and let it all the way out. DON"T RIDE THE CLUTCH. After a week of practice you'll get the hang of it. It's all in the feel and before you know it you won't even think about it. Have fun!!!

 

These things are meant to take SOME abuse (It'll shorten the life)
I've had the car for about 2 weeks, and have only been able to drive it 2 days (basically 3 or 4 trips) and already I have noticed myself getting better.

Practice Practice Practice

If you want to avoid some problems, get someone to go with you in the car and explain how to avoid some of your bad/wrong habits/techniques.
I had a 10 minute superfast lecture, which improved my skills 10 fold.

I'm still wet behind the ears,
straight drive it a week, and you'll notice a diff.

 

I'm in the same boat...ordered a manual transmission but have never driven one in my life! Eeeek..

 

living in the DC area you'll be a clutch master in no time with all of that traffic

 

I don't think there would be a problem with the clutch either, I've put over 11,000 miles on my '82 and the clutch is still perfect plus I learned to drive on it, and for guys that haven't driven a manual and have one on order I wouldn' t worry. Point-I don't think the clutch is any stronger on my 23 yr old car than a new one. Like already said, just practice and it will probably become natural after a while. When I got my license I drove my '82 to school the next day; I had only driven it one time before then. I was rough at first, but after a week I had noticed a difference and before I knew it was second nature. I was really nervous the first day because my car's really loud and it was the quickest car I've ever driven, (a loud, modded '82 with about 240hp seems very unforgiving till you get used to it.) I stalled it once the first day and haven't since.

Good luck to all..

 

You'll stall it

When I picked mine up...imagine picking up a car that attracts attention on its own...with a colour that very few have seen (in this area) with an exhaust that is EXTREMELY loud (borla stingers)
Yeah, my driving style SUCKED!!!!! and was watched by ALL

It was a love/hate relationship. Loved the car, hated the tranny....
I still don't have it down, as my seat time has been diminished (stupid snow)....but you'll start to learn the ins/outs of the car.

Galaxie and Kev gave this advice....
'on a flat surface, slowly release the clutch....it will start to pull you forward without gas (be extremely slow/gentle)'
-this will teach you the grab point

Another friend brought up a point, I thought I was releasing slow/smooth, but I wasn't. Reason being....your left foot isn't used to driving a clutch, it is just enjoying the show on an automatic car right?
You have no dexterity in your left foot yet....it comes with time and getting used to it.

And if you get to a hill, in the beginning, practice it with using the handbrake...try a remote location where no one will be behind you (if you can)

Patience we'll get it (notice i said we....)

 

Find a large abandoned parking lot and have at it ...

 

yeah i drove stick for only an hour 2 months b4 i got my car and look at me now 1000 miles and only stalled 2 times, never grinded gears and my shifts are very smooth and easy modst of the time. i still rock the boat now n then but yeah goto a parking lot for an hour. your best bet.

 

My wife drives the car on the weekends and when she pulls into the garage she is revving and slipping the clutch like crazy. Its a slight uphill into the garage. I sorta get on to her about it, telling her she is going to burn the clutch up, but I might as well be talking to the wall.

I know she is probably doing it all over the place, and I expect to have to replace the clutch in 20k miles. Clutch replacement is easy and your not going to hurt anything by burning it up. Don't worry about it

 

I guess I'm lucky... racing is in my blood and I picked up clutch in about ten minutes.... nothing like driving a stick. You just feel so much more part of the car. I love it!

Actually, this reminds me of a funny story. I knew a guy who bought a Mazda 6 with a stick. He had never driven stick before, and after nearly crashing into two cars in the dealer's lot by popping the clutch (he didn't understand that you had to slowly let out the clutch), he had to call his father... except his dad was fifty miles away. He called me, but I was at work doing stunt rehersals and couldn't help him. So he wound up calling his girlfriend's parents. The father wasn't home, but the mother was, so guess who drove his BRAND NEW MAZDA 6 off the lot while he sat in the passenger seat!?

Yup, that's right! HIS GIRLFRIEND'S MOTHER! Right in front of every salesman on the lot!

Man, where's a videocamera when you need one!

 

about the parking lot thing..........i know how to drive stick considerring i did test a manual 05 GT on a highway (NJ traffic) and i did fine. im somewhat new to the whole manual thing considerring i learned in november and drive some cars at work that have stick. but every now and then my friend lets me drive his manual 02 GT and i do fine. its all in ur mind. once u get the basics of getting into gear, the rest really is cake. thats when u start to practice down shifting

 

Now that's funny

 

I don't know if you guys do this, but you should also rev match when downshifting. The Mustang's pedals are also great for hee and toe downshifting. There is a really good explanation on how to do both if I can find the link.

 

Sounds like I'm not the only nut-job who's dropping about 27 grand to learn how to drive stick!

I really debated it for a while and was originally planning to get with this great 5-speed automatic. But after talking to friends and family and reading about the enjoyment people seem to get from having such control of the car, I decided to go for a stick.

However, I still have in the back of my head the story of my neighbor many years ago. She was in her 20's and her parents had bought her a new white VW Cabriolet (back when they were actually hip...for women....BTW, I'm buying this car with my own dime). About a month later, I saw her brand-new V-dub being towed to her house after she had managed to fry the clutch. :bang:

Anyway, I've actually test-driven a 5-speed GT..to my amazement. After ordering a GT back in January without a test drive, I recently went to a nearby Ford dealer trying to playing the eager stinker...er, potential buyer to try and score a test drive. The salesman practically tossed me the keys and told me "shut up and drive". I couldn't even get a brouchure from these guys before the New Year without giving them 5 forms of ID. And now here he was, pleased as punch to let me tear-up this poor car even after I told the salesman I'd only driven stick once for about 5 minutes...in a Honda!

Long story short (too late), I was surprised just how easy it was to start working the clutch in this new Mustang. I keeped the RPMs around 2-3000 most of the time since I could feel all the power under the hood and was worried about letting this thing fly without knowing how to keep it under control. The car was forgiving and I'm now confident I can at least drive mine home from the dealership with no problems.

 

Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it with a little practice. If it makes you feel better, I learned how to drive on a stick and have been driving them ever since (12 years) and I stalled the GT I test drove! You've just got to learn where the sticking point is on the clutch and that takes a little practice, even if you know what you are doing.

 

Just hope i dont end up like him when i go pick up my stang

 

Man I too can't wait to drive the 5-speed on a V8 Mustang.
It's been about a year since I had my little stick Ranger, good times when learning .
My dad was pretty impatient when he was teaching me (heck it was my 1st time ever driving a car period), and it got me nervous at the time, but it was real good learning experience. I too wish I had a camera, cracks me up remembering.

 

Just hope i dont end up like him when i go pick up my stang
[/b][/quote]


hahah I'm right there with you...I'm desperately trying to find a friend with a stick that I can try to learn on before the car arrives atleast so I can drive the car off the lot, but time is running out, it's supposed to be here next week!! :scratch: !

 

Don't sweat it, it's just going to take practice and from what I've been reading and hearing this clutch can stand up to new manual drivers like us. I just learned this past year: 1st on my friends 99' Firepigeon(Great at first but WOW it feels like a boat now compared to her RX-8) and then on her 04'Mazda RX-8(Great car - lots of fun to drive. The handling is amazing, I hope the GT can compete). Wait to you start learning the joy of down shifting to blow past someone.

Best of Luck!