I have an auto 08 altima w/ triptronic on it.. manual mode is just so much fun to drive in.. so a clutch and an actual shifter must be a lot funner.
I'm thinking of purchasing a 99-01 manual prelude, but I don't know how to drive stick shift.. I don't wanna spend too much money on my first manual, and I've always loved the 5th gen preludes
A 5th gen prelude is a decent car to learn to drive a stick on because it is fairly forgiving in that respect. It has enough torque that if you miss a gear or two, or dump the clutch, it usually won't stall or bog too badly. However, be prepared to chew up a clutch pretty good while you a learning just like you would with any other "practice" car. There will be some gear grinding and some stalling during your early learning stages, but it's like riding a bicycle once you have it down.
It's easy to learn with practice - like Indy said, you're going to have to crawl before you can walk but it shouldn't take you long at all to learn and master the basics.
The Lude is a great choice in my opinion because it's a very fun-to-drive car because of its great handling and spirited VTEC engine . . . it should make you want to learn . . .
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Current
01 Prelude Base SS (Is that my tranny ticking? )
98 Prelude SH (FGP and loving it! )
I paid 13,500 for my Prelude when I bought it 6 years ago. I did that without knowing how to drive it. I had to have my roommate of the time pick the car up with me that day, and teach me to drive stick. By the end of the day I was driving it around town all my own. First month was a little rough maybe, but overall it was easy to learn.
I think its a good car to learn because its not overly soft and not obnoxiously rigid to shift. Just don't jam it into gear and you'll be fine.
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95 Integra LS <<<>>> 99 CBM Prelude SH
You can teach yourself to drive a manual transmission car in about a week. And I mean, with practice, you will be confident within a week. I learned by practicing in my buddy's driveway that had a little hill at the end near the house. I first just went forward and back, 1st gear and Reverse, just to get the feel for the clutch engagement, then moved on to stopping on a hill after that. The best way is by having the car on flat ground, put the clutch in and hold it. Put the car in first gear and EXTREMELY slowly without giving the car any gas whatsoever, let the clutch out until the car starts to inch forward, then hold it there. When the car starts moving, you have just found the friction point, or clutch engagement point, or whatever you want to call it. Once you get a feel for where that is, you can progressively learn how to feather in a little gas pedal while letting the clutch out. Then practice stopping on a hill without rolling backward. It's easy to learn. Especially nowadays. When I learned how to drive stick (12 years ago) my cars had cable-actuated clutches, and the pedal was way more stiff than these hydraulic deals we have now. Really you should be okay practicing in a Prelude as long as it has a good clutch in it, because otherwise, you will burn it up.
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I learned on my prelude when I first got it 7 years ago. I found the OEM clutch a bit difficult to learn on. The engagement point on the oem clutch is sort of high and short, basically its finicky.
There are easier cars to learn on that will be easier to engage first gear.
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i agree with the first gear thing. when i swapped over from the auto thats the first thing i noticed. just play with the stick and it'll go in though
but learning a manual isn't too bad. just hope the clutch isn't at the end of it's life. i had a semi hard time until my mom said one thing that made everything better. if you feel like its about to stall, simply add a little more clutch. after that smooth sailing. now im driving the eg everday, 5spd, i love it. something about 3 pedals and movements of the feet is just awesome
I'd rather learn in something weaker like a Civic or older Prelude.
My first 5spd was a 1988 Prelude S. Took me a few hours to get the hang of it. Since then, nothing but 5spd transmissions.
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1988 Prelude S - victim of an 80mph backflip
1991 Prelude Si - sold
1989 Accord DX - impounded
1998 Prelude SH - totaled on 3/29/12
2006 CRF150F - sold
2006 YZ250F - sold
I learned on my girlfriends 99 mercury cougar v6 5spd.it was funny because i was cruising around town in it in less than an hour confidently and she was mad because it took her 2 weeks to learn how to drive a stick
I disagree that wimpy cars are better to learn on. I learned on a POS Mitsubishi pickup truck with maybe 100hp, and I can't even remember how many times I stalled it. On hills, stoplights, stop signs...everywhere. It was very finicky and unforgiving because it had NO torque.
i think something like a weaker car would be easier to learn on just goes off experience. i tried to learn in a V6 trans am when i just turned 15. it was the "strongest" car id ever driven till then. i was honestly kinda scared. 4 months later i bought an automatic LT1 Z28, still to this day the "strongest" car i've ever driven. i had a 1992 accord, auto, before the Z28. so by the time i actually did learn manual i kinda had driven weaker cars and stronger cars than the prelude. given the others were auto
^^ LT1 z28 awesomeness, corvette v8 ftw :P (i miss mine :/)
Though i'd say any 4 cylinder car would be fine to learn to drive with a stock clutch. When i was 15 and learned to drive, the 2 cars my parents had for me to drive were both stick (so i HAD to learn to drive stick). Both Jettas (2002 1.8t and 2004 GLI) The 1.8t was pretty aggressive gearing 5 speed, and a hard clutch, the GLI was a less aggressive geared 6 speed with a very soft and high engage clutch. I liked having both at my disposal, simply due to the fact that each time I changed it up, I had problems, which helped me learn. Though i didnt tear up either of the clutches thankfully :P. After that I got my del sol which had a weak ass clutch but i never stalled it, after that my z28 6 speed awesomeness, never stalled it nor had problems due to the power (though i DID have to get a new clutch b/c 2 weeks after i got it clutch started slipping horribly, i couldnt even drive in 6th gear). My 2002 Audi TT Quattro (twin turbo'd) has enough torque that i pretty much can only stall on a hill if i give no gass and let the clutch out, on a level ground i can let the clutch out at a decent speed and it will just start going. I'd say this would be the best to learn on, but i've had my fair share of sticks :P (the others i drove was a 2008 ford ranger 5spd which i hated, work truck, and a handful of friends' civics/gti's/etc) I love the OEM prelude clutch though, it does me fine
By using it properly. Excessive time spent with the clutch partially engaged will eat it up for breakfast.
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1988 Prelude S - victim of an 80mph backflip
1991 Prelude Si - sold
1989 Accord DX - impounded
1998 Prelude SH - totaled on 3/29/12
2006 CRF150F - sold
2006 YZ250F - sold
yeah. if you have the money, or the ability, i would change it just b/c. i hate the fact that i dont know how much wear is on the eg's clutch. anything you touch the clutch, it could be just lightly, your gonna be putting some wear on it. once you get the hang of it though you'll be fine. wearing out a clutch still crosses my mind
Pretty much, by not "slipping" the clutch. Like if you are giving the car gas and letting the clutch out at the same time, you have less chance of stalling, but it puts wear on the clutch. More than likely, while you are getting used to driving stick, you will slip the clutch quite a bit, so you don't look like a d-bag by stalling your car at a light next to a carful of hot girls. But you should be okay. You probably won't kill the clutch unless you really suck and just don't get the hang of it for a while. You'll know it if the cluch is burning up.....it kinda smells like burnt onions.
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The Japanese have a saying......"The nail that sticks out gets hammered."
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