this post was submitted on 13 Aug 2023
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Idk if it's ok to do but I've always just: keep it in first and clutch + brake -> bite on the clutch and swap to accelerator a smidge to move forward in traffic. Doesn't bother me much tbh but I've never driven an automatic so idk if I'm missing out.
I'm also a MT driver. I've driven my fair share of AT's though. With an AT, it's always pushing forward, so the brake is actually working against the idle force of the engine, so simply releasing the brake causes forward movement.
I too sit at most lights while standing on the clutch and brake while in first. It's the MT "ready to go" stance to me. For very long lights, I'll kick it into neutral and take my foot off the clutch, but for the most part, in active traffic, I'll just stand on it, because the light usually isn't long enough for me to reposition that much...
It's far easier to do as you say, as a veteran of MT driving, newbies will struggle, as they do. To be fair, I'd do the same as you, but I'm still very pragmatic about when I do it.
Yeah it's definitely a different kettle of fish when you're on a hill in traffic and swapping to the handbrake constantly, I think that's where newbies really struggle.
I've only been driving since 2012 so I wouldn't call myself a veteran since I know a few delivery drivers and the difference in experience is unreal lol
That's probably around when I got behind the wheel of my first standard, and I've driven a MT car as my main, daily driver, ever since. And I drive most days for at least 30 minutes a day any day I drive.
You're probably better than you give yourself credit for. By no means am I a perfect MT driver, but I can definitely drive manual very adequately, at least as well as I can drive an AT vehicle, which is what I learned on in the mid 2000's. I had the benefit of 5+ years of driving before I started with a MT vehicle, then drove nothing but manual for over 10 years.
15 years of driving + 10 of that being on a manual, means I'm very much not new at it.
Do you generally prefer a manual then? I had a big gap because I was banned from driving due to health issues and a couple years on top without a car so I wouldn't say I'm fully seasoned but I definitely know what I'm doing. At least enough to have some bad habits lol!
Generally, yes. Manual has a lot of advantages IMO. One notable disadvantage is starting on an uphill like you've mentioned.
For me, it makes me more concentious. I'm paying more attention to my speed, to the people around me, and what's going on with my car. Some things are a bit more annoying, like stop and go situations, but not unreasonably more irritating than an AT, and usually fairly rare.
The most common and most troubling situation that I find myself in, living next to a fairly large hill in the landscape (about a 15% grade or so, for about 50-90m of elevation), is when people go up hills unreasonably slowly. My MT isn't powerful, it's a 4cyl 2012 civic (1.5? L engine IIRC), so to get the torque required to scale the hill, I'm already downshifted, and I need to maintain a certain level of RPMs to keep in the power band, which means I need to maintain speed going up the hill to successfully get up the hill. Accelerating is difficult, so I'd rather start at a healthy speed and RPM (in or near the power band), and maintain that condition until I'm at the top of the hill. When people drive slowly up the hill, or slow down while ascending, or even stop on the hill (oh god no), I get worried that even while downshifting, I'll lose enough speed that my only viable option to continue is to stop, go back to first and try again, and if there's people behind me, it's very likely they won't understand what's happening, pull up too closely, and not give me enough room to drift while I get going.... Cue the handbrake trick. I suck at heel/toe pedal work, so I don't really have another viable option, and if it's slippery (wet/snow/slush/ice), it would require me to turn around and go back down, then try the hill again with (hopefully) fewer other cars in my way, so I can maintain enough speed to climb the hill successfully.
This has happened. It's rare, and bothersome, but it doesn't push me away from using and preferring MT over AT.
The very few times I've been in that spot, generally I have to waive people passed, once it's clear, let my car roll backwards and do a sort of backwards three-point-turn, to face down. Once at the bottom of the hill, I duck into a parking lot (hopefully one that's empty), and wait for a large gap in traffic, then start my journey back up the hill, trying to leave enough space in front that even if the vehicles ahead slow down, I can still maintain my speed up the hill to the top without catching up to them. I'll generally start at a slower speed in a lower gear to ensure I cannot catch up to those in front of me.
Like I said, it's rare. I could count on one hand the number of times I've had to try again on a slippery hill, on one hand for over 10 years of driving a manual... And I'd have fingers to spare. So once every 3-4 years or more. Over time, I've gotten better at the handbrake trick and downshifting, that I need to go back and try again, less and less.
This is honestly one of the worst situations you could be in while driving a manual. I have not had to find a different way around because I wasn't able to take on any condition because of my manual, and more often than not, I can get out of situations where I'd otherwise be stuck in an AT, by just manipulating my MT just so.... Like rocking the car out of a rut (in snow/ice/mud), by feathering the clutch in time with the vehicle movements.... This is something that's much harder in an AT given that the motors force at idle is always pushed to the tires through the torque converter, so letting the car roll backwards, is always going to be less effective in an AT unless you're constantly shifting in and out of neutral, which isn't exactly a good thing to do to your transmission in an AT vehicle.
I could probably go on and on about challenges that AT's face that MT's can make quick work of with a reasonably seasoned driver behind the wheel, but I think I've painted a pretty clear picture.
Plus, they're just more fun to drive.