| Author | Message | ||
     Tom Reingold Supporter Username: Noglider  Post Number: 15222 Registered: 1-2003  |
There is a large list of reasons the other drivers are doing weird things, such as drive slowly. I'm teaching my daughter to drive. Our cars have manual transmissions. She stalls a lot, pulling away from a stop. Drivers behind us honk and yell. I wish they remembered that when they learned to drive, they also had trouble and wished drivers were patient with them. Now that they honk and yell, they increase my daughter's nervousness, which is already considerable. | ||
| LilLB Citizen Username: Lillb Post Number: 2234 Registered: 10-2002  |
That stinks.... Any chance you can find magnetic "Student Driver" signs to put on the car? You shouldn't have to do that (people should just be more aware of the situation before honking), but just a thought. | ||
| Tom Reingold Supporter Username: Noglider Post Number: 15224 Registered: 1-2003 |
I've thought of making signs. My daughter says she doesn't want that type of embarrassment. Maybe if she sees how much they help, she'll change her mind. Last night, she got a ride home from work at the Maplewood pool, where she works as a lifeguard. Her driver is about her age and drove the manual transmission in a very jerky fashion. It gave her comfort that she's not the only driver who hasn't mastered it. Her driver thought he was really cool for driving a stickshift. | ||
| SO Ref Citizen Username: So_refugee Post Number: 2057 Registered: 2-2005  |
Tom, be safe. | ||
| doulamomma Citizen Username: Doulamomma Post Number: 1666 Registered: 3-2002 |
I once asked my dad to get out & ask the driver (of a brand new BMW or something that was nearly touching our car) to to backup, as we were at a stop sign on a hill (stick shift...one of the many valuable things my dad insisted I learn)...the people were very happy to comply! Another time I was making my first solo trip & stalled at a light with a big truck behind me - I looked in the mirror to see if the person was mad & instead I saw a big smile & thumbs up when I successfully got going. I have such vivid memories of those times in the car with my dad, Tom...and I think of him & that time often when I stop on a steep hill (it can still take a bit of courage!) | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 8877 Registered: 5-2001  |
My dad taught me to drive, too. He didn't think that a few weeks of driver's ed was sufficient so he started us early. We'd go to empty parking lots when I was 14. We lived right across the street from the Temple, so we went there a lot. When I had been at it a year, he let me drive home (the whole 1/8 mile). I, too, hold that as a really great "dad & me" memory. | ||
| greenthumb Citizen Username: Green_thumb Post Number: 65 Registered: 5-2006 |
Good luck Tom -- your daughter will master the skill. When teaching my son to drive a stick, I found a loop of backstreets which had small hills with stop signs. My son thought it was going to be "so easy to drive a stick because Hey Mom can drive a stick". He's a very athletic guy but those hills were frustrating and for the first 10/15 minutes he kept stalling out. We drove that loop for about an hour -- until he could get into gear on every hill without a hitch or jerk. It was fascinating to watch him master the frustration. He ended up writing a college essay about the experience. | ||
| Glock 17 Citizen Username: Glock17 Post Number: 1698 Registered: 7-2005  |
Manual transmission is a thing of the past. Its no longer practical for everday use. Sports cars only. | ||
| LilLB Citizen Username: Lillb Post Number: 2236 Registered: 10-2002 |
We had Drivers Ed as part of our high school curriculum, so my parents were spared a bit. But, my dad would take me out to practice sometimes, and that meant that mom was not in the car as I practiced, which was a Very, Very good thing. She's SO nervous in the car, I thought she was going to go into convulsions every time I made a mistake -- not the best environment to learn in. She, herself, didn't learn to drive until she was married - my dad taught her. My friend taught me to drive a stick shift with her car. I do remember thinking that she really must be a good friend if she's willing to risk me running her car into the ground to help me learn. | ||
| Starr Citizen Username: Starr Post Number: 138 Registered: 9-2002 |
I took private stick shift driving lessons to master the skill. It's useful to know how to drive a stick shift because many if not most rental cars in Europe have manual transmissions. | ||
| algebra2 Supporter Username: Algebra2 Post Number: 4181 Registered: 5-2001  |
My dad SCREAMED and freaked me out the one time he took me out to a parking lot. I mean HE SCREAMED. That was 20 years ago, just Friday I calmed down enough to drive on the highway for the first time. | ||
| Wendy Supporter Username: Wendy Post Number: 2900 Registered: 5-2001 |
Congrats algebra2! That is quite something to master after all these years. | ||
| algebra2 Supporter Username: Algebra2 Post Number: 4182 Registered: 5-2001 |
Thanks - I drove to the state fair in Sussex and taught my son that some words can only be said by mothers when they drive with 18 wheelers on their tail. | ||
| Tom Reingold Supporter Username: Noglider Post Number: 15225 Registered: 1-2003 |
Congratulations, algebra2, and remember to stay as far to the right as you can. If someone wants to get by, let him, by moving right. Glock, I don't pretend the manual transmission is practical. I just prefer it. I'm sure you pay for things you like but don't need. And my daughter is annoyed that both of our cars have stickshifts, and I don't blame her, but at this point, it's a given. Neither my wife nor I is going to buy a new car just so my daughter can have an easier time at learning. And when she's become skillful, she'll be better skilled than her peers. | ||
| Virtual It Girl Citizen Username: Shh Post Number: 4921 Registered: 5-2001 |
Tom, I say go for the signs. Even fairly patient drivers (such as myself) should be prepared to wait it out and it's always good to know ahead of time. I think it would make it safer for everyone invloved— and less frustrating. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12333 Registered: 5-2001 |
I always had stick shifts up to a few years ago. Everything from a "three on tree, to a "four on the floor" through a "five speed". My wife refuses to learn to drive a stick, our daughter will only learn if I buy a convertible and our son, well, the thought of trying to teach him just scares the bejus out of me. Sometimes I shift the automatic manually. LOL Tom, I will be on the lookout for the Legacy. What color?  | ||
| Cynicalgirl Citizen Username: Cynicalgirl Post Number: 3043 Registered: 9-2003  |
Gosh...I hadn't thought about this. I didn't realize kids didn't have driver's ed in high school here, with in-car training. YIKES! I learned in school, back in the day. I'm with the others on getting the sign. Being behind an obvious stick shift person can be scarey enough on a hill -- knowlege that they're learning would cause me to give them some extra space! And patience... | ||
| CJH Citizen Username: Christel Post Number: 145 Registered: 1-2006 |
My parents insisted I learn to drive a stick and I'm always so glad that they did, and I'm glad you've got the patience to teach your daughter (my dad didn't, but my mom did). It's one of those things you may not NEED to know these days, but you've got a nice advantage if you do. Plus for the past fifteen years when someone has asked if they can borrow my car, I say "Sure, can you drive a stick?". Nine out of ten times they can't, and it lets me look polite and sharing without having to actually lend anyone my car. | ||
| Tom Reingold Supporter Username: Noglider Post Number: 15226 Registered: 1-2003 |
bobk, light green. But most of the time, she is driving my wife's Honda Civic hatchback. It's black. The clutch is much easier, and of course, the handling and visibility are stupendous in the Civic. She had driver's ed last year, which is only in the classroom. I bought her a package of driving lessons, but it's not going to be enough. No one ever taught me how to drive with a stickshift. I learned by myself first on a U-Haul truck (which of course makes it much harder) and then with a rental car in England, where I drove all the way from London to Edinburgh and back. And before that, I wasn't a very skilled driver to start. | ||
| Brett Citizen Username: Bmalibashksa Post Number: 2593 Registered: 7-2003 |
Ah the Sick was my downfall. Parents used to leave me at home and take the Cadillac out for dinner. Not wanting to be confined to the house I would steal the Rabbit and cruise around town (I think I was 10). One day the Rabbit was at the bottom of the hill and my dad jokingly asked me to move it. I jumped in, took it around the barn, stopped at the cross, motored up the hill and parked. That’s right when I realized that no one had taught me how to drive a stick, I learned on my illegal joy rides. I think I got a few spanks for that one. | ||
| Cynicalgirl Citizen Username: Cynicalgirl Post Number: 3044 Registered: 9-2003 |
Seems like it would be neat if you-all were going on vacation in the sticks to do intensive practice there. I learned in a more country setting, with less traffic/challenges -- including much time in big shopping center parking lots during off hours. I think it makes it easier -- and perhaps that's why one sees so many Student Driver cars out on Sunday morning. I learned stick as an adult, but the skill left me when the boyfriend and his car did. I'm sure it's easier when you learn it first, but I hope never to have to use it again! Really hate it in traffic, which is what our area is all about. I have no farfenugan to me at all (or whatever that VW thing was) | ||
| sportsnut Citizen Username: Sportsnut Post Number: 2536 Registered: 10-2001  |
Tom good luck. I remember trying to teach my stepson to drive. I think my hair turned grey during those few weeks. Its amazing to me how, through years of experience, some things are second nature when driving while inexperienced drivers must be constantly reminded to check mirrors, signal, watch in all directions etc. I learned how to drive a stick shift by jumping into the fire. My first car after college was an RX-7. The day I bought it I had to bring a friend with me to back it out of the previous owner's steep driveway. The car was in Midland Park, NJ and I lived up near Newburgh, NY so the drive home was essentially my training ground. Once I learned I never wanted to go back, but alas, family came calling and I had to share our car with my wife who doesn't drive a stick and like Algebra won't drive on the highway (she has yet to conquer that fear). When I see people stall on hills I kind of chuckle to myself because I remember how hard it was and how embarassed I was when it happened to me and if I see a car that I suspect is a stick stopped on a hill I generally give them plenty of room to roll backwards because I hate it when people crawl right up your butt and leave you so little roll room. Let's face it, even the most astute stick drivers roll just a bit on a hill - either that or they're buring the crap out of their clutch. | ||
| Bob K Supporter Username: Bobk Post Number: 12335 Registered: 5-2001 |
If the car has a parking brake on the center console, use the hand brake while you coordinate the clutch engagement and the accelerator. Once you get used to it, you will never roll back again, or burn out a clutch. | ||
| Wilkanoid Citizen Username: Cseleosida Post Number: 624 Registered: 10-2002 |
Our cars both have stick shifts. I'm not really interested in driving anything else, even in stop and go traffic. Automatic transmissions make me feel like I'm not in complete control of the car. | ||
| sac Supporter Username: Sac Post Number: 3666 Registered: 5-2001 |
I love my stick shift. (2002 Honda Civic) No way is it a thing of the past! And my kids are going to learn to drive it, whether they like it or not. It is a good skill to have, whether you need it every day or not. Interestingly, my teenaged daughter used to scorn that car, but now she says that she wants her first car to be a Jeep Wrangler (no doubt with a stick!) and has changed her tune. And, it (the Honda) beats driving a minivan for most teenagers. | ||
| TopDown Citizen Username: New_2_nj Post Number: 16 Registered: 4-2005 |
Tom, I just learned how to drive a stick a few months ago and I completely empathize with your daughter!!! I never realized how hilly Maplewood was until I was waiting at a red light with someone right on my tail. I was completely freaking out that I was either a) going to stall a million times or b) roll back and hit them. I literally had a mini-panic attack and we waived by at least three cars with some pretty POd folks (I don't blame them because frankly you expect people on the road to be able to drive unless they have a student sign). Anyway, I wanted to throw in the towel right then and there, but instead we found a quiet street in SO with a big hill and we started and stopped up the whole thing MANY times (over the course of a few days). It was a while before the sight of a car approaching behind me didn't make me want to cry, but it's all good now! Also, I don't use the handbrake much any more, but it REALLY helped in the beginning because I was a lot more worried about rolling into someone than stalling. | ||
| cody Citizen Username: Cody Post Number: 1101 Registered: 5-2001 |
When our daughter was learning, my husband would take her out very early in the morning on weekends (like 6:30 or 7 a.m.). There wasn't much traffic on the roads at that time and she was able to build up her confidence. I wish I'd learned to drive a stick. Our cars aren't manual, and driving schools will only teach you to drive a stick if you have a car to practice on. Car rental places won't rent a stick unless you can already drive one. It's annoying to learn, but better now than never. | ||
| tjohn Supporter Username: Tjohn Post Number: 4636 Registered: 12-2001  |
Tom, Very good reminder. On occasion, I have honked at a driver in front of me only to discover that it was an elderly person being overly cautious. It does more harm than good to become impatient in cases such as this. | ||
| cicely moncrieff Citizen Username: Cicely_m Post Number: 81 Registered: 1-2005 |
I recently had to drive a stick for the first time (except for a couple of lessons 10 years ag) in France, on my honeymoon. Rural France is hilly. The rental car went back with some scratches. My husband had an early opportunity to prove that he meant it when he said for better or for worse. | ||
| Lizziecat Citizen Username: Lizziecat Post Number: 1364 Registered: 5-2003 |
My father tried to teach me how to drive. We had one lesson. It was cold out, but he was dripping perspiration. His face turned purple and he screamed when I stalled our stick shift car. I thought he was going to stroke out. I got out of the car, and walked home. I didn't drive again until I got married and my husband taught me--no screams, no scenes--it's part of why I love him. When we moved to South Orange, I didn't have my license, but got it almost immediately. Both my sons took drivers ed. at Columbia, and then we sent them to driving school. You get a break on your car insurance if your teenage kids go to driving school. | ||
| Rebekah Citizen Username: Rebekah Post Number: 1 Registered: 8-2006 |
All of the family cars we had growing up were stick, they get stolen less often, have better gas mileage, and much better control in the winter. I was forced, much to my chagrin, to learn how to drive on one and I am so grateful that I did. It's a totally lost skill in my generation, and the people I know who can't drive stick wish they had the opportunity to learn. My mom taught me in the Maplewood pool lot (it wasn't summer though), and in our neighborhood around clinton school, which has lots of stop signs but not too many hilly areas | ||
| Stephanie N. Citizen Username: Stephanie_n Post Number: 14 Registered: 1-2006 |
I learned how to drive on a stick shift about 20 years ago. When my mother first had me behind the wheel of her Honda Civic, I could barely make it across the parking lot and gave up for year. When I finally got the nerve to get my learners permit again, my mother had me go back and forth in her driveway and then my father had me driving around South Mountain reservation, and Route 24 about a week after that. Up until I dumped my old car last year, I've driven nothing but stick shifts. Now both of our cars are automatic transmission and I have to say, I feel a lot less control in them. A friend's brother purposely got a stick shift - he knew the rest of his family would hound him about borrowing the car, but they all only knew how to drive automatic transmission. | ||
| greenetree Supporter Username: Greenetree Post Number: 8886 Registered: 5-2001 |
We bought an SUV back in 1991 that was (at the time) TS's dream vehicle. We both commuted, so it would last many, many years. I then took a job where I traveled via car quite a bit and proceeded to quickly run up the mileage. Then, when I needed to drive every day, we got a second car. We've had 3 new cars (all ones that I drive -aka- "mine") and still have the 1991 SUV, which is now a "train clunker" (-aka- "hers"). The next new car is hers. She has decided that she will buy a stick so that I won't drive it. I know how, I just hate it.  | ||
| Joanne G Citizen Username: Joanne Post Number: 467 Registered: 10-2004 |
Hiya! A point of view of the other side of the world? - go for the L-plates or learner signs! They're compulsory here, also for a period after you first get your licence you have to display P signs for 'probationary driver' (you can't drive so fast, can't drive any alcohol, and a few other things). It really helps others hold on to their patience and also to drive better around you. My family didn't have a car and I didn't learn to drive until I was 27. My first instructor didn't believe I couldn't work out where to put the key in the ignition! As I lived in an inner city suburb in Melbourne then, he used to take me for morning lessons along a super-busy truck-laden major highway in peak hour. Not a fun time. My next instructor took me for all-day sessions to a nearby country town - he was the State consultant on driver education and I was editing the new driver education booklet so it was a natural fit!! Trev ran a school for racing drivers and for truck drivers as well as ordinary drivers. He believed that everyone should learn manual gears first - because you have to think about what you are doing, and the car and it's workings become real to you. He also believed that everyone should learn in a really big vehicle - the bigger the better. He said that's because you automatically develop a 'safety bubble' around for parking, stopping and lane-to-lane maneovering, and the bigger vehicle you have first, the bigger space you require for the first few years. Figure you're going to write off your first car at some point in five years, and plan around that. Trev knew I had no chance to practise between lessons, so he'd charge me for an hour's lesson then let me drive all day with his trainee instructors for free. He also taught me to smile and to breathe - there were set steps in the changing gears routine where you smiled at other drivers (when checking the rearview, for example) and when you breathed (first gear to second gear, or second to first). Twenty years later, I still do it and think of him each time!! Tom, there's a huge campaign here for families to take their children driving in all conditions and on all kinds of roads - night driving, dawn/dusk driving, highway and gravel roads as well as town driving, wet and dry. THEN do the licence test. They say it really shows in the test. There's also an informal policy to fail nearly everyone first-time. | ||
| combustion Citizen Username: Spontaneous Post Number: 363 Registered: 4-2006  |
"If the car has a parking brake on the center console, use the hand brake while you coordinate the clutch engagement and the accelerator. Once you get used to it, you will never roll back again, or burn out a clutch." I don't agree. I was never taught that way, and I never burned out a clutch. The only way to learn is to do it correctly. Yeah, you're going to stall out in the beginning, but once you get it down, it'll be second nature. I've been driving stick for 18 years (ok, I admit it, I only got my license 14 years ago  ). The car I drive now is an automatic (my first one) but I can jump in my mother's or hubby's car and drive them, no problem. Plus, when I went to Ireland, they had automatics available for an extra charge, most likely for Americans. I said no thank you, and saved quite a bit of money. | ||
| Señor Moment © Citizen Username: Howardt Post Number: 2333 Registered: 11-2004  |
My son just passed his "road test" and got his license on Friday. LOOK OUT!!! | ||
| StellaLuna Citizen Username: Stellaluna Post Number: 60 Registered: 6-2005 |
I learned to drive a stick as a young adult. My husband tried to teach me - major mistake. I paid a school and it was money well spent. Learned in an hour and didn't burn out my husband's clutch! It's a great skil and very useful-cars in Europe were sticks and I was able to help with the driving whenever we went. Plus they are more fun! Once you learn you can drive anything! Even my husband's Miata! | ||
| Glock 17 Citizen Username: Glock17 Post Number: 1699 Registered: 7-2005 |
Stick aint that hard. I know how...i just think that it's impractical for a normal car for everyday driving. regardless, i guess it's preference. eh | ||
| eab Citizen Username: Eab Post Number: 126 Registered: 10-2001 |
Wow, so many stories about learning to drive! My daughter has had to learn on a stick as both our cars are sticks, too. (just like Tom, I guess). She HATED it, but now she's kinda proud of herself. She just announced that she is smoother with the stick than her boyfriend, formerly a god of the automotive world, but now demoted. | ||
| crabby Citizen Username: Crabbyappleton Post Number: 757 Registered: 1-2004 |
sticks also get better mileage. AMericans are just lazy, that's why standards are not the norm. |
