First Manual Trans car

[jdesclafani]

The 128i will be the second car i even owned. Im 20 years old and am just learning to drive stick. Im learning on a 2004 mazda3 just wondering if anyone on here had any tips on driving a manual transmission and going from a 150hp fwd ecobox to the 230hp rwd 128i.

[d3syd]

practice, practice, practice.... it'll become 2nd nature.

[jdesclafani]

yea i have been practicing for about 2-3 hours a night 3 days a week for the last 3 weeks ive got most of it down other than hills...just wondering if you had any tips

[Stew]

I hear that the 135 has hill assist so it should help, at least thast what I hope haha I want to learn manual too

[BMW=BeggingMantoWife]

Does the 128i manual also have hill assist? And, exactly how does it work?
Thanks

[Stew]

do a search in this forum, I've read that it basically keeps the breaks applied after you remove your foot until the car starts its foward motion. I think it applies on and of fhills...but not when the car is put in reverse. I also read some posts saying it was helpful in teaching first time drivers how to drive manual. I do not know if its on the 128i as well.

[randomquickness]

find the steepest hill you can...stop on it...and then take off without rolling backwards. thats how my dad taught me when I was 12 in a 77 dodge pickup. you will likely stall/spin out a few times but once mastered...the streets will become ur playground =)

[d3syd]

Use your hand brake, take your foot off the brake, apply gas slowly, release hand brake progressively as you feel the clutch bite. Zero roll back once you've mastered this.

Once you are more skilled, you won't need your the hand brake. Just take your foot off the brake and on to the gas, at the same time release the clutch quickly buy progressively before the car has a chance to roll back. Easy once you get to know the take up point of the clutch in any car.

[RXC135i]

Learn how to get the car going with only using the clutch and holding it on a minor hill with only the clutch and idle speed then you will be set. Of note it seems BMW clutches have a different feel than Econoboxes and the like so be prepared to learn a new clutch feel when you get your BMW.

[jdesclafani]

yea i can hold the mazda on a hill without stalling for some time...but where i live the town is 90% hills so it shouldnt take too long to figure out..also what about when im driving more performance oriented any tips for shifting faster and smoother?

[atr_hugo]

If you can hold your car on a hill w/o problems you'll have no problem with the BMW clutch. At least none that I can think of.

[JSierra]

My second car with a manual transmission was a 350Z, that cluch was as touchy as a drunk irishman looking for a fight (I am Irish). I mastered the Z in no time. Just takes practice....now i could drive anything....

[MVF4Rrider]

Originally Posted by jdesclafani

yea i can hold the mazda on a hill without stalling for some time...but where i live the town is 90% hills so it shouldnt take too long to figure out..also what about when im driving more performance oriented any tips for shifting faster and smoother?

Other than technique, performance driving with a manual car is more about knowing the right gear to be in given the situation. An autobox will have you in top gear about the time you reach 30 mph. That's not what you want.

Downshifting is more of an art than upshifting. I'm much smoother downshifting when I blip the throttle first to match the revs with my speed. Manual transmissions always shift better when the motor is under load.

Anyway, practice and find someone who knows what they are doing to show you the proper ways to shift, or participate in a driver school.

[C_Topher]

Originally Posted by RXC135i

Learn how to get the car going with only using the clutch and holding it on a minor hill with only the clutch and idle speed then you will be set. Of note it seems BMW clutches have a different feel than Econoboxes and the like so be prepared to learn a new clutch feel when you get your BMW.

Good advice. Don't make a habit of maintaining you position on a hill (while you wait for a light, etc.) without the brakes as it will wear on the clutch. But that is a good practice technique to get a sense of the engagement point and feel of the relationship between clutch and gas.

Pretty much every car has a different clutch feel. A Honda you could clutch with your pinky toe, while an older European car will make your left thigh sore in city traffic and fall off completely in stop-and-go traffic. Even 2 Honda Accords may have a different feel if the clutches are of different ages - the new will engage near the floor and the old will engage at the top.

Once you know how to drive a MT you will never forget, you will just have to get used to your new car - congrats.

Balls is right about giving a little "blip" of the gas while in neutral during a downshift to match the engine RPM with the gear speed in the lower gear; this gives a smoother and less unsettling deceleration experience with less whiplash sensation.

[Oregon]

Originally Posted by d3syd

Use your hand brake, take your foot off the brake, apply gas slowly, release hand brake progressively as you feel the clutch bite.

There you go, that's old school, brother. That's involvement.:wink:

[edge350]

Originally Posted by Balls

Other than technique, performance driving with a manual car is more about knowing the right gear to be in given the situation. An autobox will have you in top gear about the time you reach 30 mph. That's not what you want.

Downshifting is more of an art than upshifting. I'm much smoother downshifting when I blip the throttle first to match the revs with my speed. Manual transmissions always shift better when the motor is under load.

Anyway, practice and find someone who knows what they are doing to show you the proper ways to shift, or participate in a driver school.

Great advice/observation.
I've been learning to drive a stick. Getting that throttle-downshift is the last remaining challenge. I catch myself overthinking when it's time.
Regarding a driving school, absolutely none of them in the area offer an manual transmission to learn on any more. It's too bad.

[Oregon]

Originally Posted by edge350

Great advice/observation.
I've been learning to drive a stick. Getting that throttle-downshift is the last remaining challenge. I catch myself overthinking when it's time.
Regarding a driving school, absolutely none of them in the area offer an manual transmission to learn on any more. It's too bad.

Once you learn a manual, it's like riding a bike or swimming, you never forget, your right back in the saddle.

[d3syd]

Originally Posted by Surname

Once you learn a manual, it's like riding a bike or swimming, you never forget, your right back in the saddle.

That's very true. One more thing, once you've driven a manual, the control and involvement it offers becomes something you crave when I go to an auto.

Right now is the first time in my driving life I am without a manual, and I have withdrawal symptoms. I get immense pleasure driving any manual vehicle, even if it is some crappy s@#tbox.:iono:

[Rippy087]

I learned how to drive manual on my older brother's 2007 wrx sti. So you can definately learn on a 128, shouldn't be too difficult. Just take it nice and slow at the start and within a few hours it should feel natural.

Jake

[raisemyrent]

yup, try not to floor it even if you feel that you may stall it. you gotta be careful when flooring the 1er he he
practice makes perfect; you'll be fine... and when you're there, you'll be on of "us".

[3toM]

I am thinking of going back to manual, but the wife is concerned about driving it, as she has never really driven manuals for any significant time. The last she used was a 1991 Mercury Tracer. In general, are they a bit easier to get going nowadays without stalling out?

[jdesclafani]

i drove a sti which is the first higher HP manual car i ever drove and didnt stall it...had an easy time adjusting....i think ill be good by the time i get the car