Want to buy a stick car but no way to drive it?

[liuman51086]

Hello, I'm probably going to look at a 97 gst tomorrow and probably bring it home. But... how do i test drive it and bring it home? I can't drive stick, no one in my family can. Anyone got any ideas? Thanks

 

[CowPimp]

Find a friend that drives manual, or at least knows how. You have to know someone who knows how to drive stick. Also, you could ask the person showing you if he would be willing to teach you if you bought the car. You could just ride shotgun while he does the driving for the test drive.

 

[Turbo_Frog]

I was on the same exact boat when I bought my 99 GS-T. I just had the guy take me for a ride around town while I sat in the passenger seat. I took the car home while my brother drove the following Firday. I learned to drive stick in 3 days, some learn quicker, some take longer. But if there is anything I want you to get out of this it is..... dont let you or your family not being able to drive stick keep you from getting that car man. I didn't, and it was the best thing that ever happened to me!!

 

[liuman51086]

Thanks for the ideas. I think I might just get a friend to drive it back if I get it. It's not the main problem now... I just got a email from the seller that there is one other very interested potential buyer in the car, the seller wants us to meet at the same time to give us a fair chance at the car.... =( I don't really know if that'd work out too well.

 

[Turbo_Frog]

I dont think you not being able to drive the car should matter. What it all is going to boil down to is who has the best offer.......Money Talks. I had 2 other people that wanted my car at the time, altough we didn't all meet at the same time to look at it, if you really want it and you do have the money for it, (whatever the offer may be) then give the seller the impression that you are ready to pay (if you do indeed like what you see). He wont turn you down......trust me.

 

[SpeedFreak03]

Yea that will basically turn into an auction - I don't know how well that would work out. Anyway, get your friend to teach you how to drive stick (just basically, you don't have to be a pro to test drive a car to see how it runs) so then when you test drive cars you will be able to do it yourself!

 

[Defiant]

Originally posted by liuman51086
It's not the main problem now... I just got a email from the seller that there is one other very interested potential buyer in the car, the seller wants us to meet at the same time to give us a fair chance at the car.... =( I don't really know if that'd work out too well.

AHAHAHAHAHA.... let me translate that email for you:
"I can tell you're dead-set on getting this car by the size of the bone in your pants, so I want to have a pal of mine come by and pretend to try and buy it so between the two of you you'll jack up your own price, you sucker."

Here's your proper response:

"Go fu(k yourself. Oh, and my offer for your car just dropped $500."

And DO NOT respond to him further until he drops it $1000. These things are rare, but not THAT rare. The guy deserves a little lightning strike on his house.

-----

As for the clutch challenge, you'll probably be okay. Good idea to have someone else drive it back so you're in familiar territory for practice. Just like a golf swing, shift a lot more slowly than you think you need to. Make sure the clutch pedal is pressed _all_the_way_down_ for _every_ shift, and don't bother with downshifting at all unless you have to. Find someone who knows how to rev-match, and get clear in your head what goes on inside the gearbox of a moving car. None of it is all that big a deal, but don't try to be John Force for at least six months. Your DSM gearbox and its fragile little guts will be as nice to you as you are to it.

And then, learn to double-clutch and heel-toe.

 

[liuman51086]

haha.... thanks defiant... I didnt think of that. But IMO the car price is already really cheap, $6800 for a 97 with 83000 miles. But the car has $2k+ worth of mods like ebc, exhaust, and everything I would get anyways if I bought the car stock. I'll go there today and check it out. =)

 

[Maximum404]

I know this is a bit off topic, but I thought that you only had to double clutch if it was an old car that didnt have a synchro??

 

[Keith_92talonts]

but go to a hill and make the car stop with out using the brake, best way to learn how to manage the revs, and KEEP IN MIND put ur cluch in BEFORE THE car comes to a compleat stop!!!or it will stall, i put mine in at about 20kph 12 mph.

 

[crankbender]

Originally posted by Defiant
AHAHAHAHAHA.... let me translate that email for you:
"I can tell you're dead-set on getting this car by the size of the bone in your pants, so I want to have a pal of mine come by and pretend to try and buy it so between the two of you you'll jack up your own price, you sucker."

Here's your proper response:

"Go fu(k yourself. Oh, and my offer for your car just dropped $500."

And DO NOT respond to him further until he drops it $1000. These things are rare, but not THAT rare. The guy deserves a little lightning strike on his house.

-----

As for the clutch challenge, you'll probably be okay. Good idea to have someone else drive it back so you're in familiar territory for practice. Just like a golf swing, shift a lot more slowly than you think you need to. Make sure the clutch pedal is pressed _all_the_way_down_ for _every_ shift, and don't bother with downshifting at all unless you have to. Find someone who knows how to rev-match, and get clear in your head what goes on inside the gearbox of a moving car. None of it is all that big a deal, but don't try to be John Force for at least six months. Your DSM gearbox and its fragile little guts will be as nice to you as you are to it.

And then, learn to double-clutch and heel-toe.

i find that me and defiant think alike.

if he learns to double clutch he can drive his T3/T4 non turbo.

If you insist on going with this meet take a knowledgeable DSMer along to point out problems...if the other guy is too nice then he isn't a real buyer....On the other hand you could drive the price down this way.

2k worth of mods like that says to me he ragged the car out!

 

[Umaro]

learning to drive stick is easy, this is how long it took me to learn.

About a year ago my brothers friends took me out in his 90 civic, I tried for about 40 mins and just couldnt get it into first, he wasnt explaining how to do it properly.

My girlfriend asked her mom if I could use her car to learn how to drive stick, and she said yes.

With some crazy luck I actually got it going my first try and I didnt exactly know how I did it. Well I took it out for about 40 mins and finally figured out how to get it into first.

Then I bought my DSM like a week ago, and its super easy to drive.

Here is my tips so far since I just learned how to drive stick,

To get it into first, you may have to make the car stall a few times well trying this.

Just put your foot on the clutch all the way down to the floor, put it into first, and let it up on the clutch slowly, at like halfway or whatever, the car will start moving forward on its own, give it a little bit of gas when this is happening and let off the clutch well giving a bit of gas and the car should be moving now and your in first. Its that easy.

Just try it a few times, you may not give it enough gas and the car will stall but thats ok, just learn to feel when the car is starting to move on its own and after a few short tries you will figure when it needs gas and how much in order to get into first without stalling.

After that everything is pretty much easy.

 

[gs-t_96]

I bought my car without knowing how to drive stick. By the time I got home I had leaned how. Its kind of like throwing your kid in the pool and letting him teach himself how to swim.

 

[crankbender]

Originally posted by gs-t_96
I bought my car without knowing how to drive stick. By the time I got home I had leaned how. Its kind of like throwing your kid in the pool and letting him teach himself how to swim.

Never and i mean never become a babysitter or lifeguard.

Driving a stick is pretty easy tho if it doesn't have a 2600 in it.

 

[L2RTSiAWD]

Originally posted by crankbender

Driving a stick is pretty easy tho if it doesn't have a 2600 in it.

LoL... that's my issue, my fiance wants to learn to drive stick and I keep telling here no on this car. We tried once and it was stalled so many times I was like "you have to learn on an easier car or you will just end up pissing youself off." After she drives her sisters car today she will says something like "man that easy". I don't consider a modified dsm a good learner car.

 

[liuman51086]

it does have a 2600 =/

 

[gs-t_96]

Originally posted by crankbender
Never and i mean never become a babysitter or lifeguard.

Driving a stick is pretty easy tho if it doesn't have a 2600 in it.

:laugh:

 

[xcelr8n]

Originally posted by liuman51086
it does have a 2600 =/

:laugh: have fun with that one, liek the old saying goes,

people who know how to drive stick stall out your act 2600 5 times before they get it down the driveway.

 

[Defiant]

Originally posted by liuman51086
haha.... thanks defiant... I didnt think of that. But IMO the car price is already really cheap, $6800 for a 97 with 83000 miles. But the car has $2k+ worth of mods like ebc, exhaust, and everything I would get anyways if I bought the car stock. I'll go there today and check it out. =)

Those $2K in mods should count _against_ the value. I got my '95 with 66K for $7 thousand out in Discovery Bay about a year and a half ago. Still, they aren't making any more of them, and the final value's up to you.

As for double-clutching, true that a synchromesh gearbox doesn't _need_ it. But every time you don't make the synchros work is that much longer they're going to last. And once you've done a properly-matched double-clutch downshift, you'll never go back.

 

[Armo--GST]

It took me 5 minutes to learn to drive stick the first time i ever stepped in a car with a 5 speed. Clutch, gear, gas! It just takes a day to really get it down. Have a friend halp yah.

 

[Crazy E]

when I first bought my eclipse back in July I was in the same situation. I learned to drive it in the dealer's parking lot, with just my mom (who doesnt know how to drive stick) just going in 1st and reverse, back and forth. I can't believe I actually made it home, I managed to get green lights at all the stop lights in my town

Defiant-how does one do this "rev matched, double clutched" downshift. I rarely downshift (just never really got it) I usually put it in neutral and then pop it into gear after I slow down. Is this wrong or bad for the tranny? I dont mean to jack this thread, but I've been wondering this for a while.

 

[Defiant]

Originally posted by Crazy E
Defiant-how does one do this "rev matched, double clutched" downshift. I rarely downshift (just never really got it) I usually put it in neutral and then pop it into gear after I slow down. Is this wrong or bad for the tranny? I dont mean to jack this thread, but I've been wondering this for a while.

That's making the synchronizers do the most possible work short of damaging them. Briefly, to double-clutch, you clutch, shift to neutral, let out the clutch, goose the throttle to bring the engine and layshaft gears up to the speed they'll be turning in the next-lower gear, press in the clutch and slide into gear, and let the clutch out. If you do this while your throttle foot's on the brake, and pivot or lean or however your ankle works to blip the throttle while braking, that's heel-and-toe, double-declutch downshifting. It's a skill only a Real Man can accomplish smoothly.

 

[crankbender]

I don't downshift in the 1320

For learning purposes as this car has a 2600 he should probably just focus on getting into first without stalling.

It so pisses me off when the guy doing the inspection stalls the car over and over again trying to get going....on the other hand he doesn't even look at the car after that and just stickers it. He seems a little embarrased.

The tire place knows me and lets me drive all my cars into the bay myself.

 

[97ClipseDSM]

Man this reminds me of my experience last wednesday. I had never driven stick in my life and i made my parents drive all the way from virginia to pennsylvani to buy me a 98 GST. I was so nervous when the guy who was selling the car told me to test drive it and i didnt even know the first thing about dirving stick "Holding the clutch and starting the car. So here i am trying to start the car without pressing the clutch and the car doesnt start so i feel like an idiot. So the guy sits in the passanger seat with me and tries to tell me how to shift and when to shift. Man, my first 30 minutes were soooo horrible. My car stalled crazy in the middle of roads, turns, hills, anywhere u can imagine. My car even shook like crazy and just stalled. Than we pass a bunch of hotass females at a stop light. There all staring at my beautiful red eclipse and the next thing u know the light turns green and i stall like crazy not 1..not 2..not 3.. but 4 times in a row before i grind pass them. It was so embarassing. But now here was the hardest part..my parents were shocked i didnt know how to drive stick and they didnt want to buy the car because we would have to drive 4 hours back home and my dad thought that was crazy. But guess what...i made it home very smoothly without any problems. Only problems i had were during the tolls, where i kept stalling once in a while. But as of today im getting better and better and just trying to understand the term "engage of the clutch" and just minor concentration and soon your legs and hands will be working like youve done this for years. Eventually youll get used to it. Do i have the fear of stalling again? I certainly do but this is the only way i will learn and thats by stalling a few times and learning my mistakes.