to be blunt... if you take the car out of gear while your'e driving, you don't know how to drive a manual car. i would assume you don't know how to rev match, because if you did, why not just rev match instead of going to neutral? so the only other excuse is lazyness. in which case you should have gotten an automatic. final scenario is that you were taught incorrectly, or just learned by yourself so you don't know any better.

instead of us constantly having to explain why it's bad, tell me ONE REAL benefit of going into neutral while driving.

let me ask you this, when you are in neutral, and moving, and put it back into gear, exactly how do you do that? what is your process from going to neutral and then into gear while moving.

 

I'll use neutral if I'm gonna stop at a light. Why sit on the clutch and wear that out? How do I shift from neutral into a gear:

1. Depress the clutch
2. Move shift lever into proper gear
3. Apply light throttle while releasing clutch


If you coast, or sit with your clutch on, then you're even more wrong than using neutral. One should never just coast in neutral, i agree, but if you know you're gonna stop, there's no harm. I rarely even downshift to stop normally. My clutch doesn't like being hurt.

 

see, this is where you're wrong. nobody ever said to sit on the clutch at a light.

by applying light throttle while releasing the clutch, what you're doing is burning your clutch, hurting your synchros, and making your tranny cry. yea, it may FEEL smooth, but it's hell on the car.

it's funny you say this is how you regularly drive, but then say your clutch doesn't like being hurt.

and how is coasting in gear hurting anything?

 

When you push the clutch in, its not like the plates are miles apart from each other, they are just not pushed together that hard, when u hold the clutch, its slipping a tad. besides, whether or not ur in neutral or just using the clutch, you still have to release the clutch at some point.

Applying throttle while going into a gear from idle RPM's is more easy on the clutch than not using any throttle. By not using throttle, the the clutch is doing all the work to rev the engine up to speed, MUCH more wear and tear. If you throttle up, the clutch has to do less work to make the engine match the wheel speed. It feels smooth, because it is smooth. It doesn't feel smooth while its ripping things apart.

 

1. What kind of car... what model?
2. Mostly Highway or city?

 

wait a sec, i NEVER said to use the clutch while coasting in gear. all you do is let off the gas.

and yes, applying throttle is BETTER than just using the clutch, but it's still really, really bad. it's not only about the clutch, it's about the synchros as well.

you obviously don't know how to rev match by the way that you go into gear, so if you don't know manual 101 driving skills i'm not even going to get into why you shouldn't be going from neutral to gear while moving.

my suggestion is to do a little research.

honestly, i don't know why i even get into these conversations anymore i forgot that cobalt drivers are the best out there, know everything, and need no help.

 

BTW what color is your car? I was in columbia for a week and a half and am wondering if i saw your car...

 

SOooooo I guess when you shift gears, when you're moving, you manage to do so without ever being in neutral. Listen to yourself. So everytime I shift a gear, and i go into neutral first, I should pull over, so I'm not moving???

You have an obsession with rev. matching. What is the practice of matching revs while shifting up? I may wait for the RPM's to drop into where they will be at the speed i'm traveling before going into the next gear up, if that's what you mean. Please don't belittle me with a standard "I can't drive stick" speech, it makes you sound 16. I took my poor dubby to 222,000 miles with some proper care while driving. If I started from 5th gear everyday, then you have something to say about me wearing my clutch. I've got 26,000 miles, and my clutch is fine. I'll do ok with the way I drive.

<edit> Oh SHOOOT, I almost forgot about the synchros.... please. I've drivin many a car without synchros, you'll be fine.

 

typical excuse. i don't care how long you've been driving, i don't care how many miles you have, it doesn't mean you're driving properly.

i never said you CAN'T drive a manual. i said you don't drive it PROPERLY. big difference. but there's no getting through to you. i said what i had to say, so i'm done.

 

No dude, I'm really tryin' to hear these shifting without going into neutral tips. You are the master of the manual, the Guru of the gearbox, the Savvy of the standard.... We all drive differently, just because you learned one way from a person you thought was the shizznazle, doesn't mean the world must drive that way. We all do it differently, but yes, everyone but you does it wrong. I have failed.

You should make a write-up though. "How to Drive Stick: Never Say Neutral" I'd read it. When I drive home today, I'm not even gonna use my clutch, just once, when I start goin'. I'm not even gonna shift. FIRST GEAR ALL DAY. Then we'll see who needs a clutch first...

 

if you shift at the right time, you don't need a clutch except to get into first. try shifting without grinding your gears, and without using the clutch. if you can do that repeatedly, i'll take back what i said. if you're shifting at the right time, it won't be a problem. give it a shot. if you grind your gears, then you don't know when to shift at the proper time, which equals letting out the clutch (if you were to use it).

don't even post up the results. just try it when you're out driving later.

 

Yes, have done it. I guess I'm cool now. Considering this thread was how to get best mileage, I don't think that fits the bill. Especially since the RPM required to shift without a clutch, is higher than that to get best mileage. So now we just go toolin' around not clutchin' all our days, and we are the best drivers in the world. Make a thread called "who can shift w/o using the clutch?" Or "I bet I'm the best". For one who seems to be an advocate of taking it easy on their car, you just recanted all previous rants by stating you are a great stick driver because you shift w/o clutching, and can do that repeatedly. I'm not even gonna try doing it in my SLOBALT, that kinda assinine driving was for my Golf.

To sum up, the way I shift gears will not be the doom of my car.

 

for the record, i never once said that i was the best driver, did i? and you're right. it's about the best gas mileage. the best gas mileage is from keeping the car in gear, and downshifting. that should have been the end of it.

i also never said that i shift without using the clutch. stop putting words in my mouth. i'm not a perfect driver, i miss gears now and then, and i've grinded gears, ****, a few weeks ago i stalled going up a hill. it's not about being a perfect driver. it's about understanding the concept.

so you're right, let's end this and get back on topic. putting the car in neutral can not possibly be better for gas mileage. so keep the car in gear untill you're stopped, downshift when slowing down instead of going to neutral. there's no way that anyone can argue that.

and with the ss/sc, the rpms are not really all that important. what's more important is boost. so i don't focus too much on rpms. i get better gas mileage at higher rpms with less boost, as opposed to lower rpms but using more boost any time you have to accelerate moderatley at a point where it doesn't require a downshift.

 

Oh, I'll find a way

Ya know, In about 20 mins , I'm gonna go celebrate my 21'st birthday. TODAY. don't drink and drive.

 

congrats, and have fun. and you're right, don't drink and drive i wrapped my first car around a tree with my brother in it, and have never driven drunk since. not even buzzed. but get the hell off the forum and go have your first legal drink. that will be more fun that arguing about how to drive

 

Hell, I got my first legal drink at midnight. Then seven more. This is round 2 of08/06/08




< just wanted to use that


P.S. Page 2 is mine

 

05 ss/sc i get 26mpg city and 30mpg highway

 

black , the only thing done to it so far is tint , I am saving for more mods , getting subs tomorrow. you probably saw me im all over this ************ , plus I have a second job as a delivery driver

 

I just picked up a new G5 GT (Cobalt Sport equivalent) 2.4L 5-speed.

My daily commute it 75 miles of mostly hwy and I average 31 MPG on premium gas. On a recent 600 mile trip I averaged 34 MPG with an average speed of 63 MPH. That included some 3rd gear blasts to the redline to pass cars.

This car has exceed my expectations.

 

I just want to get this straight. Are you guys saying that it's better to engine break? Or just downshift while braking? because engine breaking is even worse on your clutch. I just wanna know if I'm wrong. Say I'm cruising along in 5th and when i get to a red light I hit the break untill I'm close to stopping, depress the clutch for the last 2 seconds of my stop and then throw it in neutral while at a stand still

 

not for nothing, but if you're saying that engine braking is bad for your clutch, you probably don't know what engine braking is. if you're downshifting while braking, literally, you're heel-toeing, and if you know how to succesfully heel toe than clutch wear is not a concern.

and yes, you're way is fine.

if you feel the way you're doing it is bad on your clutch, feel free to pm me and i'll help you understand how to do it properly.

 

nope, just making sure cuz thats the way i've been doing it since i could reach the clutch pedal in my dad's old jeep