i went to the dealership to finally look at buying a supercharged cobalt. I went out for a test drive in one and from a stop sign i put it in first and when i started going the car kept jerking back and forth. I have only drove a manual transmission car twice and it was a 2002 Mustang v6 so i know i am horrible at shifting but i wanted to know what i was doing wrong.

oh and by the way i am coming back tomorrow morning for pick up

 

you let the clutch out too quickly.

 

okay thanks, now that i think about it i did let it out pretty quick

 

Lol... I have problems getting out of a stop on a hill.

 

I test drove a SS/SC just for the hell of it I have a LS let me just say to me its a totally different monster

 

hehe, no comparison at all.

 

first gear and the clutch in general is a bit tricky to get used to. i'm 26, took my driving test on a manual car, and it took a few months to get used to it. some tips, first gear is ONLY for getting started. you never want to cruise in first gear. also, while in first you have to be super steady on the gas pedal. any sudden movements and it will start jerking. it's going to take some practice and time to get used to, but you'll get it down.

yea, i had a 2.2 for about 2 years before i got my 2.0. completely different car, everything about it.

 

I want one so bad but I am locked into my car cause I ll be going to school but i love my car. With all this talk about tuning for 2.2 maybe ill be able to take my turbo out of my junk cavi and try to hang with you guys. lol

 

Gotta learn to gently let out the clutch in our cars, especially on slower starts. The catch point is pretty high up if you've got it pushed all the way to the floor. Next time you go drive one, try to get the car moving in first without pressing the gas. Once you can do that, you'll have a pretty good idea of where the catch point is. Slipping it just a bit off the line will keep that bucking action at bay... just don't let off the gas again until you're ready to shift into second, or you'll get well-acquainted with the steering wheel

 

Haha, aint that the truth. I did that the first time I drove a stick, It was a eclipse gsx(highly modded) I let off the gas and busted my lip on the steering wheel. It didnt bleed but it was badly swollen

 

haha... but yea ... you just gotta drive it a few more times and you'll get it.. i used to do the same thing when i first got my car

 

I drove a stick for the first time ever last weekend in my friend's Toyota RAV4... starting wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be, I was told to "let the clutch out slow", so there I was burning it up for ten seconds moving my foot super slowly. I only stalled once the whole time, and that was cause on the 2-3 shift I put it in 5th and couldn't figure out why the engine was making weird noises so I slowed right down and stalled. All said and done, driving stick requires a lot more attention and I think if everyone had to learn there wouldn't be as many retarted drivers on the road and we'd have less accidents. Definitely looking around for an SS/SC or a manual 2.4 as my next car very soon.

 

you can put the parking brake on while you get the car rolling, it'll keep you from rolling backwards, and you can still go forwards slowly in first with it on. just remember to take it off when you get the car getting forwards well