[Jeroen]

You guys are confusing driving whilst not shifting, with driving with an automatic. An automatic shifts all the time.

Jeroen

[AMG Power]

Firstly one cannot drive a manual like an automatic. So that in itself makes this thread redundant.

Secondly if one has wrongly equated non changing of gear to the equivalent of an automatic then (a) you would be driving in a higher gear than required, polluting the environment more and leaving a larger carbon footprint and (b) you would be putting higher stress on the engine as it would be spinning at a higher rpm resulting in engine heat build up / increased wear and tear / lower FE.

Thirdly, some folks mention unsafe driving practices in the guise of driving like an automatic adding to the confusion.

[avdhesh15]

Just stay in second gear! Burn that clutch!

On a serious note, this can be dangerous. It's simpler to buy an automatic car. Isn't that the reason manufacturers have both types? Or am I missing something here.

[saisailendra]

My first reply on Team-BHP . I though this is a thread on tips about how to drive a Manual car like an Automatic, but soon after reading the first post, I realized this is a discussion gathering information from members. So, I thought I'd share my views as well.

1) Prevention. I'd prefer to Start or plan a journey at times with low traffic. This will make my drive much easier and the day much pleasant as I come across lesser people with no road sense.

2) Anticipation. Looking ahead for congestion, using information regarding traffic on Google Maps, having a fair idea about potholes and bottle necks on familiar roads, will help us tremendously avoid unnecessary gear shifts and also use engine braking.

3) Shifting. Now this one, I'd choose to explain based on two scenarios.
First one being on a free stretch of road : I usually shift to 5th on my Vento as soon as it reaches 40 km/hr if the road ahead is free of congestion and signals. The car would coast at about 42-44 Km/hr without throttle input and with the slightest throttle, it does 50. At this speed, the car feels butter smooth and I don't have to shift even if I have to slow down a bit or if I have to go faster. If necessary, I'll move out of the right lane to the middle lane and nobody will bother me by honking. So, it's a peaceful drive without having to curse my manual.
Second scenario when in the traffic : The best thing here is to know very well about the cars gear ratios. Making a decision whether to shift or to stay in the same gear is crucial and that comes purely by experience. If the traffic is creeping at under 10 km/h, I leave my car in 1st without accelerating. If the traffic is moving around 10-18 km/h, 2nd is my choice and and above 18km/h, 3rd is my choice. I don't practice "closing the gap" rapidly since it would harm the clutch and brakes and would just make our driving experience much less pleasurable.

4) Company. I used to drive 25 Km up and 25 Km down daily to my college for years, of which 10 Km was an expressway (ORR Hyderabad) . I used to go alone 95% of the days. The remaining 5% of the days, I had company of a friend for various reasons, mainly because of them asking for a lift. What I realized is, the 10 Km stretch at 70-75 Km/Hr would feel like it passed way quicker when I had company than when I drove alone. I also realized that my mind would more passively take control of the gear system when I'm driving by having someone by my side, thus making me feel less tired at the end of the drive. I would not immensely involve into the conversation but would listen more and talk less.

5) Last but not the least, Passion for Driving. Being passionate about driving will make us enjoy the drive, irrespective of the car, transmission. But that could also be a problem sometimes since that passion would drive us crazy when we see others not following the rules and causing a risk to our vehicles when we are driving with utmost care and respect to the road rules.

[tilt]

Originally Posted by nikhilthegunner

On a downhill slope, if there's slow moving traffic what I do is just put the car in neutral and let it coast down. Basically let gravity do the work till I get to level ground. After that I put the car in gear, let go of the clutch till I get the required momentum from the engine, then slot the car in neutral and let it coast again.

A very dangerous thing to do. I would strongly advise you to stop doing this.

Cheers

Originally Posted by nikhilthegunner

Right sorry my mistake, I should have said light slopes. Not proper downhill slopes where it is absolutely necessary to stay in gear. Thanks for pointing that out!

Nope, nope, nope. You should not do this even on flat ground. If the car is not stationary, it should be in gear. Period.

Cheers

[audioholic]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

You guys are confusing driving whilst not shifting, with driving with an automatic. An automatic shifts all the time.

Jeroen

Best way to sum it up. You cannot drive a manual car like an automatic just because a car can have a wide powerband such that it can be used in a single gear. The basic fundamental that an automatic transmission also shifts gears, but on its own is what is the crucial point. Even if you do drive in a single gear all the time, you still need the clutch to start and stop. Hence, instead of discussion how to abuse the car by using it how it is not supposed to, lets focus on better things. When TBHP reviews mention that a certain car is like an automatic, that is a way of telling that the engine has impressive driveability and a wide torque band which will not need frequent gearshifts. It should in no way be read as it doesnt need shifts at all.

[hserus]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

Choose one gear, say second, and stick to it. Don't bother about burning the clutch, lugging the engine, or overrevving it. The reduction in mental stress should be worth all the other problems.

Regards
Sutripta

Keep your speed to within 30-35 which is about all you can do in city traffic anyway and this is perfectly good advice. Especially if you get a torquey engine like in the Scorpio.

[Jeroen]

So are all you manual non shifters going to buy an automatic car next time?

I think this thread needs to re-labelled. E.g. "I bought a manual car , but I should have bought an automatic".

Jeroen

[mayankk]

If you've bought a manual, drive it like a manual.
If it's an automatic, let it do it's thing.

It's akin to saying I bought mutton but I want the veggie goodness of jackfruit. Not going to happen. Trying to start off in 3rd or second, and attempting to stay in that gear, at least for guys here on the forum, ought to be jarring to your ears. I still cringe everytime I hear someone else's engine knocking or over revving. Can't imagine doing that to my own.
The only thing to do is , for your next buy, get an auto.

[srini1785]

Originally Posted by nikhilthegunner

On a downhill slope, if there's slow moving traffic what I do is just put the car in neutral and let it coast down.

Originally Posted by tilt

A very dangerous thing to do. I would strongly advise you to stop doing this.
Cheers
Nope, nope, nope. You should not do this even on flat ground. If the car is not stationary, it should be in gear. Period.

Cheers

While driving down a real hill, i do keep my car in neutral and then juggle with the appropriate gears for the speed and neutral. Any problem with that?. Sometimes i just switch off the engine itself and let gravity do its thing.

Light slopes: like say a downward slope on a city subway, more so with bangalore traffic , i do come to neutral. Educate me on why it should be in gear with clutch pressed?.

I do try to go to the highest speed for a particular gear before shifting to the next gear.

[swissknife]

Originally Posted by srini1785

While driving down a real hill, i do keep my car in neutral and then juggle with the appropriate gears for the speed and neutral. Any problem with that?. Sometimes i just switch off the engine itself and let gravity do its thing.

Light slopes: like say a downward slope on a city subway, more so with bangalore traffic , i do come to neutral. Educate me on why it should be in gear with clutch pressed?.
.

It's not about what's wrong. It's everthing that's wrong about it.

Let the car be in gear as much as possible when it is moving. Do not hit the clutch unless you are changing gears.

Neutral is only when the car isn't moving.

[hserus]

Originally Posted by srini1785

Light slopes: like say a downward slope on a city subway, more so with bangalore traffic , i do come to neutral. Educate me on why it should be in gear with clutch pressed?.

I do try to go to the highest speed for a particular gear before shifting to the next gear.

So lets say you're stopped at a signal and in neutral, your foot off the brake. Someone stops a bit too late behind you and rear ends you. Where does your car go?

On a slope, gravity doing its own thing is probably where so many accidents on hill roads come from. Wile E Coyote can fall off hills and come back to hunt the Roadrunner in the next cartoon, humans can't.

[swissknife]

This thread is throwing light on how not to drive. It also helps understand how people claim very high fuel efficiency. Not only that, it also explains why people claim that their vehicles have poor braking and failed clutches with low road distance covered.

[padmrajravi]

Originally Posted by srini1785

While driving down a real hill, i do keep my car in neutral and then juggle with the appropriate gears for the speed and neutral. Any problem with that?. Sometimes i just switch off the engine itself and let gravity do its thing.

Light slopes: like say a downward slope on a city subway, more so with bangalore traffic , i do come to neutral. Educate me on why it should be in gear with clutch pressed?.

The biggest problem with that approach is you won't be able to accelerate your way out, if a tricky situation emerges. Braking is not the only way to avoid collisions, sometimes accelerating also helps in avoiding collisions. Imagine a T bone situation while you are coasting. Coasting is illegal in many countries for the same reason.

Ideal way is to keep the car in gear when it is moving. Even keeping the clutch pressed is discouraged. You need to press clutch only when you are coming to a complete stop or when you are taking off. The advise given in the above posts(including me) regarding starting in higher gears will require you to keep the half clutch for a long time. Even that is considered a completely wrong driving practice.

[spgv]

Originally Posted by srini1785

. Sometimes i just switch off the engine itself and let gravity do its thing.

Why would you switch off the engine and how would you brake? depending on the car, what if it has hydraulic steering.
In such a scenario (Engine off, car in neutral) its very hard to believe that the car would be prepared to mitigate any of those insane/stupid things that happen on indian roads.