ok i have a question about the manuel. first how long did it take you guys to learn? i understand the basics of the manuel but for example if you are going 40 mph and a red light is up ahead, do you down shift and then neutral or right before you stop can you then hit it into neutral? if you are in a gear will it effect the braking????? like if i was in fourth gear would the breaking be the same as in first or any other gear????


thanks

 

Whilst there is all sort of arguments for/against gearing down etc (which I am not going to go near in this post!), one thing you should always remember is that brakes are for braking, not gears. So if you are coming up to a red light, make sure your primary concern (and method of slowing down) is applying the brakes.

 

Manuels? There's a lot of them down Mexico way - quite a few in LA too I hear.

Reminds me of a Spanish/German driving school I know - Manuel and Otto

Same with breaking - not something you want to happen if you are trying to slow down quickly.

Use of gears doesn't effect braking either (i.e cause it to happen) it may have an affect on your braking performance though.

Gee, I love this thread

 

Don't worry about down shifting when slowing down. Just hit your brakes, then when you decide that you want to stay constant at your new speed or start speeding up again, simply put the car in the correct gear for that speed. But please understand that the correct gear depends on if you want your current speed to stay constant or if you want to speed back up. For instance, if you are in 5th gear going 80 MPH and slow down to 40 MPH, then you can put the car in 4th and stay at a constant speed or put the car in 2nd to accelerate. If you try to put the car in 4th to acceperate at 40 MPH, then you will get the throttle response of a Yugo. And if you try to stay at a constant speed at 40 MPH in 2nd gear then you will look like a ricer dying for attention driving through a crowded parking lot.

It's easier done than said.

 

Do you think he got the answers he was looking for 2kturkey?

 

who's manuel?

 

400 miles=8 hours, the time it took to drive to Phoenix from Los Angeles in 1978. The U-Haul people rented me a 24 foot-long moving truck. A manual! Never drove one successfully before. They took me across the street to practice. To the drive-in eating place, with all the canopies which were askew from other first-time manual trans operators like me. By the time I got to Phoenix (old Glen Campbell tune), I was an expert. Also, no synchromesh. Had that old 1-2, 2-3 gear grind some S2000 owners are used to.
The way you stop quickly is to depress both of the pedals on the left simultaneously. Learned that from a TV commercial years ago.

 

i am almost good at it after 400+ miles
i'd still stall once in a while though
babying the clutch when engaging first too much
i'd say after another fuel up i'll be good
plus northeast winters makes learning curves longer

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by emrillive
[B]for example if you are going 40 mph and a red light is up ahead, do you down shift and then neutral or right before you stop can you then hit it into neutral?

 

Call your Honda dealer and ask about the cost of:

1. Brake pads vs. 2. Clutch plates, throw-out bearings, and transmission overhauls.

The answer will reveal itself to you.