Oh, okay, I guess if you have someone who really doesn't understand the concept of where the clutch engages and disengages and how that applies to when you should "give it some gas" could certainly cause some issues with the car. That sucks.
Dumping the clutch certainly aint a good thing. Especially on a fine piece of machinery as the S.
A bit more stick time on the Civic will probably lead to a good transition to the S. I'm hopeful of that.

 

One more question: an "unforgiving clutch" means what to a driver or the car? What are the characteristics of an unforgiving clutch? Thanx for replies.

 

oh ya, i am going to let him.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by mlrspwr
[B]One more question: an "unforgiving clutch" means what to a driver or the car?

 

An "unforgiving clutch" is a clutch with a small "sweet spot", or one that requires well timed and orchestrated cluch pedal and accelerator motion to prevent stalling, shuddering, or "surging" of the car. If the clutch tends to quickly grab while letting out the clutch pedal, more finesse is necessary for a normal, around-town clutch engagement. Higher torque engines tend to be more forgiving, since they are less likely to stall if you don't give the car enough gas, and you can recover a bad clutch engagement.

Personally, I believe that the S2000 has a relatively forgiving clutch. But I also believe that because of the amount of wear on the clutch required to learn how to do it right, it is an expensive car to learn on. A clutch job on a Civic is far less expensive and just as easy to learn on.

The worst damage done (IMO) when stalling an engine is to the driver's ego, especially if the passenger likes to poke fun at the driver. Let's face it; most of us have snickered at someone for stalling the car. You know, real men don't stall their cars, wear anything pink or eat quiche.

 

Wow! So many owners have learnt to drive manual in S2000's. No wonder why there are so many sucky S2000 drivers on the road who often get dusted by slightly slower cars.

 

I ran into one of the "sucky S2000 drivers" in my 00 celica GT-S. A girl wanted to race me in her's and I pulled about 2 car from 70-100, I know the S2000 is the faster car, i'm looking to purchase one soon, and it dissapionts me that people who can't drive and lose to lesser machines, but she had the top down and my celi has run the 1/4 in 14.4@99 with a 2.36 60ft....ne way sorry about the piontless rant, I am a newbie here to learn as much as I can to help me in my upcoming puchase.

 

mlrspwr,

There's no reason you can't learn stick in a S2000. I learned stick on my S2000, and I've since taught three of my friends to drive stick on it as well. Sure, the car gets stalled a bit, but I don't worry about that. The only concern for me is saving the clutch, so I'm very careful to emphasize good clutch control. So far, so good...no one's burnt the clutch, peeled out, or done anything funny with the clutch yet (aside from letting it out too quick and stalling).

I feel that there are advantages to learning stick on a car like the S2000, too. I'm of the opinion that it allows you to become a better driver quicker. Its more finicky nature forces the driver to learn finess in order to shift and drive smoothly, you are forced to rev match properly on downshifts or it'll jerk (more so than many cars), and its more lively engine allows the driver to see and feel exactly what the car's doing. A lot of folks I know drive stick regularly but don't understand how or why to rev match, and don't focus in on the finer details of shifting...and that's because in a lot of cars, it's not necessary. In the S2000, you have to do these small things well, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

At any rate, I don't see why it's a bad idea to learn stick on the S2000. If it's the car you want, get it, learn stick on it, and within a few months, you'll be driving it around like it's second nature. It's just a car, and life is short, so why hold back just because you're worried about killing the clutch (which you won't)?

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by slalom44
[B]An "unforgiving clutch" is a clutch with a small "sweet spot", or one that requires well timed and orchestrated cluch pedal and accelerator motion to prevent stalling, shuddering, or "surging" of the car.

 

Thank you all for the replies. Great to get this insight. The response are what I expected for an "unforgiving clutch" -- meaning what was written is what I thought might be the case.
My thoughts are if I like a manual in a civic, then I'll love it on the S. You have to love to drive, and I do, so the S is a great option for me.
Thanks again for the responses.