Sponsored

Anyone taught their wife to drive a Manual Trans?

splatrd

Big Bend
Member
First Name
Paul
Joined
Jul 28, 2020
Threads
0
Messages
16
Reaction score
25
Location
Richmond VA
Vehicle(s)
Chevy Silverado, Chevy Camaro SS
Your Bronco Model
Big Bend
I want to buy the manual transmission Badlands. But, my biggest concern with this being my daily driver, is there will always be a few times a month where my wife needs to drive my car (and me drive hers, for seating for our 4 kids).

Facts about my wife:
  • We are late 30's, and she's never driven a stick
  • She doesn't like trying new things
  • She doesn't like the idea of a stick shift
  • She would be mortified if she stalled the truck in the middle of an intersection - even if just for a few seconds
I'm assuming these newer manual transmissions are very very forgiving - compared to the 1990 Honda Accord I drove 25 years ago...?

I haven't owned a stick since I got married (17 years), but want to badly. Can I teach her? Or more likely, can I have my Dad (much more patient than I) teach her? Or is it not worth the stress and I should just get the Auto and 2.7?
I was lucky (except for divorce part) both of my wives already knew how to drive manual. First one was 11 years younger and had a manual Civic Si. Second wife, I convinced her to get a manual shortly after we started dating, and she has had one ever since. It is actually a bit difficult to find her a new car because of it. She has bought 4 since we met. I would say it is worth the effort, as I feel once they get the hang of it they may enjoy it. Especially when they realize they can do something very few people these days can. She could be the cool mom that can drive a stick.
Sponsored

 

fpGT350

Outer Banks
Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2020
Threads
3
Messages
158
Reaction score
280
Location
Tucson
Vehicle(s)
99 Viper RT/10; 09 AMG C63; 18 GT350
Your Bronco Model
Outer Banks
Hell yes, I considered it an essential life skill. I taught the wife and all four grown children who are now proficient with manual transmissions. Having said this, unless you are an avid off-roader I would get the automatic tranny, and that's what I am doing. We still have plenty of sports cars in the family to go through the gears on street and track.
 

Darforce

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Darlene
Joined
Jul 23, 2020
Threads
6
Messages
732
Reaction score
980
Location
Buffalo, ny
Vehicle(s)
Subaru crosstrek/ Mazda miata
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
Clubs
 
I want to buy the manual transmission Badlands. But, my biggest concern with this being my daily driver, is there will always be a few times a month where my wife needs to drive my car (and me drive hers, for seating for our 4 kids).

Facts about my wife:
  • We are late 30's, and she's never driven a stick
  • She doesn't like trying new things
  • She doesn't like the idea of a stick shift
  • She would be mortified if she stalled the truck in the middle of an intersection - even if just for a few seconds
I'm assuming these newer manual transmissions are very very forgiving - compared to the 1990 Honda Accord I drove 25 years ago...?

I haven't owned a stick since I got married (17 years), but want to badly. Can I teach her? Or more likely, can I have my Dad (much more patient than I) teach her? Or is it not worth the stress and I should just get the Auto and 2.7?
Of course you can still teach her. my brother was in his 30s when I taught him. Being a woman myself, I appreciate measurable tips, like exactly when I am supposed to shift I.e. shift to third when you hit about 30, or shift when you are between 2-3Krpms. Don’t get pissy when she rides the clutch, she’ll pick it up. If she can ride a mountain bike she can do this, much less gears.
 

Sponsored

Rick Astley

Raptor
Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2020
Threads
70
Messages
5,019
Reaction score
18,563
Location
Up Doug's ass
Vehicle(s)
d
Your Bronco Model
Raptor
Some points which helped not only myself but girlfriends over the years learn stick, and some repeats from others contributions before this post:

  • Super Low/Crawler Gear is a superb way of giving the tactile feedback to learn driving stick and clutch engagement. Do this while under warranty!

  • Rent a car (any car) that has a manual transmission for a weekend and teach on that. Rental cars have special increased build quality which allows them to be beaten within an inch of their life..... (right?)

  • Personal experience: take a 1-way flight across country to buy your first manual transmission car sight unseen and be stuck thousands of miles away from home so you either learn how to drive a stick, or call it a wash and set up new residence in whatever state you're stuck in.

  • The positives of understanding how to drive a stick are more vast than knowing how to point and steer (automatic). Understanding corner entry speed, weight transition, thinking "further ahead", looking "further ahead", restricts cell phone/coffee/shaving/makeup use while driving, how not to be a 16 year old, etc.

  • In my experience, women love logical arguments, so be sure to repeat bullet point #3 frequently. If she gets angry, just use a soothing voice and say "please calm down", that should calm her right down so you can get back to teaching how to drive a stick.
 

indio22

Base
Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2019
Threads
10
Messages
3,918
Reaction score
8,175
Location
Chicagoland, USA
Vehicle(s)
'72 Rover, '85 CJ7, '98 TJ, '14 BRZ, '23 Bronco
Your Bronco Model
Base
No, I failed in that endeavor.. But that was with a torqueless Honda engine; modern turbo engines are quite forgiving about giving them too little gas at launch. This will be ESPECIALLY true with the 'crawl gear 1st' in the Bronco; I bet it will launch on flat ground without requiring any gas pedal at all.

But my sister taught her husband to drive stick; he got the hang of it immediately. And he doesn't even own a car (he's one of those urban 'bike everywhere' Millenials).
Although the crawler gear might not be something to use on pavement at stoplights. It's got a lockout as well. But otherwise probably the standard first gear will be low enough to avoid stalling that can occur in some other vehicles, meaning the Bronco will be more forgiving including as you mention an engine with some power.

My wife insisted on a manual transmission in the econo car we purchased earlier this year. We had to look around to find one, as several econo cars had recently dropped the manual trans option.
 

dwbronco

Badlands
Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2020
Threads
10
Messages
877
Reaction score
2,220
Location
Manchester, NH
Vehicle(s)
2018 F-150 King Ranch
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
I want to buy the manual transmission Badlands. But, my biggest concern with this being my daily driver, is there will always be a few times a month where my wife needs to drive my car (and me drive hers, for seating for our 4 kids).

Facts about my wife:
  • We are late 30's, and she's never driven a stick
  • She doesn't like trying new things
  • She doesn't like the idea of a stick shift
  • She would be mortified if she stalled the truck in the middle of an intersection - even if just for a few seconds
I'm assuming these newer manual transmissions are very very forgiving - compared to the 1990 Honda Accord I drove 25 years ago...?

I haven't owned a stick since I got married (17 years), but want to badly. Can I teach her? Or more likely, can I have my Dad (much more patient than I) teach her? Or is it not worth the stress and I should just get the Auto and 2.7?
Can you make her sound any more boring?

Seriously, she doesn't sound like she is a good candidate to learn anything new. If you get a manual transmission, you will be the only driver. The good news is you will be able to teach your hopefully not boring kids to drive a stick, when the time comes.
 

Cheshire

Banned
Base
Banned
Banned
First Name
Steven
Joined
Jul 13, 2020
Threads
31
Messages
1,571
Reaction score
3,756
Location
FL
Vehicle(s)
4Dr Bronco BaseSquatch 2.7L
Your Bronco Model
Base
I want to buy the manual transmission Badlands. But, my biggest concern with this being my daily driver, is there will always be a few times a month where my wife needs to drive my car (and me drive hers, for seating for our 4 kids).

Facts about my wife:
  • We are late 30's, and she's never driven a stick
  • She doesn't like trying new things
  • She doesn't like the idea of a stick shift
  • She would be mortified if she stalled the truck in the middle of an intersection - even if just for a few seconds
I'm assuming these newer manual transmissions are very very forgiving - compared to the 1990 Honda Accord I drove 25 years ago...?

I haven't owned a stick since I got married (17 years), but want to badly. Can I teach her? Or more likely, can I have my Dad (much more patient than I) teach her? Or is it not worth the stress and I should just get the Auto and 2.7?
I taught my wife how to drive a manual transmission on our Ford Focus ST (6 spd). She likes driving it and doesn't care which transmission we get. I love driving a stick and have had many, but a nice automatic sure is good too. We're getting the 2.7L, so that made the decision easy.
 

Raskew

Badlands
Well-Known Member
First Name
Rick
Joined
Jul 24, 2020
Threads
18
Messages
752
Reaction score
1,004
Location
Vancouver, BC
Vehicle(s)
1970 Bronco, 2018 Stinger
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Clubs
 
I want to buy the manual transmission Badlands. But, my biggest concern with this being my daily driver, is there will always be a few times a month where my wife needs to drive my car (and me drive hers, for seating for our 4 kids).

Facts about my wife:
  • We are late 30's, and she's never driven a stick
  • She doesn't like trying new things
  • She doesn't like the idea of a stick shift
  • She would be mortified if she stalled the truck in the middle of an intersection - even if just for a few seconds
I'm assuming these newer manual transmissions are very very forgiving - compared to the 1990 Honda Accord I drove 25 years ago...?

I haven't owned a stick since I got married (17 years), but want to badly. Can I teach her? Or more likely, can I have my Dad (much more patient than I) teach her? Or is it not worth the stress and I should just get the Auto and 2.7?
Be prepared for allot of tears. I did it once and it was a very painful process. Save yourself the grief and get the auto.
 

Sponsored

Lcubed

Badlands
Well-Known Member
First Name
l
Joined
Jul 27, 2020
Threads
22
Messages
1,726
Reaction score
2,616
Location
UsA
Vehicle(s)
VW golf r, 2023 ManBadSquatch
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Clubs
 
the rule of thumb is to have a non-family member teach how to drive.

so for a daughter, teach the prospective ex-boyfriend how to drive a stick and
have that victim teach your daughter.

two problems solved at once... ;)
 

Rogues Gambit

Banned
Badlands
Banned
Banned
First Name
Mike
Joined
Jan 10, 2020
Threads
45
Messages
2,456
Reaction score
2,931
Location
Eatontown, NJ
Vehicle(s)
'19 Ram Rebel, '07 A4 Quattro
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Clubs
 
I taught my sister on my Audi once, she drove from the neighboring HS to Brookdale (7 miles) to a road by hour house (4.4 miles) before giving up

She did pretty well for someone who never drove stick before or ever again
 

bloominguez

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Tom
Joined
Jul 19, 2020
Threads
6
Messages
375
Reaction score
871
Location
Atlanta, GA
Vehicle(s)
'22 Br BD, '22 5BW, '95 Integra, '94 VFR, '04 SV
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
Clubs
 
No, I failed in that endeavor.. But that was with a torqueless Honda engine; modern turbo engines are quite forgiving about giving them too little gas at launch. This will be ESPECIALLY true with the 'crawl gear 1st' in the Bronco; I bet it will launch on flat ground without requiring any gas pedal at all.
I taught my ex-wife on a 1988 Honda CRX HF. 62 hp and basically zero torque (it *did* get a legit 50+ mpg on highway trips, though). I've also taught my daughters and several friends (both on cars and motorcycles). It CAN be done!!!

First thing I do is sit in the car with them, engine off, and just work on "Clutch and Brake!" drills. Get the muscle memory. People get afraid when they don't know how to safely stop. So with feet on/near gas and dead pedals, I get them used to "clutch and brake," pressing clutch in firmly, but more gently on the brake. When they know that they can safely recover from _[whatever]_ they feel a lot more confident. When they're driving and you're in the passenger seat, and they're going to hit a tree, you want them to know what to do when you scream! ;)

Then I work on feeling the clutch. Let clutch out, in gear, SLOWLY, NO GAS, just feel where it engages. Just like what L8apex wrote:
5) Shift to neutral, foot on brake, other foot off clutch on the floor (newbies love to ride a clutch)
6) Shift to first, off brake, and as SLOW as physically possible release the clutch (NO GAS PEDAL)
7) Once moving, STILL NO GAS PEDAL, clutch-in, brake and shift to neutral once at a stop
Get them to realize that there is an engagement point. Try to let them see that even though it looks like you're lifting off the clutch pedal smoothly, really you're slowing, ever so slightly, at that engagement point, it just happens quickly.

If you have a car with little torque, just do this in a parking lot where you can be facing downhill on a very gentle slope. Or, as mentioned above, in the Bronco with the crawler gear this should be very easy to do without stalling the vehicle.

It *can* be done.
 
 


Top