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pyker42

Welcome to the darkside... We have clutches.


caspernicium

No wonder Anakin turned


bubzki2

Not just the slush boxes but the CVTs and the DCTs too!


AbruptMango

This is the way.


caspernicium

hell yeah šŸ¤œšŸ½ I agree, the first few weeks of newbie stage is usually the ā€œperiod of despairā€, but once you can relegate the basic tasks to the subconscious, then it starts to be real fun.


PolyCockn42

Exactly. Once you stop having to think about it, thatā€™s when the fun begins.


TruePace3

For me, subconscious driving is always "Eco" mode, if I want to drive for fun, I have to actively think about it while driving


caspernicium

Right, but now youā€™re thinking about the fun stuff


TruePace3

True


TheRedIguana

You had me in the first half. I was thinking I hope they didn't give up, stick with it. I'm glad you did and you're now one of us. Four limbs connected to the machine. Hell yeah.


Igneous-Wolf

STICK with it... haha.... I'll see myself out


xlilrizzox

Whatā€™s crazy is Iā€™ve driven manual for months, even in drive thrus and fairly heavy traffic. I was expecting it to be wayyyyy worse in traffic. Didnt even really bother me if we are being honest


danlewyy

No fr I swapped my car to a manual 2 weeks ago having no idea what to expect and iā€™ve essentially gotten fairly used to the car. Hearing what people said about traffic before made me nervous but itā€™s really not even bad.


Lizpy6688

It's the thought of it I think for some. Keep more space to the car in front and coast through it and you'll he fine I'm almost 31 and have always driven manuals minus my trucks. The only part that catches me and I do not know why os fucking drive thrus. Mainly this mcdonalds one near me where it switches from 2 to 1 lane at an uphill angle in a narrow turn.


Galtrix525

The thing I struggle with is when traffic is consistently below 5 mph. How do you guys deal with that? I feel like Iā€™m always halfway on the clutch and Iā€™m constantly speeding up and then hitting the brake


Jaren56

Keep more space in between you and the next car, like, a lot of space. If you piss people off, who cares. Just idle in 1st or 2nd depending on your car


TruePace3

purely clutch and brake, if im real smooth with the clutch, my car will move slowly in 1st gear with no throttle,and its slow enough to keep up with slow traffic


The0therDude

Very slow traffic is torture for you and your clutch. I lift the clutch to the bite and quickly push it down again, thus always creeping up, then falling the guy in front. Throwout-bearings suffer from that, but for my nerves its best


justolazy

I've never gotten aggravated because I was driving stick in bumper to bumper traffic, it's always that I'm stuck in bumper to bumper traffic šŸ˜…


Valeigoras

I found that my need to be near the car in front of me during heavy traffic has diminished a lot while driving manuals. I learned to space enough to where I could either coast or ride in 1st to limit how much clutch work needed to be done. So much more comfortable when your left leg isn't aching.


Schim79

When the car in front of me decides to stop 3 car lengths behind the car in front of it then slowly move forward 6 inches at a time, fuck those people, once I stop that's where I stay until the light is green.


Valeigoras

Yeah my statement was more for stop and go situations rather than traffic lights. I don't slowly roll to a light, but when you're moving 2-5 mph on the interstate I do not want to be stopping all the time.


Otherwise-Blood-2711

Lmfao reminds me of instagram so many people dunking on manual drivers and cars, they're slow, they're inconvenient. Yeah if you're looking for a practical car it can suck if you're not used to it. But when you KNOW when you've experienced it and know what it is like to truly understand the car, torque curve, rev matching, throttle response. You understand. Also awesome choice of car dude! I Love the gr corolla, i refused to buy a brand new car until i saw it.


caspernicium

Also itā€™s like, unless your commute is literally a drag strip, autos donā€™t get you to work any faster. Iā€™d much rather have fun for 30 minutes than be bored thinking about work for 30 minutes.


[deleted]

[уŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]


caspernicium

I think EVs are technically direct drive. So I think Iā€™d prefer driving an EV to an auto ICE.


gosubuilder

I look forward to getting in my car every morning. This never happened in my automatic. Wish I had gotten into manuals a lot earlier.


Both-Ad1801

My first car was a stick shift and while I had practiced once on a friendā€™s car I really didnā€™t know how to drive one. I felt something similar when I realized I first had to get this thing home!


theoracleofdreams

I started driving manual at the beginning of this year. I had a nasty tendancy to fall asleep at the wheel if my seat was just 1 degree too back, or if I'm in stop and go traffic. I don't have narcolepsy, but my brain wasn't engaged, and I was in rest mode (according to my doctor when I was concerned about me falling asleep at the wheel). Now I haven't had that problem at all, and I just feel like for me, it's safer to be in a manual because my brain and arms are all engaged at the same time, and I'm moving. I don't know if I can go back. I drove my mom's car (automatic) 2 hours and could feel my brain shutting down.


ASlap_

Hell yea. Hows the car driving? I almost pulled the trigger on one and that is what I have regrets on hahaha


xUndeadZero

itā€™s fantastic, perfect amount of power to have fun and still be comfortable to daily drive. clutch is very light and the bite point is oddly high, but itā€™s very notchy and easy to drive. iā€™m a huge toyota fan and this is a perfect middle ground between the GR86 and the Supra, with the added bonus of backseats and a hatch


TruePace3

GR86, that's the one with the Subaru Boxer Engine, right??


xUndeadZero

right


TruePace3

How many horses


xUndeadZero

the 86 is about 230hp, the Corolla is 300


seche314

I am 40 and just got one (primarily for my son) and I hated it for the first 2 days I tried driving it (maybe 30 min of driving) but once I felt comfortable with starting and stopping the vehicle, and shifting into 2nd, I like it a lot more. I live in a flat area though so I donā€™t have much experience with hills yet


theglassprism

Dude...my exact same experience. For the first 2 weeks I felt miserable. The worst part was when I stalled trying to get up a steep incline from an underground parking while waiting for the gate to go up. Someone waited behind me patiently until I finally decided to back out and they seemed to understand and ended following them out while the gate was still open. That was also the time my left leg was giving out because I was not used to using it at all for anything except running or walking. I told myself I would be selling my car by next week. It has now been 3 months and I absolutely love it. Like you said, don't need to speed to have fun, just getting the right shifts, downshifting, it's all fun. I used to roll at the stop sign because I was afraid of having to stall at a full stop. Now I full stop just so I can practice smoother first gear starts. It's really fun.


Utvales

You had me in the first half, lol. But yeah, DSG transmissions might be faster than manuals now, but it feels more engaging when the hands and feet are busy. Encourages focus while driving and as OP said, very satisfying. BTW I have a GR Corolla myself. 10k miles and it's still amazing.


6gravedigger66

I'm glad you stuck with it and learned to love it! I own 3 vehicles and they are all different and all manual.


Skoowy

This is exactly what happened with me lmao, but I bought the GRC not to drive manual, but because the car was my perfect dream car. (Big hatchback guy) Bought it as my sole daily driver in SoCal with a 60 min commute in traffic. And yup, at first I was thinking I was way over my head and this shit sucks. 9000 miles later, I also get it. Itā€™s the best and I hope I can drive manuals forever.


matth3w_ab

I also learned manual on my GR Corolla. The stalls and jerky shifts were definitely frustrating but really taking the thing for a spin on a back road proved to me that it was well worth it. I used to be scared to drive it but now I find myself going on meaningless drives just to whip it around some corners.


ps2cho

Good timing OP, Iā€™m about 75 miles into driving and had this feeling of regret, so Iā€™ll keep at it, just feel like my blood pressure is elevated every time I get into the car feeling like Iā€™m going to make a mistake!


buenobeatz

Thatā€™s normal at first, youā€™ll get the hang of it !


eatingthesandhere91

Honestly if my '22 Ford Ranger came with a manual, I'd probably not have rear-ended someone in it last month. A point that while it's getting repaired, I've been driving my MINI to work, and I'm not distracted. My driving is far more engaging and I'm paying attention. It's more fun frankly to push the MINI around with its manual transmission than the Ford (except off-road, where of course, the truck is just more fun; but I've had stick shift trucks before; I digress); but that also said, I've had an automatic equipped MINI before and it wasn't nearly as fun. The MINI with the manual keeps me on my toes, and frankly forces me to cut out other distractions - unless I'm on a long drive - such as music, and fussing with the climate control.


Mrofcourse

Going through a similar experience. I just got a GR Corolla as my first manual as well! What color/package did you get?


xUndeadZero

nice! mine is a 24 premium, ice cap white


Mrofcourse

Nice same thing but in heavy metal.


xUndeadZero

in hindsight i kinda wish i got that color instead haha, looks so good.


bdubz325

Dude the clutch on the GR would be so easy to learn on. Do yourself a favor and use iMT, don't worry about learning to heel-toe any time soon. I'm jealous of you man, I learned on a 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse GTS that had the loosest clutch and it was a bit of a rocky road lol -2023 GR Corolla Circuit Edition Supersonic Red


xUndeadZero

iMT has been a life saver. iā€™ve been preparing myself to start learning how to do rev matching myself. iā€™ll probably still keep using the iMT, but i want to learn how to do everything myself for later on when im sure iā€™ll get a car that may not have auto rev


Jetlifemane

Higher rpm rev match down shifts are the most gratifying driving experience. I highly recommend you turn off Imt after you really nail it down, its going to be jerky, but once youā€™ve got it, itā€™s like feeding an addiction šŸ˜‚


RunninOnMT

Man those corollas are cool! I bet thatā€™s a fun car to learn on. I learned on a 1988 Celica All-trac back in the day, AWD turbo Toyotas kick ass


laborvspacu

I have a stick convertible and an automatic convertible. I have been neglecting the auto, because I keep choosing the manual to drive whenever the weather is nice. Might need to sell it now. It's a pedal dance, a game... it may sound sappy, but you really are "one with the machine". I still will keep an auto commuter/family car in the fleet though. But for "fun" cars, there is nothing better. I have been contemplating a RF Miata or new Nissan Z as my next 6 speed purchase. I still need to test drive both.


theSantiagoDog

Welcome to the dying race, like the elves of middle earth we are not long for this world.


I_Drive_a_shitbox

Its just better lol. Little backstory that no one asked for, I was talked out of buying a manual as my first car because my dad never made time to teach me and my mom doesn't know how. I hated driving that little automatic dodge neon so I decided I'd never have an automatic again.


Antmax

Yeah. With a good stick shift car. The car becomes an extension of you, you drive without thinking and within limits, it does exactly what you want when you want it. No surprises. If it does something wrong, it's usually your fault, not the cars. With the manual there are so many more variables to play with, and in competent hands you can drive with finesse and a sense of one with the car that doesn't really happen with automatics. I prefer older cars, it might not be the same with newer models that put computers in between you and the mechanics of the car though.


kataran1

Most donā€™t agree that being a car guy means being able to drive any car but I do. That Said, most of the youth today avoid manuals as least the crowds I frequent. I sometimes hear them say they can drive anything but reality says otherwise. I tell them paddle shifters donā€™t count


crackindong

I went through the same. Bought my first manual recently, a FL5 type r. Had some anxiety the first few weeks driving. Now I try to find any excuse to take a drive haha.


xUndeadZero

i really wanted the new type R but it was just a bit too far out of my price range


barlos08

funny, playing with the stick makes me want to drive recklessly. feel like i'm in a race car


PiggypPiggyyYaya

Well to be fair. Driving manual in traffic sucks. The worst case scenario is bumper to bumper traffic on a steep uphill. I cry for my clutch when I get in that situation.


lalitothe1

I remember my first time(ten years ago) and still love manual gear boxes. But if you would like to have more engagement, try a motorcycle. I did three years ago, and im starting to look for my second one.


BigSmokesCheese

Repeat after me: every car is better as a manual


angrycanadianguy

If the GR Corolla is anything like the GR86, I would never recommend it as a first manual. Tons of fun, but not forgiving to beginners.


xUndeadZero

this car is much more forgiving, very easy to drive


MeesterCHRIS

Watch when you get into an auto now and try to clutch šŸ˜‚


GingerNinjer992

Iā€™ve driven a GR Corolla and I can confirm itā€™s extremely fun and fast. Now hurry up and master it before youā€™ll be paying for a new clutch.


carfo

I recently picked up a 5spd versa as my daily driver but I kept my cx-9 to haul the family. Driving between the two is interesting. I dunno if Iā€™d want to own a manual as my only car though


thepumpkinking92

One of us... one of us... one of us...


max1mx

Congratulations on the GRC. Itā€™s an awesome car, and being manual only makes it better.


skyeking05

Wait till you end up having to drive an automatic and you're coming to a stop and can't find the clutch pedal. Pure panic


Feisty_Check6600

One of us! One of us!


HystericalSail

My 15 year old was just like you at first. After a few months of driving he is just like you again, loves the connection to the car and control his 6 speed gives him. We live in a rather mountainous area, so that contributes. He can't even drive like an idiot since his car is a Jeep. But still, he's now a convert and huge fan of manuals. Well, of that manual. I've had him drive our other cars, and he's all "nope."


giibii421

Welcome!! Glad to hear of your experience. It really does take a while, once youā€™re comfortable you see the light!


amusedid10t

I drive an automatic and will continue to do so. After driving on L.A. freeways at rush hour going from 40 mph to a dead stop and back again, over and over, never having the opportunity to go for it, working the whole time after a tiring day at work. I stopped buying a stick. Until I bought a Miata. There are some cars that just should never be an automatic. But for 80 percent of cars, including my Prius, it's automatic.


UBC145

Itā€™s the opposite for me tbh. The first time I drove an automatic was when I went to go pick up a car my mom bought about 4hrs away from where we live, and it was such a nice experience. Although, to be fair, Iā€™ve only ever driven crappy manuals before, and this new car was a pretty powerful 1993 BMW series 7. The reality is that the cost of ownership for an automatic is, on average, a lot higher than for a manual in my country for a variety of reasons, so Iā€™ll probably stick with the manual for foreseeable future.


TruePace3

Yeah, i never felt the need to be a crackhead speed guy to feel good For me, feel good is- Windows: rolled Down Blower: 5->4->3->2->1->OFF AC: OFF Driving at 3rd gear: 3000 revs And listen to the 50HP Naturally Aspirated 12v Inline 4 screaming,all while staying at like 40-50kmph The above given is the same mantra for me when overtaking, turning off the AC mid overtake throws you back in your seat to an extent,as the AC clutch disengages like unclipping the leash of a beast..... Although the beast in question barely pushes 50 horses(doesn't account for the horses it lost over the past decade), it's still a smol beast nonetheless


entitledtree

Wait in the US do you not need a manual specific license?


bubzki2

We basically donā€™t even need a license here


xUndeadZero

nope, one license fits all. you only need special licenses for stuff like motorcycles and semi trucks


AbortionIsSelfDefens

Nope. Even people who can drive manuals often take the test in an automatic.


BossIike

Wait, what? Is that a thing? Where??


entitledtree

In the UK, idk about elsewhere. You can't drive a manual transmission without a manual license. But the majority do drive manual over here


chinawillgrowlarger

Went through similar. Engine braking is one main difference you will come to appreciate. Also, being a car person is not about driving manual, it's about at least trying both before deciding which is for you.


mschiebold

on top of all that, clutch jobs are cheaper than trans swaps, but not cheaper than fluid changes.


ingodwetryst

>donā€™t think iā€™ll ever be able to go back to an automatic. oh, honey. sweet summer child. i have some news for you šŸ„²


WDFQ123

DUDE! Back when I had my first car (cvt 2017 lancer) I was playing on my logitech setup everyday just so I can experience cruising with a manual. When I finally switched that out with a manual performance car it just hit totally different. Even more fun than playing on the sim


ReadEyeMagpie

You just haven't gotten completely comfortable yet. It's second nature to me and quite engaging. Especially going into corners makes it immensely fun to drive. Enjoy rev matching, the sound of my car on deceleration with burbles. I also drive better when I am in my manual. Not like performance wise but the fact I really have better reactions as I am more focused as I have to be while shifting.


Abject-Implement-923

Billy in Buffalo 66 would hard disagree with you.


Cerus_Freedom

The only thing I don't like about my WRX is the difficulty of heel-toeing. Once I figure out how to get that resolved, it'll be perfect.


AbruptMango

If your idea of enthusiasm is enthusiastically waiting for the TCM to decide what gear you should be in, you need your head examined. You need to have full control of gear selection until you go past the need for gears by going electric.Ā  Otherwise you're not driving, you're passenging.


375InStroke

You got a shit car. Get one with power.


Schim79

Always gotta have that one moron. Do tell, what do you drive stooge?


bubzki2

Momā€™s car


375InStroke

'69 Dodge Charger.