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Old 07-26-2009, 10:12 PM   #59 (permalink)
Spikuh
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Originally Posted by speed_BMW330i View Post
I'm looking to buy a manual 370Z this fall (hopefully), and I'm planning on taking some stick shift classes (again), so I appreciate these helpful tips.

However, I have a question in regards to the "gas before clutch" tip.

If you depress the gas before you hit the clutch, won't the car lurch forward hard?

One of the problems I had when I was taking stick shift classes last summer was stalling from a stop to 1st gear. I had a hard time feeling when the clutch was getting a grip. To offset my lack of timing, I would always punch the gas. The good news is that I stopped stalling but the bad news is that I was always peeling out. My female instructor always giggled when I did that because she thought that it was funny that I would rather peel out rather than stall.

When I start taking stick shift classes, I'll remember to try the "gas before clutch" method.

Martin
Well I am of the opinion that it is much easier to keep someone from peeling out all over the place than it is to keep them from stalling.

Once they have learned to not stall, it simply becomes a matter of learning the car. Learning where the optimum RPM level is for a smooth, natural launch (this is not the same as a racing launch), and learning at what point the clutch grabs to engage is all that is left.

My only advice for you would be to begin reducing the number the RPM's you launch at and not popping the clutch out quickly (if you happen to pop the clutch). The magic number for RPM's is different on each vehicle and varies depending on how you are trying to launch, but in my 240sx which has 4-cylinder engine with less than 155hp (I'm not dynoing an 18 year old car ), I typically launch between 2200 and 2500 RPM's for daily driving, so maybe you can use this information to try out some guesstamates for you launches.
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