Bought Z Cant Drive
 

Just bought a new 370Z 40th anniversary edition for 4.3% under invoice with VPP program. Too bad I don't know how to drive a stick. Better late than never to learn how. Love the smoked rims and red calipers! Will post pics soon.

You'll be fine. you did the right thing if you know you want to be driving the car in stick. Better than getting an AT and then realizing you want the stick. If you are worried about messing up your car and don't have a friend with a MT, just rent a MT car from somewhere. I know they're not common but they've got to have one somewhere near you. OR you just make friends with someone who has an MT. and say they can drive your Z a few times. Either way. Congrats!

and honestly, you picked a pretty forgiving car to learn stickshift with. the synchro-rev will help you along significantly in the early going. just remember to try and learn without it later on :)

remember: always start in a nice empty parking lot. get the basics down, then work your way to everyday / normal driving.

...since you're in anaheim, i don't wanna see no wrecked 40th anni. Z somewhere on the 91 :tup: good luck, and welcome to the boards!

I hadnt driven a standard in a long time when I bought mine, essentially i had to relearn alot, took me about a good week to get back into the groove, give it some time, practice at night in areas with low traffic and no hills and you'll pick it up as you go. The trick is knowing the correct amount of throttle and where the clutch engage point is.

Just don't ride the clutch so you don't fry it and have to replace it after you've learned the basics. Have someone that drives stick with you to give you some pointers.. Good Luck

Almost forgot, Welcome and Congrats.. :hello:

:tup: Bingo......I slowly let out the clutch until I find the spot where it engages. After that, it it pretty cake. The most important things are to remain calm and don't panic.

I agree Don't "Panic" :bowrofl::roflpuke2:

Welcome congrats on ur purchase. I think ur the first person on this board with the 40th Anniversary

Congrats! I'd love to see some pics in good sun light. I'm still on the fence with this color.

It's high time you learned. Real men drive stick shift. The end.

Sorry but a Sport Car should be stick shift!! Not AT. :stirthepot:

and here we go again, lol

http://bp2.blogger.com/_fDL20zbkg6c/...hhh-724395.png
Quiet you!

driving the car (manual or automatic) is not the difficult part, parking it is.
if you don't do it correctly, something is going get damaged :)

So true!

I do the two space parking method!

40th Anniversary, cool & grats. Interested to see the interior. I haven't seen one on in person yet.

Bring it to some of the local meets so we can check it out, check the Socal forum. Phelan, Triples, Killer, me and a bunch of others go. Good guys, well....most of em :stirthepot:

Nice.

But I honestly don't understand why people who never drove stick just end up buying a sports car.

I had to learn how to drive manual with a clio.

Well I never drove anything but manual untill my 370

Its easy

since you're from belgium, it is like this:
driving a 370z automatic is like watching justine henin plays.
driving a 370z manual is like playing tennis and dreaming that you are justine henin :)

anyone who is doing that is gambling with his/her car paintjob.

imo, it is better to get a dent which can be removed cheaply than to get keyed :)

to be honest they should just force everybody going for their license to drive manual. if they want easy driving later they can go AT.

well here if you do your exam in AT you arent allowed to drive manual or you have to retake the test with a manual

I think AT sports cars are kind of silly and I wouldn't want one. But theres nothing wrong with someone liking a car and wanting to buy one if they can't drive MT. The only lame thing is when people with automatics talk about their drag times or some chump they beat in a race from a traffic light b/c they didn't really do anything except press the gas and hold the wheel straight.

I just find it funny when people say they can't drive stick, yet they CAN talk on their phone and text message while they drive.

I can drive stick, talk, text, change the radio station and flip someone off all simultaneously, i'd like to see some of you try that!:tup:

I don't mind AT on a sports car. I mean then people would need to laugh at AT lambos ferraris and porsches.

I hate the full automatic. but I don't dislike AT with flappy pedals/and tecshift like the 370

I had to take my driving test in an MT because it's all my family had.

As for the MT on the 370Z..I found it really easy (and fun) to drive, but ultimately went with the 7AT because my husband bullied me into it :) (traffic..coffee...yadda yadda yadda...)

Enjoy!

I used to drive stick while smoking a cigarette and holding my ez-pass up to windshield through tolls!

The AT isn't a horror since you can still use the flappy pedals + tecshift stick

LMAO in other words if you dont have a friend with a shittier car to mess up his clutch hahahaha:inoutroflpuke:


that said, i used my cousins accord to learn last month

I could do that too. fun times. I miss MT thank god I can still drive the megane CC once in a while

In the UK we get tought to drive stick when we get driving lessons. If you chose to, you can learn in an auto, but, if you take your test in an auto, you are only licensed to drive them, by law you are not allowed to drive a stick, that would require taking another driving test.

Hence my amazement that people are buying this car having never driven stick and are using it to learn :eek:

Its the same here. I find it dangerous. messing up with a stick in a sports car is worse than with say a clio

While you learn on a beater, I'll break the Z in for you for free! :p

Welcome!!! I just saw a 40th anniversary at my husbands dealership and am absolutely in love with the wheel color and the radio! I wish mine had the 6 disc option, so we're trying to find out if that radio will plug right in. I don't really care to go aftermarket. The quartz color paint is beautiful, too. Love the way it looks in the sunlight.

I learned on my friend's '87 300zx. i will perfect my driving on my 370Z. if you regardless of how much driving experience you have, you're gonna have to get used to the car sometime. its not like someone who gets this as their first MT is some kind of lost cause. they'll practice on some other car for 2 days. big deal. then they can get used to their Z. I give them credit. They are betting 30-40 grand that they will be able to learn and it shows that they feel confident that driving an MT is something EVERYONE can do (just like everyone who drives one says "its so easy i dont understand why everyone can't do it.' these people are saying 'screw it. i can learn"

<ramble>

I learned on my good friend's 280ZX. At the time he was 17 and I was 15. He explained the importance of learning where the clutch engages/disengages. He told me to let the clutch out slowly until the car starts to move slightly or slalls and that was the place to remember. He even related it to dancing and sex. He said it was the natural rythm and I would know when it was right. I will admit, it is not quite the same as those examples, but similar in the way that your instinct kicks in and the motion comes pretty natural.

</ramble>

I guess what I am saying here is that anyone can do it, as long as you don't defeat or discourage yourself. It is only hard if you make it hard..

Rui Z, Mind sharing what dealership? Under invoice is incredible, even considering vpp, for a limited run car.

some sports cars only come in automatic - i think it's fair to let them drag race their car and talk about it.

i find it funny how, when i go to the track, the initial competition is about who can get a faster time. then when i spank everyone up, the haterade bottles open up because i have an automatic. it's mostly from the kids with the cheaper/slower cars. when i beat cars that i think should've won, i recommend working on their stick-shift skills. nothing but cry babies here in miami. i know how to drive stick, but i prefer automatic for my daily driver. we're all pressing the gas and holding the wheel straight, i just chose to pay $1200 to achieve perfect quick shifts every time and to choose stick or auto depending on my mood.

i'm still a man and it's still a sports car.:tup:

to the op: enjoy the new car, man! the 40th anniversary model looks awesome.

Congrats and Enjoy:tup:

:worthless:

Post some up here and see you at some meets!

amateur! i used to drive stick and do all that, while changing baby diaper.