okay just playing. but this is pretty close though. i am going to teach my girlfriend to drive my 5spd max. i am a little concerned about my clutch ofcourse, but i think she can do it. anyone have any tips or experiences to share?

 

I tought a girl to drive stick during the summer, and she was only 15. (I was 16 myself, sickos...) She was a blonde, and still got the hang of it pretty quickly. It's worth the clutch wear to just let them rev it to 2500 and tell them to slowly dump the clutch. Once they can get off smoothly, get them to work on taking off at lower RPM's.

And I have jsut one tip: Tell her to wear running shoes, not some big-*** heel type boot or shoe.

 

I taught my girlfriend to drive stick, and I had her slowly release the clutch without any gas at all. The Max responds well to the clutch, and will begin to roll without any gas. Once the car is moving have them slowly let the clutch out all the way, and shift into second. The car won't stall, and once you learn to get out of first its all just practice from there.
-hype

 

she being Brand
-new; and you
know consequently a
little stiff i was
careful of her and (having

thoroughly oiled the universal
joint tested my gas felt of
her radiator made sure her springs were O.

K.) i went right to it flooded-the-carburetor cranked her

up, slipped the clutch (and then somehow got into reverse
she kicked what
the hell) next
minute i was back in neutral tried and

again slo-wly; bare,ly nudg. ing (my

lev-er Right-
oh and her gears being in
A 1 shape passed
from low through
second-in-to-high like
greasedlightning) just as we turned the corner of Divinity

avenue i touched the accelerator and give

her the juice, good

(it
was the first ride and believe i we was
happy to see how nice she acted right up to
the last minute coming back down by the Public
Gardens i slammed on
the internalexpanding
&
externalcontracting
brakes Bothatonce and

brought allof her tremB
-ling
to a:dead.

stand-
;Still)

----
e.e. cummings

Sorry-couldn't help myself.

 

If I was not so mature I would think your talking about something other than cars!!

Just be patient and remember its her first time.

 

hehe my girl tought me how to drive stick, i have to say I wasent the greatest at it. But hey we all have to learn right? Now I only wish I bought a 5 speed.

 

I don't know about anyone else with a 3rd gen Maxima, but I would have to say it's the hardest car to learn to drive a stick on. However, I can't pass judgement on a 4th gen. I taught my girlfriend how to drive a stick after she tried to teach herself on her mom's '88 Oldmobile Cutlass International Edition with a ****ed up 2nd gear and her sister's 1973 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia. She couldn't believe how fast a Maxima is compared to the other standards she had driven (besides those two mentioned above). It, the accelerator, got away from her a lot and then finally she got the pattern down. She only took lessons from me three times and she never could get my car to drive smoothly, my baby just needs her daddy's touch, but after my car, she could easily drive her mom's and sister's car.

 

Is she a brand new driver? If so, teach her on an automatic! I taught my sister-in-law to drive when she was 16 on her permit. The following tips are for someone who has never driven before.

The key is patience. If you stay cool, it will be easier for her. Keep an even, calm, tone of voice and don't panic. Start in a big, empty school/mall parking lot first to get down the basics. Then move to rural roads with very little traffic. Other cars tend to make new drivers very nervous.

Set up a few short voice commands ahead of time like:
"Coast" = Take foot off gas but do not apply brake.
"Slow" = Apply the brake and slow the car down.
"Stop Now" = Apply the brake hard (emergency stop).

This will keep you from yelling things like "****", "Watchout!", or "What are you doing?!" in an emergency situation and will provide her with the information she needs to respond quickly.

While we were driving around one time, a car backed out of their driveway right in front of us. The "Stop Now" command came in really handy.

Jim

 

I learned the rules of the road, and how to drive standard at the same friggin time. No automatic for me. Berst fun I've ever had.

 

I tried to teach my girlfriend how to drive stick.
I just had her release the clutch slowly without
any gas, so she could just get used to it. After that
she got the hang of it, but she got really nervous
when she started driving in light traffic. It was a mess.
She would forget the car was in gear and stall. Or if
a car was behind us at a stop, she would forget everything
I told her and drop the clutch at around 3000rpm.

She's got a little better. But I no longer use the Maxima
as a trainer. I let her use my old Corolla

Just be patient. Have her practice and practice in a
parking lot, till she's got it down. It's all about
that first gear, the rest is easy.