Although manual transmission is slowly fading away from the automobile sector in Pakistan, there are still a considerable amount of vehicles that come with a manual gearbox. Driving a manual car is not particularly difficult; however, you have to keep in mind specific steps before getting behind the steering wheel of a manual car. Manual transmission is still the most prominent transmission in the world right now. This article will become the ultimate manual car driving guide to those who want to know how to drive a manual car in Pakistan.
Four Essential Controls that Drive a Manual Car
Even before getting to know how to drive a manual car, it’s critical to familiarise yourself with the various pedals and levers used in manual car driving. Simply told, driving a manual or stick-shift car entails the use of A, B, C (accelerator, brake and clutch) pedals as well as a gear lever. The accelerator is on the right, and the clutch is on the left. The brake pedal sits in the middle, while the gear-shift lever is normally found on the centre console or on the dashboard.
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Car Gear Lever
The most important part of a manual transmission is the gear lever or gear stick. With the help of the clutch, the driver engages the manual gear lever with the engine to change car gear. The gear knob on the top of the gear stick shows the number of gears in that manual car.
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Accelerator
The Accelerator is used to get the car going from its standstill. Once the car is in motion, the pedal is responsible for maintaining the car’s speed and momentum. Naturally, the greater the throttle input, the faster the acceleration.
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Brake
The brake pedal is used to slow down or stop the car, as the name implies. The harder the braking required, the more force you use. The right foot is worked to apply the brake and even the accelerator.
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Clutch
The clutch is the most important of the three pedals because it is used to shift the car gear that sets the vehicle in motion. The clutch pedal is engaged/disengaged with the use of your left foot, which transmits power from the engine to the wheels.
How to Drive a Manual Car in Six Easy Steps
- Ensure the car is in neutral: Before turning on the ignition of a manual car, make sure that the car is not in gear. To ensure this, press on the clutch and put the gear shifter or the gear lever in the central or neutral position.
- Start the manual car: Unlock the steering wheel by plugging the key in the ignition while you slightly tilt it.
- Shifting the car into motion: After starting your vehicle, press the clutch fully and shift the car gear into the first gear. Thereafter, put your right foot on the brake and release the hand brake or the parking brake by pressing the button on its tip followed by pushing it down. The reason behind putting the right foot on the brake is to ensure that the vehicle does not move if it is parked on an inclined surface. After this, push on the accelerator slowly and ensure that while you are doing this, the rpm reaches 1500. When the rpm reaches 1500, slowly take your left foot off from the clutch, and the car will start to move gradually. Once the vehicle begins to move, you can take your left foot off from the clutch completely.
- Upshifting the car into higher gears: When the car is in the first gear, you will feel that the vehicle starts to become ‘heavy’ as the rpm rises. When this happens, release the accelerator, press on the clutch again and shift the gear lever into the second gear, while the car is moving. Now, disengage the clutch and begin delivering moderate throttle inputs to maintain speed once you’ve upshifted. Do the same thing when the rpm rises to a substantial level in the second gear, the car starts to feel stressed, and the sound of the engine becomes more audible. In petrol-powered cars, the upshift point is between 1,500 and 2,500 rpm, and in diesel-powered cars, between 1,200 and 2,000 rpm. Remember that the clutch engagement and disengagement, upshifting, and throttle modulation all have to happen in quick succession.
- Downshifting the car into lower gears: When you approach a traffic congestion and begin to slow down, you will notice that the vehicle begins to shake erratically. You’ll have to downshift a few gears in this situation by repeating the process of releasing the accelerator, applying the clutch, and downshifting to a lower gear (say, from third to second).
- Stopping the manual car: In order to stop the car, shift the gears down to the first gear, in a gradual manner, by letting go off the accelerator while simultaneously applying moderate force to the brake pedal. Next, as the car slows down, shift it into neutral and let it freewheel without any throttle inputs. Lastly, press and hold the clutch while fully compressing the brake to bring the car to a halt. Do not forget to pull the hand brake after which you can take your feet off from both the clutch and the brake.
General Information on Manual Transmission
Manual transmission usually comes in two types – Sliding Mesh and Constant Mesh. Inside a manual car, there are three types of shafts. These are input, output, and counter. Power from the engine enters into the gearbox using the input shaft. This power is then shifted to the gears using the counter-shaft. Finally, output shaft transmits this power to the wheels.
4 Golden Tips that Complete your Car Driving Training
It is imperative to discuss the practices you should avoid while you drive a car with a manual transmission. Following are some things to keep in mind for a smooth ride in your manual car.
- While driving a manual car do not keep on pressing the clutch while the car is idle on a traffic signal. When you do this, there is undue pressure on the transmission, which leads to wear and tear of its component parts. The best thing to do in this situation is to put the car in neutral, take your foot off the clutch and press the brake.
- Avoid resting your hand on the car gear while the vehicle is moving, as this also puts undue pressure on the transmission, which can break component parts.
- Do not use the clutch to hold your vehicle in place in the mountainous areas.
- When the rpm of your engine is low, do not accelerate your car a lot, as this will lead to power losses from the engine. Put the car in the appropriate gear according to the speed at which you are traveling.
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