Beware of 'wasting your life' due to mistakes when driving a manual transmission car

Manual transmission cars require driver intervention at many times, so care must be taken when driving.

Safe manual driving skills for new drivers

Unlike automatic transmission, driving a manual car requires a lot of manipulation and requires proficiency to be able to control the car safely. According to experts, this type of car has a structure that requires a lot of driver intervention, so some incorrect and improper manipulations will significantly affect the durability, life of the car as well as safety when the car is on the road.

Driving a manual car requires a lot of manipulation and proficiency to be able to control the car safely. Photo: Traffic Vehicles

Don't fiddle with your hands when you don't need to change gears.

The operating mechanism of a manual transmission is to press the clutch, shift gears, release the clutch and increase the throttle, the car will slowly move, sometimes some drivers often put one hand on the steering wheel, one hand on the gear lever for convenience in shifting gears when needed, or putting one hand on the gear lever is just a habit when moving on the highway too idle, however, this action of continuously placing the hand on the gear lever is the cause that directly affects the gearbox.

When you engage the gears, the gear lever is connected directly to the gearshift fork – shaped like a fork, this gearshift fork is directly connected to the synchronizer and it will “push” the synchronizer to engage with the gear, helping the car to go into gear. 5 things you should never do when driving a manual transmission.

When the car moves, these parts will vibrate, although the vibration is very small, you can only feel it when you put your hand on the gear lever. However, when the driver puts his hand on the gear lever continuously, it will cause the gear fork to contact the synchronizer, which is rotating at a very high speed, causing both parts to quickly wear out and be damaged.

Do not put your foot on the clutch pedal.

The clutch pedal's job is to disengage the clutch, separating the transmission from the engine so the car can shift gears. When you put your foot on the clutch pedal, you will apply more or less force, especially on cars with very light clutch pedals.

This will cause the clutch to not fully engage with the engine and cause clutch slippage. As a result, the gearbox will not transmit 100% of the engine's power, causing fuel consumption and the clutch will also quickly corrode.

It is worth mentioning that the clutch is the part responsible for connecting the engine and the gearbox to transmit power to the drive gears. Moreover, the clutch also has the ability to cut off the transmission line when necessary. Therefore, if the driver continuously presses on the clutch pedal, this part will work "half-heartedly" and quickly wear out. When the clutch is about to fail, the car will lose acceleration and become slower than usual.

The clutch pedal plays an extremely important role in shifting gears of the vehicle. When you put your foot on the clutch pedal, even if it is just a light rest, there is still force on the pedal, especially with vehicles with sensitive clutch pedals. Putting your foot on the clutch pedal will cause the clutch to slip, which is both dangerous and affects the durability of the engine system, consuming fuel.

Don't leave the gear in when driving a car at a red light.

Shifting to N will be most beneficial for the car when stopping at red lights or in traffic jams. Because, although the ball bearing directly connected to the clutch has a fairly long life, it is not completely durable when the driver uses the car incorrectly. Shifting to N will separate the clutch from the gearbox, helping the ball bearing not to contact the springs on the clutch, which increases the life of the car's transmission system. 5 things you should never do when driving a manual transmission

Do not use the clutch to hold the car on a slope.

When stopping on a slope, many drivers are used to releasing the clutch to the point where the vehicle is stationary, and even when taking driving lessons, some are taught to use this method for the “bridge crossing” exercise. However, this is a way to damage the gearbox “in every part” when details such as the clutch, drive gears, and ball bearings will have to endure a huge frictional force to keep the entire mass of the vehicle, nearly 2 tons, stationary on the slope, while the brakes on all 4 wheels can handle this responsibility easily.

In fact, this feature only allows the car to stand still for 1-2 seconds so that the driver has time to switch from the brake pedal to the accelerator pedal. Use the handbrake when parking for more than 5 seconds. If you are afraid that the car will slide down the hill while moving, release the clutch, step on the accelerator and slowly release the handbrake to let the car crawl up the hill.

Don't force gears to accelerate.

The high number on the gear lever helps the car go fast but still keeps the engine rpm low, helping to save fuel and the machine parts operate with the lowest pressure. When wanting to accelerate, drivers often shift down to 1 gear, increase the throttle, then shift back to the old gear, this helps the car accelerate very quickly but also damages the gearbox more than pressing the throttle to accelerate. In addition, only shift gears when the car reaches the right speed, limit the habit of shifting gears when the engine rpm reaches the red line. Forcing the gearbox to work under great pressure for a long time, its lifespan will certainly be reduced and it is inevitable that you will have to pay for repairs.

According to VNN