Safe manual driving skills for new drivers

(Baonghean.vn) -When just starting to hold the steering wheel, manual transmission is the choice of almost everyone. Once you can drive a manual transmission, driving an automatic transmission becomes simpler than ever.

To be able to proactively control situations on the road as well as achieve more reasonable fuel consumption when using a manual transmission car, drivers should pay attention to the following driving operations:

Shift in and out at the correct speed

In addition to knowing how to drive, you must know how to drive the car best, such as avoiding clutch wear and shifting gears when the engine is still weak. The reality is that most drivers in Vietnam often shift gears when the engine is not running at full speed, causing the car to be sluggish and unable to release the engine. If you do not reach the speed limit and shift into a high gear, the car will be sluggish and when you step on the gas, the car will not accelerate (running with a forced gear).

Normally, car manufacturers have different reasonable gear shifting thresholds, but on average it is around 2,500 rpm when shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. If you shift gears properly, the car will be strong enough to shift into the following gears and keep the engine more durable, plus quick gear shifting (reduce throttle and cut clutch quickly - shift gears - slowly release clutch combined with increasing throttle), handle obstacles on the road well, you will go faster and smoother.

Use the clutch pedal properly

The clutch pedal is always a problem for everyone when driving a manual transmission car, but it is also the clutch pedal that will make the car much safer.

If you want the car to run smoothly, remember to press the clutch all the way in and when you release the clutch almost all the way, stop for about 3 to 5 seconds to let the car start moving before releasing the clutch completely.

When you press the clutch and the car does not stop or jump, you are using the clutch correctly. The clutch contacts the flywheel properly without suddenness, which will help your car last longer.

When driving on crowded or bad roads, you should also cushion the clutch pedal frequently to prevent the vehicle from jerking.

Manual transmission car start

During the driving test, starting is the part that is most likely to fail because releasing the clutch too far causes the vehicle to stall.

If you use the same way as when learning to drive, using “clutch - handbrake - accelerator” or “clutch - footbrake - accelerator” continuously when stuck in traffic on a slope, it will make you sweat and your limbs will be tired. To continuously start uphill when stuck in traffic on a slope, you need to practice “clutch - accelerator” more smoothly, to be able to keep the car standing on the slope with only the clutch - accelerator, that is, to depress the clutch and apply the accelerator just enough to keep the car standing on the slope, if the car shows signs of going backwards, you should add a little more accelerator, if the car moves a little, you reduce the accelerator a little.

Be careful when using the handbrake

Many drivers often use the handbrake when starting on a hill and if there are signs of rolling back, they tighten the handbrake. In fact, the handbrake is not designed to stop the car when it is moving, but only to keep the car stationary when it is stopped. If you try to stop the car using only the handbrake, you will see how inappropriate and dangerous it is.

If the handbrake is not released completely while the car is running, it will lead to premature wear and tear, the brake pads will be shiny due to the phenomenon of brake pad slippage, but what is more dangerous is that the heat generated can boil the brake fluid, resulting in the brake failure. You should use the traditional way of starting when learning to drive, it will be safer and easier to use.

Avoid going to N (zero number)

Driving a manual transmission car in N gear is not recommended by car experts. Because when shifting to N gear, the car will run forward by inertia, making you lose control of the speed and difficult to handle when encountering obstacles.

Especially when going downhill, absolutely do not put the car in N. The car goes downhill without the support of the gearbox, only braking for too long will cause the brakes to overheat, leading to loss of effectiveness. Many people, in order to save gas, put the car in N, so they cannot control the situation, leading to unfortunate incidents.

In the morning, you should not start the engine and go immediately.

This is the time when the engine is most susceptible to corrosion and damage. After a long period of inactivity, most of the engine oil has settled to the bottom of the engine. The cylinder system and combustion chamber now have almost only a thin layer of oil on the surface.

Starting the engine at this time requires a certain amount of time for the oil to be pumped into the cylinders fully. Then turn the ignition key and let the engine idle for about half a minute to a minute before operating.

Overtaking on the road

If you want to overtake a car on the road, shift to a lower gear (around 3rd gear). While shifting to overtake, you need to use the brake pedal to avoid damaging the engine and clutch. While overtaking, using the horn and turn signals will help keep you and the surrounding vehicles safe. Then, you can skip the intermediate 4th gear and shift straight to 5th gear to save fuel.

5 things to avoid when driving a manual transmission car

- Don't fiddle with the gears when you don't need to change gears:The mechanism of the manual transmission is to press the clutch, shift gears, release the clutch and accelerate, 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, the action of continuously placing the hand on the gear lever is the cause of direct impact on the gearbox. When operating the gear, the gear lever is directly connected to the gear lever - shaped like a fork, this gear lever is directly connected to the synchronizer and it will "push" the synchronizer to engage with the gear, helping the car to shift gears.

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 and damage.

- Don't leave the gear when stopping at red lights:Shifting to N will be most beneficial for the vehicle 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 will not be completely durable when the driver uses the vehicle incorrectly. Shifting to N will separate the clutch from the gearbox, helping the ball bearing not contact the springs on the clutch, which increases the life of the vehicle's transmission system.

- Do not rest your foot on the clutch pedal:The clutch pedal's job is to disengage the clutch, separating the gearbox from the engine so the vehicle can shift gears. When you rest your foot on the clutch pedal, more or less force will be applied, especially on vehicles with very light clutch pedals. This will cause the clutch lining to not fully engage with the engine, causing clutch slippage. As a result, the gearbox will not transmit 100% of the engine's power, causing fuel consumption and the clutch lining will also quickly corrode.

The clutch is the part responsible for connecting the engine and the gearbox to transmit power to the drive gears. Moreover, the clutch is also capable of cutting the transmission line when necessary. Therefore, if the driver constantly 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.

- Do not use the clutch to hold the vehicle on a slope:This is a way to damage the gearbox “in every part” when details such as clutch pads, drive gears, and ball bearings will have to endure a very large frictional force to keep the entire mass of the vehicle stationary on the slope, while the brakes on all 4 wheels can take on 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 pedal, 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 gear 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 is also more harmful to the gearbox than pressing the throttle to accelerate.

In addition, only change gears when the vehicle reaches sufficient speed, limit the habit of changing gears when the engine rpm reaches the red line. Forcing the gearbox to work under great pressure for a long time will certainly reduce its lifespan and having to pay for repair costs is inevitable./.

Ngoc Anh

(Synthetic)