Learning to drive manual

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by sheepdog 44

And then i hit the highway and it was set it and forget it in 5th gear. Now i know about bsfc, i accelerated in 5th uphill flooring it and it didn't go below 45 mpg.

My experience with the Insight is that at highway speeds you'll often do better on hills by shifting down to 4th. It's also hard to maintain speed on any significant grade in 5th - but you can cruise 70+ in 4th with no problems.

[Fat Charlie]

Originally Posted by Denese Reifsteck

It's really challenging to drive a stick.

That's like saying it's really challenging to tie your own shoes. Yes, you need to be taught how to do it, but once you've learned then you notice how much of a better place the world is now that you're not restricted to flip-flops and velcro.

How about It's really challenging to teach yourself a new skill without any instruction.

[sheepdog 44]

Originally Posted by Fat Charlie

How about It's really challenging to teach yourself a new skill without any instruction.

Yes, part of the reason i took the gamble, is because i have no one to teach me, and if i was ever going to learn, it's by throwing my feet into the fire without a backup plan. I never had a traditional father figure to teach me; i was raised by Mom and we all drive auto's in the family. I'm glad i did it though, maybe soon i'll taste the fruits of leanburn. It's a must if i'm ever going to be competitive in the upper ranks of mpg competitions.

[sheepdog 44]

There was no air coming out of blowers, no ac, no defog. Opened up the blower motor and there was a mouse nest. Looked in the heater unit and out came 5 pounds of lentils! Acorns and crap everywhere. Spent the weekend stripping everything out, all trim, carpet, plastic down to the metal body. Well i was going to do this anyway. Every 100 pounds is some % better fuel economy, better power to weight, acceleration, hill climb, handling, rolling resistance. Well see how much weight i take out. I already have most everything removed. Soon to be gone is entire hv battery, computers and what i can get away with to keep the 12 volt charged. The hatch is super heavy. It'll have to come out when the boat tail goes in.

[sheepdog 44]

I need some advice. I can't get the 4 12mm bolts holding in the steering rack out. Same for the seat bolts. Those suckers are torqued on so tight they might as well be welded on. My other car, they come off no problem. My electric drill is no match. What can i do?

It'll be a week till i can take it to a shop. I really want to remove my dashboard console.

[Vman455]

Get a 3 foot pipe section that will fit over your ratchet handle. Make sure you have a strong rachet (1/2" drive, preferably) and a hardened socket, and go to town.

[Fat Charlie]

Throw in a squirt of penetrating oil before you go looking for pipes. I'm not saying instead of a pipe, it's just nice to throw in a carrot while you'reswinging the stick.

[jcp123]

Cheater bar FTW!

Congrats on learning stick! You'll eventually get addicted, IMHO. I was ambivalent about stick until I learned...and I am decidedly on the "manual only" train, my Echo is the last car, if I can help it, with automatic I'll ever own.

I recently started driving big rigs...I had to re-teach myself stick to get through 10 non-synchronized gears. Your "regular" manuals with synchros seem like cheating by comparison. If you have a trashed synchro as you indicated, it'll just be a learning experience

[jamesqf]

Originally Posted by Fat Charlie

Throw in a squirt of penetrating oil before you go looking for pipes.

And let the oil sit a while - even a day or more isn't too long, with several applications. Tap the bolts with a hammer occasionally, not hard enough to deform them, just enough to cause vibrations that'll help the oil penetrate. May seem like a pain, but it's better than breaking off the bolts, which you can easily do with a 1/2 socket and pipe.

[sheepdog 44]

My drill and socket wrench both skip when i use more power. I need a heavy duty wrench.

Thanks to Ma laws i'm paying 12% sales tax cause nada value is higher for private sales (dealer would be 6.25%). My current insurance wants half what i payed for it a year just for collision. I need to look elsewhere. Talk about trying to have a cheap car! Everyone wants part of the pie, gas is by far the least of it.

I have to sanitize the car. There isn't one inch of the interior mice didn't get in to. If you have a nest in your blower, you have more problems than you think. The interior is at bare metal. I need to do a thorough hand wash. I stirred up so much crap in the air. It should be cleaner without carpets and trim.

I'll post pictures later today.