the_merv

iTrader: (88)

That's where you learn to do it yourself as well..
That's where it really saves you money..

Joshu

iTrader: (1)

I met the guy in Indianapolis to pickup the car (My first LS1 and the one in my sig) and as soon as he gave me the keys for the test drive I looked him straight in the eye and said "I'm going to learn how to drive a stick now"

His face was priceless. Three stalls later I knew how!

the_merv

iTrader: (88)

silverM6TA

iTrader: (5)

ok, when i bought my m6 i barely knew how to drive a standard. within two days i was driving good, not burning my clutch and shifting good. within a week it was like i drove the car for a year. i learned easy. but im a quick learner. it should be easy. just dont drive in the snow.

02 Camaro SS

iTrader: (4)

I taught myself on my car in a weekend. These cars are very easy to drive with the stock cam.

Midnight02

iTrader: (8)

It shouldn't be tough to learn on a f-body. I learned to drive a stick on a couple old trucks when I was younger -- probably had two total hours of seat time driving a manual when I bought my SS.

Within a couple days I was VERY comfortable driving around...even in Atlanta traffic. Now that the car is heavily modded, I can understand how that would present much more of a challenge for a new M6 driver. If the car you're picking up is close to stock (or simply doesn't have a big cam with a lopey idle), you should be good to go. Worst case scenario, you end up cooking a clutch after a while and you have to replace it with the LS7 or a suitable upgrade -- frankly, you're going to need to upgrade that anyway.

Simply start slow and be smart about it. Too often people who are new to driving cars with real power simply hop in and slam the pedal to the floor -- often times those are the same folks you hear about wrapping their precious new ride around a tree within the first month.

As for driving the car in the snow -- technically ANY car could be driven in the snow, however you're just asking for trouble driving an f-body in the snow -- it doesn't matter if it's an A4 or a M6 -- RWD sports cars are not exactly ideal for snow and ice.

2SLO4ME

iTrader: (39)

I would say if your smart and don't try to find the limits of the car in the snow, then you should be just fine. As for not knowing how to drive a stick, it is a very simple concept and once you got it you got it. Granite not all clutches act the same but you learn to adjust quickly. My first LS1 car with an M6 had 425rwhp and I did just fine, no accidents. Traction control helps when leaving a stop light if you slip up, but it doesn't help so much when trying to get out of the snow when parked on the side of the street.

All-in-all just practice and don't drive on the road with everyone else if you are not confident.

99345hp

Driving a v8 f-body manual is pretty easy. Just practice.

Im about to go through my first snowy winter in my SS. It snowed yesterday and today, and no problems yet. As long as you take it easy, it shouldn't be any huge deal to drive in the snow.

Cole Train

iTrader: (30)

i knew how to drive standard before i bought my first M6 where i just hopped in and went. no problems. they are no different than any other manual car except the gates are closer together and there is one extra gear

binks0678

iTrader: (7)

should take you a whole 30 min to get the concept down. As for snow do what i did and buy a $500 dollar 4x4, its soooooo worth it plus then you can insure the beater on ur name and the fast car under your parents, it will end up paying for its self with insurance saving and keeps soo much abuse off the camaro

schmidtycamaro

Shouldn't be too hard. Honestly, take an entire Saturday and learn in a parking lot. Should only take a few hours. I learned to drive manual in my DD 100k miles on it and about 80k on the clutch. And in typical Ford fashion, I had to mash the clutch into the floor, still do with a new one.

As long as it's a newer car where the trans wasn't abused, it should be pretty easy.

JosephIV

iTrader: (14)

I agree with the winter beater philosophy.

I sold a set of snow tires to someone in Canada, I'm dying to see them mounted on a TA or Z28 because my car doesn't touch snow.

ErikElvis

iTrader: (1)

Its more the fear factor of doing it more than anything. Go to a big parking lot and drive away. Just remember there are milions of people out there that can drive stick and they went through the same thing your going through at one point. Its just practice. If I remember correctly its the thalmus or hypothalmus that helps regulate repetitive muscle movements more than your actual "thinking" brain. After a while you dont even think about what your doing.

I learned to drive on a 5 speed S-10. And I also remember those same years going to the chevy dealership practicing running through the gears of a 6 speed 96-97 SS and not knowing what gear I was in and thinking it was difficult. anyway I picked up my SS a few years ago and never had trouble with the 6 speed. The gears are closer together but it really isnt hard when you are actually driving the car.

Have Fun

99 Black Bird T/A

iTrader: (4)

OK, I was in just about the same boat as the OP above. I'd driven straight drive truck up and down a drive way a few times as a teenager but I wanted an M6.

It would be best to learn on an old beater first.

I kept my beater so there would be no pressure to learn how to drive a stick. Take it easy, practice away from traffic, get a friend that knows how to drive a stick to coach you a little when you go out to drive. I practiced a lot in my neighborhood where it was paved but no houses were started yet. Practice on hills etc.

DO NOT TRY TO RACE ETC WHILE YOUR LEARNING.

Replace the shifter with a Pro 5.0 and do the skip shift eliminator. Both of those will help you learn. Skip shift makes it harder to learn.

You'll quickly discover you have to pay far more attention when driving a stick...because these cars will roll forward or backward etc...they do exactly what you tell them to do. You'll end up feeling more connected to the car. It's the difference in a machet (A4) car and a rapier (M6)

Good luck and be careful.

Joshu

iTrader: (1)

He nailed it. It really makes you pay attention to what is going on. Learning how to shift uphill into first from a stop can be quite scary when you first start learning.

wht01ws6ta

iTrader: (45)

Yeah that's probably one of the more tricky parts of driving a stick is learning how to keep the car from rolling backwards when starting out from a stop on a steep hill.

I would definitely not let not knowing how to drive a stick keep you from buying the car. Just take an hour or so to learn how to drive it and you'll be glad you did!

Nimitz87

iTrader: (17)

I didn't know how to drive stick before I bought my trans am. my best friend actually did the test drive (he owns a 98 ws6) picked up the car and drove over an hour home the same day in rush hour traffic....after practicing on his integra GSR the night prior...its pretty easy to pick up.

I stalled once, in the middle of a toll booth lol.

Chad