Do you fear your daily commute? Does your pulse quicken as you approach the stop sign at the top of the hill? We’ve all been there. For many the prospect of driving a manual transmission is daunting. This is of course an irrational fear. I have only ever bought cars with manual transmissions. At first I stalled at every red light, in stop and go traffic and on every hill top stop sign. I have since over come these fears. I have taught several friends and family members to drive standards successfully and these are a few of the suggestions that worked for them. The biggest problem many have is a lack of knowledge, they do not know why they push on the clutch pedal or what a clutch is for that matter. So first get a basic understanding of how the system works. Briefly, the clutch is what connects your engine to your transmission. Inside the clutch assembly is a disc. This clutch disc moves away from the engines flywheel(a circular plate attached to the crankshaft which rotates at engine speed), when you depress the clutch pedal. The engine and transmission are now no longer connected. As you release the pedal the clutch discs moves toward the flywheel connecting the engine and transmission. This action is necessary to allow you to switch gears.I could go on but to fully understand this system it would take several pages of technical writing, so look it up on the Internet try and find a picture and I guarantee it will help.Now then first gear. Getting the car moving without causing whiplash can be tricky.The best solution is practice. So take your car or have a friend drive your car to an empty parking lot or country road. Stop the car. Without touching the accelerator SLOWLY let your clutch pedal up. You should start to move, SLOWLY take your foot off the clutch pedal and you will be creeping along nicely provided your car runs properly. Do this as many times as it takes for you to feel the point at which your engine begins to pull down the rpm’s. Once you have learned this feeling traffic lights will not be such a traumatic experience.Next, stopping on a hill always seems to cause an anxiety attack in new and old drivers. What I found works is this. Once you have come to a stop apply the hand brake. Push the clutch pedal in and select first gear. SLOWLY let the clutch pedal up. When you feel the engine pull release the hand brake and gently accelerate away from the stop.Driving a standard can be difficult but hang in there. With practice you will reach a point where you will not even think about what your doing and that is when you will fully appreciate driving. Category:Home › Other • Pomegranates: A newly discovered superfood • Where did the joke why did the chicken cross the road come from and why is it funny? • Can mothers diagnosed with bipolar disorder make good parents? • Spiritual evolution of human consciousness • Tips for getting a college basketball scholarship • Living with Pseudotumor cerebri (PTC) • Caring for the caregiver • Technologys impact on society