Very first time behind the wheel of a car

Mental_Legend

I'm having a bit of trouble getting the hang of taking my foot off the clutch and the other onto the accelerator smoothly. I always get a jerky start. When I tried driving on the beach last week I eventually smoothed it out, but was still a bit jerky towards the end. Today, I could hardly move the car around the driveway without it stalling. Is this usual? I've only been in the driver's seat twice. On the beach, I had little trouble with turning or gear changing, so if I could get the start up right then I'd be over the moon.

jumbone

I was exactly the same but one day I had it explained differently and it was like somebody flicked a switch.

Do this in a wide open flat space away from other cars etc.

• Practice lifting off the clutch about 5/10 times with the car off so you can feel exactly how it travels.

• Take off handbrake, press clutch and put car in first.
• Put hands on wheel and start car, return hands to wheel
• Keep clutch depressed
• Feather the accelerator lightly ~500 rpm above idle
• Let up the clutch as lightly as possible - you will probably chirp the tyres (especially in the wet/rough surface) and tear off because it is your first time and you aren't quite as smooth as you should be.

CONGRATULATIONS, you have found your clutches biting point!! :pac:

• Turn off the car, place in neutral and apply handbrake.
• Turn on car with clutch in, then select first
• With your right hand holding the wheel tight release the handbrake.
• Return hands to the wheel and let the clutch out as smooth as possible to the biting point you found earlier WITHOUT any throttle
  The time between releasing the handbrake and letting up the clutch should be as little as possible to prevent roling on hills

• Hold the clutch at this point for a second and as slowly as possible let it out, the car will lurch forward and you will feel it almost stall - recover by pressing the accelerator as gently as possible

• You should have taken off at ~ 2 mph
• Now try again including checking mirrors and blindspot etc.

Some points to note:

The sequence highlighted in RED is NOT the correct sequence for moving off and can lead to the car rolling on uneven ground - ONLY USE IT TO LOCATE THE BITING POINT.

Holding the clutch at biting point like I described in the blue line is the quickest way to wear out a clutch so do it sparingly, however all learners burn a bit of clutch it I to be expected and it won't wear it out rapidly if you do that the odd time.

OP In future forget about driving on the beach, I learnt on grassy plains in the curragh and that was different enough to road so I'd say a beach is way off - the last thing you want is to get stuck when the tide is coming in:D Also read up on how a clutch actually works (disengaging the engine from the wheels); it handy to now why you do things rather than arbitrarily putting it down to how cars work. Best of luck and SAFE MOTORING!

If anybody who has actually passed their test wants to rip this advice to shreds go ahead but it helped me Also, anybody should use this advice at their own risk!!

martin699

practicing with the car off is key...

i would also say to just leave the car reving at about 2000 rpm and then let the clutch up smoothly...

jumbone

martin699 wrote: »

i would also say to just leave the car reving at about 2000 rpm and then let the clutch up smoothly...

Well most petrol cars would idle about 1k-1.5k so 2000rpm isnt too far off what i said above.

It is good to be able to move off with no gas too - while not exactly easy for a beginner it is good to be able to find the bite *that* accurately

Also on practicing with the car off, as a passenger try to keep an eye on the drivers left knee while using your ears to tell if they are pressing the accelerator. 10 minutes watching somebody driving in stop start traffic could do you a lot of good

J_R

Hi,

Try this Moving Off

**Timbuk2**

jumbone, that was a helpful post! I was teaching my brother how to drive a car for the very first time, and it is difficult to explain something to somebody that comes automatically when you are experienced. He got it fairly quickly though, you just need patience at the start!

daveharnett

jumbone wrote: »

Well most petrol cars would idle about 1k-1.5k so 2000rpm isnt too far off what i said above.

Most petrol cars idle in the 700-800 rpm region when warmed up. 1.5k seems very high to me - I think some cars may idle that high for a few minutes until the oil is warm, but it wouldn't be common.

**Timbuk2**

daveharnett wrote: »

Most petrol cars idle in the 700-800 rpm region when warmed up. 1.5k seems very high to me - I think some cars may idle that high for a few minutes until the oil is warm, but it wouldn't be common.

My car idles at 700rpm. It's even less than this whilst braking to a stop (which seems unusual!)

hobochris

Another good way to find the clutches biting point is(in an empty car park) put the car into gear, KEEP YOUR FOOT AWAY FROM THE ACCELERATOR(for the moment), and just very slow let the clutch out. This will move the car very slowly and teach you clutch control as well as were the biting point is.

stop and repeat until you get used to the way the clutch works.

You master that and starting off with the accelerator will be easy.

starlit

martin699 wrote: »

practicing with the car off is key...

i would also say to just leave the car reving at about 2000 rpm and then let the clutch up smoothly...

have the ignition and engine turned off while practicing the gears and pressing your foot on the pedals as if you are driving is a good start. best thing to do is find a quiet secluded place or outside your house or some place in the countryside or a deserted carpark to get the car in motion! practice stopping and starting, clutch control is important. takes time to get the hang of the biting point whether its on plain or hilly ground or a give! turning the wheel and reversing is good to begin with too to gain confidence behind the wheel.

LookBehindYou

You will have more control of the clutch if you rest your heel on the floor and slide the heel backwards to ease off the clutch. Try it on level ground first without revving the engine, the car will move off without revs.

jumbone

daveharnett wrote: »

Most petrol cars idle in the 700-800 rpm region when warmed up. 1.5k seems very high to me - I think some cars may idle that high for a few minutes until the oil is warm, but it wouldn't be common.

Hmm, my car is a notch above 1k with the engine cold. 1.5 k would be high bit i thought it could be anywhere between 700 and 1.5k. Anyways, all cars are different and diesels will be lower again etc... Ye knew what I meant

Captain_Generic

jumbone wrote: »

Also read up on how a clutch actually works (disengaging the engine from the wheels); it handy to now why you do things rather than arbitrarily putting it down to how cars work.

Absolutely, first two days i was driving i was stalling all over the place, read up about how exactly clutches work and on the third day had absolutely no problems. Makes a big difference when you know you're just operating a mechanical machine rather than blindly wrestling the "clutch monster":D