Manual transmission vehicles not only help you gain better control over your car but are also less expensive. Read further to learn how to drive a stick shift jeep.
Automatic jeeps are super easy to drive but do you know that vehicles with manual transmissions are more fuel efficient? Still, people prefer automatic jeeps over manual ones since while driving the latter one, you have to keep your eyes on everything, from clutching to a gear change to shifting to braking.
Considering this, driving a stick shift jeep is nearly impossible for many people but believe me, that’s not true. If learned properly with all the right guidelines, you can become a master at driving stick shift jeeps in a few days. And guess the best part?
On mastering manual transmission vehicles, you’ll automatically become a master at driving all the other sorts of vehicles. So without any further ado, let’s dive into how to drive a stick shift jeep guide so you could save more without compromising on the level of control over your vehicle!
how to drive a stick shift jeep
Understand parts and their functions
The very first step of learning a stick shift jeep is to understand all of its important and unimportant components so you can utilize them properly. Some major components of a manual jeep are as follows
Gear stick
Like automatic cars, manual ones don’t have gears for parking, reverse, driving, or neutral. Instead, it comes with a gear stick having numbers from 1 to 5 or 6. On the other hand, for reverse, the gear stick has an R mode.
Clutch pedal
Stick shift drives come with an extra pedal called a clutch which you need to keep pressed all the time with your left foot. This pedal separates the drive wheels from the engine and takes some time to get used to. The only time when this clutch pedal needs to depress is while shifting gears.
Parking brakes
Parking brakes work just as the parking gears do in automatic vehicles. As the name indicates, these brakes are there to use to park a manual car.
Gear shifter
The gear shifter is a stick-like knob that you can locate easily in your manual jeep. On this gear shifter, the very first gear is located at the top left corner. As you move from top to bottom, left to right, you can rotate to other gears; four or five. The gear location is almost the same for all the manual vehicles but if there’s any distinction, you’ll know about it as the gear locations are usually readily visible.
Pedal shifters
Three major driving components of a stick shift vehicle are its pedal shifters which are located at the foot side. These pedals include brakes which are located in the middle, an accelerator that is located on the right side, and a clutch that is located on the left pedal.
Learning when to shift
The most challenging and crucial part of driving a manual transmission vehicle is learning when to shift gears. It’s not as easy as it sounds. If you switch the shifter knob too soon while changing the gears, your automobile will run out of power while shifting gears.
On the other hand, if you switch the shifter knob too late, your vehicle will emit a shrieking sound. So, don’t rush this part and take the proper time to understand the entire upshifting process thoroughly and carefully.
Start the jeep
Before turning the keys into the ignition, you need to first make sure that your feet and gear knob are in the correct position. Remember that when starting a car, the gear knob should be set in the neutral or middle position. On the other hand, your left foot should be on the clutch whereas the right foot should be on the brakes.
Once set in the position, start by pressing the clutch pedal slowly with your left foot and brake with your right foot. You need to do so one by one (press the clutch first then the brakes). Likewise, press both pedals slowly – not in one go. Once done, put the keys in the ignition and start the car.
Once your car is started, set it on the first gear setting while raising your right foot off the brake gradually. For some time, maintain your left foot on the clutch pedal then slowly depress it and push the accelerator pedal using the right foot. Same as before, you need to press the accelerator pedal slowly as this pedal will accelerate your ride.
Shift to the second gear
Now since you’ve driven your vehicle successfully in first gear, it’s time to level up and start driving it in second gear. For this, you need to fully depress the clutch pedal and maintain your right foot on the accelerator. When your right foot is set on the gas pedal and your left foot is on the clutch, you should shift gears which will enable you to gain more acceleration.
Stopping the jeep
To brake your manual car, you need to take it down to the neutral gear. For this, you need to rotate the shifter knob into a neutral position while maintaining your left foot on the clutch. After this, slowly put your left foot off the clutch pedal and press the brakes to stop your car from moving further.
Leave a Reply