Driving a manual car in South Africa is not as difficult as it seems if you know the basics of shifting gears. The best way to learn how to drive a manual car is by taking lessons from an instructor or by practising on your own. With practice, you can also become better at shifting gears without using your brakes too much.
The tachometer shows the revolutions per minute (RPM) of the motor. The RPM is the speed at which a needle that moves around a dial shows the motor turns. It is on your dashboard.
What to know about driving a manual car
You will learn to feel for friction point (biting point) by experimenting with the clutch; it’s a delicate balance between moving forward and stalling the car. Once you have a feel for how far to depress the pedal, slowly move your foot away from the brake pedal. As soon as your car moves, slightly increase pressure on your left foot until you reach driving speed. Then slowly release pressure until you come to a complete stop before pressing on your right foot again to move again.
The clutch engages and disengages the engine and transmission so that both can run together smoothly without damaging either of them or overworking them unnecessarily under load or high RPMs (revolutions per minute).
In order to come to a stop, depress the clutch and shift into neutral; you will need to depress the clutch and shift into neutral to come to a complete stop where you may need to reverse when you start again.
If you are in traffic and about to come to a stop, depress the clutch and shift into neutral; the engine will keep running but your car will be in neutral, so when you let off the clutch your car will come to a stop.
To come to a complete stop where you may need to reverse when you start again, depress the clutch and shift into 1st gear (to the left up). Isolate the clutch. Use just the clutch if possible to get the vehicle moving again;
Depress the clutch and shift into 1st gear (to the left up). Isolate the clutch. Use just the clutch if possible to get the vehicle moving again;
Conclusion
The tips above should be enough to get you started in the right direction. Remember, it is a skill and takes some practice before driving becomes comfortable. However, once you are used to driving a manual car in South Africa, there is no turning back!
