The Garage

[The Chief]

I learned on a 93 Mazda B2200 that I bought from my then-boss for $250

[HalfSmokes]

The beauty part is that with the auto-manual there's no clutch to burn out. The shifting is idiot-proof; it won't allow you to make a gear change that will hurt the engine. My wife and I will go to a parking lot somewhere and she'll teach me. At least the car has a tachometer.

Didn't you test drive the 81? Did the salesman have a stroke?

When we bought our last car, I really wanted to ask to test a manual, sit in the drivers seat, put the key in the ignition, then ask "what's the third peddle for"

[PANatsFan]

When we bought our last car, I really wanted to ask to test a manual, sit in the drivers seat, put the key in the ignition, then ask "what's the third peddle for"

I can't believe I didn't think to use my Zipcar to try out a bunch of cars instead of test driving with a guy bothering me with lies the whole time. Plus you have the Zipcar insurance; I'm always afraid of getting rear-ended while test-driving, and the headaches that would ensue. Zipcar has a bunch of Mazdas.

[tomterp]

Didn't you test drive the 81? Did the salesman have a stroke?

I had driven versions as a valet car parker while in college, already knew that's what I wanted.

[Ali the Baseball Cat]

Quite aside from being more fun to drive, knowing how to drive manual is key if you ever want to rent a car outside of North America.  There are a few automatics that one can rent in Europe (generally bad and expensive compared to manual vehicles), but anywhere else and one is escruda.  

And driving a rental car on the left side of the road is challenging enough if one hasn't done that before without having to figure out how to work the clutch.  The last car I rented in Thailand even had a manual choke  

[Nathan]

Manual choke?  I'd be stumped on that one

[CJames0569]

The last car I rented in Thailand even had a manual choke  

Thank goodness for growing up riding dirtbikes and fourwheelers. Back in the day those damn bikes you had to kick start would almost break your leg, now everything has electric start. My friend once broke his arm while trying to start our go-cart, it wasn't funny then but looking back now it kind of is.

[saltydad]

My ex swore she could drive a stick, and that she had even learned how on the hills of San Francisco! I was impressed, and we bought our first Subaru as a manual. 6 clutch jobs later,,,,,,no longer so impressed.  

[PANatsFan]

My ex swore she could drive a stick, and that she had even learned how on the hills of San Francisco! I was impressed, and we bought our first Subaru as a manual. 6 clutch jobs later,,,,,,no longer so impressed. 

Some jokes write themselves, sir.

[Nathan]

17 year old kid trades a phone for a Porsche Boxster S on Craigslist!

Basically he traded his phone for an iPod, iPod for a dirt bike, dirtbike for a car, and continuously traded up until eventually, he had a trade for the Porsche!  That's awesome.

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/07/21/video-17-year-old-swaps-old-phone-for-porsche-boxster-on-craigs/

[cmdterps44]

That's pretty awesome. Reminds me of my days in Diablo II. Nothing nearly as comparable but trading up always got me better crap.

[Ali the Baseball Cat]

That sounds like the WWII mess officer Milo Minderbender in "Catch-22", selling eggs to the enemy and then buying them back at a profit.

17 year old kid trades a phone for a Porsche Boxster S on Craigslist!

Basically he traded his phone for an iPod, iPod for a dirt bike, dirtbike for a car, and continuously traded up until eventually, he had a trade for the Porsche!  That's awesome.

http://www.autoblog.com/2010/07/21/video-17-year-old-swaps-old-phone-for-porsche-boxster-on-craigs/

[CJames0569]

My ex swore she could drive a stick, and that she had even learned how on the hills of San Francisco! I was impressed, and we bought our first Subaru as a manual. 6 clutch jobs later,,,,,,no longer so impressed. 

Ouch  I keep telling my gf that she needs to learn to drive a stick (my Subie is an AT  ). I hope to get a Honda S2000 here soon, maybe I'll let her learn on that. After second thought she can learn on my brother's Civic first, less damage. 

[CJames0569]

Douchebag learns a painful lesson 

http://jalopnik.com/5593280/biggest-douche-in-universe-shows-why-you-never-load-a-car-on-a-u+haul

[saltydad]

Quite aside from being more fun to drive, knowing how to drive manual is key if you ever want to rent a car outside of North America.  There are a few automatics that one can rent in Europe (generally bad and expensive compared to manual vehicles), but anywhere else and one is escruda. 

And driving a rental car on the left side of the road is challenging enough if one hasn't done that before without having to figure out how to work the clutch.  The last car I rented in Thailand even had a manual choke 

The first time I drove a manual in the Bahamas (Freeport) going to the pub was no problem. Coming back from the pub.....a circle (rotary) had me in a panic!

[Nathan]

The first time I drove a manual in the Bahamas (Freeport) going to the pub was no problem. Coming back from the pub.....a circle (rotary) had me in a panic!

I hate those things! 

[tomterp]

I hate those things! 

I love them.  Traffic moves freely, as opposed to lights, or stop signs.  Yield to traffic already in the circle, is the only rule you need to know. 

There are a couple of them around the Rio complex along 270, I love ripping through them.  If only US traffic planners would fully embrace them, it would be a huge relief and easing of traffic congestion.

[Ali the Baseball Cat]

I have a Romanian friend who left his country for the first time when he got a grad fellowship in Paris...he wound up in his rental car in the huge ass circle at Place d'Etoile (like 8-10 lanes around Arc de Triomphe) smack in the middle of rush hour, and drove around and around and around, unable to get out of the innermost ring, until the car finally ran out of fuel.  He just opened the door, got out, and walked back to sanity through the pedestrian underpass.   

[Nathan]

I love them.  Traffic moves freely, as opposed to lights, or stop signs.  Yield to traffic already in the circle, is the only rule you need to know. 

There are a couple of them around the Rio complex along 270, I love ripping through them.  If only US traffic planners would fully embrace them, it would be a huge relief and easing of traffic congestion.

The problem is I don't trust anyone else on the road.  At the ones I've been through, no one has any idea how they work.

I also hate this one intersection in my town (the second of the 2 intersections with traffic lights, the one near Roy's).  After 9 pm it no longer signals.  Traffic on the main road gets flashing yellow, while traffic coming from the off ramps or on the other side get flashing red.

Guess what invariably happens when I come to the flashing red?  Some moron comes to a stop at flashing yellow, then proceeds to honk at me because I'm waiting for them to pass through.

[Nathan]

I have a Romanian friend who left his country for the first time when he got a grad fellowship in Paris...he wound up in his rental car in the huge ass circle at Place d'Etoile (like 8-10 lanes around Arc de Triomphe) smack in the middle of rush hour, and drove around and around and around, unable to get out of the innermost ring, until the car finally ran out of fuel. He just opened the door, got out, and walked back to sanity through the pedestrian underpass.   

!

[tomterp]

I have a Romanian friend who left his country for the first time when he got a grad fellowship in Paris...he wound up in his rental car in the huge ass circle at Place d'Etoile (like 8-10 lanes around Arc de Triomphe) smack in the middle of rush hour, and drove around and around and around, unable to get out of the innermost ring, until the car finally ran out of fuel.  He just opened the door, got out, and walked back to sanity through the pedestrian underpass.   

The Arc de Triomphe is the mother of all traffic circles.  I think the rule there is, yield to entering and exiting traffic.  I rode 3/4 of the way around with a french woman who was not shy about asserting her right to change lanes, it was terrifying and exhilerating all at once.

[PANatsFan]

The problem is I don't trust anyone else on the road.  At the ones I've been through, no one has any idea how they work.

I also hate this one intersection in my town (the second of the 2 intersections with traffic lights, the one near Roy's).  After 9 pm it no longer signals.  Traffic on the main road gets flashing yellow, while traffic coming from the off ramps or on the other side get flashing red.

Guess what invariably happens when I come to the flashing red?  Some moron comes to a stop at flashing yellow, then proceeds to honk at me because I'm waiting for them to pass through.

I see you went to Chevy Chase this week (or Rockville, or 50 other places in Montgomery county)

[PANatsFan]

I saw one of these recently. Why would you want a Maserati that looks like an accord?



Also, my step plate for my hatch comes today

[HalfSmokes]

I saw one of these recently. Why would you want a Maserati that looks like an accord?



Also, my step plate for my hatch comes today

why would you want a Maserati other than to say you have a Maserati?

[PANatsFan]

The Hyundai Sonata is a hell of a car. I rented one and was very pleasantly surprised. Now they have a turbo edition. Me likey bouncy.