Stopping for stop signs
 

Hey guys
General question on manuals and stoping for a stop sign then lift off again.
Whats the best procedure?

Usually this is what I do, clutch, shift to neutral, brake till full stop, clutch, shift to 1st gear and go

Or on the other hand does anyone do this?
Break to nearly full stop, clutch for full stop, leave in 1st gear, and depress the clutch to lift off.

I know it adds wear and the if the clutch is pressed for too long, but if for method 2, which only lasts 3secs. Is that a big deal?
However, the main idea is, which method is better or is there another?

1st method is better, forces u to do a proper stop, and if ur pretty good at driving stick u can just take off immediately anyway, plus no wear and tear from the clutch imo

i prefer the second method for stop signs simply because youre only stopped for a second. the time it takes to press the clutch pedal twice is probably longer than how long you would press it once. at lights it just depends on the strength of the clutch pedal regarding what i do. either way is not going to make a significant impact on the life of your clutch. i doubt either one is more damaging than when you engage the clutch to start the car every day.

The first method you described is best.

I hate to admit it but I no longer fully stop at stop signs if there's no one else at the intersection. I do a rolling stop and take off in second.

If I have to stop then I follow the same procedure as you guys.

I usually downshift until I hit second gear, clutch in when engine drops to ~idle RPMs (I don't like to coast), shift to 1st as I come to a stop (I usually don't like trying to rev match into first), and then accelerate away from the stop in 1st.

Sometimes if it's downhill-ish or a place where I don't want to accelerate quickly anyway I'll start in second. I probably won't do much starting in second in the BRZ though since it doesn't have much torque and would probably involve a lot of clutch slipping.

The additional wear from holding in the clutch pedal is on the clutch release bearing, not the clutch disc itself. Generally, as long as you aren't riding the clutch pedal, your clutch disc will wear out before the bearing (although I'd recommend replacing it along with the clutch.

Personally, it depends on how long I have to wait. If it's a 4 way stop, I generally use method 2. If I'm stopped at a cross street with traffic, I'll use method 1, more for not having to hold the clutch pedal than out of mechanical empathy.;)

Gear down down to first, observe for police/traffic, accelerate.

Seriously I probably do the California roll thru 75% of the stop signs I encounter.

lol... ever since i started driving manual (2nd day of this yr) i've began to stop at every single one, it seems like it took soo much more focus to pay attention to low speed stalls on first than to completely stop :/

I do both ways. There is no particular formula I follow. I guess it just depends on the day and time and what driving mode I'm in at the time.

First method but take off in 2nd gear, it's a habit.

What I usually do is that the first method. It also the way I learned to downshift. (by not doing it) lol. It's much harder to downshift smoothly than upshift so if I was worried, i used to put it in Neutral.

You should learn both, because they are both valuable. but my recommendation is that if you know for sure that you are going to stop, just put it in neutral. But it's also good to learn N to a specific gear at a specific speed. I usually use this technique if there was a improper shift and I had to put it in Neutral but I'm coasting and want it back in gear, you have to know how much to blip the throttle.

Everyone in my area runs stop signs at 25mph+. I seriously count more people running stop signs than stopping. I vote for that.

i thought you should never go into first

On older cars without synchros in first gear, this is valid. Otherwise you're fine.

I have been driving since(god, I sound like my dad) 1968. We have always had at least 1 vehicle in the family with a stick. The only clutch problem I ever had was a cable on a Datsun 2nd Gen 510. When approaching a stop sign I have always fully depressed the clutch, applied the brakes and when close to fully stopped shifted into 1st. It is not that hard.

Coasting in neutral is easier, and might make you feel less guilty about clutch wear but is kind of an amateur and/or lazy habit.

"Best" depends on who you ask I suppose...

Out here, you would likely fail your drivers license exam if you pulled that. And any instructor at any of the schools for both manual cars and motorcycles... will give you hell for it. Generally, "safety" is higher on the priority list than clutch wear, and if you are downshifting and braking properly it really isn't going to hurt your clutch significantly.

Perhaps these standards are different elsewhere? But out here you're basically told that the reason NOT to coast in neutral is because if there is any last second emergency or whatever and you need to react IMMEDIATELY you will already be in gear and that power is then accessible to you right away. That 1-3 seconds it takes you to get into gear when you realize you are about to get hit by someone (assuming you are paying attention) and are in a state of panic... can make the difference between getting hit or getting out of the way.

Anyone who's been rear ended or experienced permanent neck/back damage can probably vouch for how unpleasant those kinds of injuries are.

Granted there is the argument, that "well I'm thuper awethum at shifting pro because race car!" but when the shit hits the fan, do you want to gamble on your nerves being what they need to be? Most people who panic in a moment like that, didn't expect to react that way. And if you're watchin a car come barrelling towards you while you're sipping a latte in neutral and texting.... you'll wish you had an automatic.

FWIW, the day I was in an accident as a rear seat passenger in a manual at a stop light. I wish my buddy had it in gear. Could have been avoided if he had any power to the wheels to gtfo.

Life changing and not in a good way. Barely survived. And life's not the same due to the aftermath.

Anyway, not to be "that guy" and pitch the safety first rant... To be honest, I find that I habitually tend to neutral coast.... so I have to really consciously decide to not do that.

Downshifting: it could save your neck and it sounds cooler too!

If you were talking to me, I never said I was in neutral, just had the clutch in as I came to a stop. True, I might be technically "coasting", I maintain the proper gear and can remove my foot from the clutch as fast as I can move my other foot from the brake. I also haven't had an accident in over 20 years.

Bury your foot in the throttle until it redlines in whatever gear you happen to be using. Then shift from that gear directly into first without using the clutch pedal. Then do a couple of donuts around the stop sign. That is how the pros do it.

Pros or Honda drivers? :lol:

too many approach & go situations to say...

- i may coast to stop sign in neutral if i am the only one coming up to it & no one behind me and feeling leisurely.
- i may stay in gear if cars in front of me, but they are moving along quickly after stop. or if there is someone behind me while things are moving along quickly at the intersection.

- if i know i will just stop and go without waiting, i stay in gear.
- if there are other cars waiting at the intersection, i put in neutral since it will take some time for your turn.

Just be careful if there are people behind you. I have avoided at least one accident by judging how fast someone is coming up behind me and moving my car out of the way before said retard could ram into me. This split second decision was helped by the car already being in gear as I was slowing to a stop.

Don't take it as a hard and fast rule to always slow to a stop in gear, sometimes its just not needed (nobody behind you, clear roads, slow speeds, etc).

Oh snap! lol I guess I deserved that.

(Disclaimer: my advice is for entertainment purposes only. I have only driven a manual car once.)

All in good spirit just giving you a nice welcome for your first post :happy0180:

I usually downshift to second by rev matching, engine brake, slowly press brake pedal if needed, push clutch and brake, put in first (I am stopped at this point), look all around including rear view mirror, let off brake, depress clutch and give gas, continue driving. I always do this as I have no need for a SUDDEN stop at a stop sign. If for some reason I almost miss the sign, its foot push clutch and full braking, put car in first, repeat previous steps when stopped.

I just stop or do the rolling stop, look both ways to see if any cops (as was mentioned earlier), and really don't count the friggin steps. I've got things to do, places to go, people to see.

I do not go through any steps either, this is all second nature to me and just happens to be the way it takes place. I actually had to think about how I stopped for a min to type it out.

My General 4 way stop procedure, patent pending.

Step 01: Rev match into 2nd gear and compression brake
Step 02: Press clutch in at low RPMs and shift out of gear
Step 03: Use the break to come to a complete stop
Step 04: Look in all directions and locate the driver that has been stopped for several seconds
Step 05: Wait 3-6 seconds until you come to the conclusion the other driver doesn't understand the right of way at a four way stop.
Step 06: Proceed to shift into 1st, start to give it gas
Step 07: Press the brakes after realizing the other driver is starting as well
Step 08: Wait for the other driver to hit the brakes too
Step 09: Repeat steps 05 through 08 two to four times, while adding an additional hand motion/Hazard flash/low beam flash
Step 10: Finally proceed through the intersection trying not to loose faith in humanity

or

Step 01: Roll down your Window
Step 02: Yell, "YOLO!" while extending your middle finger out the window
Step 03: Continue in third gear with your right foot planted firmly on the accelerator.

But Generally, the way Khazzy describes it.

I usually start out in second if its a quick stop/look. Guess its just a habit with the 6speed since owning my old sti.

When I go to drive my brothers wrx, I hate that I have this habit bc 5 speed + second gear start = michael j fox car :lol:

this is bad, but i usually roll through stop signs when there are apparently no other cars in the area. not roll quickly though.

my question is, can you roll while in first? when i test drove an FR-S at the dealer parking lot, it didn't seem like i could roll much in first toherwise it would've stalled.

i'm coming from a 335i with huge amounts of torque so i never stall.

[quote=tracerit;790110]this is bad, but i usually roll through stop signs when there are apparently no other cars in the area.


That's why the Enforcers are HIDING!

They're waiting for YOU! :D



Sure. Why not?

So long as the car isn't bucking and lurching and stalling, it's fine. Your car will tell you when it doesn't like it. :)

If I stay in gear to a stop, I start to bog. So I have to press the clutch sooner and longer than 3 seconds to prevent bogging (not good in the long term). Wear on your car can occur during times of rapid transient change. I feel much better about braking with my transmission disconnected (in neutral) rather than forcing my transmission to undergo unecessary wear.

But at low traffic, familiar intersections where I know cops can't be hiding while seeing me in view, I can get away with a rolling stop in 2nd gear. Been driving 14 years without a stop sign ticket whereas my parents have gotten some. *knock on wood*

same here. no shame in it.

Well I typically think in a mindset that I am always at the track, which keeps you from getting rusty. So for any time I am slowing down:

1.) Heel Toe Downshift to the next gear below
2.) Apply braking until desired next downshift (repeat 1st step)
3.) Once Heel Toe to 2nd gear, slow to approx. 2k rpms depress clutch
4.) Slow down to approx. 5mph, Heel Toe into 1st gear.
5.) Keep Clutch Depressed while in 1st gear and come to complete stop.
6.) Check all directions and look for any bystanders
7.) Proceed to give it hell, if the environment safely allows it ;)

1- Slow down, downshift + heel toe depending on speed appropriate for gear.
2- Once down to 2nd gear and almost at a stop, clutch in and use brake to come to complete stop obeying the stop line.
3- Once at complete stop, put it in first and clutch out to go when safe to do so.

Never leave in neutral. Just clutch in.

I always engine brake till I hit just under 2k RPMs, Push in clutch, slow to stop, shift into first and go.

Same reason I stop my car like I stop my bike.