new rider
 

Hi all,

Just got a Boxster 2001 base model with about 54k miles. This is my first manual car although I had a motorcycle prior. I notice many people mention starting off in 2nd but I am having a tough time with hill stops. I have too many times burnt up the clutch and smell rubber when I park afterwards. Any advice?

Don't start off in second.

even in first it's sloppy for me :(

Not sure where you ever saw advice to start in 2nd. I have never seen it mentioned here. No reason to and I would never do it in good weather (Maybe snow). For hills, use your hand brake to assist in roll back. I'm teaching myself how to as I have always been able to do the quick step off brake, on throttle, release clutch.

You know the old line:
"How do you get to Carnege Hall?"
"Practice, man. Practice!"

When I got my first stick shift car 30 years ago and was just terribe with it, someone sitting next to me instructing me just made me nervous and did me no good.
I finally took it out of town to hilly farm back road that almost never saw any traffic. I drove and stopped and parked and did 3-point turns back and forth up and down those hills for two hours.
After that it was practically second nature.
So basically, let the car instruct you. It knows what it likes and doesn't like and it will let you know it. All stick shifts are different, and you need to adjust to the needs of that particular car. ;)

PS: agreed. Don't start in second especially on hill starts. Starting in second should only be done on slippery surfaces.

Hill stop:

1. When you see the caution light illuminate for the cross traffic OR you think your red light is about to change, engage your handbrake
2. Depress clutch, put gear lever in first gear
3. When you get the green light, push in the handbrake button, but keep pressure on the brakes
4. Slowly let out the clutch until you feel it begin to engage; give the engine a small amount of throttle as you do this
5. Release the handbrake as you continue to gently step on the accelerator and release the clutch

Find a spot somewhere where you can practice. You'll find it easy after several tries.

We are going to need pictures of your significant other and car for our files and for site confirmation purposes.

Thanks for your cooperation.

This is great advise.

I have four kids and gave each one a car for their sixteenth birthday. All were manual transmissions. It takes some time to get comfortable with the clutch but it will come quickly. Just hang in there.

WTF???
What "many people" are recommending this?
A Tip will normally start in 2nd, but I have never heard of starting in 2nd with a stick in a Boxster.

As many have said, practice, practice, practice.
Try a little blip of the throttle to get the revs up slightly before engaging the clutch on a hill. It does require some quick footwork, but with some practice you won't roll back more than a few inches, even on a steep hill.

You can also try kind of a heel/toe method. Right foot on the brake and give it some gas with the heel as you let out the clutch

Tip's Start off in second when in auto mode maybe that's where he is getting that info from.

I have a tip, but I used to have a car with stick and consider myself quite proficient. While I would say a second gear start may be ok if you california roll a stop sign, doing it regularly from a dead stop does nothing but ensure you'll be getting a new clutch sooner than you'd like. Especially on a hill. If you've never had a car with stick shift, the boxster is a tough car to learn on. I've heard lots of folks state the Boxster is one of the toughest clutches to get proficient with. Best of luck.

+ 1.... Lol

I think I'm the slowest Porsche on the road...

For a newb this method is going to be tough. I'd think for most the handbrake method is easier to understand and apply.

My daughter's Mini has hill assist which I think is just cheating. ;)

man I'd love hill assist! I think the hardest part will be in stop and go traffic going up hill. :(

Dude, don't give up!
 

As a honorary member and special pledge coordinator of the Save the Manuals club, we need new recruits!

All the advice given here is good, but the most important thing is practice. Take the car out early Sunday morning to a remote area (or even a big parking lot) where there won't be many other cars and spend an hour just practicing getting it started from a stop. Learn the clutch's "bite" point (compared to my DD Honda its at a higher point). Slowly release of the clutch with just a slight bit of throttle...say from idle speed up a few hundred RPM. Just learn that point where you feel the car going forward. As soon as you are moving...say at 2,000 RPM, depress the clutch, shift to 2nd and let the clutch out....faster this time.....you won't stall it very easily when your moving forward. Don't even get it out of second gear during this first hour. You'll probably buck and stall some when starting in 1st....everyone does when they learn.

When you've made some progress, practice your slow turns. Learn that the car will stall when making a slow speed turn if you don't get on that clutch. Don't let the engine bog down to near idle RPM and you won't stall.

Next, practice some normal road driving. Get it into 3rd....even 4th. Learn when you need to downshift. Coming to a sharp corner? Know you need to get it into lower gear going into the turn. Learn when you need to engage both the clutch and brake at the same time. Truly, the car will tell you if your doing something wrong.

Now go to a slight incline and stop the car. Turn it off. Make a mental picture of what you'll need to do to get the car going forward. Start it up in neutral. Press the clutch and put it in 1st. You may need a little more accelerator than you did with the flat starts. Let the clutch out just a tad bit quicker to the bite point. Because, gravity will make it want to roll back. Try the handbrake method if it helps. But you are in charge. You will stall it - trust me. Don't get discouraged. Thousands of people have gone though this and learned. Were they any better than you? No!!! It really is like learning to ride a bike...you will never forget afterwards how to do it.

Once you master the hill-start, you've got it. Drive, drive, drive. Practice, practice, practice. Soon you'll join an ever exclusive club of people who drive - really drive - cars the way that God and Mr. Porsche intended with two feet working three pedals in concert. You'll feel (and hear) the joy of winding that beautiful flat six out and working your way up and down through the gears. I say this with all due respect to our Tiptronic-driving brothers and sisters, of course ;) who love their cars just as much as we and don't have to fret over getting stuck in 10 miles of stop and go traffic.

Finally, for any who think me overly zealous or sounding like a know-it-all , I readily admit probably 90% of the people on this board are better drivers than I am. I'm terrible at heal/toe and rev-matching. I've never raced. Never been to DE. But I have driven dozens of stick cars in my 43 years of driving, and taught other people to drive them.

I'm in Stoneham. Just north of Boston. PM me if you want any help. I'd be happy to meet you to help or just go for a drive in our incredible cars. Good luck!

Mordeeb, like someone mentioned already,

If you use the parking brake (while pressing the button at the same time..!), the P brake will hold the car on the hill while you start moving forward with the clutch.

Using the p brake it's actually much simpler that sounds and will give you a piece of mind knowing that the car will Not roll backwards.

Good luck!

Mordeeb, like someone mentioned already,

If you use the parking brake on the steep hills (while pressing the button at the same time..!), the P brake will hold the car on the hill while you start moving forward with the clutch.

Using the p brake it's actually much simpler that sounds and will give you a piece of mind knowing that the car will Not roll backwards.

Good luck!

I can't help but think the 'starting in second' was someone referring to push starting a manual and to use second as the gear to kick it over in. My 2 cents.