Get Started on a Hill when Driving a Manual Transmission Car
You reach a dilemma when you are driving your stick shift car and you have to stop on an uphill gradient. How can you get started without rolling back into the car behind you?
Steps
Foot Shuffle
- Keep your right foot on the brake pedal and your left on the the clutch pedal
- When you need to start moving, bring the clutch up to the point of biting and then quickly move your right foot from the brake to the gas and apply pressure. You should give it more gas than you normally would on a flat launch.
- Slowly lift your left foot off the clutch.
Handbrake technique
- Keep your left foot on the clutch and set the handbrake.
- When you need to start moving, start applying pressure to the gas pedal with your right foot.
- As you start to apply pressure to the gas, slowly lift up the clutch pedal and slowly release the handbrake. Note that you should give it more gas than you normally would on a flat launch.
Heel-Toe
- Keep your left foot on the clutch and your right foot on the brake.
- When you need to start moving, rotate your right foot 90ยบ so your foot is perpendicular to the gas and brake and you can apply gas and brake at the same time.
- Apply pressure to the gas pedal side of your right foot while still putting some pressure on the brake.
- Slowly let off the clutch with your left foot and give the gas more pressure. Note that you should give it more gas than you normally would on a flat launch.
- When you feel you won't roll back, move your right foot totally over to the gas pedal.
Tips
- Don't panic if you can't get it on the first try, because you probably won't. Try to practice in an area with less traffic. More traffic = more stress and you will be more likely to mess up.
- (Heel-toe) is only for advanced drivers.
- Method 2 (Handbrake) is arguably the most effective method and requires the least finesse.
- You should already be able to launch your stick shift car on flat ground before trying a hill launch.
- Method 1 (Foot shuffle) probably won't work for really steep hills.
- The tachometer (RPM meter) can help you detect the biting point of the clutch.On a slope let clutch and foot brake be completely depressed. The RPM will be constant around say 600rpm. Slowly release only the clutch and you will notice a slight drop in rpm, say to 550 rpm. Now you can release the foot brake and the vehicle will not roll back even without touching the accelerator. Be careful not to let rpm drop too much or the engine will stall.
- (Foot shuffle) needs to be executed very quickly and smoothly. If you don't do it quickly, you will roll back and hit the car behind you. If you don't do it smoothly, you may stall out.
