The reason for getting a manual is that you like it better. Maybe that's not the case for YOU, but maybe with time & practise you'll like it more. Or maybe not.

Manual trans will usually get better fuel economy, less power loss through the torque converter. Even that is getting closer & closer with newer automatics.

Manual transmission will not shift unless YOU shift it. Personally, I like manual better. It's a control thing. Not everyone feels the same way.

Lugging the engine isn't bad for mileage. In fact, it might be very slightly better for mileage. But lugging is slightly harder on the engine, mechanically. Low RPM is just fine untill you try to accelerate more than a little bit.

Taking off from a stop on a hill... what's wrong? Do you have to use all kinds of high RPM & slide the clutch too long? You'll get that with practice. It's a coordination skill for you to learn by trying it on more gentle hills.
- Get to learn the exact position of the clutch pedal where it begins driving.
- Try to use less RPM, little by little.

 

I love a manual...I've downgraded myself in the family more than once to have a stick....about to do it again....going from the 95 EX auto to the 89 LXi manual, once I can get by the emotions.

Trick that might help you learn a "hill"....try using the e-barke as you take off, so you are now using the e-brake to keep the car from rolling back but have to let off of it as you let out the clutch...now you are really busy in there....gas, clutch and using the hand/e-brake all at the same time . After time you will get better at just, well, taking off without using the e-brake......hey, I took my driving test in my Mom's brand new 83 Accord 5 speed .....Dad wasn't going to let me near the 280ZX turbo 5 speed or the Chevelle (at the time).....Love you Mom and Dad.

 

Nice car for a driving test... My test was another 11 years earlier than that.
I got to use our one & only family car. 64 Ford 6-cyl 3-spd manual column-shifter. In Milwaukee the driving test included actual parallel parking on the street. No stinkin orange cones in a parking lot. It was a semi-busy street and on a hill. What fun.

 

The taking off on a hill, when I can take my time a little, that isn't bad at all.. But when I have some moron parked up my *** waiting for the light to change (Do not EVER drive in kansas. Just don't drive here.) I end up using a little more gas than I like to, you know? I don't think it's hurting the car at all... but kind of seems like it could be.. if that makes sense???

I definitely see what you're saying about more control. I LOVE being able to tell the damned car when the hell to shift. And I LOVE the reliability of this thing. I really didn't mean to bash manuals - I do know that not knowing how to drive one was a huge man violation and I ain't got many of those

It's just when you've driven big horrible comfortable v-8 Cadillacs your whole life (and nothing else except for other big things like pick-up trucks and for some reason we all always had auto trucks) and you get into one of these- in the driver seat- it is a HUGE adjustment.

One thing I sure do like is that control. The having to shift all of the time isn't good. I can see enjoying it when I am out to beat on a car and enjoy driving like a wild man (very rare now at my age) but when you have a woman in the car, morons constantly trying to get you on your phone, the woman on her phone, the woman playing with the radio, kansas drivers - I just don't see adding to all of that being good ) LOL

Funny thing is I think I taught myself how to drive sticks in automatics. I've always shifted my automatics with my foot. You know what I mean, maybe? I get a feel for my cars and know right when to let off or tap the pedal just right to get up or down a gear.. So this I guess came kind of natural to me

Ah. I am rambling now - sorry - no sleep :P

 

As you get more practice on hills, you'll find yourself using less RPM while rolling back less & less. And it won't be a "new" skill, so you'll be less intimidated by the guy behind you. In a collision, he'll probably get the ticket.

Using higher RPM and sliding the clutch for a longer time will wear out your clutch faster. The clutch only really wears when it's slipping. But that's a long-term thing anyway. If you get violent with it, your clutch might start chattering - that means it isn't smoothly sliding, it's shudderring whenever you have to slide it. Again, just keep practicing.

I like the bit about the "MAN VIOLATION". I tought both my daughters to drive manuals, and they're good at it. One time a kid came over to show off his new-used car to my youngest daughter. When he left she was laughing her @$$ off because he was just learning how to use a clutch.

 

It's just outright odd how many women in my life have been capable of driving manuals - and well. My grandmother ALWAYS had one and I don't think I heard her grind a gear one time. I can't imagine why I never tried it until lately here.

Does "sliding the clutch" just mean the time where you're transitioning from being disconnected back to being connected? If I make that time a little longer in order to make it shift nice and smooth, that is good though, right?

 

Like JimBlake said, sliding or more often referred as slipping the clutch will wear out the clutch plate faster. A clutch slips a little with every shift, it has to, that's its job, to bring the trans and engine together to the same speed. However, slipping it a lot, like taking a second or two to get the rpms stabilized, will wear the clutch fast.

 

Yes, exactly. "Slipping" is probably the more common word for it.

 

One thing to bear in mind is to shift at a pace so that it isn't quick but not slow as well. Something like:

"vvvvvvvvvrrrrrrrrrRRRRROOOOOMM <release of gas/compress clutch> .....<shift>.....<gas/decompress clutch> and not the same without the ....... Ideally, you know you're doing this well when you're starting the gassing in the next gear up just when the RPM has settled in it's normal idle range. It really does have a sense of perfect timing to this as I'm talking about fractions of seconds within a two second window from one gear to another.

My input about driving/coasting with the clutch compressed: don't do it. It's a clutch, not a surfboard. Use it only to change gears or to go into neutral. If you wanna coast, do it in neutral.

I don't care if people say you can change out of gear into neutral without using the clutch (literally shifting out of gear). I don't recommend it, as the guy who told me it was okay had a horrible third gear that scrunched every time he shifted into it, even with the clutch fully compressed.

Best fuel economy is using a gear in between 1500-2000 RPM. Up to 3000 for normal power; 4000 is probably high but still in comfort zone; above that, though it can handle it, your car is going to get hot. NEVER go into red. Even going up to red is not a good idea, though I like to do it often

Going 70 in 2nd is very bad for your car. Your RPM had to be in the red at that speed.
3rd gear would be the lowest you could safely shift down to at that speed, and even then it's going to be rough on it. 4th is best down-shift at that speed for passing power.

In time, you'll have your own senses. Some corners I use 2nd, others I use 3rd. It's all a matter of speed, and how well I can keep my car in motion while minimizing the use of brakes.

Also, only use higher gears to start your car if they are they only the ones available. The only time I'll 'start' my car into motion with a gear other than 1st is if I am still california-rolling at a red light that just turned green....going about 2-3 mph (definitely 2nd if it 5mp or higher). Downshifting at this speed into 1st doesn't always feel good, as the sudden available 'torque' makes the car lurch forward in a strong way due to the gear providing sudden power - enough to put the rpm suddenly up from 1000 to 2500. If you're moving along, even slowly, 2nd should do the trick as long as you're above not only your idling rpm but a bit more than that, which is probably around 1200-1400. As I've said, I think a good range for gears is 1500-2000. (Of course 5th will go up to 3000 at normal highway speed). For instance, I'll take my car to 25-30 and then shift to fourth just to maintain that speed, and not for additional power (RPM ~ 1400-1500), even though in third the RPM would only be at 2000. Not much difference in RPM, but you'll see the difference in accumulated miles if you make this a habit.

 

I like to do this too, but bear in mind it'll use more fuel. The plus side to it though: you use the brakes less. So in a way, it becomes a matter of finding the threshold between fuel consumption (price) to the price of replacing brakes. Personally, I think engine-braking probably uses more money's worth in the same time-frame the wear on brakes would occur. Any studies out there on this?