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Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by another-cuppa on Wednesday September 12, 2018 @01:22AM (#17965743)
Second in a car is optimistic. I often have to put it in first and just let the engine tick over. Some people don't think their car can do this. I'm not sure if that's true or if they are just bad drivers, though. My car will happily roll in third if it's flat.

I find I'm usually able to keep rolling in gear, which doesn't use any more fuel than just idling, and not apply the brakes in most "stop and go" traffic.

Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by petre on Wednesday September 12, 2018 @03:11AM (#17966175)
My car does it but it's a small diesel 4x4 with gearbox optimized for lower speeds. It happily rolls in the first on low slopes. I have yet to try this with a normal petrol engine car. I have to leave some free space in front of my car and sometimes aggresive drivers from neighbouring lanes will annoyingly slip into that space without signaling, causing a stop on my side.
Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by blattimwind on Wednesday September 12, 2018 @06:13AM (#17967019)
Yeah, especially not-ancient-TDIs with low and high idle (~800 and ~1100 rpm, out of and in gear, respectively) put out a surprising amount of torque without hitting the gas.
Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by mwaitjmp on Wednesday September 12, 2018 @01:48AM (#17965837)
This is what I usually try and do when stuck in a queue, especially on the motorway. First or second depending on the speed of the traffic, clutch up, foot off accelerator. Pointless racing to the stopped car in front of you only to have to stop and start again.