My Type R is Officially 1 Year Old - some reflections!

richy_rich619

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Good to hear your feeling good about being a new manual driver. I’m in the same boat with you being a newbie manual driver. I still get nervous and mess up when there are other people in the car with me hahaha
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Cornercarver

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Today marks the 1 year anniversary of owning my Type R. For me, it is also the one year anniversary of driving a manual transmission.

It has really been one hell of an adventure owning this car. I made a huge gamble when I decided to move forward with such a big purchase. I really did not have a fallback plan, but I didn’t think I would need one. I was determined to drive this car, no matter what it took.

This is the first year I can say definitively that I have no plans on trading in my car. I have formed a special bond with this car, and not only is it something that serves as a monument to my achievements, it is something that brings me great joy when I am behind the wheel of it. I am a proud owner of my car, as I’m sure many of you are too.

I can’t say that my journey was all smooth sailing, because it wasn’t. I really struggled with learning how to drive a manual transmission, and in the beginning I was questioning my decision to buy this car. I am thankful that I have a good father who was able to teach me my mistakes and accompany me as I practiced driving until I was comfortable enough to take it to work myself. Fast forward 11 months and now I don’t even think or worry about stalling, and I have finally seen why manual transmissions are so special. I don’t confess to be called skilled at driving stick either - I still think my launches are too jerky and my shifts are as well, although I am slowly getting smoother as I drive on.

With that said, I am extremely thankful for all the members and owners here on this forum for supporting me, helping me, and putting up with all my questions on what I was doing wrong. This forum is a gem, and I’m glad to be a member here as well. Hopefully you enjoy my contributions too!

Anyone who is considering buying this car - you will not be disappointed. If you don’t know a thing about driving stick, do it anyways. I think the best way to learn is to force yourself to do it, and if you’re like me and don’t have another form of transportation, well you better learn!

13,500 or so miles later and she still drives like she did when I first got her. We’ll find out in due time how well she will hold up with all the mistakes I’ve made, but I don’t see any reason to worry now. What I know is that I am excited to see what the second year brings and spending more time pushing my car harder and harder to unlock its true potential.

Thank you all - it’s been an amazing year, and I’m sure the next one is going to be even better!!:beer:

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Zeffy, congratulations on both a wise - and in your case - brave decision. I am a card carrying member of Save-the-Manuals, and now you know why they are so worth it. Shifting smoothly - valuable.
Driving smoothly and defensively - priceless. At least if this is your first manual you picked the right car to learn on. Hopefully you didn't grind the gears too much before you got the hang of it. Be sure if you haven't done that already to invest some time on performance driving technique. If not at a school like Bondurant, then at least check out some of the better You Tube lessons. I find that I can apply the techniques even in my daily drive to improve car control and reduce stress on things like tires, brakes, etc. caused by less than optimum timing or taking a bad line through a curve. You owe it to yourself and to the CTR. A lot of ignoramuses out there will tell you that only a RWD, or AWD car handles well. Lap times for the CTR and SI say otherwise. It is just a matter of using technique that works for a FWD. The FOCUS RS - which is AWD and more horsepower - got spanked around the Nurburgring by the CTR. 7:43 versus 8:05 or thereabouts.
 

fiend busa

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Zeffy, congratulations on both a wise - and in your case - brave decision. I am a card carrying member of Save-the-Manuals, and now you know why they are so worth it. Shifting smoothly - valuable.
Driving smoothly and defensively - priceless. At least if this is your first manual you picked the right car to learn on. Hopefully you didn't grind the gears too much before you got the hang of it. Be sure if you haven't done that already to invest some time on performance driving technique. If not at a school like Bondurant, then at least check out some of the better You Tube lessons. I find that I can apply the techniques even in my daily drive to improve car control and reduce stress on things like tires, brakes, etc. caused by less than optimum timing or taking a bad line through a curve. You owe it to yourself and to the CTR. A lot of ignoramuses out there will tell you that only a RWD, or AWD car handles well. Lap times for the CTR and SI say otherwise. It is just a matter of using technique that works for a FWD. The FOCUS RS - which is AWD and more horsepower - got spanked around the Nurburgring by the CTR. 7:43 versus 8:05 or thereabouts.
Do you have links of the videos
 

H3llsp4wn707

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Everyone keeps comparing these nurburgring times to awd cars with rally gearing. I'd like to see actual cornering specifics. These hot laps are stupid comparisons too. The CTR is geared for top speed.
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