rtv900

how does it force a 1-4 shift on a manual?
mine displays a little thing on the dash saying to shift to 4th but that's it, it doesn't actually do anything or have any affect on what I do

Corgidog1

The manual requires a learning curve but once you learn, it becomes very instinctual and a lifetime skill. I really love shifting and traffic is no biggie for me as evidenced by the fact my daily driver is a stick. In the past 30 years when in traffic and putting into neutral, I never use the clutch-just feather it easily out of gear using the shift **** only-its an acquired feel. Gives me something to do in traffic (lol).

rfh928

I taught my 2 kids to drive a stick (we only have manual's in our family vehicles & the C7)...if you have someone beside you to coach you & let you know what you're doing right & wrong...an hour or two should be all it takes.

You won't regret it...once you drive a manual it will be hard to get back to an auto. Inbetween the various sports cars I've owned over many years, I started driving in daily rush hour traffic, and decided on an auto for my next one (Camaro). Regretted it not long afterwards, and went back to a stick as soon as I could. That was 37 years ago.

Good luck!

rfh928

You must have the CAGS override module installed. I put it on my C5 and now C7...it doesn't get rid of the dash display advising you that it's forcing you from 1st to 4th...but it overrides the forced shift.

Juju2002

hmm the traffic is definitely what concerns me as i might be commuting an hour away depending on where my new job is that will enable me to afford the vette. I will definitely practice and if i really like it i sill definitely go for it tho

Elk

You will be perfectly fine with a manual. It would be an easy car to learn on. It just takes a little practice.

Good luck!

HOTXFIL

I taught both my sons to drive manual at 16-17 in C6 Z06s and ZR1s with no trouble at all. It's not rocket science no matter what the vehicle, you'll get it in no time.

Others have covered the pros and cons well. The only big con I didn't see mentioned is that if you're used to eating/drinking/constantly doing something else with your right hand on your daily commute, that's made a lot harder 'cause that hand's constantly occupied. Space between the shifter and cupholder is tight too, makes it easier to spill your morning coffee...

I think it's worth reinforcing that a CAGS eliminator is a must if commuting in heavy traffic or you'll drive yourself to madness in no time fighting that 1-4 forced shift. I also use and suggest the CAGS eliminator that's an already severed fuse. Much easier than crawling under the car to install a module.

rtv900

I got mine used so I guess it's possible

where is this module installed?

JMII

Correct, the C7 will just pull away from a stop with zero throttle input. My wife, who can drive stick (I taught her), loves our C7 because its so hard to stall with all that TQ at such low RPMs. The car does have this odd throttle tip-in delay but once you get around that I find its one of the easiest vehicles to get off the line smoothly.

joemessman

Precisely! That's why the grand-kids could pick it up in 15 minutes.

Kangarew

Manual? Yes, do it! My congratulations for thinkin’ right!! I have a C7 manual and lots of manual transmission experience from big trucks to small sports cars. Once you get some miles under your belt, you’ll LOVE it! Plus, you will be driving a car with the “3-pedal anti-theft system.”

I agree with comments about the Soler throttle body upgrade + throttle controller. The stock 7-speed MT is quirky at tip in—the Soler fixes all that.

jaki30

At 73 I just got back from a 500 mile drive up I-95 through the worst traffic on the East coast.
Went through DC and NYC.
There is nothing like driving a manual. Especially in a car like the corvette!
Traffic sucks, but it isn’t 100% of the drive.

dbirdhouse1

Have owned a MT auto continuously from my first car ('67 bug) to my current C7 covering 48 years....there is something to be said for starting stick on a rough older car with flaws as you learn to deal with "da bugs" without feeling like you're walking on eggs. Case in point, I learned stick on a 1966 Dodge Power Wagon with a wandering shift pattern and a shifter long enough to scratch your knuckles on the dash and hit your elbows on the rear glass (well, exaggerating alittle....). It was a boss' work truck and he asked me to go pick up some posts at a lumber store in Wayne, NJ in 1972 on a busy rt 23. I said I don't know how to drive a stick so he tossed me the keys, described the shift pattern and told me to treat the clutch like I had an egg between my toes and the clutch peddle, gave me 15 minutes to figure it out and sent me on my way.........a C7 therefore is so easy in comparison

iclick

Okay, this is my cue to get on the soapbox. I'm two generations apart from the OP, but I understand his trepidation. When I started to drive (1962) most cars were manual shift, and most of them were "three on the tree," so when I took driver's ed in high school all cars used were manual shift. My generation grew up on shifting manually, and we called them "slushboxes" back then because they were challenged in the performance arena. I also laud the OP for his sense of adventure to even consider an M7, as most folks his age wouldn't even consider embarking on such a radical proposition.

Learning to drive a manual shift car is easier than learning to water ski, and is on about the same level of difficulty as learning to ride a bicycle, steer a ZTR mower, or shift a motorcycle. Are there drawbacks? For some there are, like the grind of gridlock traffic, which is a downside I hear a lot on this forum.

All cars I've owned for the past 40 years have had manual trannies, except one. My job for 38 years put me on the road much of the time, mostly in some of the worst traffic in the nation, but I never tired of the experience of shifting through it all. I will say that I have an abnormal desire to constantly move, so shifting fits right into that obsession. Truthfully, once in a while I might've wanted a brief respite when I tried to eat lunch while driving, which is a bit more of a task in heavy traffic when by default you must devote your left leg and both arms to driving. But for me the upsides far outweighed the downsides.

That one exception I mentioned was in 2015, when in a senior moment I found a nice, new C7 Corvette for sale and really liked everything about it--except it was an A8. I was smitten and kept saying to myself, against my better judgement, "try something different for a change" and "automatics no longer have economy or performance handicaps," etc.--so I bought it. In a rather short time I knew I had made the wrong decision, as something was missing in the driving experience. Paddle shifting the A8 in manual mode was not a viable substitute! There was a lack of rapport with the mechanics of the car, a missing emotional and physical link. To make matters worse, the A8 was very problematic, and mine had every malady we've all heard about with the A8 from the shutter to delayed engagement. After hassling with it for two years and finally having the torque converter and fluid replaced, I started car shopping again. Enough already! It was time to get back to real driving as I had known it for decades. So, I bought my current M7 GS in 2017 and life is good again.

I say "go for it," but I will also say that you may not like it. I'm not naive and accede that a manual shift car is not for everyone, indeed probably not for most people today. Gridlock traffic may leave you underwhelmed having to move your right arm and left leg repeatedly, and you may not feel the rapport that I feel by making all the shifting decisions yourself, actually telling the car what you want it to do, but you won't know 'til you try it.

c5arlen

OK ok ok.... Now that you can drive the car down the street, use the transmission, change gears up and down, you've only just begun your "learning a stick"... To become the master of your "stick shift" will take alotta laps, sorta speak, to become proficient with the operation of downshift, up shifting, the "feel" of clutch plates making contact, the use of your tachometer with timing the gear selection, speed matching, correct engine rpm, lugging, over revving, clutch riding, clutch riding,....... The whole process to become a master takes time and practice! Be patient, disregard your erection (that's for another day) Most folks can't do it... And smile that silly Corvette grin!

Juju2002

Wonderful response. So is the M7 transmission much more reliable then the A8? But also , i know that it usually means a extra set of parts that need replacing/maintenance. How often do the manual parts like the clutch and what not (im not a expert on names) last before needing replacing? Im guessing it depends on how good / properly i and the past owner drive the car right?

sgt1372

Correct, it depends on how you drive it and on the driving conditions in which you drive it.

For my C7 which is a "fun car" that I only drive "crusing" on open roads with minimal traffic/shifting required, the clutch could easily last for over 100k miles.

For a C7 that you use as a daily driver in heavy traffic, you might not get more than 50k miles out of it.

You'll know when you need a clutch when it "slips" while shifting and/or when it gives off that "burnt" clutch smell during "normal" use (not doing burnouts or drag race starts).

Depending on how "bad" the clutch is, you may also need to have the flywheel turned or buy a new flywheel if it is too far gone.

Like disc brakes, sometimes you can turn them (although most don't bother doing that anymore) and sometimes not. Clutch/flywheel jobs are NOT cheap regardless of the type of car involved.

So, you should always try to drive was well as possible to avoid unncessary clutch wear.

As others have said, learning how to drive a car w/a manual transmission involves a learning curve that is NOT limited to just learning how to engage the clutch w/o killing the engine. The basics can be mastered fairly quickly but there are a lot of other things involved in learning how to drive car well w/a manual transmission.

However, once learned, it is no longer something that you have to "think" about. It just becomes second nature and it doesn't require any more effort to drive a stick shift in traffic for me than it does an automatic regardless of the driving conditions.

However, I have about 55 years of experience driving a stick shift (in many different types of vehicles, including big rigs), so YMMV.

Mad*Max

I am relieved to read that I am not the only that has stalled their C7, you can put me in most other manual cars and I never have issues/stalling.

To the OP, I would rent a manual compact car to learn how to drive stick and then progress to the C7, some boutique rental car companies still rent stick.

DD04C5

Did you ever ride a motorcycle when you were young, it is the same concept. You just be in a car, just different hand foot movements.

Tally Ho

Once you master first and reverse, the rest is easy. Watch the tach and listen to the engine until you get the feel of the clutch/throttle action.