Gear shifting on a motorcycle vs. shifting a manual car.

[ver4]

I would love an automatic when I'm stuck in Baltimore rush hour traffic...

-Jessie

I do not miss that at all. 

[Shaddow]

Autos rule in peak hour traffic.
Any slipping of the clutch is wearing it. Doing hill starts that ride the clutch effectively burning. Think of the clutch just like a brake, basically the same setup, like applications are just rubbing to full on grab. So hill starts using allot of clutch is slowly wearing it away faster than say a smooth, hill toe or handbrake take off.

[slipperymongoose]

Or the amazing and clever idea in my Subaru, a hill holder. Hold clutch in, press brake release it car stays stationary if it senses it's on an incline. Brakes hold the car till the clutch pedal comes out to the grab point and automatically releases the brakes.

[Adfalchius]

When my manual car died and I purchased an automatic, it took a couple of days to get out of the habit of my left foot pressing down and my right hand reaching for nothing when I'd pull out from a stop.

Has anybody here every ridden a bike with a suicide clutch?  What was it like?

[bill14224]

I've been looking to buy a new car for the better part of six months but can not find the model I want with a manual transmission. No manual=no sale. You're about as likely to find a Sasquatch on a dealer lot as to find a car with a stick shift.
As far as I can tell, the best vehicle theft deterrent system is a manual transmission.

I was relating this to a friend recently. He said that he would never buy a manual transmission vehicle because he does not know how to drive one...yet he rides a motorcycle. 

Is this normal? I realize the two processes aren't identical but the theory of operation is pretty much the same.

Geez, as long as the operator has two working hands and a working right foot he can ride a motorcycle.  As you know the only difference is which appendage operates which function.  I adapted easily, and I learned to drive a manual car first. 

[Phil B]

After having lost the use of my LEFT foot/leg for a while, allow me to tell you that it is also pretty durn important too! :-/

[BaltimoreGS]

Or the amazing and clever idea in my Subaru, a hill holder. Hold clutch in, press brake release it car stays stationary if it senses it's on an incline. Brakes hold the car till the clutch pedal comes out to the grab point and automatically releases the brakes.

Toyota has a feature like that on some of their automatics for some unknown reason     

-Jessie