Back When I Couldn’t Drive a Manual

About five years ago, I could barely drive a manual transmission car.

Every time I got behind the wheel of the only manual car we had at home, the Boxster GTS (981), I thought, “There’s no way I’ll ever be able to drive a manual car.” My sense of defeat just kept growing.

My feet wouldn’t leave the accelerator or clutch pedals, and I half-wondered, “Does the Boxster’s pedals have instant glue on them?” I was so stiff from head to toe that it felt like my whole body was frozen.

I clenched my teeth so hard that my jaw was always exhausted after driving.

I couldn’t do hill starts, stalled repeatedly, and even had to stop in the middle of the road with my hazard lights on. There was also a time I couldn’t get moving at a green light, and the light turned red while I was still stopped (luckily, no cars were behind me).

I accidentally shifted from 3rd to 2nd instead of 4th, and once I meant to shift into 1st but went into reverse instead…

Looking back, I’m amazed I never caused an accident or hit anything. (Here’s an article from back then ↓ lol)

ポルシェ ボクスターGTS(MT)を乗りこなせるようになるその日まで-Vol.2

But then I made up my mind: I was going to learn to drive a manual. I bought a manual BMW for myself and started driving it every day. After that, I was able to drive the Boxster too, and I truly realized, “Driving a manual is all about getting used to it.”

That said, even when driving the Boxster, I couldn’t blip the throttle on downshifts, so on the Royu Driveway I always turned on Sport Plus mode and relied on auto-blip (the 981 automatically enables auto-blip in Sport Plus mode). I was basically at a “just able to drive” level.

Still, since I had achieved my initial goal of “being able to drive a manual,” I sold the BMW and spent a while driving automatic cars.

Enjoying High-Performance Porsches Even More

Then last spring, my passion for manuals reignited, and in October, a Swift Sport manual joined our family. Since I was buying it with my own money, considering budget, driving fun, and usability, the Swift Sport was the clear choice.

It’s nimble, lively, and even driving on signal-heavy national roads is plenty enjoyable.

Gradually, I thought, “Since I’m at it, I want to learn how to blip the throttle myself.” After about a month of daily practice, I was able to blip smoothly.

Without consciously trying, I also started experimenting with gently tapping the accelerator when starting off, searching for my own smooth and fun driving style.

Then recently, I had the chance to drive the Boxster again after a long time…

To my surprise, it felt easier to drive and even more fun than before.

I could blip the throttle normally now (though it seems recent Porsches don’t recommend manual blipping, so it’s probably best not to), and the accelerator pedal, which used to feel stiff, now felt perfectly responsive to my touch.

I drove, feeling moved, thinking, “So this is how fun the Boxster really is!”

久しぶりに芦有をボクスターで走れて気持ちよかった！エンジン音をボイスメモで録音してみました。あんまり良い音質じゃないけど。。 pic.twitter.com/kiFpVAiYS3

— Mina-ポルシェがわが家にやってきた (@Mina_Panamera) May 21, 2022

The Boxster was always fun, but now that I could drive more relaxed and more naturally, I began to understand what my husband often says about “becoming one with the car” and “driving as a team with the car.”

I used to think driving a manual was just about getting used to it, but now I realize it might have been more about having the mindset of “I want to get better” every day, not just driving daily. (Though I’m still not great.)

My husband often says, “I want to get better at driving” and goes to Porsche driving schools, which I used to laugh at, thinking, “Why? Planning to become a racer or something?”

But now I truly feel that “the better you get at driving a high-performance car like a Porsche, the more fun you can get out of it.” I’m starting to understand his feelings a little better.

If you have the chance to drive a Porsche, it’s more enjoyable to really have fun with it. I still feel like I haven’t fully unlocked that fun yet, so I want to keep consciously working on improving my driving little by little.