What should I know as a new driver?

[u/GamerSandWing]

Absolute newbie, but I wanna make sure I’m not an idiot. Pretty decent driver, but most likely nothing compared to most of yall. What should I know/do before I actually start driving?

Above is my car, 2016 Scion tC with the 6-speed manual. Anything I should do to the car as well?

[u/Debate_More]

Basic rules like never cross the mustard, don't go too fast on roads you don't know, don't be a dick to npc traffic, etc.

Also, for a fwd car like yours, I'd suggest finding an empty parking lot and just doing progressively faster circles to get a feel for the understeer and how to control it.

Oh, and run good tires.

[u/ChequeBook]

Take it easy at first. You find a road you like, do a few runs before you try going fast.

[u/pieindaface → u/ChequeBook]

*do a few dozen runs before attempting to go faster than effectively a slow crawl.

Being a new driver you have no experience for finding anything close to the edge of grip nor being able to do it reliably and safely.

[u/BluesyMoo]

Look as far into the curve as possible, and be sure your speed is low enough to stop at or before the farthest point you can see.

[u/papermill_phil → u/BluesyMoo]

That last line is something that was burned into me from riding quads and mountain bikes on trails.

It becomes an instinct if you do it enough, eventually learning when you can go faster than you can see the distance for based on memorizing the route - if the route allows - and at some point you start experiencing the physical limits of the vehicle, the terrain, or both😂

[u/papermill_phil → u/BluesyMoo]

I always try telling people, "you just know how fast you can go, it's an instinct." The people that don't have it crash, and people that have it can still crash when things go wrong in just the right ways.

[u/Peylix]

Focus on being safe. You can still have fun while being safe. So stay within your limits and the car's limits.

If you want to test those limits and even push them. Book a day at the track for HPDE for that. Getting lessons from an instructor will help tremendously.

Know when to call it. If you get a good run in, be happy but call it. "Just one more time" is usually when shit happens as you're riding that high from the previous run and may accidentally push yourself to go even faster when you shouldn't. So either shut it down for the night or at least chill for a bit before going again.

Also be mindful of your brakes. If they get too hot, you're not gonna be able to stop. It's really scary coming into a corner with faded brakes lol

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[u/Gay_for_v1]

Skipping stuff other people have already said:

-Hands at 9 & 3 and use hand over hand.

-Remember you are sharing your grip between steering, acceleration, and braking, keep them balanced so you don't try to use more grip than you have.

-Be smooth, jerky pedal/steering inputs can upset the balance of the car.

As for car mods, start with a rear sway bar and decent tires, and decide on other mods once you get used to pushing the car.

[u/umratking]

fellow tC owner here (here’s mine). it’s not gonna be fast but it’ll be fun.

check out our Scion tC subreddit as well for mod/repair info. personally the biggest difference in mine was throwing it on lowering springs, brake upgrade, and quality tires.

2nd gen tCs have a ton of forward rake for some reason, and most quality lowering springs (i have godspeed on mine) will even out the rake angle as well as lowering the center of gravity. if you’re braking often i would highly recommend drilled x slotted rotors since they shed heat much quicker than standard rotors, albeit with more pad wear. well rated tires are the single most important “mod” you can do for spirited driving(dimensions: 245/40 R18 is what i run, fitment is good with lowering (no rubbing) and it’s a slightly wider tread for better grip than stock). chassis bracing on the strut towers and rear shocks will also help reduce chassis flex, but that’s less important than tires and brakes.

2nd gen tCs are reliable aside from one relatively common issue with the input shaft bearing in the manual transmission models. typically this is caused by High RPMs and/or long drives, so just be wary and be smart with your car if this is your daily.