Manual vs Automatic

In Ireland, automatics are the huge minority and have only sat in an auto approx. 6 times.

As such, I fell unconnected and not truly in control of an automatic. In fact, I once had to rent an auto, but specifically requested it to be tiptronic style gearbox (paddles) in order to feel comfortable driving it.

PMT said:

My 2008 Kia Rio is 5 speed manual, roll up windows, no power door locks, all by choice, I was thrilled these options were available, my daughter, 8 at the time was amazed at a crank window, thought it was so cool as all she had ever seen were power windows, opposite of how I grew up!

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I hear you. Roll up windows seemed much more reliable than power windows.

I finally had to junk my 87 Accord 5 speed, and it had manual locks & roll up windows. They're just making cars more complicated than they need to be. More stuff that can break, and there's less I can fix. It's frustrating.

I upgraded to a v6 Accord with 6 gears. It's nice, but the gas petal is really sensitive, so I have to be more careful in 1st and 2nd. Been an interesting transition. At least I have AC now.

Learned on a manual, all I've ever owned are manuals and I've never burnt a clutch. Easy to learn, assuming you have some basic coordination. Once you get it you will not have much need for an automatic and you can easily drive both. By the way, I do live in down town Toronto and driving in the city, or traffic, is not a problem.

I drive a Honda Civic 5 speed manual

Give me an auto or give me a 3rd arm!

Toothpick said:

Give me an auto or give me a 3rd arm!

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Well, for the extra you pay for an auto (here), you probably can buy that 3rd arm.

My Honda Fit has a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). It gets 4 MPG better than the manual transmission version of the car and is a lot of fun to drive --- actually way more fun than any of the British sports cars I cut my teeth on. I don't care for automatic transmissions; CVT is entirely something else. It consistently seems to "be in the right gear" for engine speed and road conditions.

All of the vehicles my wife and I own are stick shift. We look for more basic models with excellent design, fuel economy, inexpensive repairs and that are fun to drive. My current car is a 2007 Pontiac Vibe. It's a GM built station wagon body with a Toyota Corolla drive ine. I get 36 mpg on average. It has a timing chain instead of a belt, full stainless steel exhaust, tire pressure sensing that works off the antilock brakes instead of using TPM's on each tire. Maintenance is infrequent and inexpensive. It has been ultra reliable and now has 211,000 on the odometer, going up by 100+ miles nearly every weekday. It rides and drives like a 50,000 mile car. It is as easy to drive in the city as it is on rural roads. Easier in some cases, because you control the shift points. Manual transmissions are generally more durable. You can buy a whole lot of through-out bearings and clutch plates for the price of one A/T rebuild. I'll take a stick over an automatic most every time, all other factors being equal.

He Who Must Obey said:

Manual transmissions are generally more durable. You can buy a whole lot of through-out bearings and clutch plates for the price of one A/T rebuild. I'll take a stick over an automatic most every time, all other factors being equal.

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No personal experience, but I indeed heard that automatic transmissions can be very expensive in maintenance.

Legion said:

How do you shift with your right hand? That makes no sense.

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USA with left hand side driver seats. America for ya.

morgantruce said:

My Honda Fit has a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT). It gets 4 MPG better than the manual transmission version of the car and is a lot of fun to drive --- actually way more fun than any of the British sports cars I cut my teeth on. I don't care for automatic transmissions; CVT is entirely something else. It consistently seems to "be in the right gear" for engine speed and road conditions.

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Nice! My wife has a fit, but I don't think we got any of those features on it. I think we have a 2008 model, but I'm not certain.

He Who Must Obey said:

Maintenance is infrequent and inexpensive. It has been ultra reliable and now has 211,000 on the odometer, going up by 100+ miles nearly every weekday. It rides and drives like a 50,000 mile car. It is as easy to drive in the city as it is on rural roads.

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211,000! Hopefully it has many more to come.

Manual, Automatic, whatever.

I prefer a manual transmission and have had many vehicles with same. Unfortunately, living in the metro NYC area makes driving a shift car a real PITA. Gave them up years back and would now only consider a sports car type vehicle that would avoid being in heavy traffic.

Car and motorcycles are manual. The pickup truck (bought used, GREAT deal) is an automatic.

IMO, (except for disabled people) if you can't figure out a clutch, you shouldn't be allowed to drive a motor vehicle.

I'll drive anything. Probably the majority of my cars have been sticks. I just got rid of a 450hp Ford SVT Mustang Cobra with a 6 speed. Being able to put down rubber through 3 gears was more fun than being Godzilla in Tokyo.
I currently have a 90 Mustang GT convertible with a slush drive. But since that's a "cruiser" not a race car, I kinda prefer the automatic. Kickin back, taking a cruise top-down through the New England countryside during foliage season with my sweetheart is a wonderful way to spend a sunday afternoon.

My daily drive is a Nissan Altima 3.5 SL. It's got one of those new-fangled CVT transmissions, which means it doesn't really "shift", because it has an an essentially infinite selection of gear ratios to pick from within its range. Kinda weird to drive, since the rpms vary up and down smoothly depending on load. When you punch it, it just shoots up to about 5000 rpm and just stays there until you let off. (Funny thing is that it also has paddle shifters for when you want to "play" -- it simulates gear ratios and shifting to make it feel all sporty-like. but I suspect it's probably quicker in CVT mode....)

Anyway -- there's good and bad about both. Some cars just cry out for a manual. Some are good with Auto.

I've burned out many a clutches in my day. Who knew a 6 Cylinder Ford Ranger wouldn't tow a 19 foot boat with a pop-up camper in the bed and the clutch would burn out at 12,500 miles (It also ended up with a cracked frame on the rear axle).

Maybe I just abuse too many vehicles. I've never burned up an automatic transmission. I've smoked one up a time or two (Jeep Grand Cherokee towing an 18 foot car hauler with a Model-A Ford on it) but never to the point where it left me stranded.

I've learned to prefer auto transmissions.

Soapy Smith said:

I've burned out many a clutches in my day. Who knew a 6 Cylinder Ford Ranger wouldn't tow a 19 foot boat with a pop-up camper in the bed and the clutch would burn out at 12,500 miles (It also ended up with a cracked frame on the rear axle).

Maybe I just abuse too many vehicles. I've never burned up an automatic transmission. I've smoked one up a time or two (Jeep Grand Cherokee towing an 18 foot car hauler with a Model-A Ford on it) but never to the point where it left me stranded.

I've learned to prefer auto transmissions.

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Fair enough. I suppose YMMV applies in a more literal sense for this topic.

I am driving a Manual now. 2004 Toyota Corolla. Bare bones, even has manual windows.
My 2nd vehicle was a Ford E-100 cargo van, it had a 3 on the tree.

You don't drive a car with an automatic transmission...you aim them. My last 3 cars have all been manual but they get more rare every year.

I drive a camry v6 automatic. And yes you just point the wheel where you want to go .allmost no driving involved. The v6 makes It quite fun though.