Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Lets level it
Ford Pinto dog no matter how you look at it.
Same engine but one is std factory stick, and the other is a std auto no mods.
Just to make it interesting the brakes just failed going down a steep mountian road, there is no place to pull off, and the road is one lane down the other lane up.
The brake failure is a blown master clyinder
The problem is using a worst case scenario like this as a reason to say all X is bad.
So what if you were in a manual pinto and the trans input shaft failed and the brakes failed? Or the internal shift linkage broke and it was only in neutral? We can use any worst case scenario to make whatever we want look bad if you try hard enough. Most reasonably modern and well maintained cars won't have those issues. And if they arne't even reasonably maintained, then the problem is the owner and maintennce not the particular equipment set, correct?
Mac, the chance of a car I own having a brake failure while driving down a mountain road is almost nil. (I live in a valley.)
I am not concerned if a manual will stop faster than an automatic... as long as the automatic stops!
I also once owned a '66 Dart. A GT with a V-8 and console-mounted automatic transmission. It had 109,000 miles when I first got it and ran it up to 235,000+ miles after owning it for 23 years. The brakes never failed. Not once. I did manually shift the car a lot and would have immediately shifted into first gear had the brakes stopped working and engaged the parking brake.
I learned to drive an auto and drove one for 9 years before buying my first 5-speed manual. I knew how to drive one when I bought the car, but hadn't really driven one in "real life". Now, I am a manual convert! Wish I had one from the beginning!
I test drove the automatic version of my current car before I bought, just to make sure I was making the right decision. It was the type of auto that could be shifted manually if desired. However, it just did not have the same feel to me, and actually took away from the sporty driving experience that the car is designed for.
I think it is really a personal preference on which someone likes better. I like the feel of connectivity I have with my car by shifting its gears. Not that the function is better or worse than an auto, since modern autos are quite advanced from what they once were. It's more about the feeling for me. Not to mention that all transmissions are not created equally, and some manuals are better than others just as some autos are better than others. I realize that some people just don't like the be bothered by shifting, can't physically shift, or don't want to deal with it in traffic. There is certainly a place for both types of transmissions, and hopefully both are here to stay!
That being said, I think that the ability to drive a manual shift car is a very good skill to have, kind of like the ability to ride a bicycle or swim. You just might find yourself in an odd situation where it is a major benefit. I would venture to guess that the majority of the rest of the world primarily drives manual cars. UK, Europe, Asia, South America - you will likely pay a premium to rent an automatic car, if you can even find one, such as the OP found out. Imagine if it was also a right hand drive!
That being said, I think that the ability to drive a manual shift car is a very good skill to have, kind of like the ability to ride a bicycle or swim. You just might find yourself in an odd situation where it is a major benefit. I would venture to guess that the majority of the rest of the world primarily drives manual cars. UK, Europe, Asia, South America - you will likely pay a premium to rent an automatic car, if you can even find one, such as the OP found out. Imagine if it was also a right hand drive!
Absolutely agreed. Everyone SHOULD have the ability to drive a manual trans available to them, even if they don't need it right now. Not being able to drive manual is like not wanting to drive anything with an automatic, it limits the available choices, and sometimes you can miss out on enjoyable cars that are worth owning or driving. Or it puts you at the mercy of relying on someone who can/will drive that type of car.
I own a 5 sp manual and have had several automatics thru the years. I always seem to trade in the auto rather quickly at 2 years or so, and purchase a manual vehicle. This has most definitely been a pattern with me over some 30 years. I don't know what I will do when they don't sell the manuals anymore. I heard that is coming at some point. Im not sure on this but I think some of the reasons some prefer manual over auto, has more to do than with just a preference. I think it is a personality trait that overlaps into other aspects in ones life. I would bet that those that prefer a manual especially over the course of many years, are people that have some similiar personality traits and talents. Probably people that do not follow the crowd on every new technology or thrend. Are multi talented and can be rather self sufficient when need be.
Just a thought probably nothing to it, but who knows. I still prefer my manual.
We have a '67 Mustang 4spd manual. We don't drive it much because my wife doesn't drive manual and "has no desire to learn at this point". We are thinking of selling it and getting an automatic.
I only drive a stick shift because I feel connected to the engine and it's great. One has much greater control in a stick. These days there are automatic stick shifts (DSG etc.) which are more efficient than manually changing gears but the driving experience is totally lost! If you actually want to DRIVE a car and not just sit in it you will get a stick!
One has much greater control in a stick. If you actually want to DRIVE a car and not just sit in it you will get a stick!
I really dislike this... No, you're not in "much greater control" with a stick in 99.9999% of driving.
And with everything you do while driving, moving your left leg every few minutes is what separates you from being a passenger? That's a complete crock. Tell you what... get in your car, turn the key on, and sit there pushing the clutch in and out, see how far you get. Since you feel that pushing a clutch pedal occasionally is driving a car, and everything else is "just sitting in it" I suggest mounting a clutch pedal to your chair at home and push it in and out to your heart's content. All the fun, control and experience of driving, according to you, without the fuel costs, maintenance costs, insurance costs, or risk of crashing.
I prefer a good manual, I own manual trans cars, and am converting a car that never had a manual to a 5 speed stick (having to have a custom adapter made as the engine was never available with a stick in any factory application). And even with all that, I know that the opinion you're promoting is a fallacy.
I am 100% in control of my cars, be they stick or automatic, and as is shown by my V8 RX7 on the track in the video I posted, I'm as much a driver in one with an automatic as I am in one with a stick, because driving involves more than occasionally pushing a clutch pedal. Driving is steering, accelerating, braking, choosing gears (and yes, you can do that with any automatic) and coordinating all of that to make the car go precisely where you want it, when you want it, at the speed you want it.
1 It's possible to count up the number or %-age of cars with stickshifts, and if they are registerd for the road one can assume at least one member of the household can more or less drive a stickshift. But this is like counting the # of pianos in town - each piano can have several players.
2 Capitalizing on the comparison to pianos - some people like me have never studied the piano, and can't play at all. At the same time not everybody who is at least a decent pianist can play Rach III the way Sergei Vasilivich intended. Same thing with driving, specifically operating a manual tranny, can you take off smartly without much clutch wear? Match revs on down and upshifts? Drive a "crashbox" without grinding the gears?
Of course the same can be said for every other aspect of driving a car. Too few people take it seriously as a skill that needs study, practice, and cultivation.
Amen Mr. Cat.
My father taught me to drive on a manual shift car. I made sure all my kids learned to drive a stick shift in the event that was all they could afford to purchase. Everyone should learn this.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I suggest mounting a clutch pedal to your chair at home and push it in and out to your heart's content. All the fun, control and experience of driving, according to you, without the fuel costs, maintenance costs, insurance costs, or risk of crashing.
