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I've never had a car with an automatic transmission ... although I learned to drive in the family automatic.
And I've had no complaints. I didn't own my 1983 Mercury Lynx long enough for there to be any problems with its transmission (the *&#(@!!!! carburetor is another ).
Best transmission was on my 1987 VW Golf. Solid as a rock. The current vehicle, Mazda3 wagon, has a nice, smooth transmission. Others were a 1998 Golf (which was tough to shift once the temps dipped below 20 degrees or so), and a 1994 Honda Civic.
My favorite was a '65 Dart with a '63 drivetrain and a 3 spd column (3 on the tree). I just love column shifters!
I've had a whole lot of cars but I also remember that I've had a '95 Neon, a '75 Dodge pickup, a '72 Toyota pickup, and '94 Jeep with floor shifts. I still have a '61 Valiant with a 3 spd on the floor.
Quit getting sticks when I moved to an area with horrible traffic. Bumper to bumper for a couple of hours each day was just no fun
A 1992 Acura Integra Sedan with manual transmission was a great mixture of style, handling, and decent performance. That car really liked hugging the corners
In terms of the quality of the gearbox... best would be my 96 Maxima. Rowing the stick is effortless and the clutch pedal glides to the floor with such ease that you could do it with your pinkie.
Worst gearbox: Porsche 944. God that thing was awful. Putting the shifter into each gate was like trying to stir a pot of molasses in the January cold.
yeah but do you really WANT shifting the stick to be effortless? I don't like it when it is too easy to shift or the gears are too close to one another. I test drove a car where the gears kept slipping out of gear! It was terrible!
1983 GMC General, with a 6V53 Detroit and 13 speed Road Ranger. That's what I learned on, and vowed never to drive one again. I've gone through a myriad of truck and tranny combos, most recently a Freightliner Business class with a 7 speed Spicer.
As far as cars go, well I've only had three cars, 89 Pontiac Sunbird with a POS five speed scrap metal tranny, and really the whole car sucked. Got a 92 Honda Civic. Drove that critter for 11 years, 297K miles, on the original clutch. Loved it for what it was. Decided to give GM another whack at it and bought an 03 Chevy Cavalier. 127K miles later, so far so good. I'm unimpressed with the suspension, but it ain't bad.
yeah but do you really WANT shifting the stick to be effortless?
No, I'd rather blow my knee out stomping a merciless clutch pedal to the floor and then have to wrestle the shifter into the selected gate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by emilybh
I test drove a car where the gears kept slipping out of gear! It was terrible!
That's a problem with the transmission itself and a separate issue altogether from shifting effort.
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