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I thought it was cool back in the day when I was young. Then I grew up & realized manual transmissions are a pain to drive. 3 cars with it was more than enough. Now I drive a hybrid. Talk about cool tech & fun stuff to play with while driving!
We pretty much always had a manual car. For 15 years our family car was a 1994 4-door Suzuki Sidekick with a stick. We loved that thing. Our daughter was 2 when we bought it, and she learned to drive it right after getting her licence with an automatic. My husband was a mechanic, and he loved how reliable and easy to fix it was.
We have a standard one now because when we went looking for a cheap second car, it was what we found. It's a Hyundai Elantra, and actually quite fun to drive. My daughter is now 24, and has told me that it's impressed people her age when when she's picked them up, because so few can drive a stick.
With all the driving I do might as well I have a little fun while doing it. Drove too many miles with snooze fest automatic.
I got surprised by a really steep incline today, it slopes down into an underground garage for a 9 story hospital. Very steep, the kind that many automatics will roll too, but I'm pretty good with hills so no worries. I knew it was going roll fast but what surprised me the car kept rolling(it didn't stall or act like it was trying to but it wasn't moving up), with someone behind me. Oh shoot!! Brake!! The person gave enough space, so I repeat and give it more gas this time. I love manual transmissions!
OMG! That's crazy! My worst one was being stuck in a parking garage, stuck going up, STEEP, turning around a corner, and having to stop. Then move. Then stop. Ugh! I kept wondering if the guy behind me would get the hint and get off my butt! I always let my car rollback when someone comes up on me on a hill so they can see that they need to give me room. Sadly, most are AT drivers so they don't care. Glad they gave you enough space and that you made it!
This is actually a good point. In today's world where everyone is so desperate to be unique in some way, having a unique ability is one way to make yourself unique.
Sometimes it is pleasing to show the world you can do it yourself. there are many many things machines can do for us and fewer and fewer people who can still do some of the things that machines have taken over. Being able to do those things makes us special.
I read this and thought, oh jeez. I kept driving MT to impress the boys (I'm from the city, so not many women could drive MT unless they were forced to at one point). And then I realized, I prefer men who can drive MT. Just realized some stupid reasons I drive a MT. LOL
Its just more fun. My last automatic was in the late 70's. All I've had since then were manuals. The new car I purchased last summer is a manual. They do push the automatics, now most have the CVT's, some problematic, some are not. Besides when I think of a newer car with an automatic, a CVT is to a car, as KFC is to chicken.
I purchased my last car in 2011, they didn't understand why I wanted a MT. Granted, I've been asked "don't you want an AT" all my life (being female, y'know, I shouldn't be driving a MT )
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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MT becuz... Economy; 10 - 20% better in MT dependability; Have NEVER had a broken MT, several Broken AT's. 'bump start?'... hundreds of times in last 50+ yrs with MT (saved my bacon...)
safety; 50% + of my driving is in mtns. I am not so trusting of BRAKES only (Especially when towing / running a truck down a mtn pass with 105,500 GCVW. )
Disclaimer... I currently own 38 cars, 9 MC, 5 trucks... (2) with Auto trannies...
If you ever towed with a manual you’ll never go back to a automatic. I simply prefer a standard shift
yeah, I towed heavy loads with a manual Ford truck. That's why I prefer automatics to tow with. My 8.1 liter Suburban has an 4L85E that's about as good as the Allisons behind the diesels. So much smoother to tow with. And much easier to maneuver the trailer slowly in the campground than a manual was. Especially in slightly hilly campgrounds.
Not true for modern automotive automatics in passenger cars.
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dependability; Have NEVER had a broken MT, several Broken AT's.
I've had broken shift forks, broken synchros, snapped output shafts in MTs. My first mechanical job as a kid with a car in high school was rebuilding a Ford C6 automatic that needed new seals, so I replaced all the seals, clutch packs, bands, and went through the valve body with a shift kit. So automatics are not a magic box to me, just another mechanical means of transferring power to the drive wheels. I'm not scared of them, but that was the ONLY automatic I've ever had that was "broken" (though I've rebuilt many automatics for racing use).
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Disclaimer... I currently own 38 cars, 9 MC, 5 trucks... (2) with Auto trannies...
Disclaimer, I've owned 130 cars and trucks, half with automatics.
Manuals are cool but several manufacturers no longer offer them (Ferrari/Lambo/Audi/Mercedes, the last two in USA only).
I currently own 2 (2015/2016 cars). You do have to ask if the valet can drive stick, a few times they honestly say no they can't.
My kids drive manual trans for a few reasons:
1. Life skill, if you can drive a manual you can drive everything from a tractor to car/truck
2. Keeps hands on the car vs. texting
3. Keeps other people's kids from driving your car. "Hey can I take your car to the store"....oh wait its stick, I can't drive that!
In one kid's case, it got them a job! Valet job was an instant hire when they mentioned they drive manual transmission in their personal car. At a high end country club they usually get 2-3 manuals a night (higher than I expected from a place that is loaded with Tesla-Bentley-Rolls)
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