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The same thing happened to me twenty years ago. I had learned on, and only driven, cars with automatic transmissions. Then, as I got ready to buy my first brand new car, the Mustang I wanted had a stick shift. At first, I thought, well I guess I better forget it. Then, on second thought, I decided that if other people could learn to drive a stick, so could I! This was not a muscle car Mustang, just a sedan really.
I bought the car and traded in my old one. At that point, I had no choice but to learn to drive my new car. With my Dad's help, in the parking lot of a community college, I got the basic hang of it, well..sort of. I still stalled out a lot for the first couple of months, avoided hills at all costs, and ground those gears. But I learned and here's the thing - twenty years later, I will NOT BUY AN AUTOMATIC. I love having a manual transmission. Go for it!
1. Cheaper. An automatic was a $1250 option on my car (not an issue if you buy used, but it can raise prices on used cars, too).
2. Less likely to be borrowed/stolen.
3. Control. I shift when *I* want to, not when the car thinks it should.
4. Generally, less problems and cheaper to repair. I say generally, because clutches can go out. But if you drive it correctly (don't dump/ride the clutch), they should last a long time with minimal maintenance. I've never had to replace a clutch and I've driven manuals since 1990. This encompasses 4 vehicles. Take care when you drive and they should last.
5. Coolness factor. Girls who drive stick are cooler.
I've always preferred automatics for several reasons...
- My favorite cars are '60s and '70s Cadillacs and it would be silly to drive those with a manual transmission!
- Automatics can and are trouble free if the car has a transmission with a well-known reliability record, like the Mopar Torqueflite or G.M. Turbo-hydramatic. The three cars I currently own have had no transmission repair or breakdown. Not even the 40-year-old Cadillac I own.
- Automatics give you the choice of driving in the automatic mode, or can be manually shifted. For instance, with my cars, the transmission will stay in 1st gear when the shift lever is put in that gear as long as I want it to. Same thing for 2nd gear unless the speed drops below approximately 15 mph in which case I wouldn't want it in 2nd anyway.
Contrary to popular belief, cars with automatics can be fun to drive, especially when a shift kit is installed.
- Regarding acceleration, many automatics, both now and from years ago, can equal and sometimes even exceed manual transmissions.
- The winning car in the 1963 Winternationals (drag racing) was a Mopar equipped with an automatic transmission!
Went through a phase whee I thought stick shift was the best...now I am an automatic gal again. I even think that automatic is fine in the snow...I just down shift manually and have for years now.
I've always preferred automatics for several reasons...
- My favorite cars are '60s and '70s Cadillacs and it would be silly to drive those with a manual transmission!
- Automatics can and are trouble free if the car has a transmission with a well-known reliability record, like the Mopar Torqueflite or G.M. Turbo-hydramatic. The three cars I currently own have had no transmission repair or breakdown. Not even the 40-year-old Cadillac I own.
- Automatics give you the choice of driving in the automatic mode, or can be manually shifted. For instance, with my cars, the transmission will stay in 1st gear when the shift lever is put in that gear as long as I want it to. Same thing for 2nd gear unless the speed drops below approximately 15 mph in which case I wouldn't want it in 2nd anyway.
Contrary to popular belief, cars with automatics can be fun to drive, especially when a shift kit is installed.
- Regarding acceleration, many automatics, both now and from years ago, can equal and sometimes even exceed manual transmissions.
- The winning car in the 1963 Winternationals (drag racing) was a Mopar equipped with an automatic transmission!
Could you please explain what a shift kit is? Thanks!
Could you please explain what a shift kit is? Thanks!
Basically, it's a kit that modifies the transmission's shift points and/or firmness. It used to be the case that you had to actually install them internally in the engine, but alot of transmissions these days can have the shift points and firmness adjusted electronically.
Unfortunately, I don't know enough about the workings of an automatic transmission to tell you how a shift kit works, I just know what the end result is.
Automatics usually last longer than manuals; the clutch is the first thing to fail on manuals...
Don't confuse the clutch with the transmission. Replacing the clutch is a routine task and should only have to be done once, if that, during a car's service life. Replacing or rebuilding a transmission is a whole different ballgame, and you're more likely to have to do it with an automatic, and if you do have to do it, it's usually a hell of a lot more expensive.
As for the original question -- I just don't like the driveline slack of automatics and I like the driver involvement of a manual. My refusal to own an automatic led me to the daunting task of teaching my wife how to drive a stick. Then after I divorced and remarried, I had to teach the second wife. As for an actual "stick" shift, I think its days are numbered at least in the North American market. I consider the manumatics with an actual clutch plate that lifts off the flywheel to shift gears to be an acceptable compromise between a full "stick" shift and an automatic, especially with the slick double-clutch units hitting the market.
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