Do you/can you drive a manual?

[Founders]

5 minutes ago, atxcyclist said:

The motorcycle is way less strenuous in traffic, I live in the suburbs as well and work in a little town outside my city, so my commute is not too bad. I really only drive the car when it's raining.

I ride but I've never used my motorcycle to commute. I'd rather save it for leisure, makes it more enjoyable to me I suppose. 

[Ithanul]

I know how to drive a manual transmission.  Also, have two motorcycles I drive.  The main vehicle is an automatic.

Personally, I don't prefer one above the other.  I just drive what every is at hand. 

 

1 hour ago, Lady Fitzgerald said:

A lot of truckers live in metropolitan areas. Most people I know who live in metropolitan areas know how to drive manuals.

Plus, not hard to tow off a manual stick especially if the vehicle is RWD.  Just either smack into neutral which is not hard to do or lift the rear end up and tow it off.

Also, I would not dare think manual as theft security.  I have seen a good bit of manuals stolen around here just for the fact most of the older ones don't have screaming theft alarms on them.  Even big 1800cc motorcycles get stolen at times if those don't have hub or brake locks put on.

[Yoinkerman]

I mean, have you looked at manuals that are sold in North America?

 

Most are the shitty entry level car with no A/C and hand pump friggen windows.  No wonder people don't buy them.  And that's on purpose.

 

Or they're a sports car which people already buy so few of.

 

That being said I drive a forester STi with the 6speed STi manual transmission

[Lady Fitzgerald]

1 hour ago, TempestCatto said:

I mean I still stand by it. Most city people can't do what country people can, and visa-versa.

I suspect it's more of an age thing. Most passenger vehicles, including big pickup trucks, are now made with automatics so most younger people have never had the opportunity or need to learn how to drive a stick shift (let alone anything with crash boxes) whereas most older people have had the need or opportunity to drive a stick.

 

Also, don't sell country people so short. Most, especially the younger ones, are just as savvy about most things as city folk, if not more so.

[TempestCatto]

10 minutes ago, Lady Fitzgerald said:

I suspect it's more of an age thing. Most passenger vehicles, including big pickup trucks, are now made with automatics so most younger people have never had the opportunity or need to learn how to drive a stick shift (let alone anything with crash boxes) whereas most older people have had the need or opportunity to drive a stick.

 

Also, don't sell country people so short. Most, especially the younger ones, are just as savvy about most things as city folk, if not more so.

It is indeed an age thing.

 

I'm not selling country people short? I'm a countryman myself. I honestly hate cities and tend to think lowly of the people who live within them.

[Brandonsr]

Always preferred manual. Honestly, I get bored driving if I am not shifting gears. I do not like automatic vehicles because I see all my vehicles as toys and I like to be in control of them and have fun.

[Automobili3XF]

Yessir, i can drive and my main vehicle has a manual transmission.

Here in Brazil its a requirement to take lessons in learning how to drive and operate a manual vehicle under normal city driving circunstances to get a license, but many like myself learn how to drive a manual vehicle before the lessons, usually by our parents.

[Ja Krispie]

Learned how to drive a manual on a pick up, my first car was a manual. Now I have a truck that's auto. I honestly don't care about manual as much as I used too. The next vehicle I'll get will be an auto. When I get my weekend car I'll likely go manual for it

[BrianTheElectrician]

Yes, absolutely can drive manual and highly prefer it! First car was manual and converted the current project to a manual as well. Have had a couple others in the past as well, and my first job was working at a Chrysler dealer taking pictures and info for their website and database. Drove every vehicle that went through the lot in the 2 or so years I worked there, including many manuals.

 

In my first car, my current project and my buddies old truck I could/can shift without the clutch as well, both up and down rev matching. Always rev match my downshifts though, less wear on the clutch.

 

I go stir crazy driving auto, its just so boring!

[Founders]

49 minutes ago, Yoinkerman said:

I mean, have you looked at manuals that are sold in North America?

 

Most are the shitty entry level car with no A/C and hand pump friggen windows.  No wonder people don't buy them.  And that's on purpose.

 

Or they're a sports car which people already buy so few of.

 

That being said I drive a forester STi with the 6speed STi manual transmission

Car manufactures may only offer 20 percent of their cars with a manual option but to say "most are the shitty entry level car with no A/C and hand pump friggen windows" simply isn't the case. Here you'll find the cheaper cars listed first, sure, but there are plenty of other much nicer options available. 

 

49 minutes ago, TheVillageIdiot said:

 Not rying to derail but what is up with the purple thing ?
 

I think you may be referring to the line that shows you where the new posts have started since you last viewed the thread. 

[Guest]

5 hours ago, Ehmc130 said:

In the US just 2 percent of all new vehicles sold in 2018 were manuals and only 20 percent of vehicles offer the option according to Edmunds. With the continued growth and development of electric vehicles the future is looking pretty bleak for the manual transmission as an option. As government regulations change in favor of electric vehicles for the masses the use of internal combustion and manuals in cars will eventually be a thing of the past. According to BP's Statistical Review of World Energy, global oil reserves at the end of 2012 were 1.7 trillion barrels. Given that the world consumes about 86 million barrels of crude oil per day, it would be easy to conclude we will run out of oil in 55 years.

 

With all that said I'm a sad panda, every car I've owned has had a manual transmission and I still prefer it as my daily driver. Don't get me wrong sometimes it's nice to hop in another car and not have to shift, but I feel if I ever gave it up I'd regret it immediately. I know that eventually it will no longer be an option at all so I prefer to enjoy it while I still can. I'm interested to hear what everyone has to say, thanks for participating.   

I have no desire to drive a manual at all. I just like getting in my car and driving at not having to worry about when to shift. I still feel in control of my vehicle and have plenty of fun behind the wheel.

[PlayStation 2]

Still learning how to drive; that being said, I really wanna learn stick just so I can open the type of vehicles I could get in the future up.

[Zodiark1593]

My first two cars were automatic. When the latter was kind of at death's door, I bought a Mazda with a 5-speed manual. The test drive was my first time driving manual actually. Not terribly difficult. I don't really miss the automatics much. Even traffic isn't too bad, though I feel for the poor clutch a bit in stop and go traffic. I'd imagine the auto transmission failing in the first car probably instilled some ptsd in me.

 

Highway fuel economy is ok (probably owing to the gear ratios that let rpms run high more than anything), though city fuel economy was astoundingly good.

 

[jones177]

My last automatic was I owned was a 1970 Pontiac Bonneville. That was in 1978. Since then I have only driven manuals.

The car I drive now is a 2019 WRX STI. The STI is the top of the line Subaru WRX and only comes in manual. I guess it bucks the trend.

 

[Teddy07]

I would say that by far the most cars in Germany are manual.
Yes but I only drive once a year when I am visiting my parents. I don´t need a car in my current situation and can´t afford it anyways. 

[Real_PhillBert]

I'm 30 and have never owned a car with an automatic transmission, both of my current cars are manuals, and so have my previous cars.

[Velcade]

I have 3 cars with three different transmissions.  1 manual, 1 CVT, and 1 without. 

[TVwazhere]

Can I Drive a Manual?

Spoiler

 

 

[porina]

14 hours ago, Mr.Meerkat said:

Me cahh has a manual. Here in the UK, at the moment, it is about a 60:40 split of manual-to-slushmatics but not too long ago, the ratio was more like 80:20. Since maybe 2014 or 2015, the number of autos sold increased drastically. 

I found that interesting so tried to look a bit further. Found link below which says in 2017 40% of new cars sold in UK were automatic. Factoring in the large number of older vehicles still on the road, the number in the wild is probably much lower, although increasing. 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/cars/news/automatic-gearbox-sales-increase-70-per-cent-since-2007/

 

Personally I've only owned manual cars. The only time I've driven automatics (in UK or US) were rental vehicles. I do like their ease of driving, especially in stop-start traffic. Don't know if it is still a thing, historically they're less fuel efficient and cost more to buy up front, like for like, compared to a manual. That could be a factor also. Then again, with electric cars, there is no need for one. Wonder how much that figures into the numbers.

 

I was a bit surprised when I was sent to California on a work trip last year, how many did have manual shift. One was less surprising when I found out he was a proper petrolhead and could identify any car if you so much as showed him a part of a light cluster. 

[The1Dickens]

27 minutes ago, Velcade said:

I have 3 cars with three different transmissions.  1 manual, 1 CVT, and 1 without. 

Okay, first: F (CVT); and second: How do you drive without a transmission? I can't think of a single car in the last 100 years that didn't have a transmission. Wait, do Teslas have transmissions, or is that all in the electric motors?

[aless83]

I have driven manual my whole life and it's really fun, specially sporty driving.

On the other hand, I wish my current car was manual... All the higher tier powerful cars seem to head into the auto territory... 

[Velcade]

19 minutes ago, The1Dickens said:

Okay, first: F (CVT); and second: How do you drive without a transmission? I can't think of a single car in the last 100 years that didn't have a transmission. Wait, do Teslas have transmissions, or is that all in the electric motors?

Ding Ding.  It's a tesla.

 

The CVT is the wife's car and it's not terrible.

 

 

I'll never understand those that believe MaNuAl OnLy Or YoUrE nOt A rEaL dRiVeR

[aless83]

1 minute ago, Velcade said:

Ding Ding.  It's a tesla.

 

The CVT is the wife's car and it's not terrible.  I love all three.  I'll never understand those that believe MaNuAl OnLy Or YoUrE nOt A rEaL dRiVeR

Well, you've got to admit that driving a manual sportscar on a circuit beats the auto option... 

[The1Dickens]

1 minute ago, Velcade said:

Ding Ding.  It's a tesla.

 

The CVT is the wife's car and it's not terrible.  I love all three.  I'll never understand those that believe MaNuAl OnLy Or YoUrE nOt A rEaL dRiVeR

My last car was a CVT (1997 Honda Civic HX), and it was just so depressing to drive. I guess if you've got a newer one, they are more 'lively'? And yea, that bit about manuals is funny, because Porsche's PDK shifts faster than any human-operated manual transmission ever could, and does so consistently. Not to mention all the high-end "flappy paddles" used all the way up to F1.

[kelvinhall05]

I mean...I'm not old enough to legally drive but I can drive a manual transmission and my first car will be a manual unless something bad happens to it like an accident that totals it.