Stick shifts, obsolete?

[jangoman88]

just like everything now a days they dumb down everything to make it "easier" for people. Im all about technology, but when it takes away thinking all together where does that leave us?? I recently was shopping for a car with my wife and we stopped at an Acura dealership because she wanted to check out the ILX, across the street was a Ford dealership. So while she was looking I walked across and took a look at the Mustangs, all of them were automatic including the GT's. When I was younger you wanted a stick for the GT or Cobra

[gersonmorelli]

A lot of Aussie Manufactures dont offer base model cars with a manuel trans anymore

Autos are better for fuel ecconomy but i still prefer my manual

Actually it's the opposite. Ceteris paribus, manual transmissions are up to 15% more fuel efficient than automatic.

[khomeinist]

Common 2020 tweet:

Hands-free driving is the ****!!! Gives me more time to talk about myself on the intertoobz!!!

Technology should enhance the driving experience. Better handling and responsiveness. Greater fuel efficiency. Etc. those are good things. Automated driving is another step towards the great Singularity.

Skynet y'all.

[IcedCanuck]

Definitely not obsolete! I personally would never buy a new car with an automatic transmission; manual transmission or no deal. Buying a used car is a different story.

[Ginseng]

I love stick. But in the USA, manual transmission is finding a smaller and smaller market with each successive year and generation of drivers.

But let's put a finer point on the question: To be considered a true, dyed in the wool, manual shift tranny, does it have to be floor-mounted, H-pattern? I'm talking automobiles and not cycles.

Wilkey

[khomeinist]

Interesting point. Here is a link to potentially further that debate:

http://oppositelock.jalopnik.com/why-more-cars-should-come-with-paddle-shifters-511478202

[garbandz]

have a 1995 BMW M3,I could not imagine it with automatic.Also a 1991 318 convertible,of the 11 BMWs I have owned,not one was automatic.

[galtline]

have a 1995 BMW M3,I could not imagine it with automatic.Also a 1991 318 convertible,of the 11 BMWs I have owned,not one was automatic.

Have a 92 BMW 325i 220k miles on it. Manual . I would have sold it years ago if it was auto.

Granted with all of the pros with the Hybrid Trans and paddle shifters everyone of the professional drivers all say driving a manual is way more fun.

[Orion21]

Manual transmission guy here. I have owned one car with an automatic, one. It was a 2009 BMW M5 and was such a nightmare to run I recently sold it and went back to my old Audi A4 with a 5 speed manual. My only issue is my wife. She can't drive stick, won't try to learn, so we need a second car she can drive that is an automatic in the event her X5 goes down. So my plan is to mod out my current A4 as a fun weekend car and then buy a reliable sports sedan that my wife can drive if need be.

[galtline]

http://ca.autos.yaho...-214456020.html

Drivers of BMWs and other high-status cars (including Prius hybrids) This discredits this entire article.

[Hiroshiro]

LOL what? Prius is high status? Since when?

haha my boss has a Prius. We write **** on it all the time because it embarrasses us when we show up to a meeting with our decent cars and he shows up in his Prius.

[khomeinist]

Lol. There is something called a Tesla for the green show-off upmarket crowd

[ramon_cojones]

teslas are like camrys here, quite like the styling

[khomeinist]

Yes. Body styling up there with the current Jag IMO.

[potpest]

Not obsolete in the UK; only 18% of cars are automatic here. I would never buy an automatic, I couldn't imagine not being able to choose my own gear, takes all the fun out of driving.

[gersonmorelli]

Obviously manual transmission is way more fun. It gives a lot more control cornering or braking (reducing gear when necessary). However, try to drive daily for an hour-commute in the traffic. It gets pretty boring clutching from neutral to first so many times after a while...

[Ginseng]

However, try to drive daily for an hour-commute in the traffic. It gets pretty boring clutching from neutral to first so many times after a while...

Not only that, but 20 years of driving stick, a good half of that in bumper-to-bumper, is really tough on the knees.

Wilkey

[jrb5783]

The 2014 WRX STI looks tasty

I drive a 2013 i love the car. Only I've driven that was more fun is my dads supercharged corvette but thats in a league of its own.

Wouldn't want the STi with a auto. Manual gets annoying in stop and go traffic but I will always have to own at least one manual vehicle .

[galtline]

Electric Cars Make 0 Sense ! I am too tired to type but I have researched all of them including the Tesla and it makes 0 sense.

[El Presidente]

Love driving a manual and will jump in one any chance I get.

Having a Jeep JK Auto I have noticed when four wheel driving how many people get in trouble. Auto 4x4 's are bloody good these days, way better than most of their drivers. They can get you into a ton of trouble simply by getting you into situations that you you don't understand/have experienced before.

Learning to 4x4 in a manual gear box "teaches" you the limitations of your vehicle and how to get in and out of tricky situations.

On the last couple of outings I took out the "****** strap" several times to help people in shiny 60K + 4X4's whose "Auto 4X4" got them into all sorts of trouble. Just because your Auto can get you into soft sand on an incoming tide .....doesn't mean you can turn the vehicle around when you decide to turn because the surf is lapping at your door!

[markmurase]

My eldest daughter is currently learning to drive - manual transmission. She says most of the others at school are only going for automatic licence: even the boys. Hopeless

Common, surely the average 17 year old is has sufficient coordination to operate a manual car!

Anyway, both cars in the house have manual transmission: my wife's is a bit sporty and mine's a 4WD. Our daughers therefore have no choice - it's manual only.

Perhaps I'm just old-fashioned.

[Habana Mike]

Interesting point. Here is a link to potentially further that debate:

http://oppositelock....fters-511478202

Guilty as charged. Wife has CVT and I've got DCT.

At least I can put it in manual mode and control shifting to my desires, miss the clutch though.....

[markmurase]

Love driving a manual and will jump in one any chance I get.

Having a Jeep JK Auto I have noticed when four wheel driving how many people get in trouble. Auto 4x4 's are bloody good these days, way better than most of their drivers. They can get you into a ton of trouble simply by getting you into situations that you you don't understand/have experienced before.

Learning to 4x4 in a manual gear box "teaches" you the limitations of your vehicle and how to get in and out of tricky situations.

On the last couple of outings I took out the "****** strap" several times to help people in shiny 60K + 4X4's whose "Auto 4X4" got them into all sorts of trouble. Just because your Auto can get you into soft sand on an incoming tide .....doesn't mean you can turn the vehicle around when you decide to turn because the surf is lapping at your door!

I was never a believer in automatic 4x4's until doing a lot of driving up soft sand dunes in Qatar. Changing down gear is so much faster in the auto, so it really helps avoid getting bogged on the climbs. With the manual it's pick a low gear and stay in it the whole climb, reving the hell out of the engine. Could afford to start the climb in a higher gear with the auto.

Anyway, from my other post you can see I'm still a big fan of the manual transmission. And for getting cars up sand dunes - whether automatic or manual - there is no substitute for horsepower

[Jeremy Festa]

because the surf is lapping at your door!

Know what ya mean! Even the most experienced 4WD'ers with a Defender can get in trouble.

We found this just after sunrise over T.O.S.

Had a Straddie Rego sticker too. So he wasn't an amateur!

Goodtimes!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free

[frenchkiwi]

On the last couple of outings I took out the "****** strap" several times to help people in shiny 60K + 4X4's whose "Auto 4X4" got them into all sorts of trouble. Just because your Auto can get you into soft sand on an incoming tide .....doesn't mean you can turn the vehicle around when you decide to turn because the surf is lapping at your door!

Ha used to go to this shingle beach where all the cars parked on it. Helped a few different sets of people (tourists and yuppies) in fancy cars who didn't realise that sitting on the bonnet of their FWD car was enough to get it out of a rut.

Anyway growing up in France i never actually saw an automatic car. I imagine that hasn't changed too much in much of western europe - your average car is a manual (although more and more autos and tiptronics etc around).

Over here half the cars are secondhand imports from Japan - much harder to get a manual! It's terrible if you enjoy driving for the sake of driving.