I will stop buying cars with manual transmission the day they cease to exist or I die, whichever is sooner. Until then, I will do everything in my power to buy vehicles with a stick.
American here.
My first car was a manual, and I both learned and loved it, but it was only fun while I was actually driving-- never in any type of traffic condition. I now prefer clutch-less (pedal), manual shifts via paddles (modern performance-oriented ones), when driving more spirited, and the option to go full auto, for when the commute dictates that I’ll be sitting for a while (:mad:).
Especially on a course, I tend to have more focused and reliable control of the car, while I avoid most potential for mistakes. The added bonus is that I can shift in turns, too, without letting off the throttle. Manual really is about enjoying the car, while having better command of your intentions (:)).
It’s getting harder and harder to find them. That’s for sure. My Pathfinder is an Auto, not available in a stick. Lucky for me though, I don’t really care.
I drive a manual and I’ll continue to do so as long as I can. However, I’d guess the end is near; when even Ferrari has discontinued fully manual transmissions, it doesn’t bode well.
Long time shifter here…my current car is automatic (it has a paddle shifter). I almost never shift it-what’s the point? I too, enjoy shifting-but in heavy traffic, its too much of a PIA. I notice that EPA mileage numbers for cars with A/Ts are now mostly higher (than for manuals)-so i guess there’s no point to them anymore.
I honestly prefer a good manu-matic. That’s what my last car had back when I lived in a drive-everywhere city, and it was the best of all worlds (i.e., a manual without the bother of using a clutch).
not only are both of my cars manuals, I also don’t need to treat them as extensions of my ego. I figured out a long time ago that nobody else cares.
I have one of each. The automatic has paddle shifters and about three times the horsepower of the manual. I can get into a whole lot of trouble really quickly with the auto. But for sheer pleasure of a fully engaged driving experience, I prefer to row through the gears on my manual.
My wife and I have 3 cars and one motorcycle. All are manuals. One’s a 4-MT, two are 5-MT, and the bike is 6-MT.
When my daughter got her license she didn’t want to drive a manual. She lives with her mom who has an automatic. I made her learn it, saying you don’t have to like it, just know how to drive it. She ended up eventually liking it and when she bought her first car she bought a manual.
Cell phones while driving are not banned in this state. My stick shift gives me an excuse to ignore my boss.
Can you even get them for most models?
I’ve had manuals since I started buying my own cars, but my next car may very well be an automatic because of my commute. I prefer manuals for driving in snow and because I like shifting, but the advantages of a manual are rapidly being eclipsed by the better fuel economy of automatics.
USA, manual transmission by choice. If I had to drive in traffic a lot (knock on wood), I’d probably relent. But I’m too much of a control freak to let some machine pick which gear I’m driving in.
I prefer a manual but they are getting harder and harder to find.
Our car is manual by choice (it’s a VW Golf). Our truck is an automatic.
I prefer the manual transmission for winter driving. Better control.
I drive a manual for my commuting car. I was ready to switch to an automatic to help me juggle a cell phone and coffee, but the wife still prefers a manual.
The minivan is an automatic. Do they even sell manual minivans in the US?
I used to prefer manual transmissions. All it takes is a little driving on an CA freeway at rush hour to forever cure than option. First gear, shift to second, downshift to 1st, shift to 2nd, down to 1st, back to 2nd. etc. You feel like your right arm has been stirring paint after about 20 minutes of that.
I much prefer to left my left foot rest on the floor and my right arm rest on the armrest.
You’re not the only one, if you haven’t noticed from this thread so far! I learned to drive a stick before I even had my license, and every daily driver I’ve ever owned (including my first car) has been a manual – I did buy a classic truck with a slushbox because it came up as a great deal and it was just a once-in-awhile slow-cruiser anyway…but if I was able to choose, I would have opted for a stick there too.
Driving automatics to me is completely boring. Since I’ve spent so much time driving stick, the stop-and-go traffic excuse doesn’t really make sense to me personally. Clutching and shifting is just part and parcel of driving a car, so it doesn’t make a difference to me if I’m in traffic. It’s no more of an inconvenience than steering or paying attention to the road.
I love the increased connection to the car and its mechanical parts, it’s just fun. I tend to drive sporty cars…there are actually still some cars around that were manual-only. The first-gen Cadillac CTS-V, for instance, and at least some model years of the Civic Si, Mazdaspeed 3 (possibly my next car), Subaru WRX/STI, etc., and those are my favorite to shop for. There’s nothing worse than trying to buy a car and having to wade through the 85% automatic trans-equipped cars trying to find the manuals.
When I bought my midlife-crisis-mobile last year, a Ford Mustang, I decided to get a stick. I love driving it, though it took me a few weeks to get used to a stick again (it’d been at least 15 years since I’d driven one regularly). If my commute were regularly in stop-and-start traffic, I probably would not like it quite as much.
Manuals are definitely getting harder to find in the USA. In 2001 when I bought my CR-V I had to search many dealerships to find one with MT.