quote:

Originally posted by cmr076:
I daily drive a Mazda CX5, we do have a 6mt 300hp Mini Cooper too though that I drive occasionally when I want a little more fun.

Not what I expected you'd drive.

Find a car with a dual clutch trans (an auto with dual clutches and no torque converter).

I have had manuals all my life, now i have the best of both worlds. Stick it in drive for regular use, sport if I want to hold the RPM's as long as it can - and then full manual mode with paddle shifters on the steering wheel if desired.

Got my permit using a 79 Honda Civic wagon w/4 sp manual, and have had a manual trans car ever since, including today. That may change, if my knee pain gets worse. I prefer older MT cars that had an actual clutch cable, no clutch damping, no throttle by wire (lag), and no computer nanny B.S. (rev-hang). Rev match, overall control, and feel were so much better IMO and experience. Nice too that a dead battery start, is just a push away.

I agree that stop-n-go traffic sucks with a MT, but I love the purity, control, and driver engagement a nice MT vehicle provides.

Your attitude changes when you drive to and from work, every day, in some of the worst traffic in the country.

When I lived in Boston I went out of my way to learn stick but bought an auto, for example. Can't say it was a bad choice for that environment. NJ was, if anything, much worse.

Recently though with the last move.... Tempted to get a stick.

I always enjoyed driving a stick, even in traffic. But as I've aged, old knee injuries have worsened and made an automatic all but mandatory any more.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:

quote:

Originally posted by cmr076:
I daily drive a Mazda CX5, we do have a 6mt 300hp Mini Cooper too though that I drive occasionally when I want a little more fun.

Not what I expected you'd drive.

the mini is pretty fun actually, its a John Cooper Works edition, so it's got big brembo brakes, etc. We have shop cars that are a lot more exciting, but I drive an hour each way to work and don't have a garage at my house, plus I've been a little burnt out on cars for a few years.

I learned in a 4spd manual. I've had both off and on, including my favorite high school vehicle, an F250 with a granny low gear.

The first 11 years of our marriage, we had one car at a time, and they were all automatics. My wife had a couple of bad experiences in a crappy manual, and doesn't like driving them. The first "me" vehicle I got was a 5spd manual Ford F-150. We traded that for a family vehicle, a Durango. I really like driving it, except sometimes it picks a different gear than I would and it's hard to change its mind. And it gets crap mileage.

Hated driving my daughter's civic, more due to seating issues than the tranny, but I would like it better as a manual. My daughter wouldn't be able to drive it, though. My son's old high school car was a Celica GT convertible, and for me, was painful to get in and out of, and automatic. But I hated that car more for the pain and road noise than anything else. He loved it, though.

Just traded the Celica for a Jetta GLS manual. What a sweet 5 speed! I didn't realize how much I missed driving an actual drivable little manual. It's got a good balance of power/weight with the manual, but I'd probably think it was underpowered with an auto. We don't live in a heavy traffic area, so I really don't care about having to shift a lot - that's why I got it!

They can be fun but I don't enjoy them anymore in most cases. Perhaps it's because I had to learn on Dad's Dart, which had three on the tree and was so worn out that Dad was the only one who really knew where the gears were.

I feel a lot like Bill when it comes to driving one some places.

Only way to fly!

Bought my first m/t @ 18. Had one for a daily until just a couple months ago. This auto sucks. All it does is shift & my mileage is worse as well (its an 01, so less tech on the auto).
Trying to find a new(er) manual is a pain. I am basically stuck with a base model eco box or some riced out import in my price range.

quote:

Originally posted by DonDraper:
Find a car with a dual clutch trans (an auto with dual clutches and no torque converter).

I have had manuals all my life, now i have the best of both worlds. Stick it in drive for regular use, sport if I want to hold the RPM's as long as it can - and then full manual mode with paddle shifters on the steering wheel if desired.

If it ain't got a third pedal, it's an automatic. And I want nothing to do with it.

quote:

Originally posted by EasyFire:
Ah the stick. So much fun to drive when you are alone & just driving. But.... No good when....
1. Your date needs attention!!!
2. You are trying to eat a hambuger
3. You are trying to keep something still in the passenger seat.
4. You want a really fast shift. New performance autos are really fast.
5. You need to call or text - gasp

1. She can wait. I am driving.
2. I don't eat in the car, ever. It's a distraction.
3. I don't drive with a snake in the front seat. My dog rides in a crate tied down in the back.
4. Still more fun and engaging to do it myself.
5. I don't text and drive. It's been studied and determined to be as unsafe or moreso than drinking and driving. A call, that's handled via the head unit these days.

I keep my eyes on the road. If something needs my attention, I pull over and park somewhere safe. It's a mother f'in jungle out there with everyone driving while playing on their phone at the same time. The worst driving I've ever seen over decades, is today. The dash cam business is booming!

In a performance car, no manual, no sale. In a daily driver toaster mobile, doesn't really matter to me, I'll just take the stick if available. It's cheaper to service a manual, easier to work on, and cheaper to replace compared to slushboxes, CVT's, or DCT's. The manual is a simpler and more cost effective solution, especially those who plan to keep vehicles long term. I'm not much impressed that a computer can do something faster than me.

Some cars are also impossible to drive stick in. I drove my buddies 2003 Viper and had to take my shoes off. My size 13 boats woundnt fit under there. When I got my first Z4 I tried stick and it was difficult. My knee would hit the steering wheel when working the clutch.

In the next 10-15 years manuals will mostly go the way of the do-do except for certain cars. It will cost manufacturers more to tool up to offer a manual than to make in large numbers the more expensive auto's.

Dusty I had the same issue with the Lotus Elise. Sadly my 10.5 6E canal boats were simply way too wide to be able to safely manipulate the pedals.

The shot above is from my 2003 S2000 which fits me just fine.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bald1,

quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:
Some cars are also impossible to drive stick in. I drove my buddies 2003 Viper and had to take my shoes off. My size 13 boats woundnt fit under there. When I got my first Z4 I tried stick and it was difficult. My knee would hit the steering wheel when working the clutch.

In the next 10-15 years manuals will mostly go the way of the do-do except for certain cars. It will cost manufacturers more to tool up to offer a manual than to make in large numbers the more expensive auto's.

porsche just screwed a handful of customers with this. They stopped making the GT3 in manual after the 997.2, then released a 911r (super limited, second hand going for like 2x sticker), THEN they say, oh the 991.2 gt3 will actually be available in stick. I think we will keep seeing them like you said, in certain cars for the foreseeable future.

quote:

Originally posted by Dusty78:

In the next 10-15 years manuals will mostly go the way of the do-do except for certain cars. It will cost manufacturers more to tool up to offer a manual than to make in large numbers the more expensive auto's.

Only in the US. Manuals are alive and well in every other part of the world (well, particularly Europe) and aren't going anywhere.

Europeans in general will never give up their manuals. My father in law had to drive an automatic with his rental when he visited us here in Utah, and he absolutely hated every second driving it.

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

quote:

Originally posted by DonDraper:
Find a car with a dual clutch trans (an auto with dual clutches and no torque converter).

I have had manuals all my life, now i have the best of both worlds. Stick it in drive for regular use, sport if I want to hold the RPM's as long as it can - and then full manual mode with paddle shifters on the steering wheel if desired.

If it ain't got a third pedal, it's an automatic. And I want nothing to do with it.

All you have to do is pretend there's a little man inside pushing the clutch in for you, because you are too important to mess with that crap!

But seriously though - if you ever get the chance to drive say a BMW M2 with a DCT, holy shit. It downshifts while matching the rev's so perfectly, it's amazing. I miss a manual for sure, I never thought I'd get another car without one. But there is some cool technology out there.

I like driving a manual. It's my preference where applicable. Both my diesel pickup and the Wrangler are manuals. My Fusion commuter car is not a manual, partly because of the other half who can operate them just fine but has some knee issues.

The only time I slightly wished I'd not brought the diesel truck with a manual was during some of the traffic jams (i.e. routine traffic apparently) on the east coast. Seriously, when it would take me less time to walk the next couple of miles than Google maps says it'll take to drive them, something is horribly wrong.

It bothers me when racing series get away from manuals in favor of the dual clutch automatics. Rowing around through the gears quickly and efficiently requires more skill than squeezing the flappy paddles. This helped the various race series be more driver centric, and less engineer centric. I like it that way.

I don't really care what the machine is capable of, I care to see who's the best at operating it in full manual mode with none of the crazy assistance, telemetry, etc.

I have to relate a story from my younger son (now 39 YO). When he was in college he supported himself by being a parking valet and worked at several large hotels.

He was a bit of a cut-up and, with his buddies, enjoyed messing with people.

A gentleman driving an M-series BMW with a M/T came in and got out of the car. He says, rather condescendingly, to my son, "You do know how to drive a stick shift, don't you?" To which my son replies, "Of course." As the car owner is walking away, but still within earshot, my son gets in the car and shouts out to his buddies, "Hey, what's this third pedal for?"

Adios,

Pizza Bob