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Why don't you drive a manual?

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Originally posted by: psteng19
Interesting... so over 40% of this sample of ATOTer's have a manual car as their daily driver, while the rest of America is well under 10%.

Also, only ~7% of ATOT doesn't know how to drive stick.
Rest of USA is... probably greater than 60% (?).

Most quote traffic as the biggest deterrent, which was pretty predictable.
Click to expand...
There is a _HUGE_ amount of respondant bias here too though. People who have a manual as a daily driver are more likey to respond, which skews your results. The sample is not truly random.

ZV
 
Originally posted by: archcommus
1. Why do manual drivers on ATOT have some kind of weird superiority complex where they feel the need to ask the question, why DON'T you drive a manual, as if we all SHOULD.

2. I don't because 1) my car was given to me, and it's an automatic, and 2) I've never learned, and am pretty sure that if I did learn, even if I thought it was fun, I wouldn't feel like caring about it every time I get in the car to run somewhere.
Click to expand...

No superiority complex, because the correct counter would be why DO you drive a manual, not should.

And I care because I am dreading the demise of the manual tranny.
I hope they are still available 50 years from now.
 
Originally posted by: Zenmervolt
Originally posted by: psteng19
Interesting... so over 40% of this sample of ATOTer's have a manual car as their daily driver, while the rest of America is well under 10%.

Also, only ~7% of ATOT doesn't know how to drive stick.
Rest of USA is... probably greater than 60% (?).

Most quote traffic as the biggest deterrent, which was pretty predictable.
Click to expand...
There is a _HUGE_ amount of respondant bias here too though. People who have a manual as a daily driver are more likey to respond, which skews your results. The sample is not truly random.

ZV
Click to expand...

I would think that those who don't drive manual would be just as likely to enter since the question is catered towards them.

And I think most people are misunderstanding the question.
Those who don't know how to drive stick are voting for reasons why they aren't learning.
 
Originally posted by: psteng19
Originally posted by: Kelvrick
I have to change gears manually in both my vehicles.

http://home.comcast.net/~kelvrick/rr.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~kelvrick/dash.jpg
Click to expand...

Very nice choice of rides :thumbsup:
Looking to get myself a CBR600RR myself.

Is that an STi or Legacy? Not a Subaru guy so I can't tell.
Interior looks very nice quality though.
Click to expand...

That's a Legacy.

As for the poll, my dad taught me how to drive on a manual. He insisted on it.
 
all my cars have been manuals except my first, third, and last two (ive had like 12) but my current DD is auto because it was only 500 smackers 😀!
 
aa lot of your poll options apply to me.
I do not know how to drive stick. I live in LA and deal with constant heavy traffic and would never want a stick. If you suck at stick you get worse gas mileage than automatic so i would rather not take my chances. Only good thing about stick is new cars are much cheaper stick than auto
 
it is rare to see my car with a manual trans here in the States. I now drive an 89 MB 300e (w124). all my cars up till now have been 4 or 5 speed sticks, even the volvo 850glt that I got rid of for the 124.
 
My car is stick because it only came that way as was my first car. It's really not bad because obviously you get used to it and I live in LA too but it comes becomes automatic to shift. If I would have gotten a regular car I would have gone auto, I find manual more fun. Also now-a-days people saying that Manual is faster than Auto is not true any more seeing as you get more consistent times with Auto and Auto-trannys shift faster than any human ever could.
 
First of all, I drove a manual for 4 years after I got my license. I'm really glad I did it and I enjoyed it at the time, however I just prefer an automatic.
 
Lol i love my stick i get worse gas mileage since i drive a stick, but the added fun more than makes up for an extra MPG
 
For me, driving is just about getting from point a to point b. I don't enjoy it, and prefer an automatic because it seems like less hassle to me.
 
Daily driver is manual. Tremec T-56 6 speed, tough as a tank.

Pain in the ass in rush hour, esp. with the stiff sticky clutch I have, but being a muscle car it?s primary purpose is to have fun driving; manual is a must. I do hate how when the traffic clears and you go to step on it in an automatic and sometimes get lag or hesitation. In that condition you have to play with the accelerator or back off, slow down a little bit, THEN step on it again to get it to downshift. By that time the ricer you are trying to pass is far enough ahead to get into your lane and act like he won something. I like just yanking the shifter down left into my right knee and smoking the tires instantly on command.

I like being in control at all times. I like the feel of a direct mechanical link between my foot, the tach, and the rear of the car. Instead of asking myself, what can I do with the car in this gear at this speed, instead I ask what gear and speed do I want to go? I don't eat in my car and I threaten to strangle anyone who does. I don't want my suede seats smelling like french fries. I also turn my cell phone off because I can't stand people who use their cell phones while they drive, so I don?t do it. Anything I do attempt while I am driving must be something that can be pre-empted by shifting without discomfort.

I also like to work on my own cars. Automatics take the knowledge and equipment of a dedicated auto transmission tech to properly maintain and rebuild. The T-56 has 3 shafts, some gears and bearings, and synchros, and can be put together with a mallet and a ratchet in about 10 minutes. If you can put shaped blocks in the correct shaped holes, you can work on a manual transmission.

I won?t make the argument about saving gas, since the supercharged V8 pretty much makes the transmission type a non issue when it comes to affecting MPG?
 
I would have liked to, but I bought a leased/used Grand Prix 🙁. My motorcycle is manual though 😀 (der).
 
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