The Standard Transmission Thread

I thought this might make for a good thread after talking to my sister the other day. I offered to let her borrow my car for some unimportant thing and she reminded me that she can't borrow my car, as she never learned to drive stick.

People are funny about their transmissions. I like stick shift if I'm driving a performance car, but I have no illusions about my Ford Fusion SE falling into that category. Some people say it's a pain to drive in traffic, or that it makes them feel more connected with the road, or they like the extra control.

I seem to be the only person I know that doesn't care. Manual or auto, for a grocery getter it's all the same as far as I can tell.

So, TFP, now's your chance. Convince me. Do you know how to drive standard? If you do, do you have a preference for it? If so, why? If not, would you like to learn? Or do you not care?

 

I like both.
I prefer standard when I have no children in the car, as it makes for a more mindful driving experience.
I prefer automatic when I might be more distracted by littlegirly's conversations or tinygirly's attempts at singing. Distractions are not fun in a manual. At least for me. It does make a difference when a couple of mini-me's are in the back seat.

Our mom-mobile, premium-guzzling, passat wagon is automatic.
Our run-around, road-tripping, diesel-sipping beetle is standard.

Oh, when considering child care options we found it convenient that our top pick happened to be able to drive either. We'll now make it a priority and limiting factor when choosing our next au pair.

 

That is actually a good point. Manual demands focus in a way that auto doesn't. I wonder how that affects overall driving habits? Maybe accident rates of manual drivers vs auto drivers?

It sure would be hard to text and drive while cruising around town with my current car even if I did want to do such things.

 

I drive standard. I have always wanted to drive standard but had to sacrifice to automatic for those that couldn't.

I drive with a standard because I prefer to concentrate on the road and traffic. This means sometimes I don't want the stereo on. I want to hear the engine. I want to not have any distractions. I want to focus on the driving.

BMW Ultimate Driving Machine Shift Knob Yeee Ha Bonus DVD The Hire | eBay

 

My first car had a standard transmission. I knew how to drive one before I even had a license. I guess technically my motorcycle is a standard transmission too.


I guess the more performance oriented a vehicle is, the more likely I would be to prefer a standard transmission. Although, realistically, with today's technology amateur drivers will simply not out perform the best automatics out there. But the "fun to drive" factor more than takes care of a tenth of a second or two in the 1/4 mile I suppose.

That being said, my vehicle is paid for by my employer, and getting a standard transmission isn't an option, so I've driven automatics only for years.

 

Related: my mother is a big proponent of standard transmissions. She recently got a Nissan Sentra with a 6 speed that she loves. It's a nice little commuter I guess but I'm not a huge fan solely because the shifter is in what I consider to be a weird spot. Photo evidence:




There's definitely a wider variation of driving experiences in standards, in my experience. I had a Zipcar membership for five years when I lived in Toronto, and drove a wide range of automatic transmission 4 cylinder sedans. They all drove more or less the same. But mom's car and my car drive differently, despite also both being 4 cylinder sedans with six speed transmissions.

That could be considered a plus or a minus, I guess. My Fusion's clutch is pretty easygoing and it shifts nicely, so I like that. It's pretty boring, but that's what I was after.

 

I've always preferred stick shift cars. The very first car I drove at age 14 was an old (1960s) VW beetle stickshift. Every car I've bought has been a manual, although I did get my hand-me-down (free) AMC Eagle which was an automatic. I still have the 5-speed 250k mile SAAB 9-5 that I bought on ebay in 2006 and the 2006 Accord four-door EX-L 6-speed manual 265hp V-6 that I bought last summer. I also had another SAAB and a Ford Festiva stickshift, all small to medium size cars.

I might go for an automatic if I drove something big, like a F-250 or Suburban, but I'd never buy something like that. It might make me grow a dick.

Manual was a little bit of a pain when I lived in Boston, but I didn't drive in the city that much, and once I got on the highway I might go hundreds of miles without shifting. My high mile SAAB still has the original clutch at over 250k miles.

My EX-L V-6 grinds sometimes upshifting from 2nd to 3rd. Doesn't grind on a downshift. According to the fanboy website, that is common with Honda six-speed manuals.
Also, I catch myself sometimes forgetting about 6th gear and suddenly noticing that I'm cruising merrily along at 80mph in 5th. The engine is so smooth, I just don't notice.

 

I especially dislike CVT automatics.

 

How do you do that?

Just learn


View: https://youtu.be/2awswE9bMl4

 

CVT isn't a manual though. It's a type of auto that (in theory) adjusts the gear ratio to always keep the engine working at peak efficiency. I don't really know how you kill one, unless it's already defective.

The secret to never stalling is practice.

 

I drove a Honda Insight. It was a CVT. I was always in the high rev band with what seemed like all torque and no speed. It was miserable. I wished I killed that zipcar.