Death of the stick shift?

[Junket]

[url]http://editorial.autos.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=656470[/url]

My love for my car would be significantly less were it an automatic.

[1averagejoe]

Paddle shifters are fun. I have no problem with an electronic shifting car. I mean they shift faster than any person can. Plus there is really no difference between a traditional manual and a new electronically controlled one.

Manual transmissions are becoming dated technology. I mean, you don't want to go back to double clutching again do you? Why would you want an old transmission that can't shift as fast as a new electronic one? At the least I think all new cars should have sequential gear boxes , and automatics should be illegal. Automatics suck, I have one in my car. I figure once I blow up the transmission I'll swap it for a manual.

[lesa]

It's not about being fast, etc. I am just very bored easily when driving and manual transmission keeps me awake, sort of. I imagine that I would not be attentive to driving if I did not have a stick shift.

[Lipp]

I think that if I ever drove an automatic my clutch foot would linger at the bottom impatiently, stabbing into the floor.

Annoyingly enough I know how to drive a manual, but never learnt or tried driving with an automatic. Would probably just take a few minutes to learn, but never had the chance. These sequential gear boxes are more appealing though.

There is a problem with manual shifting though since Aussie's drive on the left hand side, which means that you shift with your left hand, a habit that I will have to break in after a lifetime of shifting with the right hand. Ugh.

[doppelgaenger]

I'd like to learn how to drive a manual, and have the next car I buy be a manual. It just seems like you have more control, and it's much simpler mechanically; less parts = less chance for failure.

[1averagejoe]

It's not about being fast, etc. I am just very bored easily when driving and manual transmission keeps me awake, sort of. I imagine that I would not be attentive to driving if I did not have a stick shift.

That's why I manual shift my auto sometimes...lol.

One of these days that transmission is going to die with the way I beat on it. And it's going to get swapped for a manual transmission.

If I were to buy a new car it would without a doubt be a manual or a newer electronic controlled manual. I absolutely hate driving automatic. I want a C63 AMG...god that car sounds soo freaking badass. And those front calipers, 6 pistons...

[lesa]

I think that if I ever drove an automatic my clutch foot would linger at the bottom impatiently, stabbing into the floor.

I had to drive a bf's automatic transmission truck once. It was very uncomfortable. It felt like something was missing and I felt like I was going to hit the vehicles in first of me, lol. I haven't driven an automatic in years! All but one of my cars were manual. My first car was a manual turned automatic thought, but I only had it for about 9 months. Never got an automatic since and don't want one hehe.

[1averagejoe]

I want a sequential.

[misombra]

I think that if I ever drove an automatic my clutch foot would linger at the bottom impatiently, stabbing into the floor.

omg i did this once on the freeway! my car was standard, but i was using my dads car which is automatic and i didn't feel like it was going into 5th gear and it was revving high, so i slammed on the brake with my left foot on the freeway going like 75mph.

very very luckily nobody was close behind me. my head swung forward and i was so surprised i didn't understand what was happening there for a minute.

my current car is an automatic but i could pop it into manual. it's awesome.

[IndiReloaded]

We always try the automatic version of a car when considering buying and its never as responsive as the 5-speed. I never drive an automatic, given a choice. One has much more control with a manual. In fact, I've been able to avoid two accidents b/c I was able to manually change gears and quickly get more power from the engine.

For those of you w/5-speeds, do you play w/changing gears w/o the clutch? I do.

[IndiReloaded]

omg i did this once on the freeway! my car was standard, but i was using my dads car which is automatic and i didn't feel like it was going into 5th gear and it was revving high, so i slammed on the brake with my left foot on the freeway going like 75mph.

I did this once w/a rental until I learned to keep my left foot glued to the floor away from the brake. Its kind of a 'everyone does it exactly once' lesson, I think.

[Zilla80]

The only time a manual sucks is if you are stuck in traffic that moves a few ft every few mins... my clutch foot feels like falling off in heavy traffic.

[Illusional]

well it's like the rest of america... we are getting lazy.

raverboy

[Junket]

For those of you w/5-speeds, do you play w/changing gears w/o the clutch? I do.

I've heard and seen this, but I don't understand the mechanics behind it and I don't want to break my car.

[Only-virgins]

Auto is for pussies.

For those of you w/5-speeds, do you play w/changing gears w/o the clutch? I do.

You will destroy the syncros on the transmission. You can tell when people have done this on their cars when you get a older car and the shifter feels really loose in the boot and you can barely tell what gear you are in.

I mean they shift faster than any person can.

FALSE. 90% of the sequential transmission ARE AUTO. Very few actually are computer controlled clutches...I know the MR evo new one has a great sequential tranny with a twin clutch system and shifts fast but that crap you see with the paddle in cars is nothing but an auto with a button. Unless we are speaking of the twin clutch SST auto in the new MR EVO or the Race transmission in the new Skyline....the rest shift like shit. Ever drive the IS300 Lexus with the paddle shifters? what a joke...damn thing took an hour to get into next gear. EVen than they fail..the NEW MR which was supposed to dominate the manual version of it and thus reatiled for nearly 5k more at the dealer produces on the track nearly half a second slower 1/4 of a mile.

It's not about being fast, etc. I am just very bored easily when driving and manual transmission keeps me awake, sort of. I imagine that I would not be attentive to driving if I did not have a stick shift.

But he is lying, manual on average will be the faster transmission with a good driver. It will launch much harder at the starting line than the auto and will not hesitate during the shift. The only autos that are faster are not daily driven Drag transmissions with a VERY short first gear and a very long second gear...that is it pretty much most of the time for faster than manual. Very few autos can match the shift and launch of the manual. The only advantage in speed still these days for auto is less driver error so more consistent times. For the sake of noob logic that exists this is all of course comparing the SAME car with the two different transmissions as obviously an auto vette will beat a manual Geo Metro.