Can you drive a manual transmission vehicle?

I feel like there was a discussion about this not too long ago, maybe because it was even mentioned on the bombcast. Not sure though. Also I presume you're American, given your observation.

EDIT: A google search says the most recent thread about this I can find was a year ago. 56% manual. Not as recent as I thought though.

I can and do, but my wife refuses to learn, which is really aggravating in instances where we need to swap cars for whatever reason. Because of this my next car will probably be an automatic.

@bollard: Yep

I drive a manual. Honestly, the next vehicle I get will probably be an automatic. No sense in making the drive home in heavy traffic each day worse than it needs to be.

of course how else can I become Drift King?

I can't and I am not a weaker person because of it

Mmm, automatic is definitely the more popular in America, but Europe is mostly manual.

I use to have a 1998 Pontiac Sunfire, before a jackass tail-swiped me in the middle a snowy night and sent me rolling off the highway, down a hill. After that, I upgraded to a Scion xD (awesome car), but now drive a Cross-Country Minivan because I have two kids. It's automatic, and it kills my VERY SOUL.

Being from England I have no idea why anyone would ever drive an automatic. That shit is booooring.

I drive a manual, because I live in Ireland and I've never even seen an automatic over here. But automatic transmissions sound like they take the fun out of driving. Do you want your car to automatically use its pedals too?

Uhh.. I've never even seen an automatic car. Pretty sure you have to pass your test in a manual car, or at least I did.

Once upon a time I sorta knew how to drive a manual, though you probably wouldn't have wanted me to drive your car unless it was an emergency, like you'd lost both your legs in a terrible canoeing accident and been blinded during a rabid beaver attack and the ambulance to show up would show up too late to save you.

All my cars have been automatic, though, so I have long since forgotten what little I knew.

I can. But I voted for "I can not drive". Because I can't drive right now, legally. Why? Because I was a jackass in my 20's.

@planetfunksquad said:

Like, that would actually be kinda rad? I don't know what "the fun of driving" is. It's not like you can have any fun driving around the suburbs during the day anyways. If there weren't cars anymore and instead we had crazy mag-cars on mag-rails like in Minority Report that just zip around, and instead of having to have my hands and feet busy I could just do fucking whatever and play some 3DS, that would be great. Or if it were Mad Max and you could just fucking gun it wherever you want because fuck it, that would also be great.

Driving a sports car around a closed track (a birthday present) was fun as hell, but day-to-day driving around streets is boring as fuck, and a manual transmission does nothing to change that. Could not possibly be any farther from understanding the mindset you two operate under where apparently day-to-day driving is this thrilling enterprise.

@cale: In the UK you can only drive automatics if you pass your test in one. Pass in manual and you are ok in whatever.

I've only ever driven automatics a half dozen times amd have never felt safe doing it. I need a clutch.

What the hell is fun about a manual transmission? It adds a level of unnecessary difficulty to driving. I didn't even know they still made manual transmissions outside of England.

In Europe, as far as I know, most cars are manual. Might just be Switzerland.

Learned in a manual. Love driving manual. Pretty much use the engine breaking effect exclusively. Feels so good. So much control.

What the hell is fun about using a controller or mouse and keyboard? They add a level of unnecessary difficulty to playing games.

I'm saying automatic is the touchscreen controls of video games. Damn casual drivers.

@alwaysbebombing: Um, maybe having something do on a long car ride? Dumping the clutch and taking first up to 7000rpm? Listening to an exhaust note scream/roar? Not waiting while the automatic clutch lags? Having real control over what your car is doing instead of waiting on its systems to react?

It was always really helpful on the way back from late night jobs to keep me from falling asleep, plus if you drive right you can save more gas in a manual.

I've driven a '65 VW Beetle, a Pontiac Fiero, a VW R32, an '89 S13 Nissan 240sx and an '01 Honda Accord. I would kill for a manual transmission again. I had a pseudo manual in my R32, with tiptronic and paddle shifters, it was fun because of the 250hp and AWD in a Golf, but my 240 was always the most fun to drive. There's nothing like opening up the throttle and going instead of waiting on a slow ass control unit.

My parents made me learn to drive using the worst manual they could find. Hated it at the time but now I'm glad they did.

@bisonhero: It's not like I'm like "Awwww fuck yeah, I get to drive to work today! DRIIIIVIIIING!!!" whenever I get into a car. It's more that driving is an inherently boring activity. You sit down, stare straight ahead and thats about it. Add a manual gearbox to that and you at least have something to do with your hands/something to think about while driving, if that makes sense? I feel like if I didn't have that extra level of complexity my mind would drift and I'd be a dangerous motherfucker to have on the road. I have a short attention span.

@bisonhero: Driving around the country side is an enjoyable experience. City driving is for smucks.

@cheapandtacky said:

Were all six times during incredibly adverse weather conditions, or recklessly high speeds? I'm not aware of other situations where the differences between automatic and manual are particularly relevant to your safety.

After trying automatic when touring the US now I hate manual but I don't have a choice because in Europe, where I live, if you want an automatic you have to be rich. I don't see the appeal of manual when you are constantly stuck in city traffic but apparently I'm in the minority.

I drive an automatic because i like technological advancements. Using an outdated transmission type out of some sort of misguided pride is silly.

Also the "fun" argument is stupid. Shit is annoying and unnecessary, especially in heavy traffic. I know how to drive manuals but its just pointless. I especially dislike the idiots who think its unmanly to drive an automatic and that driving a manual makes them more of a man? Idiots.

The performance argument. Well in some specific cases, yes a manual CAN get better performance, but those cases are very rare. You have to be very good at it and driving the rigth type of car. Plus the performance increase is so negligible that it might as well not be mentioned.

Stop holding technology back people.

Engine braking is one such circumstance where you are certainly 'safer' with a manual, everything else being equal. At least in Scotland, where everything is so hilly that it's one of the first things you get taught, but I gather that isn't the case everywjere. You can't really do it with an automatic, obviously. Going up steep hills is also a bit easier to do safely as well.

I assume Americans mostly drive automatics because they have two types of road - long, empty straight roads that go on for 100s of miles, or choked-up inner-city traffic at 2mph. In both cases, manuals are a nuisance. In most cities in Europe (even the less 'progressive' UK) there is no need or desire to do much driving in city centres very often unless you are flamboyantly rich and like walking long distances from a parking space you had to kill someone for. Also our roads are the bendy, hilly pleasures Americans only see in video games.

I can happily drive both but an automatic is always less engaging and more frustrating. The automatic I drive most often has dangerously slow acceleration.

@clonedzero: sorry to kill your argument but i have had a manual for over 2 years and it is still has so much fun factor and, I drive over an hour a day. The thrill of being in complete control of the car is so enjoyable I love it and never want to drive another way.

Yep, I want to replace my car with an automatic but the price premium they charge in the UK for an auto box makes it difficult to justify the extra cost.

Manual for me. Driving an auto is like playing a sports videogame with the simple controls. I mean technically your playing but c'mon.

That probably depends on where you live.

@clonedzero:

• heel-toe control
• engine braking
• dumping clutch at 6k while throwing beer cans out the window
• 20% performance increase / fuel mileage increase over a automatic
• much, much simpler mechanical system that can be rebuilt in a few hours
• can roll-start on a hill, can push start on flat ground
• clutch is optional - can still drive with busted clutch by matching rpm's

you are quick to call people idiots when you are talking about something you know very little about

autos are nice for city-only drivers. stop-and-go slipping the clutch all evening on the way home from work is not fun but don't extrapolate that driving experience to everyone else.

I learned because i know someone who has a manual and we sometimes go out to bars, and since i don't drink and he does i figured i would learn in case i needed to drive, also because i just wanted to learn how. Im not that great, but i can get from A to B and probably not stall it. And i will never buy a manual, because its just more things to keep track of with little gain in performance on American roads.

In Europe it's pretty much a given that you're going to be driving a manual. North Americans are noobs at driving, lol.

I never called you an idiot. Read. I called people who negatively judge others because they prefer automatics idiots. Because they are. Quit being so defensive.

Also, 20% increase? Bullshit. Maybe 20 years ago.

@deerokus said:

It's true that most people in North America chose to populate more level areas for a host of reasons, including "having their pick of an enormous, sparsely populated land mass", but there are certainly hilly areas outside of urban centers. The particularly flat regions in the middle of the continent are largely used for agriculture, and have much lower populations than the other states and provinces in their respective countries, so visions of hundreds of miles of 2-lane highway going through desert in the American southwest is not really indicative of a common day-to-day driving experience, unless you're a traveling salesman who can't afford a train ticket or airfare. Similarly, due to the existence of mid-sized cities and suburbs, it's possible to have "city driving" that isn't as bad as downtown Manhattan, but still obviously has some intersecting streets and isn't just winding countryside roads, and these small cities/large towns don't have the budget to justify very good public transit. Surely this is the case in the UK as well, unless I'm to believe that you've got London, Manchester, Liverpool, and then nothing but quaint country villages the instant you leave the city?

So I think the two extremes you suggested are an oversimplification, and aren't really the factors that led to the widespread adoption of automatic in North America.

@bisonhero: I was curious so I looked this up.

Oh it's definitely an oversimplification, but I like my oversimplifications! :D

England is quite densely packed but yes, there's countryside. Roughly the same size as Florida with a population about three times as much. Scotland, where I am, is a bit different, very empty (2/3rds the size of England, 1/10th the population, or in American terms, basically South Carolina (but with like half of it being taken up by mountains). Not much outside the populated section in the middle but hilly and twisty. We have motorways between cities of course but they're not exactly like American highways or the glorious German autobahns.

I sorta can i suppose. Never owned one and only learned while working in car dealership years ago. I can probably manage it but i just find manual to be tedious and uncomfortable in cities and irrelevant on the highway for hours.

Ah, fair enough, Scotland does sound like it's quite a different set of circumstances in terms of population distribution. Still, I stand by my assertion that I guess England specifically isn't that different from some American states or Canadian provinces in terms of the needs of their automobiles based on geography/topography, and those needs probably weren't the factor that led to the starkly opposed transmission preferences.

@fredchuckdave said:

Man, is "built-up area" some kind of weird city planner term or something? Can't say I've heard of it before. Interesting that a lot of the major urban centers aren't based around one city, but more of when there are 2-3 major cities in close proximity that have grown into one giant thing. I guess that'll happen in countries of that size. As a Canadian, I encounter that much less often.

I wish I knew how. I just recently got my first car and it was my grandparents 02 camry with automatic, and none of my relatives have manual so I've never driven manual. When I eventually buy my own car I definitely want to get a manual, especially if it's a nice car. I would actually like to be more engaged while I'm driving, and feel my vehicle be more responsive. Automatic feels so floaty sometimes.

I can go FAST with manual.

It also makes driving on slick or icy roads less scary.

Couldn't imagine driving without a clutch. How do you get a feel for the torque without easing in from biting point? To me, shifting gears and smoothly easing in the clutch is the most satisfying part of driving anyway. It's a pain when you're sitting in traffic though and the weight of the clutch begins to ache, but I don't see how that would be better in an automatic.

Aren't manuals more efficient as well? Technology argument is moot when your priorities are in the right place, but what do I know about advancements? My car is old, and basically a lawn mower engine inside a tin can. It's absurdly economic though, because it's so light. It also has a choke valve, which I wouldn't recommend. Starting it on cold winter mornings is a nightmare, and I used to flood the engine when I didn't know what I was doing.

Wow, apparently all the progress we've made in being empathetic and approachable when it comes to games goes right out the window when we talk about cars eh? Well done, everyone in this thread.

Its manual for me. It just gives you more control and freedom. The satisfaction of developing the skills to control a machine.

I feel safer driving manual. My thoughts tend to drift when I'm bored so the added engagement of clutch keeps me more focused on driving.

My car is automatic, but 90% of my traveling is done on my bike, so I'm mostly driving a manual. Now that I'm used to it, I'm going to make sure to get a manual for my next car. It give you so much more control over what the engine is doing at any given moment.

Can I? Not effectively at the moment if only because I don't like driving enough to care enough to learn. I also got my license with an automatic and that was that. I get people who enjoy driving a car from a mechanical perspective but I could do without the wankery at the expense of automatic drivers who don't care. Besides I'd prefer to walk or take public transport and jam on music in every situation if I could.

Although if you really want me to get excited about driving a car, let's talk about all electric cars. Fuck a gear son, magnets! Throw in a computer brain that drives for me and that's as much driving as I'll ever need. Cyber future let's go.

Automatics have eaten up much of the advantages manual drives used to have. And replacing clutches is a hassle.

Still, driving manual is just plain fun. So much so that the early model Acura (when Acura's were interesting cars) that I inherited from my Dad has a pretend shift system for just that reason. Sporty little thing, surprisingly.

Australian's are much like people from the UK, we love a manual transmission. It's a useful life skill as you aren't limited to one type of vehicle, very useful in an emergency like say having to rush someone to a hospital and they drove somewhere in a manual car and it's the only ride available. I actually feel a little... un-easy when I drive an auto for the most part as I don't feel like I have proper control over a vehicle, though I'll admit driving in traffic is much nicer .