Poll: Escapist: Can you drive a Manual?

[Scars Unseen]

I learned on an automatic(American driving schools don't usually teach manual), but my first car was a manual. Funny story that. My dad picked it out, and drove me to the parking lot where it was waiting. When I got out of his car, he handed me the keys, said "by the way, it's standard transmission," and drove off, leaving me to figure out how to drive the thing on my own.

The town we lived in was full of steep hills and valleys. It was an interesting first couple of days.

 

[Boris Goodenough]

I can, but it's really not safe for me to do so. My hands mirror one another, and shifting while a vehicle is in gear runs the risk of my other hand jerking the wheel, even when concentrating. I have managed to find workarounds to many issues this causes, but if I couldn't drive an automatic, I would probably never get behind the wheel.

How do you turn if your hands mirror each other?!

 

[Albino Boo]

Yeah, even in the US where most cars are automatic there's a bit of elitism attached to the ability to drive a manual.

I don't quite get it, honestly. My dad is the kind of guy who thinks everybody should know a little about everything so in case they're stuck in a jam you can fix something on your own (like change a tire, fix or identify basic electrical problems, etc). And even HE doesn't see much of a point of learning to drive a manual in the US. The VAST majority of cars are automatic, including rentals.

I don't get why the rest of the world is so attached to manuals, last time my family was looking at new cars we discovered manual cars weren't really any cheaper than automatics with the same features (in fact, the automatics usually came with more and for the same price). And they only seem to cause trouble. They have a hard time idling and moving in heavy city traffic, and the hills around here are ridiculous, so seeing them stop at intersections on hills is just sad (and a bit frightening if you're right behind them). I really don't understand it at all.

In Europe the roads follow medieval field boundaries in the countryside. Even in the town and cities the road network tend to have been laid out before the invention of the car. In the city that I live, the roads in the town centre were laid out by the Romans and the rest was extended by the Geograins, Victorians and the Edwardians. I recently saw someone selling a 1960 Thunderbird because they moved to Paris and it won't fit down the side streets.


There are no problems with hills in a manual, you just have to rev slightly higher to change gears. I drive up and 8.3% gradient hill everyday, going round adds 10 miles and goes through the original Pennsylvanian. Again with junctions there isn't a problem with manuals, in fact you can get the power down quicker and move away faster in manual. I suspect what you are seeing is people that are used to an auto fighting with a manual box. If you never drive anything else changing gear isn't conscious action, its rather like using a keyboard and mouse while playing a game. You don't think moving the mouse to look left or right, you just do it.

 

[Elementary - Dear Watson]

I think the OP is going to be surprised at the demographic of the Escapist forums... and that most countries have cars (as opposed to go-karts) as standard!

I am British... I can count the number of Automatic cars I have seen in my life on one hand.

 

[DanielBrown]

Yes I can. Pretty much all cars in Sweden are manual. It's fun to drive stick and not as hard to learn as a specific country(*cough*) seem to think. Gives you great control on the road, is more fuel efficient and I assume it's a bit kinder on the environment as we can gear down rather than use the breaks to slow us down.

For those afraid of the extra work in the car; it can feel overwhelming in the beginning, but know that you'll do it automatically once you've learned it.

 

[Squilookle]

I filmed my drive home from work yesterday.

I think this video sufficiently sums up my thoughts on the matter.

 

[elvor0]

I'm from the UK and I drive automatic - GOSH! I know! My thought process was kind of like this. "So, you can let the car change gear for you and people still do it the hard way? Yeah no thanks.... Seriously why are people so determined to make it harder for themselves? I get there is a macho culture about driving the 'right way', but to me a car has only ever been something that will get me from A - B, and having an automatic is a godsend in stop start rush hour traffic. Yeah I think this is something our American brothers got right.

It's not just about being macho. The inherent control advantages manual offers you are what clicks it for most people, that and almost all the cars in Britain are manual. Hills feel much better with manual, overtaking, country road driving at more than 10 miles an hour because you're a spaz who can't operate their automobile, even rush hour trafic isn't that bad. But the most important thing is snow. Snow is a fucker, and you've got to have as much control as possible in it, which I'd rather not leave to an automatic gear box, because you want a /higher/ gear with less revs. I'd rather have better hill, speed, snow and wet and overtaking control with rush hour hassle than the opposite.

I mean if you live /just/ in a city and don't ever leave it, then yeah automatic might be a bit better, but otherwise, manual is just better for driving in Europe.

 

[Henkie36]

Whenever I get a chance to drive my dads car instead of my own, the automatic is a big reason to. You know, outside of the fact it is more comfortable, faster, more powerful, has a better stereo and I can actually hook up my phone to it. Bottom line, I like the automatic, but driving a manual is no problem for me.

 

[Guffe]

Been driving manual all the years I've had a drivers license.
Got to try an automatic a few times, it's easier than manual of course. But it doesn't take long to learn manual either.
Driving schools in Finland all teach manual to my knowledge.

I'll just leave this here

 

[KoudelkaMorgan]

I picked 42 as I cannot drive, and most of the people I know that say they can drive a Manual don't seem to know what they are doing. At least judging by their chronic transmission problems and general car trouble that come up with every car I've ever seen them own lol.

 

[Kingjackl]

Yes. I learned to drive a manual, it's what I prefer. I can handle an automatic, but for long stretches of driving, it just doesn't feel right. That said, I can see the advantages of both.

 

[MercurySteam]

Sure do. I drive a six speed manual 2014 Mazda3. From what I can tell the auto gearboxes in them were shit anyway.

 

[not_you]

Australian here...
I drive manual... Only ever have owned Manual cars and I hate driving automatic...

It's just so boring driving auto... There's nothing to do in it besides, well... accelerate... brake... accelerate....
yeah, manual!

 

[Denamic]

The driving lessons and test are always on manual cars here, so yes. If you have a driver's license, you should know how to drive stick.

 

[Uriel_Hayabusa]

I've yet to drive an automatic and have been driving for well over 5 years. So yeah, I know how to drive stick.

 

[erykweb]

Manuals are tiring for long trips. In the US, many individual states are larger than the UK, and it becomes a literal pain to have to constantly shift gears because of changes in traffic. Also, in the US you very rarely have to worry about some idiot rolling back and hitting you when trying to go at a stoplight because their foot slipped on the pedal. Low speed control is so much easier on an automatic (take your foot off the brake, it moves forward slowly- great for really poor traffic) and backing up is much safer (for the same reason, you don't need to apply any gas to move). You can even control when your car switches gears by letting up on the accelerator slightly to increase, and braking to decrease. It is a good skill to know, to drive a manual, in case it is ever needed, but honestly there is very little true advantage to a manual that you can tangibly feel on an everyday basis. No design of anything is ever made safer by having additional moving parts, or more integral human input.

 

[TheDarklite]

Well I am *aware* of how to drive a Manual, but I cannot legally do so. Back when I was on my Learner Permit my instructor decided to take a holiday right when the practical assessment was due - With next to no forewarning. The only car I had available to me because of this was my own, which was an Automatic. Naturally, if you take the test in an Automatic you will be restricted to Automatic vehicles via your license.

So yeah, I was learning in a Manual, but because of the evil space-time gods I was unable to sit the test in one.

And so began the age of reckoni - I mean, my restriction.

 

[Jodokh]

Well I enjoy driving manual, learned on tractors, old trucks and a 1978 Kenworth that tranny isn't even synchronised.
But you can't buy a modern full sized pickup with a manual anymore, which is lame.

 

[Techno Squidgy]

I ride a bike mostly, but I can drive a car with a manual gearbox, just not particularly well. I'm more of a two wheels kind of guy. I don't have a car license, I was just taught how to drive a car before I decided to get a bike.