MANUAL vs AUTO (I promise it's not a repost)

[EWR]

My turn: People buy what they want. Autos are easy and let you have one less thing to think about. You still get the same feeling of getting pushed back in your seat and going fast. Yeah, they weigh a bit more and have more moving parts that can break but thats the trade off. Sticks ARE more fun! They give you more control. They are almost bullet proof and really let you get into the DRIVING part of the car. Me, personally, I'm gonna get the auto. I've driven sticks and all kinds of motorcycles since I was 15 and I'm done with the shifting thing. (unless it's my bike) I just want to kick back an enjoy the ride.

I would never call anyone out due to their choice in transmission. That's pretty stupid if you ask me.

PS- Most, if not all, modern 18 wheelers do not require double clutching any more. They are pretty much just like a giant car or truck so I don't know why they were brought up. ???

[Oldrocker]

Originally Posted by EWR

My turn: People buy what they want. Autos are easy and let you have one less thing to think about. You still get the same feeling of getting pushed back in your seat and going fast. Yeah, they weigh a bit more and have more moving parts that can break but thats the trade off. Sticks ARE more fun! They give you more control. They are almost bullet proof and really let you get into the DRIVING part of the car. Me, personally, I'm gonna get the auto. I've driven sticks and all kinds of motorcycles since I was 15 and I'm done with the shifting thing. (unless it's my bike) I just want to kick back an enjoy the ride.

I would never call anyone out due to their choice in transmission. That's pretty stupid if you ask me.

PS- Most, if not all, modern 18 wheelers do not require double clutching any more. They are pretty much just like a giant car or truck so I don't know why they were brought up. ???

The manual transmissions in the new Camaro are nowhere near bullet proof. These things are breaking left and right, along with the rest of the drivetrain.

[PQ]

Originally Posted by NicksVSix

It may not be "hard" but it certainly more of a challenge than driving an auto. I mean all you have to do when driving an auto is slam the accelerator to the mat. That's it. You have to steer, you have to brake, slow down, speed up, Negotiate traffic, and all the rest of the stuff to drive auto or stick. The stick gives you two more things to do than the auto. Two, out of a hundred.

Please note I am not slamming automatics or those who prefer them. They certainly have their charms and I find myself, on occasion, regretting not having gone with an automatic for my Camaro.

But please don't say that driving a manual these days is just as easy as driving an auto. It isn't. Thats why I miss an auto at times, I find myself thinking "Jesus, this would be easier in an auto!"

Depends on what you are comparing it to. I defined my comments earlier.

Originally Posted by NicksVSix

Why are we comparing cars made today to cars made more than 50 years ago?
Of course things are going to be better/easier. EVERYTHING is better/easier than it was over 50 years ago.

If anything, we should just be comparing Camaros of today to Camaros of yesterday, or just pony cars in general.

Were the 1st gen Camaros easier to shift than cars made 30 - 40 years previous? Probably. Are 5th gen Camaros easier to shift than 1st gen Camaros? Probably not in any noticeable way.

Are manuals still more of a challenge to drive than autos? Of course. They were then and they are now.

Ok. Driving a stick over an automatic is about as much more challenging as drinking straight from a glass with no straw, or straight from a glass having to hold the straw out of the way.

Both are elementary and done without even thinking about it. One of them just has an extra step.

I don't get the challenging part. All of you stick drivers know damn well that you don't even realize you're driving a stick. You just do it automatically.

Originally Posted by NicksVSix

How many times do you think A6 drivers have stalled their vehicles?
None, right?

I've stalled my M6 a few times, as I'm sure many M6 drivers have.
There *is* a bit more to driving a manual than there is an auto.

There's another step. Doesn't take skill in my opinion.

Is washing dishes a skill? Is raking leaves a skill? How bout eating? Skill?

Originally Posted by skuttduck

I still am not sure what to make of some of the comments. Yes I've lurked and read the threads.

I had automatic for the last 10 years. My Camry is great, however I had more control on the snow and ice with my 1989 Toyota Corolla All Trac wagon because it was manual. You had the perception of more control, so it made you more aware of what's going on. You could have just as much control with an automatic if you pay attention. And BTW, IF it were harder to use an auto tranny on ice as I've seen a few times here, wouldn't it take more skill then to drive on safely ice with an automatic?

That being said I know to turn off the overdrive if I am driving in slippery conditions. In the manual I just adjust and downshift if needed.

Now if this truely was like PQ seems to say, and you just slide the lever to shift I would have gotten auto, as it would have been just like the 3 wheeler we had. You had to change gears but there was no clutch. Plus i've stalled my car every now and then. Ever tried shifting your car without the clutch. You know you can right?

I bought a Camaro, if I wanted to just press the gas pedal to make it go, I would have bought probably another Camry.

I still don't understand the real appeal of the V8 automatic. Most people will raz you about not having the V8 when you have the V6, but doing the research shows you that you paid more for less of a car. Please explain? Paying more for less of a car. Isn't the whole point of giving someone grief about NO V8 the horsepower. If it is, then you are insecure, and fail.

Now if you enjoy the car and stop saying what you car do, and stop spouting off how much better it can do because you've done these mods, or on paper it can do this around the track, and you got these numbers by strapping it to the dyno... Then you are the type of person I can talk to reasonably about the car. I agree.

Now as for the v6. I like the underdog!

I also like the fact that I don't get people asking me to drive my car because it is a manual, and it frightens people.

I don't get people asking to drive mine either.

Originally Posted by Rip

A6 drivers are sissies. I drove a Model T backwards to school in the snow up a hill holding my lunch box both ways.

Er, something like that.

Originally Posted by JClay

One reason NASCAR doesn't use automatics because that would take out the skill of the driver. Not saying skills is based on shifting but it is a major part of it.

I disagree. The cars would tear up too fast. Brakes, trannies, and such.

[9.8m/s/s]

what about the whole price thing too? i can drive a manual so why pay more for an auto

[PQ]

Originally Posted by EWR

PS- Most, if not all, modern 18 wheelers do not require double clutching any more. They are pretty much just like a giant car or truck so I don't know why they were brought up. ???

You've never driven one before then.

And they were brought up in a certain context.

I was making reference to the ones that talk about being superior or 'real' drivers because they shift gears in their Camaro AND talk about the new stuff (ie auto trannies) are for sissies.

And my point was that there's always a next level calling someone a sissy PLUS they themselves have 'taken advantage' of new technology if you ask an old timer or truck driver. Would it be fair as a truck driver (well, former) for me to make fun of or say you're not a real driver if you can't shift without syncronization? It would be kinda stupid. That's all I'm saying.

Because the fact is, about less than 1% of everyone in these threads can do it.

That was the purpose of the comment.

[PQ]

Originally Posted by 9.8m/s/s

what about the whole price thing too? i can drive a manual so why pay more for an auto

I was joking about that. lol

I got the auto for the remote start. Here in lower Alabama remote start can be REALLY nice in the summer. (If I could ever remember to use it, )

[Blackbean]

This thread seems to exist on two levels : foolish jibberish, about testosterone,and the actual inherent differences of transmissions.
If you drive in traffic obviously an automatic is more practical and comfortable.
Normally,in motorsports, a manual has advantages in capturing torque more precisely.
It's not the transmission we use that makes us look weird,it's the things we say.
An analogy is not meant to be taken literally.

[Rip]

Originally Posted by PQ

I was joking about that. lol

I got the auto for the remote start. Here in lower Alabama remote start can be REALLY nice in the summer. (If I could ever remember to use it, )

Ha! In the same boat with the wife's SRT8. Hotter than hell in south Lowsyiana and neither of us ever remember to use it.

I actually originally ordered the A6 but changed my mind because every time I drove her car I found that my hand was on the shifter and my left leg was restless. I hadn't driven a manual in 12 years. Stalled that bastard twice already and I just picked it up Monday night.

But I'm a REAL MAN.

[Huck1974]

Originally Posted by PQ

You've never driven one before then.

And they were brought up in a certain context.

I was making reference to the ones that talk about being superior or 'real' drivers because they shift gears in their Camaro AND talk about the new stuff (ie auto trannies) are for sissies.

And my point was that there's always a next level calling someone a sissy PLUS they themselves have 'taken advantage' of new technology if you ask an old timer or truck driver. Would it be fair as a truck driver (well, former) for me to make fun of or say you're not a real driver if you can't shift without syncronization? It would be kinda stupid. That's all I'm saying.

Because the fact is, about less than 1% of everyone in these threads can do it.

That was the purpose of the comment.

The only time a clutch is required at all is starting and stopping. The rest of the time it has no use. They are very easy to drive once people get past the concept of two postions per movement. Moving old school dumptrucks around when I was 14 was a different story. I'm still not sure how this pertains to this stupid thread that was started once again for no reason whatsoever.

[KaiserSoze]

I just enjoy rowing my own gears in my cars. Even in stop and go traffic, it's not that much of a chore. And why would I pay $1k more for something that takes away that enjoyment? But it all depends on why you're buying the vehicle. I wouldn't want a stick in my Sienna just b/c it's an appliance and a stick wouldn't make it any more fun.

On a side note, part of my military career has required me to drive tractors, and I've driven old sticks and new automatics. I prefer new autos for that job (partly for air conditioning in the summer though) because it just sucks to shift through 5 gears to go 22 mph and then double-clutching while revving the crap out of the engine to down shift. Not to mention the auto is just one less thing to worry about when you've got a load of bombs on your trailer. And then my clutching in my own car gets screwed up going home at the end of the day from the stiff clutch in those rigs.

[Rip]

Originally Posted by Blackbean

This thread seems to exist on two levels : foolish jibberish, about testosterone,and the actual inherent differences of transmissions.
If you drive in traffic obviously an automatic is more practical and comfortable.
Normally,in motorsports, a manual has advantages in capturing torque more precisely.
It's not the transmission we use that makes us look weird,it's the things we say.
An analogy is not meant to be taken literally.

As Revo pointed out initially, the M6 really is all about emotion. The A6 is far more practical and logical.

If I wanted to be practical, I'd have gotten a f*&^ing Prius. Or, better yet, kept the wife's Civic that was already paid for.

[Revo1]

Originally Posted by Blackbean

This thread seems to exist on two levels : foolish jibberish, about testosterone,and the actual inherent differences of transmissions.
If you drive in traffic obviously an automatic is more practical and comfortable.
Normally,in motorsports, a manual has advantages in capturing torque more precisely.
It's not the transmission we use that makes us look weird,it's the things we say.
An analogy is not meant to be taken literally.

Hey man, read the original post. I've already laid this out for ya.

[PQ]

Originally Posted by Huck1974

The only time a clutch is required at all is starting and stopping. The rest of the time it has no use. They are very easy to drive once people get past the concept of two postions per movement. Moving old school dumptrucks around when I was 14 was a different story. I'm still not sure how this pertains to this stupid thread that was started once again for no reason whatsoever.

Yup. But you have to syncronize the gears yourself while driving. rev the motor up to down shift, time it to shift higher. You donj't have to do this in a car.

And I explained the relevence. Read the thread.

It really has nothing to do with comparing the auto and stick, but the attitude of some guys. That's all.

[PQ]

Originally Posted by Revo1

Hey man, read the original post. I've already laid this out for ya.

And I was tlking about number 3. The biggest 'Balls' lol