I didn't vote, because honestly it doesn't make that much difference to me. I used to care, and preferred manual, for the reasons that it was more control and more involvement like you mentioned. But manual transmissions are harder and harder to find, so I ended up buying my last couple four wheeled vehicles in automatic version because that is what was available. To be honest, it hasn't made any difference in my life. I don't enjoy life or driving less with an automatic. It's just slightly different. Driving a stick to me is almost "automatic" for me, I don't really think about shifting or driving like that.
There are some advantages to manual of course, such as going down a long hill and downshifting to reduce wear and tear on brakes, downshifting to gain torque, or slipping into neutral to save fuel. There are also advantages to driving an automatic, such as having your extra hand free for a drink or to hold your lover's hand, or to caress her.
But ultimately, it doesn't matter to me even enough to say I'm on one side or the other. It's like the difference if someone asks me if I prefer to walk up the beach or down the beach. It's just different sections of beach, one isn't significantly better than the other enough for me to care. Let's just go.
You're confused.
The purpose of auto is to enable cruise control, which saves fuel and makes journeys less of a hassle.
The purpose of manual is to enable speed and power when you require it.
These days auto gives the best of both worlds as computerization as made the process much better.
I learned on a manual farm truck, I find it is better and I have more control. Automatic transmissions are not really that good, nor are they actually automatic.
People act like, all you do is get in and push the gas and don't worry. I find I hit the gas to say pull out in traffic, and it sits there for 2 or 3 seconds trying to decide what gear it should be in, in the meantime traffic is fast approaching to hit me, and then it will struggle to go then suddenly downshift and redline the rpm, going from 1200 rpm's to 5000 cause it doesn't know what the hell it wants to do.
This is why I say it isn't actually automatic, you have to slowly coax it, don't push too hard or too soft to get it to shift when you want it to. It is just like a manual, you just don't have to use a clutch.
I prefer picking gears myself with a clutch, this way it eliminates the problem of the computer having to think about what to do next.
I have spent most of my adult life in England and I would think that 98% of all cars here have a manual gearbox. I only bought my first automatic car a couple of years ago and now I would never go back to a manual. Automatic cars are so much nicer to drive without having to mess around with the clutch or the gear shifter. Just put it in drive and cruise.
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I've got a stick shift Volkswagen. I learned to drive by stick shift, and only like 4 or 5 times have i ever used an automatic (one of the times was to help get a van out of mud it was stuck in lol). I much prefer manual because it gives more fun to the whole experience. The car isn't driving you, YOU are driving IT. My only complaint is the times I've accidentally stalled it lol
I prefer the control, a la engine breaking of a manual, I used to prefer stick for acceleration, but double clutches have eliminated that advantage, now 0 - 60 numbers are given with a double clutched automatic setups. And everything my dad taught me about driving, is simply made better with a double clutch automatic.
I prefer manual. However!!! I do not appreciate the new manual junk in my "sport edition" vehicle. It has paddles on the steering wheel so I can shift if I don't feel like using the automatic transmission. It's so dumb! To make matters worse, if my finger accidently flicks the hypersensitive paddle that intrudes my finger space, the transmission will immediately switch over beginning in low gear (this has happened to me twice while traveling at highway speed).
My car has an automatic transmission, but it has the option to switch to manual if you want the “hands on” approach.
I like both. I learned to drive on a manual transmission and had a stick shift car for many years. I switched to an automatic because my wife (we were married for 20 years) couldn't handle a stick. Since then, I've stuck with an automatic transmission. Last time I drove a manual transmission was in England (several years ago), where the rental car company only had manual transmission cars.
For now, automatic, which is standard here in the U. S.
But (to be fair), I have never driven a manual, which is standard back in the Philippines (definitely as of 2001, but probably still as of 2014, if I remember correctly… assuming my aunt's vehicle is representative of the most common types back there).
I have a 6-speed auto.
BUT
I can hit a button and turn it into- essentially- a paddle shifter too.
If I hit another button, I can change it from ECO, to NORMAL, or TURBO.
I'm usually in ECO on AUTO mode. If I need to make a quick pass to get out of danger, I'll hit the TURBO for a few seconds, it will drop down a gear our two, and take off!
I DID have to drive a manual stick when I was a member of the local Civil Defense unit in the village in which we first lived.
More control in bad situations when the car is in bad weather or driving conditions. had the new automatic with it's "safety features" almost cause a problem it was supposed to prevent as it did the exact wrong thing for the situation. thank goodness for the ability to turn the "safety' stuff off in that case.
I prefer a modern Sports Auto box.
such as BMW ZF 8AT or the 8 speed steptronic (DL) or the VAG DSG.
Far superior to a normal auto box and also more flexible than a manual (manual mode, sports mode etc ).
I used to prefer Manuals but now I'm okay with either of them. Whatever it is it needs to have 5+ gears, and I'm happy. If it's an automatic, it needs to (it usually has) have some sort of a control/a way to downshift or put the gear on a lower setting when needed. That's it.
Manual, because I really like playing around with the gear-stick. For some reason it's just a really fulfilling and pleasurable thing for me to do. I don't know why.
Absolutely manual. I love cars, and a manual transmission makes driving much more fun. Takes a bit of practice when wearing stilettos, but worth the stretch, lol!
I can actually drive both, My daddy taught me to drive a 3 speed, then a 5 speed then a Tandum dump truck, I was raised on a ranch and yes! I can drive a tractor.
Really depends on why and where you are driving. Long distance and main roads go with the automatic, but towing and off-road manual is better for control.
I prefer a manual, but in the USA a manual transmission is difficult to obtain.
Manual, I don’t see the fun in the automaticeithwr 😅 When you are stuck in a traffic and have to shift from first to second gear every minute 🤣
Automatic. I don't like automatic in low price cars, but every car that isn't a racing car and has more than 300hp is better with automatic.
Can drive with both but got to admit sometimes it's so nice to just drive and don't think so much aka automatic. But I'm more used to manual so it's not a big matter.
Automatic, my city is always traffic, cats are butt to butt, manual transmission would drive anyone crazy
Automatic, though I agree with most of the benefits when it comes to manual. Anyway
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