Manual
07-26-2006, 08:42 AM
#89
doin' the bull dance
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Quahog, RI
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Never had problems with curbs while parking. Unfortunately, being really sleeping, and running late in the morning . . .
well, let's just say I don't have to worry about that first nick on the rims anymore.
well, let's just say I don't have to worry about that first nick on the rims anymore.
07-26-2006, 01:00 PM
#91
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Location: Champaign, IL
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A manual transmission is only going to be "distracting" during your initial learning period driving with one, when you may be unsure of yourself and focusing on "when do I shift" and "what gear should I be in now", etc. Once you become accustomed to it, shifting becomes second-nature and as integral to your driving as signaling for turns, checking mirrors and guages, or braking and accellerating at the correct times and in the right amounts. The only reason you usually think about it at all is because it WORKS SO DAMN WELL, and is actually a major component to making the car so damn FUN to drive!
This isn't some old POS econobox with a bottom-of-the-barrel sloppy transmission and shift linkage that needs to be massaged into gear (maybe your dad drove too many of these when he was young.) I believe it actually helps puts you in touch with the car in a way that makes you more alert to the driving experience and your surroundings. An automatic has always seemed to me to be one of the steps to isolating you from your driving experience, especially when used along with soft, cushy springs and those overstuffed chairs behind the steering wheel. A manual transmission isn't distracting. Boredom is distracting. You start to think about using your phone or playing with your CDs, not the driving. Don't drive a boring car.
This isn't some old POS econobox with a bottom-of-the-barrel sloppy transmission and shift linkage that needs to be massaged into gear (maybe your dad drove too many of these when he was young.) I believe it actually helps puts you in touch with the car in a way that makes you more alert to the driving experience and your surroundings. An automatic has always seemed to me to be one of the steps to isolating you from your driving experience, especially when used along with soft, cushy springs and those overstuffed chairs behind the steering wheel. A manual transmission isn't distracting. Boredom is distracting. You start to think about using your phone or playing with your CDs, not the driving. Don't drive a boring car.
07-26-2006, 03:22 PM
#95
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I love shifting! After I got used to my clutch on takeoff it's been great. For awhile I was wishing I had an auto (
) becuase it wasn't having such an easy time getting used to it as I had in other cars. Now if I drive anything that is an automatic I keep reaching to shift to trying to push in a nonexistent clutch. A couple of times it caused a bit of a panic until I realized what was going on and then I was laughing at myself. My mom does it too if she has driven my car and then drives hers she keeps trying to shift it. LOL
) becuase it wasn't having such an easy time getting used to it as I had in other cars. Now if I drive anything that is an automatic I keep reaching to shift to trying to push in a nonexistent clutch. A couple of times it caused a bit of a panic until I realized what was going on and then I was laughing at myself. My mom does it too if she has driven my car and then drives hers she keeps trying to shift it. LOL
07-26-2006, 11:51 PM
#99
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Nice!
See, some of the replies here have worked. Be aware that you also have to sell your arguments to mom. Even if dad is more open to the idea, if mom says no, you are back to square one.
See, some of the replies here have worked. Be aware that you also have to sell your arguments to mom. Even if dad is more open to the idea, if mom says no, you are back to square one.