4 ms·

I drive a manual. I couldn't say whether it's made me a safer driver, but I do believe it's given me a much greater awareness of my speed at all times (for shif

I drive a manual. I couldn't say whether it's made me a safer driver, but I do believe it's given me a much greater awareness of my speed at all times (for shifting to the correct gear).

axaxs 8y ago
I think it does, for the simple fact you don't have a free hand in normal city driving.
- klyrs 8y ago
  I drive stick... have since my early 20s. I'm ashamed to admit... you can still text and drive. I don't anymore but that's not even the stupidest thing I've done, steering with my knee. Skilled drivers aren't always good drivers, but skilled drivers can free up a hand or two
  - perl4ever 8y ago
    Eating while driving a manual transmission is one thing, but I've never understood how anyone can literally text and drive. I can imagine getting a ticket because I was using the touchscreen to navigate, but not actually typing a message, because I just couldn't do it. Maybe I'm too old. Or maybe I put too much thought into my messages.
    - tom_ 8y ago
      It was easier before T9 predictive text.
classichasclass 8y ago
That's an excellent point. I may not know my speed precisely, but I know it generally, and I'm also constantly aware of how busy the engine is from the revs and the noise. I can't ignore these things; I have to know when to shift!
jXCw1N0jtH3 8y ago
This is one of the biggest reasons I prefer manual transmissions. I almost never have to look down at the speedometer. I know basically how fast I'm going, and I can keep a constant speed. In an automatic I always find myself going _way_ over the limit without realising it, and I'm constantly looking down at the dash to check my speed and hitting the brakes. It's a terrible experience.
- thedanbob 8y ago
  My last car was an automatic, but it would get out of alignment very quickly and I could gauge my speed on the highway by how much the steering wheel vibrated. Whenever I got it aligned I caught myself speeding constantly because that feedback was gone.

I drive a manual. I couldn't say whether it's made me a safer driver, but I do believe it's given me a much greater awareness of my speed at all times (for shifting to the correct gear).

axaxs 8y ago

I think it does, for the simple fact you don't have a free hand in normal city driving.

klyrs 8y ago
I drive stick... have since my early 20s. I'm ashamed to admit... you can still text and drive. I don't anymore but that's not even the stupidest thing I've done, steering with my knee. Skilled drivers aren't always good drivers, but skilled drivers can free up a hand or two
- perl4ever 8y ago
  Eating while driving a manual transmission is one thing, but I've never understood how anyone can literally text and drive. I can imagine getting a ticket because I was using the touchscreen to navigate, but not actually typing a message, because I just couldn't do it. Maybe I'm too old. Or maybe I put too much thought into my messages.
  - tom_ 8y ago
    It was easier before T9 predictive text.

classichasclass 8y ago

That's an excellent point. I may not know my speed precisely, but I know it generally, and I'm also constantly aware of how busy the engine is from the revs and the noise. I can't ignore these things; I have to know when to shift!

jXCw1N0jtH3 8y ago

This is one of the biggest reasons I prefer manual transmissions. I almost never have to look down at the speedometer. I know basically how fast I'm going, and I can keep a constant speed. In an automatic I always find myself going _way_ over the limit without realising it, and I'm constantly looking down at the dash to check my speed and hitting the brakes. It's a terrible experience.

thedanbob 8y ago
My last car was an automatic, but it would get out of alignment very quickly and I could gauge my speed on the highway by how much the steering wheel vibrated. Whenever I got it aligned I caught myself speeding constantly because that feedback was gone.