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Manual transmission fetishism is perplexing to me. I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. I can’t thin

by tjr225 4y ago

Manual transmission fetishism is perplexing to me. I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. I can’t think of a single reason I would not rather have the automatic version of either. I also presume manual transmissions will continue to be available to the enthusiasts and professionals/sportspeople who have an actual reason to desire them.

forgotmypw17 4y ago
I think it is about feeling more involved in the process and more in control of what the car is doing.
- tjr225 4y ago
  Even more perplexing given the irony that pretty much everyone here is automating some part of everyday life.
kyleee 4y ago
neither of those cars sounds particularly fun to drive, so that's probably where your disconnect is. it's very fun to row through the gears of a moderately sporty car; that's where people's "fetishm" (more accurately "preference") comes from
- lapcat 4y ago
  There's definitely a difference in transmissions. I learned stick on a generic crappy car, but I once drove a nicer, more expensive car with a manual, and it was quite pleasant. Shifting gears was so much smoother than what I was accustomed to.
- hedora 4y ago
  Back when mustangs used gasoline and were sports cars, I compared a V6 (non-turbo) manual with a V8 automatic. The V6 was much more fun to drive and got better fuel economy. My tiny ultra-efficient EV blows them both out of the water on mountain roads though. There's one exception: the RWD EV's front end likes to skid while decelerating into turns. I prefer the Mustang's habit of breaking the rear end loose while accelerating out of turns.
- pcthrowaway 4y ago
  Honestly, my manual 97 Civic was so much more fun to drive than my current car (a Prius V). I'm on board with it being a hybrid (though it actually gets roughly the same fuel economy on the highway) and especially happy with gas prices what they are now. But I don't think you need a sporty car to appreciate the torque you generate in a manual
  - tjr225 4y ago
    Totally unrelated but I’m the GP. I currently own a Prius V and it is my favorite car ever. Bummer that it was discontinued.
    - pcthrowaway 4y ago
      It's an amazing car, but you can't possibly enjoy driving it as much as a zippy manual?
legitster 4y ago
> Hyundai Elantra I've owned a dozen+ manual transmissions and the one in my Hyundai Elantra is by far the worst I have ever used. It's incredible "notchy" and prevents you from shifting between gears quickly (I assume intentionally for fuel economy/longevity reasons). You couldn't pick a worse example to compare against.
ecommerceguy 4y ago
Mazda Miata is a great reason for a manual.
- __derek__ 4y ago
  As is the Mazda 3 family. Zoom Zoom, baby!
- falcolas 4y ago
  I’d throw the “sporty” Subarus (WRX, BRZ) in that category too. Fun to drive.
midoridensha 4y ago
How old? Back in the 90s and before, manual transmissions were clearly far superior to automatics. They had more gears, they were far more reliable (automatics routinely broke down), and they had significantly better fuel economy. The only reason to drive an automatic was sheer laziness. Fast-forward to today, and it's all changed. Automatics have at least as many gears, they're more reliable (they don't need the clutch changed every 100-200k), and they have significantly better fuel economy. The only reason to drive a manual now is basically nostalgia.
rad_gruchalski 4y ago
> I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. Well, that explains. You haven’t had a fun manual car. I loved my e36 325. Porsche 964 was nice, too.
- tjr225 4y ago
  I don’t understand… you can still get either of those cars on the used market so this wouldn’t affect you, would it? I’m also pretty positive if you wanted to buy a brand new Porsche or BMW you could pay for a manual version.
  - rad_gruchalski 4y ago
    Seems like I have to explain …you said: > Manual transmission fetishism is perplexing to me. I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. I can’t think of a single reason I would not rather have the automatic version of either. To which I say: it’s because you haven’t had a fun manual car. BMW 325i and Porsche 964 were both fun in manual. > I’m also pretty positive if you wanted to buy a brand new Porsche or BMW you could pay for a manual version. No, actually it doesn’t work like this anymore for most new models.
mertd 4y ago
I believe people are imagining the automatic transmissions from the early 2000s and before. They were terrible.
JetSetWilly 4y ago
Do you only drive on huge freeways or something? Where I live (where manuals are the "default") it seems like automatics are the fetishistic option. There's lots of hills, winding country roads etc round here, an automatic is a bloody nightmare because it doesn't "know" I'm approaching a hill, time to drop to a lower gear just here, I'm approaching the top of a hill, change up now, I'm overtaking on a road, I need high acceleration now. It completely fails at knowing all this and is less efficient as a result. This is why I am sceptical of all the "automatics are more efficient these days" line. Maybe there's some volkswagen style dodgy tests that show that driving under predictable conditions on a motorway it is more efficient, but as automatics can't know upcoming conditions on the road or intentions I doubt they are more efficient in the real world. At least not round here.

by tjr225 4y ago

forgotmypw17 4y ago

I think it is about feeling more involved in the process and more in control of what the car is doing.

tjr225 4y ago
Even more perplexing given the irony that pretty much everyone here is automating some part of everyday life.

kyleee 4y ago

neither of those cars sounds particularly fun to drive, so that's probably where your disconnect is. it's very fun to row through the gears of a moderately sporty car; that's where people's "fetishm" (more accurately "preference") comes from

lapcat 4y ago
There's definitely a difference in transmissions. I learned stick on a generic crappy car, but I once drove a nicer, more expensive car with a manual, and it was quite pleasant. Shifting gears was so much smoother than what I was accustomed to.
hedora 4y ago
Back when mustangs used gasoline and were sports cars, I compared a V6 (non-turbo) manual with a V8 automatic. The V6 was much more fun to drive and got better fuel economy. My tiny ultra-efficient EV blows them both out of the water on mountain roads though. There's one exception: the RWD EV's front end likes to skid while decelerating into turns. I prefer the Mustang's habit of breaking the rear end loose while accelerating out of turns.
pcthrowaway 4y ago
Honestly, my manual 97 Civic was so much more fun to drive than my current car (a Prius V). I'm on board with it being a hybrid (though it actually gets roughly the same fuel economy on the highway) and especially happy with gas prices what they are now. But I don't think you need a sporty car to appreciate the torque you generate in a manual
- tjr225 4y ago
  Totally unrelated but I’m the GP. I currently own a Prius V and it is my favorite car ever. Bummer that it was discontinued.
  - pcthrowaway 4y ago
    It's an amazing car, but you can't possibly enjoy driving it as much as a zippy manual?

legitster 4y ago

> Hyundai Elantra I've owned a dozen+ manual transmissions and the one in my Hyundai Elantra is by far the worst I have ever used. It's incredible "notchy" and prevents you from shifting between gears quickly (I assume intentionally for fuel economy/longevity reasons). You couldn't pick a worse example to compare against.

ecommerceguy 4y ago

Mazda Miata is a great reason for a manual.

__derek__ 4y ago
As is the Mazda 3 family. Zoom Zoom, baby!
falcolas 4y ago
I’d throw the “sporty” Subarus (WRX, BRZ) in that category too. Fun to drive.

midoridensha 4y ago

How old? Back in the 90s and before, manual transmissions were clearly far superior to automatics. They had more gears, they were far more reliable (automatics routinely broke down), and they had significantly better fuel economy. The only reason to drive an automatic was sheer laziness. Fast-forward to today, and it's all changed. Automatics have at least as many gears, they're more reliable (they don't need the clutch changed every 100-200k), and they have significantly better fuel economy. The only reason to drive a manual now is basically nostalgia.

rad_gruchalski 4y ago

> I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. Well, that explains. You haven’t had a fun manual car. I loved my e36 325. Porsche 964 was nice, too.

tjr225 4y ago
I don’t understand… you can still get either of those cars on the used market so this wouldn’t affect you, would it? I’m also pretty positive if you wanted to buy a brand new Porsche or BMW you could pay for a manual version.
- rad_gruchalski 4y ago
  Seems like I have to explain …you said: > Manual transmission fetishism is perplexing to me. I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. I can’t think of a single reason I would not rather have the automatic version of either. To which I say: it’s because you haven’t had a fun manual car. BMW 325i and Porsche 964 were both fun in manual. > I’m also pretty positive if you wanted to buy a brand new Porsche or BMW you could pay for a manual version. No, actually it doesn’t work like this anymore for most new models.

mertd 4y ago

I believe people are imagining the automatic transmissions from the early 2000s and before. They were terrible.

JetSetWilly 4y ago

Do you only drive on huge freeways or something? Where I live (where manuals are the "default") it seems like automatics are the fetishistic option. There's lots of hills, winding country roads etc round here, an automatic is a bloody nightmare because it doesn't "know" I'm approaching a hill, time to drop to a lower gear just here, I'm approaching the top of a hill, change up now, I'm overtaking on a road, I need high acceleration now. It completely fails at knowing all this and is less efficient as a result. This is why I am sceptical of all the "automatics are more efficient these days" line. Maybe there's some volkswagen style dodgy tests that show that driving under predictable conditions on a motorway it is more efficient, but as automatics can't know upcoming conditions on the road or intentions I doubt they are more efficient in the real world. At least not round here.