Manual Usage below 10%...
03-01-10, 03:18 PM
#18
Lexus Fanatic
That was not necessarily the case, though, with earlier cars. My father, for a few years, had a 1968 manual-transmission Plymouth that still had an unsynchronized first gear. I crunched it a little (not badly) the first time I tried to hit first on a downshift without stopping....I was ignorant, in those days, of how synchros worked.
Now we come to the year 2010. The ability to drive a car equipped with a manual transmission is becoming a dying art. The sales numbers tell the story: In 1985, according to Ward’s Communications, 22.4% of all vehicles sold in the United States came with a manual transmission. By 2007, the number had plummeted to 7.7%.
A quick check of vehicles for sale on AOL Autos tells a similar story. Of the 4,391,747 vehicles recently listed for sale, only 241,560 -- or 5.5% -- came with a manual.
Some Subaru fans, for instance, recently complained about Subie dropping the MT Turbo Forester, but manual-equpped models, even with the turbo, averaged only 4-6% in sales.
The reasons for this situation are many. First, driver’s education classes simply aren’t teaching students how to drive a manual. We spoke with Eric Tunell at the Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving, perhaps the most well-known and highly regarded performance driving schools in the country, to get his perspective.
“With the teen drivers who attend our programs, their family car doesn’t have a manual transmission, so they don’t need to learn,” he explained. “We also find that parents are mainly concerned with the safety of their teen driver and a manual is one more thing to distract them from focusing on driving.”
Poll
Do you know how to drive a manual transmission?
* Yes
* No
That is not to say that none of the teens who attend Bondurant classes are uninterested in the art of self-shifting. “A significant number really want to know the ins and outs of driving a manual transmission,” Tunell said. “What we emphasize at Bondurant is that ultimately it’s not about the car; it’s about the driver. Getting them training over and above what a basic driver’s ed course offers is essential.”
“With the teen drivers who attend our programs, their family car doesn’t have a manual transmission, so they don’t need to learn,” he explained. “We also find that parents are mainly concerned with the safety of their teen driver and a manual is one more thing to distract them from focusing on driving.”
Poll
Do you know how to drive a manual transmission?
* Yes
* No
That is not to say that none of the teens who attend Bondurant classes are uninterested in the art of self-shifting. “A significant number really want to know the ins and outs of driving a manual transmission,” Tunell said. “What we emphasize at Bondurant is that ultimately it’s not about the car; it’s about the driver. Getting them training over and above what a basic driver’s ed course offers is essential.”
Another reason is fuel economy. In the past, manual transmissions got better fuel economy than automatics. Improvements in automatic transmission design, however, has helped them equal the fuel economy numbers of manuals, or at least come very close.
Modern traffic conditions have also helped contribute to the manual’s demise. In today’s stop-and-start traffic, the constant clutch-and-shift action is tiring. Combine that with the creaking knees of the aging baby boomer population and it’s no wonder manual transmissions are going the way of the dodo.
I can still drive a manual if I have to....say, during a review or driving a friend's car.
That doesn’t mean we have to like it, though. For the serious driver, piloting a car with a manual transmission is a badge of honor. Having control over your ride carries an appeal that may well go back to the time when man first rode astride a horse. That sort of intimate control over your steed is heady stuff, and a feeling not easily conceded. The conviction that the driver knows best also comes into play: an automatic transmission can’t see that just down the road is a decreasing radius turn that’s going to require you to downshift a gear or two so that you can launch yourself smartly out of the turn.
Then there is the pride one takes in a perfectly timed two-three upshift, wringing it out to the redline and listening to the symphony of pumping pistons and whirring camshafts, or perhaps mastering the black art of heel-and-toe shifting and precisely matching revs on a downshift as you drift into a corner.
Last edited by mmarshall; 03-01-10 at 03:24 PM.
03-01-10, 03:18 PM
#19
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My Subaru gets 30+ on the highway which makes it a great road trip vehicle. However, the last two long trips I took, I've been stuck driving all 12 hours (one way) to South Carolina cause no one else knows how to drive the car.
03-01-10, 03:24 PM
#20
Lexus Test Driver
I'd actually quite like to learn how to drive a manual car well. I can probably drive it gingerly if need be.
But to deal with every day, I could not bring myself to do that.
But to deal with every day, I could not bring myself to do that.
03-01-10, 03:25 PM
#21
Lexus Fanatic
I feel that a manual transmission is the best way to connect you directly to the car and the driving experience. I recently had an opportunity to drive a modified EVO X and the manual trans in the car and the insane power made it an experience I will not forget any time soon.
03-01-10, 03:55 PM
#22
Lexus Fanatic
You don't necessarily have to have a stick to get good mileage anymore....just drive smoothly and moderately. My AWD Outback, with automatic, at 60 MPH, got from 30-33 MPG (depending on if the A/C was running or not) from the D.C. area down Route 50, across the Bay Bridge, to the MD beaches and back. EPA Highway for this car is only 28.
03-01-10, 04:04 PM
#24
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I have been driving my 5 speed for almost a year. I really only drive in the city too. I doubt that 92% of people know how to drive a manual. Maybe that is the case in Europe. Manual equipped cars are very popular in Europe still. About 50% of cars are manual there I believe.
Oh and my reverse gear is not synchronized. And 1-5 only have 1 synchronizer each gear I think. The new manuals have two or three for 1-3 I think. Is it easier to do smoother shifts with gearboxes with more synchronizers?
Oh and my reverse gear is not synchronized. And 1-5 only have 1 synchronizer each gear I think. The new manuals have two or three for 1-3 I think. Is it easier to do smoother shifts with gearboxes with more synchronizers?
03-01-10, 04:21 PM
#25
Lexus Fanatic
There's no need for reverse synchros. You're supposed to come to a full stop before engaging reverse, anyway. If you don't, it can risk transmission damage.
Many factors are involved in smooth manual-shifting, including the shift linkage, clutch design, clutch/disc-lining material, synchros, number of cones (many modern manuals have triple-cone synchros), and, of course, how skilled and smooth the driver is in his actions. But there were some cars that, no matter what you did, were very difficult to get smooth manual-shifts with, because of their poor transmission/clutch designs. The old Plymouth/Dodge column-mounted, three-on-the-tree units and the 4-on the floor GM X-Body (Citation, Phoenix, Skylark, Omega) are two good examples. The 4MT X-body cars, because of their awkward clutch, were especially hard to drive smoothly in traffic.
And 1-5 only have 1 synchronizer each gear I think. The new manuals have two or three for 1-3 I think. Is it easier to do smoother shifts with gearboxes with more synchronizers?
Last edited by mmarshall; 03-01-10 at 04:32 PM.
03-01-10, 04:29 PM
#26
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i bought a 1990 Ford Escort Manual for 250 quid in London. the owner left me all alone in the empty parking space, so i can learn how to drive the car. so i practiced for like 2 hours and then took it outside of the parking lot. it was an adventure of my life time. i had to pick up my wife who just finished here school in RCM. she usually takes a tube, but i called her and told her that i'll pick her up in couple of hours.
i drove Epping to South Kensington in the middle of crazy london traffic. i thought i was gonna die. i stalled in every stops, got lost, and got middle fingered. epping to S. kensington was like 40 miles? took me 3 1/2 hours and made my wife wait for almost 2 hours. mysteriously i received 3 tickets few weeks later. lol
i drove Epping to South Kensington in the middle of crazy london traffic. i thought i was gonna die. i stalled in every stops, got lost, and got middle fingered. epping to S. kensington was like 40 miles? took me 3 1/2 hours and made my wife wait for almost 2 hours. mysteriously i received 3 tickets few weeks later. lol
03-01-10, 04:59 PM
#27
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now im wondering how do people learn to drive manual in general? i mean i learned through my dad is it just a sort of passing down the knowledge kind of thing? I have been driving manual ever since i started driving and i am sooooo used to it to the point where it doesnt bother me at all everyday. I love having the ability to control my revs it keeps me interested in my car 
I don't care that the new generation of semi-autos are actually faster and more fuel-efficient than manuals.
It's not about that for me. It's about the intimacy and feel and connection with the car. And yes, I've had to endure hour-long, one-way, stop-and-go commutes that some days have caused me to perform what I estimate to be 300+ clutch operations.
It's not about that for me. It's about the intimacy and feel and connection with the car. And yes, I've had to endure hour-long, one-way, stop-and-go commutes that some days have caused me to perform what I estimate to be 300+ clutch operations.
i learned it because i wanted to. i still think that's true driving where you have more controls.
technology is one thing, a lot of times auto have better or same efficiency, and a lot of times even faster than manual tranny. that's why a lot of fast cars (or supercars) go with auto or computer controlled manual setup.
but to me, speed isn't everything. i have driven the m3 dct, yup it's fast, but i feel disconnected. i like to have the controls and fun, more than just pure speed
technology is one thing, a lot of times auto have better or same efficiency, and a lot of times even faster than manual tranny. that's why a lot of fast cars (or supercars) go with auto or computer controlled manual setup.
but to me, speed isn't everything. i have driven the m3 dct, yup it's fast, but i feel disconnected. i like to have the controls and fun, more than just pure speed
Oh I know, I'm convinced that if everyone learned to drive stick the world would have much better drivers in it. People would leave more space, there would be less random braking, people would pay more attention to what's going on around them, etc.
03-01-10, 05:45 PM
#28
Lexus Champion
It's a dying breed for sure...Automakers may end up nixing the Manual tranny all together in 20 years...lol
On a serious note, I love driving manual-equipped vehicles. It's fun and engaging. I'm more than grateful to own a manual tranny Lexus. In fact, I daily drive my 5-speed Civic and I think it's quite cool. The ONLY reason why I didn't opt for a stick shift Tacoma was that I was going to tow a boat in the future. I also tend to travel further(and sit in more traffic) with my truck. The only gripe I have driving a manual tranny is obviously in grid-lock traffic. It sucks to sum it up.
My dad,mom, and my 2 younger brothers all know how to drive stick as well. I think that's awesome. My mom is 48 years old and uses my Civic when I leave it at her place...LoL.
I'm 99.9% certain that my next vehicle will have a 6-Speed...either a Z06 or an M3
On a serious note, I love driving manual-equipped vehicles. It's fun and engaging. I'm more than grateful to own a manual tranny Lexus. In fact, I daily drive my 5-speed Civic and I think it's quite cool. The ONLY reason why I didn't opt for a stick shift Tacoma was that I was going to tow a boat in the future. I also tend to travel further(and sit in more traffic) with my truck. The only gripe I have driving a manual tranny is obviously in grid-lock traffic. It sucks to sum it up.
My dad,mom, and my 2 younger brothers all know how to drive stick as well. I think that's awesome. My mom is 48 years old and uses my Civic when I leave it at her place...LoL.
I'm 99.9% certain that my next vehicle will have a 6-Speed...either a Z06 or an M3
03-01-10, 06:05 PM
#29
Lexus Fanatic
Yes.....and that is something you have to take VERY seriously if you are shopping for a daily driver for commuting traffic. Too many guys say "Yeah, I can handle a MT in L.A. or D.C. traffic, no problem"........then get one, find out they CAN'T, and are sorry they did. Manual cars are fine for some weekend fun away from traffic, but they just don't cut it in urban areas. That's why manuals have been dying out in recent years....along with cars having better torque-converter automatics, CVTs, SMTs, and twin-clutch DSGs.
Last edited by mmarshall; 03-01-10 at 06:11 PM.
