Goodbye To The Left Pedal

Passport1

Passport1

Joined
Sep 17, 2012
Messages
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Location
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Driving a manual transmission car is (almost always) a joy. Learned to drive on a 'standard'. It was a badge of honor to be in control of the mechanical parts of a vehicle. Have replaced plenty of clutches and TO bearings. Don't have one now but am inclined to get one soon before they are gone forever.

Your experiences?

www.ericpetersautos.com

The Last Manual . . . and When - EPautos - Libertarian Car Talk

Eric Peters is a Libertarian gearhead, columnist and author.
www.ericpetersautos.com
 
This is one of the primary reasons the xB in my sig soldiers on! I looked into an '18 Honda HR-V, the last year of the 6 speed manual, but I couldn't justify $22K+ for a 3-4 year old CPO with essentially ONE YEAR of bumper-to-bumper warranty. And the fact that almost all the new ones come with the dreaded CVT doesn't help-they're even worse than a conventional automatic.
 
ad244 said:
For decades we have seen "the end is near" for 3 pedals. Still, they remain. You want them to be more prevalent, go buy one new. Show the auto makers there IS a demand.
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Yea, everybody said 1976 was the end of convertibles, but we all know how that turned out. And now people say ICE will be gone in 10 years.
 
bullwinkle said:
This is one of the primary reasons the xB in my sig soldiers on! I looked into an '18 Honda HR-V, the last year of the 6 speed manual, but I couldn't justify $22K+ for a 3-4 year old CPO with essentially ONE YEAR of bumper-to-bumper warranty. And the fact that almost all the new ones come with the dreaded CVT doesn't help-they're even worse than a conventional automatic.
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This is one of the main points the terrible article posted by @Passport1 failed to mention... The auto manufactures only install manuals in cars that most people dont want. The bare bones entry level models.
 
PimTac said:
Exactly. If the demand was there for manual transmissions the lots would be full of them.
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Same argument for Diesels too.
atikovi said:
Uh ha. Like VW GTI and Jetta?
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GTI sells more of the DCT models than 6 speed manuals. And sure like the jetta if you're talking about dreadful cars.

Most cars with a manual are sold as the stripper models to a price point. I would argue the GTI is a premium car marketed to be sporty, not thrifty.
 
ad244 said:
This is one of the main points the terrible article posted by @Passport1 failed to mention... The auto manufactures only install manuals in cars that most people dont want. The bare bones entry level models.
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I think that’s because they’ve tried in the past and data shows they just don’t sell well at all. The people upset with the lack of manuals are generally the same people who proclaim new cars are too expensive/will never buy a new car anyway.
 
My 2006 Mustang GT is a manual and no I would not have bought it as a auto. I feel there are lots of other people who feel the same about those type (Mustang, Challenger, Camaro) of cars.
 
Passport1 said:
Driving a manual transmission car is (almost always) a joy. Learned to drive on a 'standard'. It was a badge of honor to be in control of the mechanical parts of a vehicle.
Click to expand...
I too learned on manuals, from three on the tree to a 10 speed Road Ranger to the John Deere Synchro Range. Decades forward I've had absolutely fantastic autos like the Allison 1000, GM 10L1000, and the ZF-8. Now I have zero and I mean zero interest in driving a manual.
 
I flew to Colorado to get a manual V6 Mustang. That's how rare they are in Dallas. Pretty much every time I decide to give up manuals and go for the comfort and convenience of an automatic, I end up hating the car. My previous Mustang coupe had the 10-speed, and at best, it was rough and indecisive. But demand drives supply, even if they're supplying incorrectly, on base models only in some cars. I may very well have the only manual transmission car in my entire office. People scoff when I say I'd have nothing else. There's just something about driving a manual that even the world's best automatics can't match.
 
I'm not a new car buyer (too much depreciation for me, but perhaps not lately..), but I loathe that it's so difficult to get a well equipped, late model vehicle in manual transmission. Sure, sports cars come well equipped with manuals, but apart from that, they tend to come in the cheapest equipped vehicles / econoboxes.

I bought a 2001 Jetta GLX VR6 in 2003, loaded to the gills (for its time) and it had a 5-speed manual. Try to find a three year old vehicle that's well appointed today with a manual. Good luck!

I consider myself the typical manual transmission buyer, and a brand new vehicle is not (and good likelihood will never be) in the cards. Therein lies the problem.
 
Dad taught me to drive stick in his '47 Lincoln coupe shortly after I got my license. Had to borrow a friend's S-10 pickup with a 5-speed, he asked if I could drive a stick, when I told him I learned on a '47 Lincoln with a 3-on-the-tree, he chuckled and said I should have no problem. My first car ('97 Saturn SL2) I bought with a 5 speed. Loved driving that car. Then I traded up to 2004 Honda CR-V with a stick shift. The Honda dealer was probably glad to get it off their lot, I gather very few CR-Vs had stick shifts, and 2006 was the last year the CR-V offered one. I had to concede that when I moved and had to do daily bumper-to-bumper stop-and-go traffic for 2 years, the novelty of a stick shift had worn off and had to trade the CR-V in for an automagic version. The piddly trade-in value told me they REALLY didn't want my stick shift trade. Still have the MG though, so I still have something to row the gears in.
 
My first car.1936 Ford 5 window coupe and later a 1929 Ford Deluxe Briggs body Town Sedan had manuals only back then. I wasn't born till 1947, but I always respected the engineering that went into making those cars. Then came my love of VW's and I only had 3 with automatics. Numerous others with a stick shift Still have 4 VW's and all are stick. Nobody wants to drive my cars.
 
skyactiv said:
What I don't get is most new motorcycles still have a manual transmission. Shifting a bike sucks but shifting something like a GTI or a Miata is much better. To me anyways.
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My Suzuki scooter has a CVT. Love it but the transmission doesn't add anything to the experience.
 
Bye bye.

I won’t miss them. No desire to drive a stick unless it’s the 70’ VW Beetle. Then by the end of a 5 mile drive I’m over it.
 
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