Car models with a manual transmission option are becoming increasingly rare, as more and more people opt for the convenience of automatic gear shifts. However, many of those with a true passion for driving and for automobiles know that there are still plenty of reasons to choose a manual car.
1. Reliability
An automatic transmission consists of many more parts than a manual one, meaning that there are more things that can go wrong throughout the car’s lifetime. The manual, on the other hand, is a fairly straightforward system that will last for years, even decades, before there’s a need for a replacement. When that moment comes, the part that needs to be replaced is usually the clutch, which is relatively inexpensive and not hard to remove and install.
2. Cost-Effectiveness
Most vehicles that offer both manual and automatic transmission options are less expensive with the manual one, with a price difference that’s usually between $1,000 and $3,000. That, along with the fact that manual transmissions are less likely to break, make a manual car’s lifetime costs much lower than an automatic one. Automatic transmissions also put more pressure on the car’s brakes, adding to the extra future expenses of a new car owner.
The more intricate design of automatic gearboxes doesn’t only make them more likely to break, but also significantly less fuel-efficient. Although they’ve gotten increasingly better over the years, automatic transmissions still use up abut 15% more gas than manual ones.
3. Push-Starting
If you’ve been a driver for long enough, odds are that you’ve experienced a dead car battery. It can happen because of its age, an interior light being accidentally left on for a few hours, and other similar reasons. The emergency solution for manual cars is simply pushing it on a straight road for a few yards, keeping the car in second gear, and quickly releasing the clutch when the car picks up a little speed. This emergency procedure that can save you lots of time and money cannot be done with an automatic transmission.
4. Engagement and Emotion
If you are the kind of person who solely views the car as a tool that gets you from point A to point B, an automatic transmission may be the most hassle-free way of driving it. However, if you take any pleasure from driving you will definitely need a manual transmission vehicle. Although modern automatic and continuously variable transmissions get a pretty accurate sense of your driving style and adjust accordingly, you will never feel fully in control of your own vehicle.
A manual gearshift lets you directly control the engine’s rotations and torque transfer, allowing you to choose when to ease off and when to swiftly accelerate. This is especially important for off-roading, as all-terrain vehicles need to be more durable and the driver has to be able to select gears to maximize the odds of getting out of tight situations.
Automatic gearboxes seem to be the future, as more and more cars have it as the only option. However, there will always be a market for enthusiasts that want to feel they are in control of their cars and for whom a car like the Shelby GT500 or the Ford Mustang GT would feel wrong with an automatic transmission.
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