At 02:41 PM 10/9/97 -0400, Buce wrote:
"So the only arguments left is that a stick is more
fun to drive, which is an opinion that I don't agree with, but you have
the right to believe."
-So am I to infer by that statement that you would actually buy, say a,
Porsche w/an automatic transmission?
Dick sed about automatics:
"less fun to drive (for those of us who like to shift for ourselves;"
-Eggzactly!!!
In considering the purchase of any vehicle you have to consider the "fun
factor." If you don't actually like driving your particular vehicle then
what's the point, other then getting from one place to another, in owning it?
In con petition w/the truck was a Firebird Formula w/a 6sp manual.
In not considering the fun factor it just becomes another common place tool
which, like a fork, you use w/out really thinking about it. Which, IMHO,
leads to driver inattention.
Once you become familiar w/a "tool" you tend to use it w/out thinking.
Call it what you will "going thru the motions" or "auto-pilot, it amounts
to the same thing, inattentiveness. W/a manual transmission you have to
remain mentally alert to changing conditions around you in order to shift
accordingly to meet those conditions. Also w/a manual transmission you
simply don't have time to talk on the phone, read the morning paper, drink
your morning cup of coffee, eat your McDonalds breakfast meal, and lest I
forget...drive all at the same time.
I don't know, call me anal or a control freak but I prefer a car/truck to
shift when I want it to, not when it thinks it should.
Bruce sed:
"Besides the fact that if your doing a lot of driving in heavy traffic,
and/or have to stop on hills a lot, an auto is definitely the better tranny
to have with all the stop and go."
-Purely a matter of opinion.
This kind of thinking leads to what I've come to term "lazy drivers".
(not a slam on you Bruce only an opinion.)
It's like folks who cook ribs in the oven then call it bar-b-q.
Nope, that's "lazy-Q". Any "smokers" out there?
Bottom line is that it's all a matter of personal preference and how you
view the driving "experience".
Myself, I've always owned sports cars. We've never owned a car w/more than
two (2) seats. Up until the '94 Camaro the last car we'd owned w/a rear
seat was my '68 Mustang Fastback in 1970. Some of us, I guess, have a
relationship w/our vehicles that transcends simple "ownership".
Also, believe it or not, there is a concerted effort on the part of car
manufactures to get rid of manual transmissions altogether. When you go to
a lot what's the ratio of auto to manuals? Something like 20 to 1. Why
should they provide you the option when they can get 1k more plus by
forcing you to buy an automatic? To make matters worse is American instant
gratification. Most folks, I think, would rather compromise and take
what's on the lot rather than wait for what they want.
Lastly, it true.
I'm constantly amazed by the number of young(er) folks who can't drive a
car w/a manual transmission. Another nail in the coffin. When there's no
one left who knows how to drive one...
Like I said, only my opionion(s).
And we all know what they say about those. 8-)
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