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Which do YOU drive?

Automatic
17
59%
Stick
12
41%
Neither. I ride a bike.
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 29

Seth T.
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Post by Seth T. »

I'm betting that 3 to 1 drive vehicles with autos. Lets see. :bounce:
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Post by Seth T. »

I should specify this as your PRIMARY VEHICLE. :salute:
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Post by Sounder »

Seth gets the award for the most random thread of the week! :partyman:
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Post by mancub »

over in Europe everyone drives standards...prolly less than 5% drive automatics.
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airsix
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Post by airsix »

I voted stick. Wife's van is auto, but all my other vehicles are stick.

For an off-road vehicle or the family van I'm fine with an auto, but a "driver's car" NEEDS direct manual gear selection.

Why does a car in a performance scenario need manual control? Simple: Because cars don't have eyes! For example: When you pass the apex of a curve and begin to roll on the power an automatic will NEVER be in the correct gear. It will always be in a higher than optimal gear. At that point it will downshift as it plays catch-up. If it had eyes and could see ahead it would have already been in the optimal gear when you needed it to be. Get a stick and you give your transmission eyes.

I love to autocross (sanctioned road racing against the clock) and people who try it with automatic-tranny cars often get frustrated because things are happening too quickly for the tranny to keep up effectively.

Now the perfect car would have a stick when I'm racing or driving alone, and it would have an auto when I'm on a date or trying to bring home takeout with 3 drinks and only 2 cupholders.

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Post by cardiver »

You can always try a triptronic tranny.......Not quite the same as full manual, but close.
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Post by Seth T. »

cardiver wrote:You can always try a triptronic tranny.......Not quite the same as full manual, but close.
Yeah, but you lose the clutch pedal! That's no fun! [-X
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Post by spatman »

i put auto, because that's what our current car is. but i drove a stick for many years and a motorcycle before that.
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Post by airsix »

cardiver wrote:You can always try a triptronic tranny.......Not quite the same as full manual, but close.
It's close, but not the same. It will still 'intervene' when it thinks you're not doing something in your best interest. When I say 'give me 3rd gear' I mean give me 3rd gear right this very instant, not when the computer decides that the data from the wheel speed sensors, intake manifold pressure sensor, throttle position sensor and lateral acceleration gyro all say it's ok to give it to me. If you've ever driven a tiptronic or other 'manu-matic' on the track you will know what I'm talking about. I don't like transmissions that argue with me.

Now that said, there are certain cars I wouldn't take any other way. I'd love to have an Audi S6 with a tip for example. But I wouldn't be driving it on the track either. I would also prefer a truck with an auto as well - not a tip - just a plain auto, because in a truck I just want to haul stuff and not fuss around. : )

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Post by Sounder »

cardiver wrote:You can always try a triptronic tranny...
I think you're posting on the wrong website. This is a forum for diving. The forum for various tranny types, and those who love them, is in your other browser.



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Post by Cold_H2O »

so far its a 50-50 split.

I guess there are a few of us manual drivers still around.
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Post by Seth T. »

Cold_H2O wrote:so far its a 50-50 split.
I guess there are a few of us manual drivers still around.
Yeah, I'm thoroughly impressed. I thought I was the only one that still drives a stick! :axe:
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Post by WylerBear »

I mostly drive a motorcycle. But my dive van is an automatic. I had sworn for years that I would never buy an automatic because I really like to drive. But when you find a used vehicle that's perfect for your needs except for that one small fact, what choice do you have?
Now that I've been driving it for 3 years, I'll never go back. It's so much nicer on my knees when I'm stuck in traffic to not have to shift and shift and shift.
We're on the list for a Smart Car which we should be able to get by the first of the year, we hope. That car is coming with Paddle Shifters on the steering wheel. Very cool.
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Post by Nwbrewer »

Seth T. wrote:Yeah, I'm thoroughly impressed. I thought I was the only one that still drives a stick! :axe:
:pale:

Oh never mind it would be too easy and this is a family friendly forum.
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Post by Seth T. »

WylerBear wrote: We're on the list for a Smart Car which we should be able to get by the first of the year, we hope. That car is coming with Paddle Shifters on the steering wheel. Very cool.
Wow, and you're going to squeeze all your dive gear in one of those?! :evil4:
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Post by airsix »

Seth T. wrote:Yeah, I'm thoroughly impressed. I thought I was the only one that still drives a stick! :axe:
I'm not really surprised. Look around. We're a pretty odd group (no offense. I embrace my eccentric nature). You have to guess that a group of people so fascinated with amateur marine exploration that they hang out daily on an electronic bulletin board to talk about it are going be a few standard deviations from the mean so to speak. =D>

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Post by Sea of Green »

airsix wrote:I voted stick. Wife's van is auto, but all my other vehicles are stick.
....
Now the perfect car would have a stick when I'm racing or driving alone, and it would have an auto when I'm on a date or trying to bring home takeout with 3 drinks and only 2 cupholders.

-Ben
Hey, wait a minute! Uhm, what does your wife think about your dates? And vice-versa? How do you work that out? Isn't that rather dangerous? Inquiring minds want to know!
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Post by Dmitchell »

Both my vehicles are auto. My truck is the first one I've ever owned that wasn't manual and I don't ever plan on buying another manual.

I HATE driving so I guess it's a good thing I live in a place where there's not much place to go.

It's 11 miles from my house in the "valley" to downtown Juneau. If I didn't work downtown, I'd probably go 3 months without coming down here. As it is, the idea of driving "all the way to town" sucks!


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Post by CaptnJack »

Our TDI Jetta is a stick, that we got new. Except for a couple of downtown Seattle hills in the heat of summer when I have the AC on and 3 people inside, I prefer it.
My used truck is auto. Its what was around when I was looking and it tows better IMO. Crappy mileage, but hey its a '92 Ranger.
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Post by airsix »

Sea of Green wrote:Hey, wait a minute! Uhm, what does your wife think about your dates? And vice-versa? How do you work that out? Isn't that rather dangerous? Inquiring minds want to know!
What does she think about my dates? Well, I hope she enjoys them! I sure do. I open all the doors for her, try to be a good listener, tell a few jokes... It usually seems to go pretty well. In fact, I'm picking her up tonight at 5:30. \:D/

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Post by Sea of Green »

airsix wrote:
Sea of Green wrote:Hey, wait a minute! Uhm, what does your wife think about your dates? And vice-versa? How do you work that out? Isn't that rather dangerous? Inquiring minds want to know!
What does she think about my dates? Well, I hope she enjoys them! I sure do. I open all the doors for her, try to be a good listener, tell a few jokes... It usually seems to go pretty well. In fact, I'm picking her up tonight at 5:30. \:D/

-Ben
Well, ok. Being single, I think of a "date" as a flesh and blood person, as in "I have a cute date tonight". Eventually, your "date" may become your wife. After marriage, she's no longer your "date", she's your wife and you're just "going out". If that sounds strange, that's ok, I'm a strange guy.
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Post by Grateful Diver »

Hmmmph ... young'ins ...

... the only dates I get anymore are the ones you buy in a plastic container at Costco ... :-({|=

My Element has a 5-speed manual transmission, BTW. I test drove both auto and manual, and decided I preferred the manual ...

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Post by Chevayea »

This is the weirdest dive sit thread ever. :bounce:

I have an automatic 4runner, only drive a stick when i'm travelling to other countries and cant find an automatic to rent. I love the simplicity and with 4 kids i always need a spare hand.
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Post by Sea of Green »

Grateful Diver wrote:Hmmmph ... young'ins ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
Why, thank you Bob! At the ripe old age of 54, it's nice to be mistaken for a "young 'in". Now, if I could just get young ladies to do that... \:D/

But then again, I'd rather spend my money on dive toys. :supz:
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Post by Sea of Green »

Back to the subject at hand, transmissions. I drive a stick because they are more economical on gas, don't rob power and the buying price of the vehicle is less. Plus replacing a clutch is much easier on the bank account than rebuilding an automatic. I still have nightmares of my old 64 Chevy Impala with that embarrasing 2-speed "slush box" automatic.
Last edited by Sea of Green on Sun Dec 16, 2007 12:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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