I enjoyed driving a manual transmission when driving alone with no traffic. Heavy traffic + kid is a different equation.
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I was also thinking this in regards to Purple’s question; I’ve seen many “on-ramps” that are on-ramps only in the academic sense in the LA area.
And would add that passing a car on a two-lane highway would benefit from a faster acceleration (i.e., a bigger jerk!).
I agree that most of the prior advantages of manual transmissions have now been matched by automatics: fuel economy, shift speed, and gear selection are now similar or better in automatics. Even cost now isn’t necessarily better for manuals in all vehicles as a manual can be a special order type item.
Besides personal preference, IMO the only remaining advantage for manuals is reliability. Manual transmissions rarely fail in a typical vehicle’s lifetime, a clutch lasts a long time when driven properly, and a clutch replacement is a fraction of the cost of an automatic transmission replacement.
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Elitist.
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I agree.
But, the manufactures thus have an incentive to sell you something that will eventually need an expensive repair, which only adds to their desired shift away from manuals.
This only makes sense if you use your big car to move the other vehicle
I paid MSRP - Rebates in November 2021. They did some extra $ finagling with my trade in though and I just don’t care to be in a dealership back and forth.
My parents are buying a new car and they’ll also pay MSRP less Rebates once the dealership gets their color/options in
I prefer a manual transmission when driving in inclement weather (especially snow) in the mountains.
Except in snowy conditions in the mountains. There are times when using a lower gear (regardless of RPM) is important when going downhill; and using the higher gear when going uphill. But the bigger problem is the actual shifting between gears in these situations; especially downshifting.
On the rare occasion here with icy roads, I manually shift the gears on my automatic using the paddles.
I have not done it myself but I don’t think the idea is that it is used, you simply get an extended period to test drive it. The tax differences, I think, are a function of you actually taking delivery in Europe so you have now purchased the vehicle and are simply shipping to the US versus buying it in the US.
I have these and haven’t gotten used to using them.
I did edit my post while you typed this out. The actual shifting in an automatic can still lead to problems; but being in the right gear (and disabling “auto shift”) can be huge benefit for staying on the road and making to the top/bottom of the hill safely and in control.
What cars are offering rebates when the demand for cars is vastly outstripping supply right now?
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Maybe not a rebate but things like veterans discount
youngest frazier is getting licensed in the next 6 weeks. trickle down car usage, so i am looking for me. constraints put on me included needing large enough to tow something we don’t currently own.
so this thread is of interest. looking at something like kia sorrento (v6) or telluride, hyundai sata fe (older 3 row one) or palisade, nissan pathfinder, and…not a ton for me. I don’t love the GM or Ford options available. Hate Jeeps.
absent the constraint on towing, it would likely be a smaller santa fe or sorrento or even a minivan. the market is bonkers.
OK, one item at a time:
No comment.
I still drive small cars because I am more comfortable in them. I have no need for a larger car. Current car (hatch/wagon) fits four comfortably and is great for the monthly Costco trip.
Fun. Also, not over 6 feet tall. That is 85th percentile, i.e., not average height.
Fun.
Fun. You have already died a little. I empathize.
Your area is not like my area. Your area sounds sucky. Hate to be you and be in your area for so much time. My area is quite nice. Hardly any traffic. I took a trip to San Diego in my wife’s hybrid. Yawn, except for her car’s ability to get KROQ 2 (digital station that basically airs an 80’s version of KROQ, but you probably don’t know about it, 'cuz sucky area), and when I got out of the Big Town, my iPod was searchable via the steering wheel.
(nose in the air) I don’t buy furniture at Costco. I did recently buy a Weber grill (still in the box) that fit in my car. My current car is actually quite a bit more useful than the fun cars I mentioned. Not as fun, though, at only 180hp. Maybe I should just buy the motor, install it in my car…
That 3cyl gets 300hp. And, since the car is somewhat lighter, one doesn’t have to use all those hp all the time, unlike, say, a truck/SUV/van.
I’m crying a little for your small death (and not the good kind).
Could be worse, I could go full-on mid-life and get a convertible that I’d drive with the top down exactly once and regret taking the convertible down and buying it in the first place.
All that said, I’m not in the market. The personal utility value of cars will not match the cost for a few years. I’ll wait until everyone who wants one (not many, to be honest) and hope one of the car companies made too many.
I mean that I couldn’t see around the other vehicles to back out. In my SUV I sit higher and have better visibility than I did in my smaller cars. And looking out the office window onto a highway I’d estimate 70% of the vehicles here are trucks or SUVs.
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Oh…and back up cameras…starting with my second-to-last-current one (2017?) they had back up cameras with almost pi-radian-vision. Those help tremendously.
But, yeah, before that, the 1998 Civic I had, the rear end was so large that you really couldn’t see anything behind you.
I think radians should be use more often. Degrees are stupid and ugly, and also, stupid.
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Research helps a lot. But I’m also pretty aware of their sales techniques and when they start with that baloney they get a brisk realignment. That throws them off sometimes.