Manual vs Automatic: The Ultimate Debate – CarNewsCafe Podcast 42 [MEDIA]

Whether someone should drive or buy a Manual vs Automatic is one of the most hotly debated topics among auto enthusiasts and gearheads. Purist declare that nothing can be better than shifting gears and the way it feels. Normal people that don’t care what they drive say stick shifts are difficult, annoying, and more of a hassle than it’s worth.

Both of the above statements are true. So on this week’s podcast episode we talk Manual vs Automatic, Automatic vs Manual, stick shfit vs automatic, or whatever you call it. Some topics we cover

*Essentially should we still shift gears or is this a thing of the past? (ie something only old people should do.)

*Is driving a manual practical for everyday use? Especially in traffic.

*Driving in Europe vs the United States. Nicolas shares differences he knows about and is aware of.

*We share our thoughts about paddle shifters. Cool or uncool? Useful and fun? Are they just for performance and race cars?

*Even for an auto enthusiast the manual vs automatic… is there a debate anymore? You can own and enjoy both.

*What cars we would want to buy with a stick shift. (Yes, we talk about the Mazda Miata.)

*We even touch on electric cars and how they don’t need transmissions. They are direct drive!

Let the heated stick shift debate continue.

Manual vs Automatic

CarNewsCafe Podcast Question of the Week

Would you find a women more attractive if she drove a stick shift vs an automatic? It doesn’t matter what type of car it is. It could be any car with a manual transmission even an little econobox or a high end sports car. Let us know with a comment below.

If you enjoyed this week’s podcast listen to CarNewsCafe Podcast 41 where we talk about the state of Auto Journalism as whole. Also subscribe to the CarNewsCafe Podcast via iTunes or Stitcher Radio. You can also add our Podcast RSS Feed to your favorite RSS Reader to catch new episodes.

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Adam Yamada-Hanff

Adam has always loved cars and anything with wheels. When he is not writing about interesting stories you might find him jamming on his saxophone, watching movies, creating art, or playing with his two dogs.

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5 Comments

Pingback: CarNewsCafe.com My First Car - CarNewsCafe Podcast 43 [MEDIA] » CarNewsCafe.com
Jay says:

July 27, 2014 at 6:23 pm

My spouse and I love driving manual transmissions, it’s not just for fuel economy, it is a preference and gives more control when you know how to drive it. Here in Canada we are limited to what the US imports, some of us have European tastes. Would love to get a wagon in a stick (the Chevy Cruze for example), but they don’t get produced for North America. Americans seem to like automatic sedans and Canadians suffer for it. In a few cases we are starting to get something the US doesn’t get, like the Chevy Orlando, a wagon/small minivan like the Mazda 5, and for now, offered in a manual (base trim only – another story…)

Reply
- Aaron Turpen says:
  
  July 27, 2014 at 6:27 pm
  
  Thanks for the comment, Jay. The reason Canadians are largely stuck with Americanized cars is simply due to where they’re built versus costs. Most cars sold in the U.S. market are made here or near here. I do believe, however, that Canadians can import most European cars relatively easily as the emissions requirements there are stricter than they are in Canada and the safety requirements are about the same.
  
  Also, I would point out that fuel efficiency in an automatic transmission is usually greater than that of a standard trans and has been for the past six or more years in most vehicles.
  
  Reply
- Adam Yamada-Hanff says:
  
  July 27, 2014 at 9:24 pm
  
  As Aaron said there is no real fuel economy advantage to driving stick shifts these days. It’s been like that for a long time probably 10 years plus. Sometimes manuals get even worse mileage than their automatic transmission counterparts.
  
  You are right Jay. A lot of cars are only offered with a manual transmission on the lowest trim with few options. So buying a stick shift car nowadays is getting less and less attractive to the average consumer and even gearheads who need a solid daily driver and commuter.
  
  I think if you have the room, time, and money it makes sense to have an automatic as a daily driver and keep a stick shift for the weekends and when you can enjoy driving. For most people… that is probably not often.
  
  What’s the general consensus in Canada about buying stick shifts? Do you know the what percentage of new car sales are automatics vs manuals?
  
  Thanks for sharing your insights and your family’s preference in the Manual vs Automatic discussion Jay.
  
  Reply
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