What do you miss about driving a stick shift?

[killramos]

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Automatics/DCT can’t engine brake? Automatics/DCT doesn’t have instant acceleration? Maybe 20 years ago lol.

[370Z]

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Engine braking

No delay acceleration

Mechanical connection between engine and wheels

Thanks for all the input....I feel this post to be exactly how I would feel. The first two points are solved by DCTS... but I will miss the feeling of a clutch pedal and best of all the feeling of the gear changes through your shifter to my right hand. Funny thing this makes driving in rush hour even better as I'm usually in first second or third and you can really feel it all....but ya when I'm dead tired after work it would feel nice to not have to deal with any of that.

They should make a car where it's manual but has a computer take over at the click of a button.

Today, I found myself in awe looking at the Q60 coupe... but then I thought about how awfully boring it would be to drive that car.

[dirtsniffer]

Hey I drive a 2.5 ton truck now. Those are the things I miss about driving a manual. I agree that the zf 8 speed / DCT can do these things.

I'll add, always being in the right gear. Punching it and having to wait for a double down shift is lame.

Also low traction acceleration and deceleration were much easier with a manual.

[370Z]

Ya I have a GLK for winter and had to use the manual mode....in regular auto mode, I felt nervous as hell just relying on using the brakes to slow down while the damn thing just wanted to stay in 5th or what higher gear it felt like staying in....wtf?!!

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

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Stupid shit happens at Barlow? Since when??

I think it’s a pretty recent thing

[tonytiger55]

OP why you want to get rid of the 370Z..?

I still drive shift. Rather fun driving to work. I lose my temper when driving auto.

[BokCh0y]

I miss everything about manual. Shifting, the peddle, the ability to control my shifts when I want to shift. The smoothness. Everything.

The only thing I don't miss about manual is replacing the clutch.

[scboss]

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Thanks for all the input....I feel this post to be exactly how I would feel. The first two points are solved by DCTS... but I will miss the feeling of a clutch pedal and best of all the feeling of the gear changes through your shifter to my right hand. Funny thing this makes driving in rush hour even better as I'm usually in first second or third and you can really feel it all....but ya when I'm dead tired after work it would feel nice to not have to deal with any of that.

Nothing beat smashing gears while going fast even if its slower then some of the newer transmissions. Downshifting, hitting those gears through turns is always fun especially if you have rear wheel drive. Ive taken my friends gtr and A7 for a spin and yeah they are fast but its just not the same.

I could definitely see why people hate it if daily commutes involve rush hour or if you are only worried about 0-60.

[Team_Mclaren]

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Performing a perfect heel / toe downshift.

But I feel like a fucking pro race driver every time i press the left wheel paddle to down shift.

[heavyfuel]

Still drive a stick. My work truck has a ZF-6, and if one day I can ever afford a toy I would like it to be a stick as well but after 9 years of in town stop and go daily driving, and since it should be about 200 years before I can afford a toy I think this may very well be the last manual for me.

[LilDrunkenSmurf]

The only time I missed it in my DD was during winter. I feel like I had less control from a stop, to stop the wheels from spinning, feather the clutch, etc. That being said, any other time, I loved having a DSG for a daily. I only went back to a manual for the DD, cause it was cheaper.

[bjstare]

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Engine braking

No delay acceleration

Mechanical connection between engine and wheels

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Automatics/DCT can’t engine brake? Automatics/DCT doesn’t have instant acceleration? Maybe 20 years ago lol.

Anyone that thinks those are things exclusive to a manual transmission hasn't driven a decent auto.

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I would have to buy something like an Elise to get back into a manual.

Yeah exactly. I've been shopping to an S2K again, that's one of the few cars that would get me back in a manual.

[rage2]

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Anyone that thinks those are things exclusive to a manual transmission hasn't driven a decent auto.

I’d argue that my car with an auto transmission has more instantaneous acceleration than any manual car made to date. But that’s kinda cheating since it’s a hybrid haha.

[Darkane]

Just picked up another manual very recently. One of the best shifting cars on the market today!

And my V8 manual, at 8250rpm is one of the best drivetrain combos you can get today.

I can’t really ever see myself without a manual. I’d buy a 2011 civic si sedan just to have a manual around lol.

[BavarianBeast]

3/6 of my cars are manual. I couldn’t have at least one car that isn’t manual in the fleet, love rowing gears too much and having that connection to the car. Always a more engaged experience. I honestly thought I could never move into a dct sports car but after buying and driving my r8 with DCT, it has grown on me. Still would buy manual 10/10 if it was offered.

[HiTempguy1]

Is a BMW M4 auto no good?

Last "nice" car I drove around in, wasn't impressed with it.

End of the day, an auto can never tell exactly when and why you want to be in a gear for what reason. Maybe I want to lug the motor slowly from 40-90? Maybe I'm on a steep hill and I want additional engine braking for the intersection up ahead even though I could just apply the brakes harder?

Maybe I just want the gear I want because I want that gear. "Ohhh, but its faster"

Yea, well none of you are andretti and it doesn't matter on the street, so who gives a fuck except tech geeks wanking off to features.

[JustinL]

I miss actually having a connection with the transmission. I daily drive an S4 with a DCT and while it shifts fast, it makes too many decisions even when in manual mode. The paddles make a suggestion to the car as to what you want, then it decides what's best for you. If you are light on the throttle the shifts are slow and lazy. In snow if you pull an upshift while the car is sliding or unsettled, it straight up rejects the command.

[rage2]

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Is a BMW M4 auto no good?

Last "nice" car I drove around in, wasn't impressed with it.

End of the day, an auto can never tell exactly when and why you want to be in a gear for what reason. Maybe I want to lug the motor slowly from 40-90? Maybe I'm on a steep hill and I want additional engine braking for the intersection up ahead even though I could just apply the brakes harder?

Maybe I just want the gear I want because I want that gear. "Ohhh, but its faster"

Yea, well none of you are andretti and it doesn't matter on the street, so who gives a fuck except tech geeks wanking off to features.

Well if you're comparing an M4 in auto mode to what you want the gear to be in a manual car, you're right, it wouldn't be able to read your mind to know that you want to lug the motor from 40-90. Did you not try the M4 in full manual mode? You would have full control to do exactly what you want.

I mean, I've been an auto proponent for over a decade once they started getting good. The key is that I still have access to manual mode to drive it no different than a MT car, aside from a clutch pedal. That's my measuring stick when comparing to a MT car. So ya, if you're comparing MT to AT in auto mode, that's not even a comparison.

[schocker]

I miss the inconvenience and leg pain from rush hour
My TSX had a stupid transmission but the DSG in my golf is awesome though I mostly keep it in auto.

[Darell_n]

It’s my experience that engines tend to live longer with a manual transmission. Unless you are buying used from a teenager, I would wager most stick shift car (truck) engines are not beat on nearly as bad as what an automatic dishes out with a heavy right foot. Prime example is my wife merging onto the highway, flooring it and shifting before 4K rpm. Most automatics will take it up near redline every time, if you are in a hurry, and I have at least a few accidental double down shifts with my work truck every day I drive it.