If you take the time to actually learn then a manual transmission can do a whole lot better in heavy snow or mud conditions than a similarly equipped automatic. Computers are getting really good at controlling things, but they're still not really up there with an experienced human driver when it comes to 'controlling the out of control' while slipping around on a hillside.

However, if you're the kind of person who thinks 'I have four wheel drive, and it will always save the day...' then it really doesn't matter a whole lot.

But the biggest factor to learning to drive stick and keeping up on it? Well that means you can drive stick.

It is one of those things in life, along with knowing how to haul and backup with a trailer, which really doesn't matter all that much until life throws it your way.

Need to borrow a friend's car? If you don't know how to drive stick, then you're rather SOL if it is a manual transmission.

Yup. When I was living in a mountainous region with lots of snow and bad roads, I was thankful I was driving an old POS F-150 that had a four-speed manual. Using your brakes on ice and snow is not the greatest idea, being able to lock your transmission in third and have that hold you back to a safe speed as you go down a twisty hill is a whole lot better.

Now if we could just get rid of ABS brakes, so the wheels would lock up properly, I'd be happy. It's dangerous as hell if you are used to the old-style and have to drive a newer model. Your instincts are all wrong.

In the UK in addition to your car being a manual, to appeal to the girls traditionally, you should be driving an Audi A3 or golf gti with some loud garage music banging on in the background. But these days the sport version of any hatchback would do (this for those on a budget, but if you've got the money of course the super-cars never fail to show-off your masculinity )

Having said that, You can show your masculinity more effectively by giving your lady occasional surprise treats... buy her a diamond ring or necklace, take her on a night out, take her on a surprise holiday trip, and (borrowing this one from one of Chris Rock's stand-up)- listen to her when she gossip-talks about some bitch she can't stand at work. Of course you are bored to your bone-marrows, but muster-up some energy to intermittently say- "really?", [after loads of crap you really don't understand].... "wow how can she do that?"... [more loads of crap]..."really?".

If you really do listen to her she will see you as a real man (ssshhhh, It worked for me, fortunately she doesn't come to this forum so she wouldn't know)

Well, in a really modern car, you don't even have to touch the gas pedal.
It can adjust speed after the traffic automatically, don't even have to push it to overtake.

And soon, you won't have to steer either.

Now this is getting really out of hand- not wanting to do anything at all?... when you are not physically handicapped why would you want to buy such a car?

I can quite happily add to this conversation from a British standpoint.

In the UK if you pass your driving test in a manual (stick) you can drive a manual or automatic. If you pass it in an automatic you may only ever drive automatics, or retake your test again in a manual. This is because both are really fundamentally different and yes I can imagine going out onto a busy American Road for the first time ever in a manual being a massive accident risk...

Personally as a family my wife and I own a large automatic people carrier and a small '02 plate 1 litre manual Nissan.

If you're taking long highway journeys or expect heavy traffic the automatic is a godsend. I prefer it for those journeys because after crawling for an hour stopping and starting in a manual car, my left foot aches to hell and back!

On the flip side if it's snowed, or if it's generally a short journey I prefer manual as it gives better control over your rpm of your engine which is important when handling ice or wet roads IMHO.

Having tried to move the automatic off a car park covered in ice, I can recommend against it. Luckily it had a triptronic mode so we finally got it out of the car park using some gear wrangling.

Your mileage will definitely and literally vary.

Have fun!

Now this is getting really out of hand- not wanting to do anything at all?... when you are not physically handicapped why would you want to buy such a car?

The post was mostly a joke, and an observation of reality.

My boss' Volvo has the cruise control I described though, and it seems really nice when you are on the high way. specially if you travel far.

Several companies work on self-driving cars (Google is probably the most widely known) I'm sure it could be nice when you want to go from A to B and don't care about driving, maybe want to do something else in the meantime.

Driving can be fun, specially my motorcycle, but often it is just a chore that has to be done.

I'm sure there is a big market for self driving cars.

If everyone drove self driving cars, the traffic could be a lot more pleasant and efficient, self driving cars could communicate and cooperate a lot better.

Now this is getting really out of hand- not wanting to do anything at all?... when you are not physically handicapped why would you want to buy such a car?

I'd love a Tesla to use "Autopilot" for the freeway commute. Freeway peak-traffic driving is not fun -- it's stressful and bad for your mental and physical health. Of course thats one reason to take the train but if I am stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, autopilot would be great.

I'm amazed no one else has pointed this out yet, but does your girlfriend want to drive manual? I prefer manual (my only automatic experience was a rental in america) and I love to drive, but I wouldn't buy a car that my girlfriend refuses to use.

Now if we could just get rid of ABS brakes, so the wheels would lock up properly, I'd be happy.

Heh, if only you could explain that to the insurance company. In my car, the ABS has this issue that once it kicks in, it won't let go unless you release the brake. Which means that if you break over a pothole or railway track, you loose most of your breaking force until you gain the mental presence to let go of the break and hit it again. Which is exactly what ABS is supposed to prevent.
It's a VW btw...

I like to drive so I only buy manuals. I also like sedans which makes it fairly hard to find one in the US. It is pretty much Audi, BMW, or VW. If I could justify throwing a bunch of money away on a car it would have been a BMW M3 or Audi S4 but I couldn't so I went with a Jetta GLI. A couple of engine mods and a ECU upgrade and it's putting about 300 HP to the wheels. Not extremely crazy power but hearing the engine growl as turbo spools up is very satisfying. I have a '66 Belair parked in my parents garage back home if I want a car bordering on stupid amounts of power for a street car (and a 60's era non hydraulic clutch for that leg workout). But for a lot of people cars are just a means to get places and an auto makes it super easy.

The manual superiority complex but comes from a lot of what I just described. And people in general seem to like to find whatever they can to make themselves feel better about other people. Not everybody can drive manual so it is an easy choice. Since the internet seems to be mostly about pictures of cats and finding ways to put down other people it isn't surprising that such lists exist. It is a useful skill to have though. Never know when you might have to drive somebody home or otherwise drive a strange car that isn't an auto. Being able to start your car with a dead battery is a neat trick too.

I've taught a couple of girlfriends how to drive manual. Once you show them how easy it is to get out of first the rest comes pretty naturally. It's just getting over that hump of worrying about killing the car and learning not to dump the clutch too fast.

Really wish Tesla would make a manual version of their car. I might actually be able to justify the price if they did.

Yup. When I was living in a mountainous region with lots of snow and bad roads, I was thankful I was driving an old POS F-150 that had a four-speed manual. Using your brakes on ice and snow is not the greatest idea, being able to lock your transmission in third and have that hold you back to a safe speed as you go down a twisty hill is a whole lot better.

Modern automatic transmissions can hold gears just fine. My Mazda is also capable of noticing that you're on a hill and downshifting, though not necessarily as far as I want. There's nothing stopping me from manually putting it into 2nd or 3rd and leaving it there to engine brake, and I've done it plenty of times.

Now if we could just get rid of ABS brakes, so the wheels would lock up properly, I'd be happy. It's dangerous as hell if you are used to the old-style and have to drive a newer model. Your instincts are all wrong.

Disconnecting ABS is straightforward. Probably a stupid idea compared to retraining your instincts, but it's a possibility nonetheless.

In my car, the ABS has this issue that once it kicks in, it won't let go unless you release the brake. Which means that if you break over a pothole or railway track, you loose most of your breaking force until you gain the mental presence to let go of the break and hit it again. Which is exactly what ABS is supposed to prevent.

Mine definitely lets go as soon as the wheel begins spinning again.

Really wish Tesla would make a manual version of their car. I might actually be able to justify the price if they did.

Are you kidding? It's a single speed gearbox. There's nothing to shift, manual or automatic, except for reverse.

It's not making you more manly. What, your dick will grow an inch or something if you drive manual?

However, it doesn't hurt to learn. Skiing, riding motorcycle, mountain climbing aren't important in ensuring prolonged life (perhaps shorten it), but such skills could be useful nonetheless.

You can show your masculinity more effectively by giving your lady occasional surprise treats... buy her a diamond ring or necklace, take her on a night out, take her on a surprise holiday trip, and (borrowing this one from one of Chris Rock's stand-up)- listen to her when she gossip-talks about some bitch she can't stand at work.

You can be a complete sissy fairy, yellow bellied, pansy ass mangina and still do all of those things. If I lacked fortitude and the ability to stand on my own convictions and two feet, I wouldn't have the girlfriend I have now. Buying her an arse heap of expensive stuff alone doesn't win respect in most cases.

Do I listen to mine? Of course, but she knows there's certain type of small talk that I won't tolerate, and when I hear it, I shut her down. I get more respect from her when I sound like a bit of a "brute" than when I throw money at her, but that's just me.

I'm amazed no one else has pointed this out yet, but does your girlfriend want to drive manual? I prefer manual (my only automatic experience was a rental in america) and I love to drive, but I wouldn't buy a car that my girlfriend refuses to use.

If it's my car, it's my decision to make. If she doesn't like it, then she can get her own car. Simple as that.

The manual superiority complex but comes from a lot of what I just described. And people in general seem to like to find whatever they can to make themselves feel better about other people. Not everybody can drive manual so it is an easy choice. Since the internet seems to be mostly about pictures of cats and finding ways to put down other people it isn't surprising that such lists exist. It is a useful skill to have though. Never know when you might have to drive somebody home or otherwise drive a strange car that isn't an auto. Being able to start your car with a dead battery is a neat trick too.

I've taught a couple of girlfriends how to drive manual. Once you show them how easy it is to get out of first the rest comes pretty naturally. It's just getting over that hump of worrying about killing the car and learning not to dump the clutch too fast.

My dad showed me the basics of how to shift and what not, but never let me drive his truck because he knew I was clumsy. The instructions on how to shift and whatnot make sense. I was always worried I'd put the car in the wrong gear or put it into reverse by mistake when I was younger because it seemed so easy to screw that up. Plus I was generally discouraged from driving a manual transmission. Lately I've just had the itch to try it because I kinda felt like I've been denied of this for a long time.

What, your dick will grow an inch or something if you drive manual?

Frankly, not even that makes you more manly either. You can drive a stick with an 8 inch monster and still be just a pansy ass liberal sjw type who cries in a corner, claiming to be bullied over something someone said over the internet. I respect honour and fortitude over posessions and status.

Shogun.