Clutch or automatic

[Yachtzee]

Automatic is fine if a car is just for getting from point A to point B. But if you want to enjoy driving your car, you gotta have manual shift.

[Chip R]

I would rather drive a clutch but I have problem with my right knee where if I have my foot on the accellerator for a while, it gets very sore. Of course I do not have cruise in my current car so it does not make much of a difference, I suppose.

[KittyDuran]

Automatic, actually I don't know how to drive a car with a standard.

Same here...

[BCubb2003]

A manual.

If automatics had been invented first, probably nobody would use a stickshift. It would be like powerless steering.

[Caveat Emperor]

I drive an automatic -- I sincerely doubt I'll ever have the opportunity to own a manual transmission car, since most cars that have a clutch as an option are far too small for someone my size to fit comfortably behind the wheel of AND operate three different pedals.

Oh well -- for what it's worth, I always play the arcade driving games on "manual" whenever my friends and I go to Gameworks to hang before a Reds game.

[Sweetstop]

My MINI Cooper has a six-speed..fun to drive. My Sentra is automatic. I go both ways I suppose.

[cincinnati chili]

Boston traffic ruined the "joy" of a manual tranny for me. After some idiot trucker totalled my manual transmission car in '04, I switched back to automatic. I'll probably never switch back unless I move to a rural area.

[Yachtzee]

I drive an automatic -- I sincerely doubt I'll ever have the opportunity to own a manual transmission car, since most cars that have a clutch as an option are far too small for someone my size to fit comfortably behind the wheel of AND operate three different pedals.

Oh well -- for what it's worth, I always play the arcade driving games on "manual" whenever my friends and I go to Gameworks to hang before a Reds game.

I have a Toyota Camry SE with manual. It's pretty roomy. I have a feeling that eventually manual will be limited to high-end sports cars in the US. Manual is much more popular in Europe. The ability to let it all hang out on the Autobahn probably helps make manuals more fun.

[SunDeck]

We have a standard and an automatic. My left knee is starting to tell me to go with the standard, but I still have a big soft spot for the control of shifting myself.

[RedFanAlways1966]

Automatic! It's too hard changing the XM channel, reaching into the backseat to smack the kid, talk on my cell phone, eat a Six Dollar Burger, honk my horn at the losers that can't drive, and still worry about operating the clutch.

Exactly how I feel!!

[OldRightHander]

We have one standard and two automatics. Which one I prefer depends on where I am at the moment. For the normal commuting, I prefer the automatic. City traffic jams are no fun with a manual. If I can get out of the city on some fun kind of roads, (you know, those with only two lanes and nothing but countryside to look at) I prefer the manual. Driving a stick can be a lot of fun in the right setting.

[SandyD]

I learned to drive a standard as a teenager in the energy crisis of the mid 70s. As an adult, I've never owned a standard, though I test drove one once. Ended up buying another vehilce with an automatic. A few months later, I blew out my left knee. If I had taken that standard, I would not have been able to drive for weeks, maybe longer. I still have occasional trouble with that knee, so I'll probably never own a stick shift veh.

[SunDeck]

My brother taught me how to drive a stick. At the time I had an automatic. He asked me to follow him to Northgate Mall, where he was going to drop his '74 Vega off at Sears to get new shocks. When we got there, he tossed me his keys, jumped in my car and took off.

Once I got the gears rounded off, it was pretty smooth driving.

[DropDocK]

Automatic

I know how to drive a clutch but it wasn't up to me when I ended up with an automatic vehicle. I'd like to have a standard shift vehicle someday.

[IslandRed]

I owned nothing but stick-shift cars until we had kids. That's just how it goes. A new minivan for the missus is on top of the priority list, so the S2000 will have to wait.