A day before I bought my first stick shift car (Nissan 200SX), I called my buddy up to give me a 2 hrs lesson. Ever since, all the cars I bought are stick shift unless it's for the wife.

 

Until we got the Accord V-6 EX Coupe (auto only), my wife had always driven sticks, while mine lately have mostly been autos. When I got the Stook. she gave me holy hell over my shifting technique; now, after nearly 19 months, she still swears that I don't shift for crap. It is, indeed, a lost art.

 

That's funny

 

My first car, '73 Mustang Convertable, was 3-speed manual transmission which I had to learn myself. Because no one I knew had a manual tansmission and even if they did, they did not want to ruin their tranny. All I knew was press clutch when i shift... I loveed the car because it's convertible but I had to sell the car after driving about 5 hrs in 6 months becuase it had extention pipe & muffler Swiss cheese would be shamed and many other problem. After 2 years without manual tranny, '88 nissan sentra was a joy once I learned downshift. That was 10 yrs ago. Time to time I drive my wife's civic with automatic and I feel uncomfortable because I feel I don't have control over the engne. Now that I have my S2K, I just love driving it.

 

Until gas reaches $4 - $5/gallon here in the states, people just won't accept the "disadvantages" of a manual transmission. Likewise with diesel engines. Right now, there are no "advantages" to a manual tranny. With gas approaching $2.50/gallon here in Chicago, people will start considering gas costs again.

I put advantage/disadvantage in quotes because enthusiasts look at different requirements for a car than the "normal" driver and find driving something to participate in and enjoy rather than as a means to get from here to there.

 

I learned how to drive a manual myself... just plopped into my MR2T and gave it a shot... I had an idea of how it worked, but never put it into practice until that day. needless to say, I know how to drive a manual now

 

I know some people who bought manual because it was cheaper and ending up learning by destroying the new car, but hey they drive fine now. LOL

 

IMO, that is a very sad statistic. No wonder Lexus and Acura hesitate to put proper manual transamissions into their "sports sedans" (IS300 and CL/TL-S).

I know the average driver in S. Cal seems far too concerned with their latte and phone call then driving. An auto (no matter how good) only throws gasoline on the fire.

I heard that you have to pay extra $ and special order new C5 (non-Z06) corvettes if you want a 6 speed manual. Apparently nearly 90% of new C5's are sold in automatic. That is sick!!!

 

I enjoy driving stick. I drive while doing many things. I can multitask well. I got the finger though while driving an talking. I was going the speed limit and driving perfectly. Oh wells.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by S2K Fan
[B]I enjoy driving stick. I drive while doing many things. I can multitask well.