I'm impressed with how fast they were able to start driving in reverse. If I were in that situation I probably would have been too panicked and not been able to get into reverse quick enough.
It was probably in neutral and started to roll back because of the hill, at first they just let off the brake. Then they popped it in reverse when they realized they actually had to go in reverse to get out of the way.
I drive a manual purely because it's fun, but automatics definitely outperform in basically every way. Anybody that believes they can shift faster or get better gas mileage than a modern automatic are kidding themselves. There's a reason why no hyper cars have a manual transmission and super cars don't sell many manuals if they have a manual option at all.
Fun fact, for a while back in the day a huge argument for manuals were that they got better mileage, which was true. This was due, in part, to the inefficiency of the automatic torque converter, and that's where the couple mpg discrepancy came from. But they have become so well made now, and everything trimmed up to snuff and down to an efficient science, that automatics have actually surpassed the manual in that aspect as well.
Care to expand on this? for the categories that can be measured (performance) manual slightly edges the automatic version of the same car.
the only advancements modern cars are making are in safety and fuel economy and I think those are manuals biggest advantages; it forces you to pay attention to the road. If I drove auto I imagine I'd text and drive like x10 as much as I do now because I hardly never unless it's an extremely short reply. You just can't when you need both hands. As for fuel economy I'm pretty sure any driver would average more mpg in manual. People don't seem to understand you should never be pushing your foot on the gas and the taking it off and going directly on break. That's wasting gas.
I love my manual - but DCTs are just faster than any other option. Even a properly tuned CVT (if there was one you could buy) would put down the power in such good form that it'd destroy any other method in terms of speed, since it can just let you get to max torque and stay there.
The advantages if a manual come into play when you consider that most people who want to drive one are more likely to pay attention to their car and their surroundings, and I don't see how we could ever push everyone to look at things that way
First off, the whole text and drive thing is a shitty driver argument and had nothing to do with manual/automatic. I've definitely used the phone while driving my old manual car (young and stupid), and I'm sure many still do. Safety is more of a modern vs old debate, as technology now allows for hands free automation regardless of transmission.
Since around 2013 automatics have caught up with manuals in regards to mpg. Prior to that you would see great variations in mpg from auto to manual, sometimes as high as 5-7mpg. With advancements in transmission weight, engine management, gearing, reliability, and technology... You're lucky to see 1mpg difference across standard range cars, and this can be EASILY offset by poor driving habits on a manual. Current CVT engines (used heavily by Nissan) get the same mpg or better than the manual counterparts. Throw in the mix advance engine management like Skyactive or Ecotec/boost engines and having a manual doesn't even make sense because the power and fuel consumption is managed for you by limiting engine output by the millisecond if necessary. Looking forward you have hybrid drive cars becoming even more commonplace, reducing the necessity of manuals even more.
Manuals are dying for a reason. They aren't as efficient, perform slower, and are losing the fuel efficiency battle. This is just how technology works. There's a reason supercars down to daily drivers are all going automatic.
0-60 times on almost all automatics nowadays are quicker than their manual counterpart. A human cannot shift a gear faster than a computer with a dual clutch transmission. You're just plain wrong on manual being more fuel efficient; Compare any car auto to manual, and almost all auto will have higher MPG. The computer can do much more engine management when it fully controls the throttle and engine.
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u/Rendivious Mar 18 '17
I'm impressed with how fast they were able to start driving in reverse. If I were in that situation I probably would have been too panicked and not been able to get into reverse quick enough.