A 'Manual, For A Manual'....................

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Really!?!?
Manual gearboxes explained?
Then again, how many reading this only have a category 'B Auto' licence, rather than simply a 'B'??

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/cars/ownership/how-to-drive-a-manual-car/ar-BBZJ6Uo?ocid=spartanntp


Personally I'm not a fan of automatics
1. Our Jaguar XKR was auto
(no factory manual option, at that time, there's not a manual option on the present F-Type either!!!)

2. Joannes (present) Toyota C-HR (even if only just 'Drive', no 1/2/3/4 positions)

3. The hire car in Florida (Feb 2012) was one... a dreadful thing!!

4. Driven a few auto Range Rovers & Discoverys
The L322 TDV8 was interesting, & I'd love one of the (rare) manual models
(none of the present models..... don't like any of them)
One of the worst autos, I've driven was a Discovery 300Tdi, & that had a delay between accelerator & movement that was glacial
(no wonder LR uprated the Tdi, over the manual version)
 

gbb

Legendary Member
Location
Peterborough
Never owned an auto but driven a few.
Ford Orion diesel was as your experience with the Disco 300Tdi, like driving with an elastic band as an accelerator cable, so much delay accelerating and deccelerating.
Citroen Xantia auto was lovely to drive.
I could get quite used to the laziness of driving an auto but I dont feel the box lasts as well as a manual, mind that's based on experience 20 to 30 years ago.
 

Drago

Legendary Member
I've been forced into autos due to injury - I can drive a manual, but I find it uncomfortable and my endurance is pretty low, especially in stop-start traffic. Provided it's a proper slush with a proper beefy engine to make it work properly, I'd take auto over manual every time now, in much the same way I'd take a house over a cave, or antibiotics over being bled. My D5 has 400NM of grunt, so is perfect with the slush box.

As a general rule, a proper auto is far, far more robust than a manual box - the main load bearing component is fluid, provided that is change occasionally they're pretty much immune to wear.
 

I like Skol

A Minging Manc...
Have had experience of various autos and the best had to be my 4ltr Jeep Cherokee. It felt like it instantly delivered all the power straight to the wheels, in a most satisfying manner. It's not just the engine size that was responsible, the gearbox must have been set up just perfectly to match the engine. Around the same time a friend let me try their 4ltr Defender 90 50th anniversary edition. I was so excited about trying the full V8 experience but it was a total let down. Felt like the rubber band thing described above, lots of revs and sound, but not much of it went to the wheels to throw the car down the road. Both cars had similar power outputs but while one was perfectly set up the other felt like the transmission was a collection of disparate pieces just randomly thrown together.
Have also owned a couple of diesel autos in recent years and again both satisfyingly quick and refined/calm.
I still love to jump in my manual diesel Landrover though :okay:
 

Landsurfer

Veteran
12 MILES AWAY FROM ME IS A HUGE BUNCH OF BRAMBLES ...... in the brambles is a V12 Jaguar ..... THE OWNER ... says i can have it if i cut the brambles away ... .... but i do not have the space to work on it ..... A group project ?... Join the project ? Form a project team ..... A V12 JAGUAR DISSOLVING AWAY WHILE WE DO NOTHING ........ ... Any engineers, Jag fans, etc ... OUT THERE .................. ?
 

Venod

Eh up
Location
Yorkshire
I had driven quite a few automatics but not for a long time, I was never that keen, but my shoulder is not going to improve so this Volvo V40 we have is automatic, I and the wife are converts, so easy to drive and if you want the gear stick experience stick it in sport mode and drive it as a manual albeit without the clutch, but sport mode is used very little as it lively enough without.
 

keithmac

Guru
Our Ford with the Powershift (Twin Clutch 6 speed) was lovely to drive, instant gear changes BUT nearly £4000 lighter when it went wrong.

Been driving Auto for 3 years so was a shock driving the manual LGV Minibus (gearbox is like stirring porridge and pedals are stupidly close together..).
 

PeteXXX

Cake or ice cream? The choice is endless ...
Location
Hamtun
My Scania G450 is 12 speed Auto with flappy paddle manual override if I so desire.
Beats changing 6 full gears and 6 half gears in a manual box!!
All I use my left foot for is tapping time to the music as I bimble along the highway.. 👍🏼
 

keithmac

Guru
Even though I've driven Auto for 3 years I still cross the toes on my left foot to remind me not to mash the brake pedal like a clutch!.

Salesman's face was a picture when he nearly headbutted the windscreen on first test drive..
 
Even though I've driven Auto for 3 years I still cross the toes on my left foot to remind me not to mash the brake pedal like a clutch!.
Salesman's face was a picture when he nearly headbutted the windscreen on first test drive..
I guess many first time auto drivers have done that. I know I did !
Wife did that a few times, when we first got the XKR:okay:
I was in the habit of crossing my left foot behind my right leg
Mindst you the 'fly-off' handbrake was another matter:blush:
(it was located between driver seat & door sill, mainly due to transmission tunnel
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Dsg for me, prefer it over a slush box.
As far as I know, all of the present YAS Octavia Scouts are DSG, & quite a few of their 'big yellow 'trucks' are also autos




Have had experience of various autos and the best had to be my 4ltr Jeep Cherokee. It felt like it instantly delivered all the power straight to the wheels, in a most satisfying manner. It's not just the engine size that was responsible, the gearbox must have been set up just perfectly to match the engine. Around the same time a friend let me try their 4ltr Defender 90 50th anniversary edition. I was so excited about trying the full V8 experience but it was a total let down. Felt like the rubber band thing described above, lots of revs and sound, but not much of it went to the wheels to throw the car down the road. Both cars had similar power outputs but while one was perfectly set up the other felt like the transmission was a collection of disparate pieces just randomly thrown together.
Have also owned a couple of diesel autos in recent years and again both satisfyingly quick and refined/calm.
I still love to jump in my manual diesel Landrover though :okay:
I've not tried the 50th Anniversary Defender
It was almost the NAS spec, as a RHD

My old Discovery was a 50th Anniversary model
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Was/is your Landie like this?
My very first was; a 1969 2A Light-Weight

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