Manual or Automatic to learn to drive?

goldspanners

flyingscotno1 wrote: »

Automatics have their fair share but even in Paris the taxis I got were manual- despite hacking through Parisian traffic. Mind you the auto wouldn't have allowed him to rev the nuts off it!

paris is all about the 0 to 20 mph, the quicker you can get from 5 lanes in to 2 lanes then that makes you the winner. paris is great but f**k driving there. they take the term "bumper" literally when parked.

custardy

jeannieblue wrote: »

Agree Scotty that the DSG box is good. Re other small cars with 'so called auto boxes that aren't' - well they are rubbish, as we all know.

I'm not anti manual at all - I drive either. I just get so mad when people have a go at an OP when they say they want to learn to drive in an auto. Why not? They get really pushed and pressured by 'manual only' drivers on this forum that I can't help but stick up for them. I have never ever had a problem hiring an auto in europe or other countries (obviously not the States, it is standard there! Costs you more for a stick shift - if they have one!).

I drive auto mainly now, which is a blessing in my commute to work. Its a fully automatic, not a silly car. And I don't care that my road tax is more - I've given up worrying about being ripped off by the government!

its not having a go its sensible advice giving a more future proof licence
ive known a few people over the years with auto only licences and it often caused hassle with the likes of renting,courtesy cars

Kimberley

jeannieblue wrote: »

We love a debate on here!

Are you going to tell us what you have decided?

Oh yes, i'm going to learn and pass in an Automatic and then go for the manual when i've had a year or two on the road.

vikingaero

flyingscotno1 wrote: »

Learn to drive a manual car. You will regret it if you do not in the future. I knew someone who did, struggled to get decent used small cars.

Whilst 'it cannot be hard to find automatics', you are often limited in car choice, engine or range choice and I believe the car has to be fully automatic- VW Golfs etc with clutchless manuals would not be permitted even though that is their automatic box with a manual override. I'm willing to be corrected on that however.

If you have an automatic only licence you can the car does not have to be fully automatic. A clutchless manual is permitted. This is sometime along the lines of the Fiats Dualogic, Toyotas MultiModeTransmission etc.

The DVLA's key differentiation that allows you to drive a clutchless manual is the absence of a clutch pedal.

vikingaero

Regarding the fuel consumption of automatics: with traditional torque converter automatics the fuel consumption is nearly always worse than a manual car.

On clutchless manuals the fuel consumption is nearly always 1-3mpg better than a conventional manual gearbox because the clutchless mechanism is far more efficient than the human at changing gear.

That said, some people find clutchless manuals to be horrible. You really need to test drive one for a long test drive to see if it's for you. If the salesman refuses then find another dealer who is more accommodating or walk. A car is a big purchase and needs to be right. There was a guy on Honest John who owned a first generation Toyota Yaris with a conventional automatic gearbox. He replaced it with a current generation Yaris with a MMT box and sold it after a few months because he couldn't get on with it.

With regard to the arguments of learning to drive in a manual or auto - do what you think is right for you. There are a lot of people who don't understand that some folks just won't be able to pass a test unless they do it in an automatic - almost a manual !!!!!! If it will help you pass easier and be a more confident driver in an automatic then do so.

mcjordi

i passed in a manual car..

i would say go for a manual license and you can drive either then

moneymabel

Hi Kimberly,
First-best of luck for your lesson!
I started to learn to drive in a manual at the age of 30, loads of lessons later was still having problems with the clutch and it was costing me a fortune in lessons with no progress. I switched to automatic and passed my test first time 6 weeks later with 1 minor (for not checking mirror)
I thought i would take my manual test at a later date but now at the age of 37 I havent bothered because I never needed to. I learnt in a Nissan Micra W reg, then after the test had a Rover mini,another older micra, a BMW MINI, back to a 2005 Micra and now I have a Nissan Figaro-all Automatic,all easy to find and all reliable (apart from the bmw MINI but thats a whole different story!)

If you're after a car I can thoroughly recommend Micras-they are extrememly reliable and the gearboxes are great.

Hope to see your 'I passed my test ' post on here vv soon!

audbod38

Good luck with the lessons, ive just passed my test ,but after 2nd lesson i wanted to change to learn in an automatic cos i thought id never get the hang of a manual. My instructor persuaded me to stick with it and i passed first time after 14 two hour lessons, so didnt take me as long as i thought it would.

Kimberley

moneymabel wrote: »

Hi Kimberly,
First-best of luck for your lesson!
I started to learn to drive in a manual at the age of 30, loads of lessons later was still having problems with the clutch and it was costing me a fortune in lessons with no progress. I switched to automatic and passed my test first time 6 weeks later with 1 minor (for not checking mirror)
I thought i would take my manual test at a later date but now at the age of 37 I havent bothered because I never needed to. I learnt in a Nissan Micra W reg, then after the test had a Rover mini,another older micra, a BMW MINI, back to a 2005 Micra and now I have a Nissan Figaro-all Automatic,all easy to find and all reliable (apart from the bmw MINI but thats a whole different story!)

If you're after a car I can thoroughly recommend Micras-they are extrememly reliable and the gearboxes are great.

Hope to see your 'I passed my test ' post on here vv soon!

Thank you

Kimberley

audbod38 wrote: »

Good luck with the lessons, ive just passed my test ,but after 2nd lesson i wanted to change to learn in an automatic cos i thought id never get the hang of a manual. My instructor persuaded me to stick with it and i passed first time after 14 two hour lessons, so didnt take me as long as i thought it would.

That means you had 28 lessons? Well done you, it took my brother 40 lessons hee hee