Auto or manual - learning to drive.

MEM62

Learn in a manual and she has a choice as to what she drives.  Learn in an auto and she can only drive an auto.  No-brainer for me.  

Mildly_Miffed

WIAWSNB said:

My take is that clutch-vs-auto is only around 5% of the whole driving process, and if she goes 'man' then she can drive anything, here and abroad. And, the 'future' ain't here yet.

Agreed.

70% of cars on UK roads are manual box.
The proportion in new cars is dropping rapidly - not just because of hybrids and BEVs, but also amongst pure ICE vehicles - down from 51% in 2019 to 22% in 2024... but it's still significant. And if ever she wants to hire a van... Or hire a car in many holiday destinations.

As others have said - the actual changing of gear, and clutch control, is such a small part of being a competent driver... Understanding the relationship between engine revs and road speed, and how they feed into car control, is still relevant in a two-pedal car.

She'll also have a narrower choice of instructors if she insists on auto-only.

shera12

I’d say stick with manual if she’s planning to drive a lot and might need flexibility later. Learning on a manual means she can drive anything, here or abroad.Autos are great for convenience, but they’re not essential unless traffic or personal preference really pushes that way. Seems sensible to keep options open and choose the best overall car.

paul_c123

WIAWSNB said:

MyRealNameToo said:

Historically I would have strongly agreed that everyone should learn manual even if the intend to only ever own autos. In the past I would avoid autos in favour of manuals. 

Having owned an auto and now thinking of getting electric I am much more on the fence. I still think manual is probably better but the wife for example just went for an auto licence. There are still some places in the world where manual is the norm but they typically arent places where Id probably hire a car. It does give you more flexibility but you dont necessarily need that flexibility

The future is auto, no question. I even have my own very first auto after 50 years of manuals.

But, the future ain't here yet. And the cars I am looking to buy for daughter are overwhelmingly manual. 

I've concluded there's no good reason to learn only auto at her age. 

I'd agree with the above. The problem is, a lot of recent learners HAVE done an auto-only test, meaning that there is a big demand for small/cheap auto cars at the moment. Much more of a demand than there is a supply of them, resulting in prices going up and up. For at least 5-7 years its going to be really restricting for choosing cars. Of course, there is always the option of doing the test again but it would be hopelessly cost ineffective and long-winded compared to just starting out driving a manual.

Also many jobs (not just driving jobs) in the future might require driving, and it might be a manual company vehicle.

WIAWSNB

paul_c123 said:

I'd agree with the above. The problem is, a lot of recent learners HAVE done an auto-only test, meaning that there is a big demand for small/cheap auto cars at the moment. Much more of a demand than there is a supply of them, resulting in prices going up and up. For at least 5-7 years its going to be really restricting for choosing cars. Of course, there is always the option of doing the test again but it would be hopelessly cost ineffective and long-winded compared to just starting out driving a manual.

Also many jobs (not just driving jobs) in the future might require driving, and it might be a manual company vehicle.

Thanks all - and very good additional observations, Paul, and van-hire, MMiffed.

MyRealNameToo

paul_c123 said:
Of course, there is always the option of doing the test again but it would be hopelessly cost ineffective and long-winded compared to just starting out driving a manual.

For the average person probably but not everyone. 

If you are struggling to learn (let's avoid the argument of if they should be learning at all) then taking the gears out of the question can make it much easier. Once you then have confidence and decide to go back and tackle gears again then it can be much easier. 

My Aunt did exactly that, though I have no idea why. Failed her manual test more than 8 times over 20 years (not consistently having lessons). Passed her test within a month or two of switching to auto and then later passed her manual test after only 2 more lessons a year later. If she drove more than 10 times after passing her test I'd be surprised but she achieved her dream of owning/driving a classic mini and her husband (6'10) was happy as he couldn't fit in her car so never had to experience her driving. 

twopenny

Your daughter is young. She will find it easy to learn manual.

She has a life ahead with all sorts of opportunities like travel, work, hiring cars and campervan that may find she can only get a manual.
When you're young  it's worth taking as many skills as you can to open up the world to you.

I did the minibus test in my late 40s when the chance came. Very useful.

victor2

DD didn't learn to drive until in her 30s, and found a manual a bit of a challenge, so switched to automatic. Passed her test first time in an auto with reversing camera and has driven the same ever since. There's so much choice with automatics these days it isn't an issue. Lessons did cost a little bit more as there weren't as many instructors around with autos, but this was several years ago.

chrisw

I always had manuals, then an auto, now a high power EV. Whilst an auto is a relaxing daily drive, I still take my wife's manual car out now and again just to enjoy the driving experience.

I'm always amazed at how simple it is to switch between the two without a second thought.

SiliconChip

Mildly_Miffed said:

WIAWSNB said:

My take is that clutch-vs-auto is only around 5% of the whole driving process, and if she goes 'man' then she can drive anything, here and abroad. And, the 'future' ain't here yet.

And if ever she wants to hire a van... 

As it happens the last van I hired (4 years ago) was an auto, brand new (I was the first hirer), very easy to drive. I suspect that with the increasing number of auto-only licence holders hire companies are having to offer more autos across all categories in order to keep their customer numbers up.