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Should You Use An Automatic Or A Manual Transmission?

JackieA
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Posted on: Thu, 05/27/2010 - 3:25am

It's one of the great debates in purchasing a automobile: manual vs. automatic. Most people under 30 in the United States were never really taught to drive a manual transmission automobile. This partially accounts for the fact that 82 percent of the automobiles sold in the United States have automatic transmissions. If you are looking at purchasing a car, what kind of transmission should you search for?

Standard transmission benefits

The manual transmission, otherwise known as a "stick shift" or "standard transmission," was the first type of transmission available in autos. A manual transmission relies on the driver to disengage, change, and re-engage the transmission. Manual transmissions take slightly a lot more work to operate, however they provide some benefits. Cars with manual transmissions get about 10 percent better gas mileage than their automatic counterparts. Manual transmission automobiles are generally about $ 700 less, and they give you a lot more control in tough driving conditions.

Automatic transmission cars

Easier to drive in stop-and-go traffic and accessible in most cars, an automatic transmission has definite benefits. Gears are less likely to get stripped as a driver is learning to operate an automatic transmission. By using one foot instead of two, you will be able to react to situations more easily in an automatic transmission vehicle. In general, an automatic transmission is easier to find at automobile dealers also. The technology for automatic transmissions is getting better, and this is the only type of transmission accessible in most hybrid autos.

Manumatic transmissions

By combining features of both a manual and automatic transmission, a manumatic is a third alternative. There are numerous different types and brand names for these in-between transmissions. Instead of using a clutch controlled by the driver, these transmissions use a torque converter to change the gears within an engine. A manumatic allows for the driver to change the gears as they wish, though. Vehicles on the higher end of the price spectrum are the ones most likely to feature manumatic transmissions.