Manual or automatic? This has always been a question lingering in the minds of motorists especially for those who are buying their first car for the first time. But whatever kind of transmission you plan to buy, keep in mind that it’s always for your good use. You may decide to go automatic because you feel that you’re too old to battle against the gridlock of EDSA; or manual because it’s economical and offers cheaper parts costing.
Here’s the difference between the two to guide you to choose the best one to fit for your lifestyle:
MANUAL TRANSMISSION (or known as “Stick Shift”). This is one of the most common uses of transmission. The manual transmission or MT requires driver to push down the clutch pedal and change gears using shifter. The only disadvantage is that the driver continually coordinates with clutch and gears—which is why this is called a “stick shift.”
© Grimmer Motors
Despite the effortless features of automatic transmission, some guys do prefer manual drives for 4 reasons:
Cheaper Maintenance. Yes that’s true. Whether you like it or not, manual cars requires small maintenance and repairs are not that costly.
Fuel Efficiency. Some won’t agree with this as some automatic transmission cars provide better fuel mileage. Overall, manual transmission has an edge over the automatic one, simply because of their control on the gears. As a result, you’ll end up getting a better mileage compared to automatic tranny.
Drivers Stability and Control. We all know that automatic transmission is like an automated machine—they are designed to select the best gear in any condition. But sometimes they make their own mistakes on the side by switching to higher gear. Hence, waste more engine power. Meantime, manual tranny gives drivers greater control over the vehicle.
Cheaper Price. Automatic transmission is far more expensive than manual ones. On average, a manual tranny will cost you a cheaper price compared to automatic.
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. On the automatic transmission, the gears shift automatically. The driver is allowed to put the car into “drive” and the automatic transmission will do the job for them. However, there are certain advantages over manual transmissions in several key areas:
Easy to use. Obviously, the automatic transmission is much easier than the manual tranny. All you need to do is to focus on the steering wheel and gas, and the car simply runs.
Uphill Drive. Navigating steep inclines is normal to any driver. However, this serves as a graduation rite for any motorist. In the case of automatic transmission, this is not a problem at all. All you need to do is to let the “D” mode operate efficiently.
Heavy Traffic? No Problem! This is one of the best features of automatic transmission. You don’t need to step any amount of gas during traffic. All you need to do is to press and balance the brake during traffic hours.
Clearly, automatic transmission systems are not designed for lazy drivers as those who favor the stick shift claim. Rather, they were made for those who want to experience total driving satisfaction.
With all those guide that we listed, you are now starting to understand the value of manual and automatic transmission. In a long run, you can choose both depending on your suit of preferences.
*Primary Image: Driving-tests.org
