Manual transmission in 2007 traffic ... still exhilarating or tedious monotony?

Living in London makes the manual transmission a real pain in the A**, you have traffic lights every 50 meters sometimes less and when you add other cars, bus lanes and pedestrian crossings driving an auto suddenly becomes a very attractive proposition, My perfect combination will be manual for the traffic free drives ( e.g. Off peak driving times or motorway journeys) and Auto for everything else.
( my left thigh is more developed than my right from all the years of manual transmission driving in london:)
If you live in or have to commute into and out of LA or Atlanta GA i can understand the Auto thing but the rest of the usa i have been to has no need for real enthusiasts to buy an auto.
Just my Opinion.

— I95SPEEDINGTICKETS (View Profile)

Posted on 8/15/2006 11:31:19 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

I live in a big city that has one of the worst traffic bottlenecks as well as longest average commute time in the country. To drive with a stick shift was fun during youth and before having to earn a living. A few years after entering the work force I switched to automatics and the rest is history.

I read from a posting here that Germans are the exact opposite in that the majority of car buyers choose manual which is an interesting contrast.

— nextGen (View Profile)

Posted on 8/15/2006 11:57:50 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

I think one person should have two cars, one for the commuting he has to go through everyday and the other for the drive. Of course there are cars that can do both very well, but shifting in traffic is not that great because you are not going fast. It especially sucks if you live in San Francisco or some place like that.

— kart1 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 12:02:05 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 2   

a good manual car to have, if ur not gonna commute w/ it is a MX-5.

— mstangpny07 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 12:28:29 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Manual is over-rated

— Jovi (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 12:34:26 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

That is why the DSG brings best of both worlds.

— chewy (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 12:48:24 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

I am a stickler for clutch action.
I live in a resort area with traffic, yet both my 280ZX Turbo and 4Runner are manuals.

I guess I'll probably be the last holdout in the U.S., a virtual old-school dinosaur.

— UPshift (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 12:58:10 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

or I'll just get old and say "the heck with it."

— UPshift (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 1:00:11 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

efoxS4

I had to get an old car to play with. It's fun, though!

— UPshift (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 1:01:27 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Will

I disagree. I prefer to drive my car instead of it driving me.

Having a mechanical clutch/transmission interface puts you in touch with exactly what the car is doing at a particular instance. As good as the manumatics are (I have driven a few), they can't match the feel or satisfaction of a perfect shift under power. Plastic paddles or + and - gates don't feel substantial enough. I've driven manuals since I was a teen, so it is second nature to me, in fact, I have only owned one automatic. It made me feel like a passenger instead of a driver.

I would hope those who post here are more than "point a to point b" drivers.

— UPshift (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 2:17:26 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Will, I suppose BMW doesnt have Auto?

— Jovi (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 3:20:14 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

My 530i (E39) is a manual - and I am 54 years of age. I am now wishing I had gotten an automatic instead (also because of the wife) since most of my driving is within the city. However, out in the open country, the pleasure of owning a manual BMW becomes apparent. You can't help but feel good and you enjoy the car.

Well, that said. I am probably looking for a new car in a few years. Perhaps the new Mercedes CL-Class, which IMO looks really beautiful - and it's automatic too.

— BMW530i (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 5:21:10 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

DSG will make the stick shift go the way of the handcrank. The tripedalist of the world will soon be a fading memory.

— PlanoA4 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 8:24:55 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

audi fans, i'm sorry to tel you, but my dad has just got (today) a 740 (last gen) so bmws are now the best cars in the world etc.

my mother had a manual saab in london, but found it very annoying. she prefers autos now.
the stats must be differnt for other countries though, the US has always been auto-friendly.

— Rupert (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 9:10:09 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Have a 2007 335i w/manual tranny on order. An automatic would be sac religious!

— BavarianMotorrad (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 9:33:32 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

I agree with will

— Lexlover (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 9:58:32 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Manual is the way to go, always. Unless you drive a SUV or a complete family hauler (ie Lexus or Camry--relax Toyota boys, that was a joke) manual is the only choice for somebody who likes to drive. The small amount of time you spend sitting in traffic pales in comparison to the fun you have while driving a manual with aggression. Automatics take all the fun and excitement out of a car. DSG, SMG are a compromise, but give me a regular manual anyday.

— phantom330 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 10:11:54 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

The same reason you buy a car with a true manual transmission is because you want to. Sure you can complain sometimes about traffic, but that's part of buying a manual, it won't be fun all the time.

Same thing for people that buy a big truck or SUV, they can complain about gas prices a little but you don't buy it for the MPG rating.

I like manuals but as the years pass I have moved to DSG.

— Mark (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 10:35:14 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Rupert:

I think the Last Gen 7-Series was BMW's best looking model ever. Does he have a 740i or 740iL?

— mstangpny07 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 10:47:13 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

You enjoy a manual in moderate, not light or non-existent traffic. Case in point. Recently I embarked on a sixty mile drive. Traffic was really light. As expected, I went through all the gears in about a mile. I did not touch the gearshift again for another fifty-five miles, same as an automatic. But if the traffic was moderately heavy, hmmmm.....

— Maxim (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 12:41:30 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

^maxim: What were you in?

— mstangpny07 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 1:49:48 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

just a 740, but it's got the sat nav and comfort seats (which are very comfortable)
i agree, i think it looks so good. expensive, but not ostentatious.
best looking ever? yes. better than the current bmws, that's for sure.
and it goes like sh*t off a shovel (well it feels it after coming from a range rover)

— Rupert (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 3:50:29 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

A 2004 Saab 9-3 Linear. I was on 1-270 to I 70 in Maryland, headed for Hagerstown, MD.

— Maxim (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 3:54:19 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Maxim:
I have an '04 9-3 Arc convertible. Automatic, though. I get 24mpg! Question: Do you get a lot of recalls in the mail? Iv'e gotten four just about the key fob.Car hasn't given me any trouble, except when I try to put up the front windows w/ the top down; the windows hit the weather stripping on the windshield frame, think it's a solid object, and auto-reverses halfway down. (It's like if I were to put my finger there, and it would hit it and go down. But it's darn rubber seal!)

— mstangpny07 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/16/2006 10:59:02 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

I am happy with my steptronic. BTW Saabs are still POS too much cowl shake and low quality. Hauls ass though.

— vcowman (View Profile)

Posted on 8/17/2006 11:02:02 AM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Cold dead hands my you will pry a manual from

— Soho (View Profile)

Posted on 8/17/2006 9:38:57 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1   

Manuals are not practical in city driving. Manumatics are pointless as well.

imo, for everyday drivers, autos will always out-accelerate a manual.

— huu76 (View Profile)

Posted on 8/19/2006 2:58:42 PM | reply to this comment | Votes: 1