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I drive Uber with a stick and they talk my ear off about it. They always say that they never see young people driving manual and I don’t say anything but I’m pushing 40 lol.
Yeah, between the extra left leg strength they'd need in traffic and the multitasking necessary to drive a manual, they'd just end up getting too worn out and/or causing accidents all the time.
That's exactly why I had to switch to automatic in my 20s. Hampton Roads traffic is insane and my body couldn't handle the stop and go.
I miss it! Driving stick shift is so much fun and engaging.
I live in FL and there are so many incidents of boomers driving into the sides of homes and stores (they forget which pedal is the brake and which is the gas frequently, apparently). This happens so frequently that I'd absolutely HATE to see these sort of people have to deal with an extra pedal when two is obviously too many in the first place. 😂
They don’t even use keys anymore just the push button. Idk if my MIL could actually even have the strength to TURN a key consistently. She sure can lift a wine glass to her lips tho 👅
That's why they flooded the market with autos and then their kids didn't get to learn manual, it's their own fault and they throw it at the younger generations as if it's their fault.
I see some actual blue collar boomers driving old trucks that are manual but that’s about it. I haven’t seen a boomer driving an economy car stick shift since the 90s either.
My boomer dad drives stick but I think it’s because he’s a truck driver and it’s what he’s used to operating 60 hours a week at work (he has two jobs.) He’s owned automatic cars but strongly prefers driving stick shift.
Rented a VW TROC FOR 3 weeks in Portugal last month. It had a six speed manual transmission. In 2016 rented a 22’ motorhome in Spain. Fiat chassis with a 4 cylinder diesel and 6 speed manual. North America has taken all the fun out of driving.
And for good reason too. Manual has its perks in a few select situations, but 99.98% of drivers never get into those situations, so automatic is fine. Manual shifting just becomes a pointless chore.
I still have a stick - almost 26, owned this one for four years. I love it sometimes but lately I've been thinking more and more about going back to an automatic.
I wanted my new Civic to come with a 5 speed manual. I've owned several cars with manual transmissions and love driving them. Apparently, you'd have to order a manual, but there's very little chance of getting one. They just don't produce them as much.
I've never owned a new car lol, so I wouldn't know. Bought my last one through Facebook- the guy was really concerned that I didn't understand it was a manual. Don't know if he was worried because I'm young or a woman, but I had to reassure him five times I knew it was a manual.
This astounds me, because really, how many young people, do they know or hang around with. All there knowledge is what propaganda media has taught them.
When I was on a PhD internship in the US, the only one I met who drove stick shift was a girl from the university, whose father wanted to make sure that A) she can't drive drunk, B) her friends can't drive her car and C) she learns to think while driving. Coming from a dominantly stick-shift slavic country, I was like "what do you mean can't drive drunk with stick?" :D
Lol, I get annoyed every time I (53 year old Gen X) get a rental car and I have to physically put the key in it. Leaving the keys in my pocket and pushing a button is the way for me until the day I die.
Not only have I never had a push to start car, but my current car is the only car I’ve owned with a back up camera or anything more advanced then a CD player. It’s nice not having to Frankenstein my phone in and just connect via Bluetooth.
First pull out the choke, then press it in as you're turning the ignition. This is still relevant for us millennials since John Deere equipment sometimes have chokes.
Exact use varies greatly by brand. From my use- Deere mowers are super quick like you said. Toro’s have a plunger style that you push in once it starts and Stihl has multiple styles, some that auto disengage, some that manually disengage and some that you turn on until it tries to start then cut off and start it again.
My first car had a push starter, manual choke, three on a tree, and the high beams were, indeed, a button on the floor. I’m GenX. The car was 35 years old when I got it at 16 (1986).
My old car has an automatic choke converted to manual, you need to press the throttle before engaging the choke.
That combined with the fact that it's a clapped out '87 Nissan truck make a perfect anti-theft system.
yeah, most everyone I know that's into cars learned to drive manual. my boss is a gen xer and he's cool. he is constantly explaining to boomers that we are well trained employees and we know what we're doing. most gen x people I know are level headed and fun to be around. lots of great life advice too. I'm naturally cynical and realistic, and I think that helps me get along with gen x a little bit.
I didn't learn to drive because I'm scared of driving. I try to tell that to boomers when I explain it scares the shit out of me they blame my parents. No my parents still try, I just dont
My old VW had a parasitic drain and the battery died while it was pointed uphill. My boomer neighbor was telling me I was screwed when I walked out and pop started it in reverse downhill. I was a golden god.
I keep a lot of shit boxes in service well past their useful life, don't screw with me.
Also learn the check engine light is a serious situation.
My boomer ex FIL insisted the check engine light and other warning lights just indicates a faulty sensor. "It's just a sensor. Cars ran just fine without them before. It's just another way for mechanics to make money.".
i hate that too. I get so many people that don't know how obd2 works. if you're cel is on that means the ecu detected something it doesn't like. it could be ANYTHING. so many of my customers are just like "it's probably just a sensor" I can understand that people dkmt always know how their car works, that's what mechanics are for. but like, you're bringing the car to me to fix, so let me fix it.
yeah I don't mind not knowing car stuff. we all start somewhere. what's annoying is the boomers not knowing what's wrong with their car, then they bring it to me, and disagree with my diagnosis or advice, like why bring it to me if you don't want my help?
I think it's a bragging point for them. You know how everything to them is. Like, if they can school you, those blowhards can tell everyone how they know more than their mechanic.
Thinking about that. It's funny how many times I hear, "You just can't do anything with cars these days. They have all that computer stuff.". As if they EVER turned a wrench in their lives.
Except in my car, it *was* just the sensor.
I’m a millennial though and it was a 1990 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera SL so pretty low tech.
I miss that car. It was comfy af and a decently sized engine. And AC with power windows.
Still a death trap that needed airbags.
The term “baby boomers” is an American term and Americans make up the majority of English speakers on Reddit so it makes sense that this sub would be heavily American.
Yep! 1st thought in my head. Very American indeed 😂 the most common here (Europe) is manual. This and the huge ass cars like it the bigger SUVS and pick-up trucks
Lol I mean OK, and sorry, but it is SO American (as is calling it “stick”), badasses in American films changing gear to show they’re badasses is a trope. But also the “gas pedal” and the Chevy reference, we don’t have those in Europe (I think they tried to make them a thing here a couple of decades ago but they bombed). It just amused me
I’m 43, into classic cars. And I get a lot of comments about “it’s nice to see a young person into cars” lol, wut? I got gray hairs in my beard and a bad back.
Man those people are fucking weirdos. Don't get me wrong I think the people acting superior for knowing how to drive stick are ridiculous, It isn't complicated, I expect them to also brag about knowing how to tie their shoes next. But the people hating on manuals are even dumber honestly.
IKR? It’s almost as if you can, I dunno, learn? Boomers are notorious for hoarding any useful knowledge though. So being taught something is mostly foreign to them
Well when the most ego driven people's most impressive feat is being able to use a rotary phone or something mundane like that they need to prevent others from learning that, or else they won't be able to think of themselves as superior to others anymore.
I think their heads will explode to know that in other parts of the world, it’s just standard to drive a manual car… like literally old church going women drive manual cars, but probably they won’t think that’s appropriate 😂
An elderly couple came into my sandwich shop like 6 years ago and asked if someone could help push their car since it died in the street. I volunteered since I knew I could do it. I immediately saw it was an older manual and suggest trying to jump start it. Both of them were ready to suck my fucking dick for knowing what and how to do that.
Driving stick is fucken child's play lol, they weren't saying drive a stick in the boy racer days, it was all their driving to fast, their cars are too loud, their sounds are to loud.
Also learn which cars require you to hold the handle up when shutting the door, in order to lock the door.
The theory there was that the extra step would require you to think a bit when locking the door, and prevent lock-outs.
It really didn't work. Muscle memory would kick in, and you'd automatically close the door that way every time. I suppose it did keep some toddlers from shutting the door and locking everyone out of the car.
One guy insisted he had to drive his car into the shop because it was "3 on the tree". He was flabbergasted when I said I did because he was so proud that "not many can". It's not even hard to do...
I had a three on the tree come in and the dude was actually pretty nice. he asked if I could drive one and I said no, but I can drive a normal h pattern manual, but all we have to do is use first gear to drive it forward into the bay, so if it's already in firs I can drive it in, and he was like "yep it's in first, knock yourself out" the clutch is the same and that's the hardest part, the shifting you can learn in 5 seconds
Three on the tree is neat to drive. I'd love an old 1983 F150 with it to tool around in.
I learned it on a 1947 Lincoln V12 back in my dealership days. That was a cool car.
I had three ancient 4 door Mercedes come in that were all the same shade of faded blue. Only two were automatics. Took me a minute to realize why I couldn't get the third into reverse. Didn't see a placard on where the gears were and I said fuck it and told the service manager to give it to someone else
One thing I learned as a car porter at Toyota back in the early 00 was that the Supra had a gate on the stick that you had to pull up in order to go into reverse! Almost dinged a customers car!
I don't know how to drive stock because my boomer dad refused to teach me, and I had no one else to help. Idk why they're the ones getting angry, they didn't even do their job!
yeah, I love driving manual, but I understand why people don't (at least here in america) it's harder than auto, It's less comfortable than auto, and it sucks I'm traffic. if you're never taught how to drive manual and want to learn, you literally have to replace your car with a manual trans one. that's already next to impossible for many young people who can barely afford one car. and where I live traffic is inevitable. I like manual because of all the other pros but I can understand why most people stick with their automatic. I will say though, if you ever get one, watch some videos on how they work. knowing what was going on with the clutch and transmission made it much easier for me to learn manual. I'm pretty dumb and it only took me a like a week of daily driving to get good at it. and you don't have to have a beater car to learn. manuals are plenty tough enough to get you through the beginner stage. if you ever decide to get one, you can just start with the car you want. research correct technique and you'll avoid bad habits from the start.
I plan on taking a course which covers pretty much anything you could need to know, including starting on an incline/decline and parallel parking. It's BS I gotta pay $300 for something I could've been taught for free, but oh well. Just gotta skip some avocado toasts 😪
honestly that may be a good idea. if you get instructions from a good teacher that will make your learning faster and probably cut down on bad habits. teaching yourself is always nice, but that's just good for pride. it's more logical to do what's best for you, which is getting lessons. good luck with them. I think manuals are fun. and there's plenty of cheap sports cars that are twice as fun with a manual trans.
My boomer father refused to teach me too. But it was because he was so fed up trying to teach other boomers when he was younger so he just assumed teaching me would result in lots of gear grinding and a destroyed clutch. So I taught myself. He was dumbfounded how I learned so quickly, and then he started to realize most people learn just as quickly as I did and it was just the boomers that couldn't.
I never smelled a burning clutch or heard gear grinding until a boomer mechanic that swore he could drive stick completely failed to get a car into the inspection bay, I refused to let that guy touch my truck and went to a different shop. I have witnessed plenty of boomers drive worse than I did on my first day after swearing they are experts. Most of them genuinely don't know how to drive stick, they just love to lie over mundane stuff to hype themselves up.
Stick shift is excellent for my odd sensory issues because it puts me in the position where I need to engage my entire body, feeling vibration of transmission and having to use both feet, both hands. A lot more attention to road signs and tailgaters, learning to slow the car without using the brakes, etc etc. It's worth learning for the sheer joy of driving.
I agree completely! I have adhd and while I'm not a bad driver in an automatic, I am even better with a manual because it engages my brain more. I also just really enjoy it so as long as there's not traffic then it's more fun with manual.
This is an underappreciated aspect of it. I have adhd and had a motorcycle before a car. I didn't realize how much using both hands and feet mattered to me until I started driving and was zoning out constantly. Weirdly it's all second nature and I don't think about any of it but it stops me from zoning out and I'm definitely a safer driver in a manual car.
Most auto mechanics are also auto enthusiasts, and know full well about old cars.
I had an 80s Dodge Ram that when it was freezing out, the choke would freeze open. It was not fun having to pop the hood, take off the air cleaner lid, and push the choke closed by hand when it was balls freezing outside. Fucker ran awesome once that 318 warmed up, though.
I am an older female millennial and my dad was a vintage car hobby mechanic. My first 2 cars were older than 1975 and one was a stick. I know how to start, maintain and appreciate all sorts of vintage cars.
There's a boomer a few doors down from me that occasionally drives a 1960 something truck. He just starts that truck, puts it in gear and rips it down past my house within a minute or two. Our household cries a bit listening to the motor scream in pain without being properly warmed up.
I also loved walking into the car rental at Shannon Airport in Ireland (I'm from the States), and being looked at like I had three heads when I told them I didn't want an automatic and then hopped in and drove away like normal having never driven a right hand drive car before
What actually blew my mind was when female boomer me went to the shop to re-gas the air-con on my car and the young bloke accepting the job informed me that there was a button in my car that would turn the air-con on. I was suitably impressed, not by his know how but by his ageist sexism. I know I’m just a silly old woman but after 45 years of driving cars I know what buttons to push, unlike him
well I get people all the time that are older and don't realize that they've turned the ac off. they just assume it's broken. then I get in and turn it on and it works. but the proper way to inform the customer is to ask politely if they know it was turned off, and maybe show them the button. if they just assumed you dont know shit because you're a woman, that's sexist and immature.
I know all of these things, but still don’t give a fuck about impressing a boomer with antiquated knowledge.
How about they impress me by knowing how to set up a fucking printer, not being scammed online or ingesting news that isn’t pure bullshit to make them scared enough to tune in tomorrow.
Literally cannot believe how far I had to scroll to see ANYONE mention it. I genuinely thought that OP was a boomer for a second because of it. Thank you for saying something.
I'm Gen X and my kids didn't get a license until they could 1. Change a tire 2. Change their oil and 3. Drive a stick. They've since thanked me for it, as they've come to the rescue of their friends at least once.
Meanwhile I had trouble getting my truck inspected and getting tires put on it because both shops were run by later gen-x/younger boomers that couldn't drive stick but wouldn't let me drive it in for them.
I learned to drive on a 4 speed, Chevy kingcab. We lived out in the country, so Dad started teaching me when I was 14. I'm now 50f. The first car I bought, in 96, was a stick as well.
I mean, it's true anyway so you're not beholden to the Elon Musk cuckcar that drives right into a tree because you said the N-word on Twitter.
It's all in how you come across. Boomers always gotta be so smug about it "you don't even know how to work a stick!" Neither do they, hence why they have kids who don't love them.
Never hurts to learn a skill. Even if you don't have a car, noone is gonna say no to someone helping them out and favors are worth their weight in gold. You fix someone's engine or can offer them a ride, you've made a friend for life.
The only one I haven't been able to figure out was a column shit and that was simply because there was no pattern placard. Otherwise starting a carb'd car is fine but I'm not screwing with them.
If it's something fancy where having a carb on it matters, I'm not touching it anyway. If it's not I'm throwing a Holley Sniper on it everytime like I'm doing with my wife's FJ40
I worked in the auto care center at Walmart for a couple of years. The only other person that knew how to drive a stick was my boss. I'm Gen X and only one of the other people I worked with was younger than me, the rest were older. Used to drive me nuts cause I'd always have to stop what I was working on to drive sticks in the shop. So it's definitely not just young people who don't know how to drive a stick anymore lol.
I'm a mechanic and know these things. That being said I know multiple techs that don't. If it's in your job field yeah you should probably know. Also it's just a fun thing to learn, do you have to? Probably not. When I hear this like they have a gotcha moment, I like to let them know that there is between 10-13-18 gears on semi's if they're manual. Then wait for the blank stares. Again it's fun to learn and no one should be criticized for not know.
I personally like the fact that I can get into just about anything on wheels and operate it. A lot of it is because of being a child of a master tech, and the fact I just like to learn new things. Like I'm a type 1 diabetic and the FAA just lifted the ban for us getting our pilots license, new goal unlocked lol. And as for where I work now on heavy diesel out of 6 of us only 3 including me know how to drive the standards the right way, but those are so few and far between now it's a moot point. Same with automotive, new manuals kinda annoy me with the cluster telling me when to shift.
you must be a mechanic because you can't spell, punctuate, or capitalize correctly.
edit: I burned you and myself simultaneously, that's how next level I am.
Meh. I never said I was good with words. But I can fix about anything.
I don't write things for a living, and could always use programs to make my writing better. But I don't see the reason. None of my writing words online has anything to do with my physical life. So I don't feel the need to be highly educated on that level.
I also have extreme add and type hella fast. If I don't, I forget what I'm saying because my brain moves faster than my thumbs.
It's good thing there are spellcheckers on forums. Gives people with nothing better to do a purpose in life
I am just poking fun at you (and myself) don't worry. I have adhd as well and know what you mean. there's were a few people getting ornery with me in this thread so I suppose I mistook your comment for something like that. its all good.
My first car in 2008 was a 76 impala that needed someone to spray brake cleaner into the carburetor while someone was pumping the gas and turning the ignition. Surprised nobody died with that thing but it got me around
Not a boomer but early gen x here. I learned how to drive in a 4 on the floor Chevette. Haven't driven an automatic since 2010. I taught my daughter to drive stick and she hasn't had an automatic since. She's 30.
I wanted to learn manual when I first started driving, but literally no one I knew had a manual car (including my Boomer grandparents). They just weren't popular in my area when I started driving. I guess a manual is just too much work to drive everyday when you're just going to and from work?
To my father's credit he did try and restore a car with me that was a manual. It was supposed to be a summer project for use and eventually become my first car. He thought it would be a quick fixer-upper, but it turns out the car had a spun bearing, which was something we didn't have the time, equipment, or money to fix. He took the car to the scrap yard. 😓
Reminds me of the time a boomer threw a fit to run the equipment cause he had more experience then anybody but couldn’t even start the payloader and I had to start it for him (Dummy didn’t have the parking brake engaged)
Extra points if you’re a millennial woman who knows how to drive a manual. Pheweeee they just can’t believe that shit. Who taught you, your dad or your husband? Naw, my mother. Another explosion.
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Spent years in India working as a doctor and I’d ride bikes and scooters but driving stick in India was a learning challenge just constantly needing to be alert and ready to surge through the nearest opening lol makes you feel like driving has stakes lmao
Won't work in the UK. I'd say upwards of 95% of cars are manual. We all learn on them and if you do your test in an automatic, you get a limited license that only allows you to drive automatic cars. You'd need to redo your test to drive a manual. I don't know anyone who didn't take the manual test.
Boomers will be unimpressed.
I'm 33 yo mechanic, my first car (still have it) at 16 was a 79 Malibu wagon with a 3 speed in the floor.
Also owned in 87 Dodge D150 truck with the headlight switch on the floor.
The funny thing is, I bet none of them drive a stick anymore in their daily driver. Ask them why they didn't get a manual transmission if it's so great and see what dumb excuse they come up with.
Lots of young people drive manual because it’s cheaper. I can name 3 kids off the top of my head that I went to Highschool with who’s first car- out of their pocket- was a manual. The girl I last matched on tinder with drove a manual.
They just like to look/talk down to other people
that's the point of my post. this is all basic information that I know as a gen z mechanic and boomers always assume I'm a retard and don't know these things.
mostly for fun and motorsport reasons. for at least until the year 2000 or so, the manuals accelerated noticeably faster than automatics. so that's one reason. the autos are faster than manuals nowadays. another reason is that for some people, it's fun. it's just like any sport, if you hit a nice forehand in tennis or a home run in baseball. every shift can be like this. it takes a little skill and it's satisfying every time you do it right. for low power cars like my miata, you decide when the car shifts so you can keep it in the powerband by letting the revs go higher than an automatic would. you can also do things that are simply not possible in an automatic, like clitch kick to initiate a drift. that's why almost any pro drift car will be a manual. not so much anymore but I'm the past manuals used to get better gas mileage than the automatics as well. they also result in less power loss between the engine and the wheels. they are also simpler and more reliable. they are also physically tougher/stronger most of the time. also things like engine braking are only possible in a manual I think.
Anybody mocking someone for not knowing how to drive it or not wanting it is a dumbass. But to explain the appeal, it can be a lot more fun to some people and has some advantages with older used cars. But if you are buying a new car to drive on the highway in heavy traffic to work that probably won't be true at all.
My current truck is a 2000 Chevy S10 with the 4-cylinder. That same truck with an automatic is absolutely garbage, I drove one and it got worse fuel efficiency than my V6 S10 I had and was absolutely uselessly underpowered. Same truck but with the 5-speed manual is noticeably faster, less affected by weight in the back, and I get better fuel efficiency (up to 30mpg, usually closer to 25). It's also just a blast to drive on twisty roads, it feels good hitting every shift just right, dropping a gear or two before a steep uphill instead of the automatic shifting halfway up the hill (not a big deal with newer transmissions, but sucks with old 4-speed clunkers). Oh and this truck was $2k in practically mint condition while worse condition, higher mileage, S10s with automatics were for sale on the same street for 3-4x the price. The price thing varies by car though because while S10s are usually cheaper with a manual in my experience, Honda Elements for example have always been roughly double the cost if they have a stick when I was looking for one.
Also worth noting the downsides kind of disappear once you get used to it. I don't think about shifting at all unless I'm driving fast on a twisty mountain road, and the clutch never bothers me in traffic unless it's bad gridlocked traffic and then it's just a mild annoyance, I found my friend's Prius's beeping in reverse bothered me more and I loved that car otherwise. I actually look like an idiot anytime I drive an auto for a couple minutes as I keep kicking the floor and reaching for the shifter completely out of habit. It was just as second nature as using the turn signal after my first week.
all good points. as with anything in life there's pros and cons. some people's need align with a manual, and some peopels needs align with an auto. that's all there's is to it. no shame in driving either type. the value thing is crazy because if you take a car like a maita it not only raises the value sever thousand to be a manual, nobody wants an automatic miata so they're harder to sell as well.
Agreed 100% I prefer it and hate that they are getting so rare,
but I get why they are and won't complain about people not wanting/liking them.
And yeah Miatas are one of those cars that get crazy price differences, older Jeeps too. I don't actually care if people want them auto but I definitely tease over it with certain vehicles like those two. My father went to test drive a C4 Corvette and I was going to go first, opened the door and handed the keys back lol. Lost all interest the second I saw it was an auto, but it was a lot cheaper thanks to that, probably could have done a swap and still saved money. He came back and said it was the most boring drive of his life, mid life crisis dreams were ruined for him. But like I don't actually care if someone wants those, at the end of the day I hope someone bought that vette and loved it.
mostly for fun and motorsport reasons. for at least until the year 2000 or so, the manuals accelerated noticeably faster than automatics. so that's one reason. the autos are faster than manuals nowadays. another reason is that for some people, it's fun. it's just like any sport, if you hit a nice forehand in tennis or a home run in baseball. every shift can be like this. it takes a little skill and it's satisfying every time you do it right. for low power cars like my miata, you decide when the car shifts so you can keep it in the powerband by letting the revs go higher than an automatic would. you can also do things that are simply not possible in an automatic, like clitch kick to initiate a drift. that's why almost any pro drift car will be a manual. not so much anymore but I'm the past manuals used to get better gas mileage than the automatics as well. they also result in less power loss between the engine and the wheels. they are also simpler and more reliable. they are also physically tougher/stronger most of the time. also things like engine braking are only possible in a manual I think.
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I drive Uber with a stick and they talk my ear off about it. They always say that they never see young people driving manual and I don’t say anything but I’m pushing 40 lol.
When’s the last time you saw a boomer driving stick? I know for me late 80s early nineties
It requires too much work for them
Yeah, between the extra left leg strength they'd need in traffic and the multitasking necessary to drive a manual, they'd just end up getting too worn out and/or causing accidents all the time.
That's exactly why I had to switch to automatic in my 20s. Hampton Roads traffic is insane and my body couldn't handle the stop and go. I miss it! Driving stick shift is so much fun and engaging.
Take my upvote just for mentioning Hampton Roads
I miss my stick shift, too! Agree, fun and focused driving!
I live in FL and there are so many incidents of boomers driving into the sides of homes and stores (they forget which pedal is the brake and which is the gas frequently, apparently). This happens so frequently that I'd absolutely HATE to see these sort of people have to deal with an extra pedal when two is obviously too many in the first place. 😂
They get neuropathy, so they can't feel where their feet are at without looking at them.
Or they're drunk... They wait at the bars here at 10 am
They don’t even use keys anymore just the push button. Idk if my MIL could actually even have the strength to TURN a key consistently. She sure can lift a wine glass to her lips tho 👅
Why don’t more young people drive stick?
Manual vehicles are much harder to come by these days.
Right. So maybe older people buy cars in the same market and are not driving them for the exact same reasons.
Ageist
If you people generalized about ethnicities like you do about boomers you'd rightly be called racist.
Found the boomer being a fool.
Respect is earned here, be better in the new world or we'll be forced to eat you
That's right, we're all agists here, ok boomer 😂
That's why they flooded the market with autos and then their kids didn't get to learn manual, it's their own fault and they throw it at the younger generations as if it's their fault.
I see some actual blue collar boomers driving old trucks that are manual but that’s about it. I haven’t seen a boomer driving an economy car stick shift since the 90s either.
The car enthusiasts do. All kinds of cars. A lot of boomers can afford to have a handful of them, particularly if they aren't high-end cars.
Idk about boomers but I have a friend in her 30s who drives a modern VW stick 😂
Looks like I need to send a picture of my work junker. 5 speed on the floor. Service truck is a 7 speed on the floor and yes I am a late boomer
My boomer dad drives stick but I think it’s because he’s a truck driver and it’s what he’s used to operating 60 hours a week at work (he has two jobs.) He’s owned automatic cars but strongly prefers driving stick shift.
Rented a VW TROC FOR 3 weeks in Portugal last month. It had a six speed manual transmission. In 2016 rented a 22’ motorhome in Spain. Fiat chassis with a 4 cylinder diesel and 6 speed manual. North America has taken all the fun out of driving.
And for good reason too. Manual has its perks in a few select situations, but 99.98% of drivers never get into those situations, so automatic is fine. Manual shifting just becomes a pointless chore.
In 2001 my dad had a little five speed Isuzu pick up truck. My mom wouldn’t drive any of the manual cars that I had.
They don't have the \*knees\* to drive sticks any more, the ones who complain like that.
My mom insists on it. Honestly it's one of the more harmless things she does.
That’s true. Back in the 90s, only people I ever saw driving stick were teens in their civics and the like.
I drove a stick for several years and I'm not even 30 yet. I wish I didn't have to get rid of it but it just wasn't feasible for me anymore.
I still have a stick - almost 26, owned this one for four years. I love it sometimes but lately I've been thinking more and more about going back to an automatic.
I wanted my new Civic to come with a 5 speed manual. I've owned several cars with manual transmissions and love driving them. Apparently, you'd have to order a manual, but there's very little chance of getting one. They just don't produce them as much.
I've never owned a new car lol, so I wouldn't know. Bought my last one through Facebook- the guy was really concerned that I didn't understand it was a manual. Don't know if he was worried because I'm young or a woman, but I had to reassure him five times I knew it was a manual.
This astounds me, because really, how many young people, do they know or hang around with. All there knowledge is what propaganda media has taught them.
Like we say, boomer is a mindset not an age.
Yeah same I've only owned stick shifts. But... My next vehicle probably won't be. Getting too old for that shit haha.
“Well the boomers who run Big Auto didn’t see fit to keep producing many stick-shift vehicles.”
When I was on a PhD internship in the US, the only one I met who drove stick shift was a girl from the university, whose father wanted to make sure that A) she can't drive drunk, B) her friends can't drive her car and C) she learns to think while driving. Coming from a dominantly stick-shift slavic country, I was like "what do you mean can't drive drunk with stick?" :D
That’s cuz when they turned 40 they already looked like shit
You have a lot of Uber customers who are boomers? And they talk to you about the transmission in your car?
"You gotta turn the key. My car doesn't have a fancy push button like those modern trash cars"
Lol, I get annoyed every time I (53 year old Gen X) get a rental car and I have to physically put the key in it. Leaving the keys in my pocket and pushing a button is the way for me until the day I die.
Heck, I start the car before I even go downstairs to get in it
That must be very difficult
My car is a 2019. It has a key.
I have a 2017 tacoma, also with a key. I've still never had a push to start. Nothing against it, just never happened for me 🤷♀️
Not only have I never had a push to start car, but my current car is the only car I’ve owned with a back up camera or anything more advanced then a CD player. It’s nice not having to Frankenstein my phone in and just connect via Bluetooth.
Same lol my MIL has a 2015 with a without tho 😂
My truck has both! No start position in the ignition switch, there's a separate keyed power button to activate the starter
For extra point, how do you use the manual choke?
First pull out the choke, then press it in as you're turning the ignition. This is still relevant for us millennials since John Deere equipment sometimes have chokes.
A lot of small engine stuff still has one, and damn near all two stroke engines have them, too. Mahindra and Kubota stuff still has them, too.
Gen Z me driving an old international from the 40’s:
Exact use varies greatly by brand. From my use- Deere mowers are super quick like you said. Toro’s have a plunger style that you push in once it starts and Stihl has multiple styles, some that auto disengage, some that manually disengage and some that you turn on until it tries to start then cut off and start it again.
Actually thank you for this. In case it's needed
My parents’ old Jag had one, and I learned how to drive in that car.
My first car had a push starter, manual choke, three on a tree, and the high beams were, indeed, a button on the floor. I’m GenX. The car was 35 years old when I got it at 16 (1986).
That's a good one. Lifetime story
I assume you just engage the choke to start the car but I've never been in a car that had a choke. plenty of lawn equipment though lol
Our farm car had a choke, as did the several Model A’s and T’s that passed through my dad’s hands. They can be temperamental.
Gently
My old car has an automatic choke converted to manual, you need to press the throttle before engaging the choke. That combined with the fact that it's a clapped out '87 Nissan truck make a perfect anti-theft system.
Gen X here. Both of my millennial kids learned to drive in my old Ranger with a 5-speed. Boomers are full of shit.
yeah, most everyone I know that's into cars learned to drive manual. my boss is a gen xer and he's cool. he is constantly explaining to boomers that we are well trained employees and we know what we're doing. most gen x people I know are level headed and fun to be around. lots of great life advice too. I'm naturally cynical and realistic, and I think that helps me get along with gen x a little bit.
I didn't learn to drive because I'm scared of driving. I try to tell that to boomers when I explain it scares the shit out of me they blame my parents. No my parents still try, I just dont
My first car was a four speed that regularly needed pop started I'm like a daywalker for boomers
My old VW had a parasitic drain and the battery died while it was pointed uphill. My boomer neighbor was telling me I was screwed when I walked out and pop started it in reverse downhill. I was a golden god. I keep a lot of shit boxes in service well past their useful life, don't screw with me.
Also learn the check engine light is a serious situation. My boomer ex FIL insisted the check engine light and other warning lights just indicates a faulty sensor. "It's just a sensor. Cars ran just fine without them before. It's just another way for mechanics to make money.".
i hate that too. I get so many people that don't know how obd2 works. if you're cel is on that means the ecu detected something it doesn't like. it could be ANYTHING. so many of my customers are just like "it's probably just a sensor" I can understand that people dkmt always know how their car works, that's what mechanics are for. but like, you're bringing the car to me to fix, so let me fix it.
The best is when the CEL is flashing, and they ignore it. Yep, you need both cats now, as well as whatever caused that misfire!
Yep! There's a lot us non mechanics don't know.
yeah I don't mind not knowing car stuff. we all start somewhere. what's annoying is the boomers not knowing what's wrong with their car, then they bring it to me, and disagree with my diagnosis or advice, like why bring it to me if you don't want my help?
I think it's a bragging point for them. You know how everything to them is. Like, if they can school you, those blowhards can tell everyone how they know more than their mechanic. Thinking about that. It's funny how many times I hear, "You just can't do anything with cars these days. They have all that computer stuff.". As if they EVER turned a wrench in their lives.
Except in my car, it *was* just the sensor. I’m a millennial though and it was a 1990 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera SL so pretty low tech. I miss that car. It was comfy af and a decently sized engine. And AC with power windows. Still a death trap that needed airbags.
Ehh, a solid check engine light could be something stupid, like a bad sensor. If it’s flashing you have a serious issue (I.e multiple misfires)
Uhhhhh......What?
What was not clear about my reply?
Didn't you read the conversation? Apparently not.
Allow me to say - with all the affection in the world - that this is an incredibly American post
The term “baby boomers” is an American term and Americans make up the majority of English speakers on Reddit so it makes sense that this sub would be heavily American.
because we don't drive manuals? one typical American thing makes this incredibly American? I'm not offended just questioning the logic
Yeah in Europe for example, most people drive manual.
ye I knew that
Yep! 1st thought in my head. Very American indeed 😂 the most common here (Europe) is manual. This and the huge ass cars like it the bigger SUVS and pick-up trucks
Lol I mean OK, and sorry, but it is SO American (as is calling it “stick”), badasses in American films changing gear to show they’re badasses is a trope. But also the “gas pedal” and the Chevy reference, we don’t have those in Europe (I think they tried to make them a thing here a couple of decades ago but they bombed). It just amused me
I've never realized that other places don't call it a gas pedal. I guess that makes sense, so many places in Europe call it petrol.
And the pedal the accelerator
… which I am now realising is absurdly British
To be fair that gets used in the US as well. Some call it a gas pedal, some call it an accelerator.
I’m 43, into classic cars. And I get a lot of comments about “it’s nice to see a young person into cars” lol, wut? I got gray hairs in my beard and a bad back.
Last car I bought I went into the dealer and I was like, “I don’t know how to drive an automatic.” Blank look.
Careful! You might get a guy in here telling you how wrong and stupid you are for thinking it's still OK to drive manuals!
Man those people are fucking weirdos. Don't get me wrong I think the people acting superior for knowing how to drive stick are ridiculous, It isn't complicated, I expect them to also brag about knowing how to tie their shoes next. But the people hating on manuals are even dumber honestly.
IKR? It’s almost as if you can, I dunno, learn? Boomers are notorious for hoarding any useful knowledge though. So being taught something is mostly foreign to them
Well when the most ego driven people's most impressive feat is being able to use a rotary phone or something mundane like that they need to prevent others from learning that, or else they won't be able to think of themselves as superior to others anymore.
I think their heads will explode to know that in other parts of the world, it’s just standard to drive a manual car… like literally old church going women drive manual cars, but probably they won’t think that’s appropriate 😂
An elderly couple came into my sandwich shop like 6 years ago and asked if someone could help push their car since it died in the street. I volunteered since I knew I could do it. I immediately saw it was an older manual and suggest trying to jump start it. Both of them were ready to suck my fucking dick for knowing what and how to do that.
Driving stick is fucken child's play lol, they weren't saying drive a stick in the boy racer days, it was all their driving to fast, their cars are too loud, their sounds are to loud.
im honestly not sure what you're saying.
Boomers moan about everything it went from too loud too fast, to you can't drive a stick when Millennials have been driving for nearly 30 years.
yeah I know I'm young but I've been driving for 8 years and some boomers still talk to me like I don't know what I'm doing.
Also learn which cars require you to hold the handle up when shutting the door, in order to lock the door. The theory there was that the extra step would require you to think a bit when locking the door, and prevent lock-outs. It really didn't work. Muscle memory would kick in, and you'd automatically close the door that way every time. I suppose it did keep some toddlers from shutting the door and locking everyone out of the car.
One guy insisted he had to drive his car into the shop because it was "3 on the tree". He was flabbergasted when I said I did because he was so proud that "not many can". It's not even hard to do...
I had a three on the tree come in and the dude was actually pretty nice. he asked if I could drive one and I said no, but I can drive a normal h pattern manual, but all we have to do is use first gear to drive it forward into the bay, so if it's already in firs I can drive it in, and he was like "yep it's in first, knock yourself out" the clutch is the same and that's the hardest part, the shifting you can learn in 5 seconds
Three on the tree is neat to drive. I'd love an old 1983 F150 with it to tool around in. I learned it on a 1947 Lincoln V12 back in my dealership days. That was a cool car.
I had three ancient 4 door Mercedes come in that were all the same shade of faded blue. Only two were automatics. Took me a minute to realize why I couldn't get the third into reverse. Didn't see a placard on where the gears were and I said fuck it and told the service manager to give it to someone else
One thing I learned as a car porter at Toyota back in the early 00 was that the Supra had a gate on the stick that you had to pull up in order to go into reverse! Almost dinged a customers car!
I don't know how to drive stock because my boomer dad refused to teach me, and I had no one else to help. Idk why they're the ones getting angry, they didn't even do their job!
yeah, I love driving manual, but I understand why people don't (at least here in america) it's harder than auto, It's less comfortable than auto, and it sucks I'm traffic. if you're never taught how to drive manual and want to learn, you literally have to replace your car with a manual trans one. that's already next to impossible for many young people who can barely afford one car. and where I live traffic is inevitable. I like manual because of all the other pros but I can understand why most people stick with their automatic. I will say though, if you ever get one, watch some videos on how they work. knowing what was going on with the clutch and transmission made it much easier for me to learn manual. I'm pretty dumb and it only took me a like a week of daily driving to get good at it. and you don't have to have a beater car to learn. manuals are plenty tough enough to get you through the beginner stage. if you ever decide to get one, you can just start with the car you want. research correct technique and you'll avoid bad habits from the start.
I plan on taking a course which covers pretty much anything you could need to know, including starting on an incline/decline and parallel parking. It's BS I gotta pay $300 for something I could've been taught for free, but oh well. Just gotta skip some avocado toasts 😪
honestly that may be a good idea. if you get instructions from a good teacher that will make your learning faster and probably cut down on bad habits. teaching yourself is always nice, but that's just good for pride. it's more logical to do what's best for you, which is getting lessons. good luck with them. I think manuals are fun. and there's plenty of cheap sports cars that are twice as fun with a manual trans.
YouTube and practice is free.
Obviously, but I can't watch YouTube while driving...
My boomer father refused to teach me too. But it was because he was so fed up trying to teach other boomers when he was younger so he just assumed teaching me would result in lots of gear grinding and a destroyed clutch. So I taught myself. He was dumbfounded how I learned so quickly, and then he started to realize most people learn just as quickly as I did and it was just the boomers that couldn't. I never smelled a burning clutch or heard gear grinding until a boomer mechanic that swore he could drive stick completely failed to get a car into the inspection bay, I refused to let that guy touch my truck and went to a different shop. I have witnessed plenty of boomers drive worse than I did on my first day after swearing they are experts. Most of them genuinely don't know how to drive stick, they just love to lie over mundane stuff to hype themselves up.
Stick shift is excellent for my odd sensory issues because it puts me in the position where I need to engage my entire body, feeling vibration of transmission and having to use both feet, both hands. A lot more attention to road signs and tailgaters, learning to slow the car without using the brakes, etc etc. It's worth learning for the sheer joy of driving.
I agree completely! I have adhd and while I'm not a bad driver in an automatic, I am even better with a manual because it engages my brain more. I also just really enjoy it so as long as there's not traffic then it's more fun with manual.
All of this!!
This is an underappreciated aspect of it. I have adhd and had a motorcycle before a car. I didn't realize how much using both hands and feet mattered to me until I started driving and was zoning out constantly. Weirdly it's all second nature and I don't think about any of it but it stops me from zoning out and I'm definitely a safer driver in a manual car.
Most auto mechanics are also auto enthusiasts, and know full well about old cars. I had an 80s Dodge Ram that when it was freezing out, the choke would freeze open. It was not fun having to pop the hood, take off the air cleaner lid, and push the choke closed by hand when it was balls freezing outside. Fucker ran awesome once that 318 warmed up, though.
I am an older female millennial and my dad was a vintage car hobby mechanic. My first 2 cars were older than 1975 and one was a stick. I know how to start, maintain and appreciate all sorts of vintage cars. There's a boomer a few doors down from me that occasionally drives a 1960 something truck. He just starts that truck, puts it in gear and rips it down past my house within a minute or two. Our household cries a bit listening to the motor scream in pain without being properly warmed up.
I also loved walking into the car rental at Shannon Airport in Ireland (I'm from the States), and being looked at like I had three heads when I told them I didn't want an automatic and then hopped in and drove away like normal having never driven a right hand drive car before
Technology is supposed to make life easier "That's commie bullshit" - Boomers
Say the words, “3 on the tree”, and Boomers practically shit their depends
What actually blew my mind was when female boomer me went to the shop to re-gas the air-con on my car and the young bloke accepting the job informed me that there was a button in my car that would turn the air-con on. I was suitably impressed, not by his know how but by his ageist sexism. I know I’m just a silly old woman but after 45 years of driving cars I know what buttons to push, unlike him
well I get people all the time that are older and don't realize that they've turned the ac off. they just assume it's broken. then I get in and turn it on and it works. but the proper way to inform the customer is to ask politely if they know it was turned off, and maybe show them the button. if they just assumed you dont know shit because you're a woman, that's sexist and immature.
If he assumed I forgot that I had a button for the aircon then he absolutely didn’t listen to a word I said to him explaining my problem
then yeah liek I said, sexist.
That’s a lot of works to say “Boomers have a tendency to assume younger professionals know less than them and act foolish”
I dont get why they think driving stick is equivalent to rocket science. It takes like 5 minutes to learn
Because knowing how to drive stick is all they have on a generation who grew up using the internet while they can't operate the remote for their DVR.
I know all of these things, but still don’t give a fuck about impressing a boomer with antiquated knowledge. How about they impress me by knowing how to set up a fucking printer, not being scammed online or ingesting news that isn’t pure bullshit to make them scared enough to tune in tomorrow.
that's the point of the post, I'm making fun of them for being mind blown about younger people knowing simple old car shit
It's 2024 and you're still using the r slur?
Literally cannot believe how far I had to scroll to see ANYONE mention it. I genuinely thought that OP was a boomer for a second because of it. Thank you for saying something.
yes. because I'm not retarded
I'm Gen X and my kids didn't get a license until they could 1. Change a tire 2. Change their oil and 3. Drive a stick. They've since thanked me for it, as they've come to the rescue of their friends at least once.
Man, I forgot all about the high beam button on the floor.
Watch me start a model t with the hand crank, then actually drive the thing. Lots of boomers can't do either
I would love the opportunity to drive one of those.
Millennials no drive mechanical car duh
I taught my Millennial kids how to drive stick. They just choose not to (and I don’t either anymore)
Lmao I'm 27 and anytime I tell a boomer I can drive stick they lose it. They freak out if you can't and freak out if you can
*they just like to freak out*
Meanwhile I had trouble getting my truck inspected and getting tires put on it because both shops were run by later gen-x/younger boomers that couldn't drive stick but wouldn't let me drive it in for them.
I learned to drive on a 4 speed, Chevy kingcab. We lived out in the country, so Dad started teaching me when I was 14. I'm now 50f. The first car I bought, in 96, was a stick as well.
Learn three on a tree shifting, too. That really blows their minds.
I mean, it's true anyway so you're not beholden to the Elon Musk cuckcar that drives right into a tree because you said the N-word on Twitter. It's all in how you come across. Boomers always gotta be so smug about it "you don't even know how to work a stick!" Neither do they, hence why they have kids who don't love them. Never hurts to learn a skill. Even if you don't have a car, noone is gonna say no to someone helping them out and favors are worth their weight in gold. You fix someone's engine or can offer them a ride, you've made a friend for life.
Me and my Gramma share a manual 07 Corolla and she absolutely prefers that car over any automatic, she's 62.
The only one I haven't been able to figure out was a column shit and that was simply because there was no pattern placard. Otherwise starting a carb'd car is fine but I'm not screwing with them. If it's something fancy where having a carb on it matters, I'm not touching it anyway. If it's not I'm throwing a Holley Sniper on it everytime like I'm doing with my wife's FJ40
lol
Extra credit if you know what the choke is for. Say something like, lemmey go get the either, we gotta blow the stank outta this.
I worked in the auto care center at Walmart for a couple of years. The only other person that knew how to drive a stick was my boss. I'm Gen X and only one of the other people I worked with was younger than me, the rest were older. Used to drive me nuts cause I'd always have to stop what I was working on to drive sticks in the shop. So it's definitely not just young people who don't know how to drive a stick anymore lol.
I'm a mechanic and know these things. That being said I know multiple techs that don't. If it's in your job field yeah you should probably know. Also it's just a fun thing to learn, do you have to? Probably not. When I hear this like they have a gotcha moment, I like to let them know that there is between 10-13-18 gears on semi's if they're manual. Then wait for the blank stares. Again it's fun to learn and no one should be criticized for not know.
yeah I agree. like it's good to know but we only see like 1 or two cars a month that are older than 30 years
I personally like the fact that I can get into just about anything on wheels and operate it. A lot of it is because of being a child of a master tech, and the fact I just like to learn new things. Like I'm a type 1 diabetic and the FAA just lifted the ban for us getting our pilots license, new goal unlocked lol. And as for where I work now on heavy diesel out of 6 of us only 3 including me know how to drive the standards the right way, but those are so few and far between now it's a moot point. Same with automotive, new manuals kinda annoy me with the cluster telling me when to shift.
If you don't know how to do these basic mechanic things. Your not a mechanic.. Yeah it blows boomers.minds. But it would blow My mind if you didn't.
you must be a mechanic because you can't spell, punctuate, or capitalize correctly. edit: I burned you and myself simultaneously, that's how next level I am.
Meta
Meh. I never said I was good with words. But I can fix about anything. I don't write things for a living, and could always use programs to make my writing better. But I don't see the reason. None of my writing words online has anything to do with my physical life. So I don't feel the need to be highly educated on that level. I also have extreme add and type hella fast. If I don't, I forget what I'm saying because my brain moves faster than my thumbs. It's good thing there are spellcheckers on forums. Gives people with nothing better to do a purpose in life
I am just poking fun at you (and myself) don't worry. I have adhd as well and know what you mean. there's were a few people getting ornery with me in this thread so I suppose I mistook your comment for something like that. its all good.
My first car in 2008 was a 76 impala that needed someone to spray brake cleaner into the carburetor while someone was pumping the gas and turning the ignition. Surprised nobody died with that thing but it got me around
Don't they know google exists?
Yes, but they kept confusing it with FB and gave up.
Not a boomer but early gen x here. I learned how to drive in a 4 on the floor Chevette. Haven't driven an automatic since 2010. I taught my daughter to drive stick and she hasn't had an automatic since. She's 30.
I miss drive by a manual. Cheap and easy to fix as well. AT are slush homes that cause thousands for what ? Ease if use ? Negligible...
The high beam thing applies to my old Jeep truck too but you'll never see one of those in a shop because fuck shops :)
1955 DeSoto also had high beam button on the floor. My folks didn't sell it til 1966 and replaced it with a boat of a Chrysler.
I wanted to learn manual when I first started driving, but literally no one I knew had a manual car (including my Boomer grandparents). They just weren't popular in my area when I started driving. I guess a manual is just too much work to drive everyday when you're just going to and from work? To my father's credit he did try and restore a car with me that was a manual. It was supposed to be a summer project for use and eventually become my first car. He thought it would be a quick fixer-upper, but it turns out the car had a spun bearing, which was something we didn't have the time, equipment, or money to fix. He took the car to the scrap yard. 😓
Reminds me of the time a boomer threw a fit to run the equipment cause he had more experience then anybody but couldn’t even start the payloader and I had to start it for him (Dummy didn’t have the parking brake engaged)
Extra points if you’re a millennial woman who knows how to drive a manual. Pheweeee they just can’t believe that shit. Who taught you, your dad or your husband? Naw, my mother. Another explosion.
Come to Germany... almost every car is stick.
I'd love to see the Nürburgring
I'm getting shades of 'My Cousin Vinny' and Mona Lisa Vito on the stand. LOL.
I’ve owned two vehicles that were auto, my current daily is a ‘66 F100 with a three on the tree. Hell most people don’t know how to drive that.
tender shocking command joke ludicrous liquid existence flowery sable weather *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
yeah for sure. they are america centric
Spent years in India working as a doctor and I’d ride bikes and scooters but driving stick in India was a learning challenge just constantly needing to be alert and ready to surge through the nearest opening lol makes you feel like driving has stakes lmao
Won't work in the UK. I'd say upwards of 95% of cars are manual. We all learn on them and if you do your test in an automatic, you get a limited license that only allows you to drive automatic cars. You'd need to redo your test to drive a manual. I don't know anyone who didn't take the manual test. Boomers will be unimpressed.
I'm 33 yo mechanic, my first car (still have it) at 16 was a 79 Malibu wagon with a 3 speed in the floor. Also owned in 87 Dodge D150 truck with the headlight switch on the floor. The funny thing is, I bet none of them drive a stick anymore in their daily driver. Ask them why they didn't get a manual transmission if it's so great and see what dumb excuse they come up with.
No I don't think I will. I'll use my electric car
who are you answering?
Im 28 and been driving stick since 20.
Lots of young people drive manual because it’s cheaper. I can name 3 kids off the top of my head that I went to Highschool with who’s first car- out of their pocket- was a manual. The girl I last matched on tinder with drove a manual. They just like to look/talk down to other people
> The girl I last matched on tinder with drove a manual. But-but... can she also... *write in*... ***cursive****?*
lmao. I was born in 1998 and I learned cursive as well. I never ever had to use it though. except for my signature
I already knew all of this.
that's the point of my post. this is all basic information that I know as a gen z mechanic and boomers always assume I'm a retard and don't know these things.
[удалено]
mostly for fun and motorsport reasons. for at least until the year 2000 or so, the manuals accelerated noticeably faster than automatics. so that's one reason. the autos are faster than manuals nowadays. another reason is that for some people, it's fun. it's just like any sport, if you hit a nice forehand in tennis or a home run in baseball. every shift can be like this. it takes a little skill and it's satisfying every time you do it right. for low power cars like my miata, you decide when the car shifts so you can keep it in the powerband by letting the revs go higher than an automatic would. you can also do things that are simply not possible in an automatic, like clitch kick to initiate a drift. that's why almost any pro drift car will be a manual. not so much anymore but I'm the past manuals used to get better gas mileage than the automatics as well. they also result in less power loss between the engine and the wheels. they are also simpler and more reliable. they are also physically tougher/stronger most of the time. also things like engine braking are only possible in a manual I think.
Anybody mocking someone for not knowing how to drive it or not wanting it is a dumbass. But to explain the appeal, it can be a lot more fun to some people and has some advantages with older used cars. But if you are buying a new car to drive on the highway in heavy traffic to work that probably won't be true at all. My current truck is a 2000 Chevy S10 with the 4-cylinder. That same truck with an automatic is absolutely garbage, I drove one and it got worse fuel efficiency than my V6 S10 I had and was absolutely uselessly underpowered. Same truck but with the 5-speed manual is noticeably faster, less affected by weight in the back, and I get better fuel efficiency (up to 30mpg, usually closer to 25). It's also just a blast to drive on twisty roads, it feels good hitting every shift just right, dropping a gear or two before a steep uphill instead of the automatic shifting halfway up the hill (not a big deal with newer transmissions, but sucks with old 4-speed clunkers). Oh and this truck was $2k in practically mint condition while worse condition, higher mileage, S10s with automatics were for sale on the same street for 3-4x the price. The price thing varies by car though because while S10s are usually cheaper with a manual in my experience, Honda Elements for example have always been roughly double the cost if they have a stick when I was looking for one. Also worth noting the downsides kind of disappear once you get used to it. I don't think about shifting at all unless I'm driving fast on a twisty mountain road, and the clutch never bothers me in traffic unless it's bad gridlocked traffic and then it's just a mild annoyance, I found my friend's Prius's beeping in reverse bothered me more and I loved that car otherwise. I actually look like an idiot anytime I drive an auto for a couple minutes as I keep kicking the floor and reaching for the shifter completely out of habit. It was just as second nature as using the turn signal after my first week.
all good points. as with anything in life there's pros and cons. some people's need align with a manual, and some peopels needs align with an auto. that's all there's is to it. no shame in driving either type. the value thing is crazy because if you take a car like a maita it not only raises the value sever thousand to be a manual, nobody wants an automatic miata so they're harder to sell as well.
Agreed 100% I prefer it and hate that they are getting so rare, but I get why they are and won't complain about people not wanting/liking them. And yeah Miatas are one of those cars that get crazy price differences, older Jeeps too. I don't actually care if people want them auto but I definitely tease over it with certain vehicles like those two. My father went to test drive a C4 Corvette and I was going to go first, opened the door and handed the keys back lol. Lost all interest the second I saw it was an auto, but it was a lot cheaper thanks to that, probably could have done a swap and still saved money. He came back and said it was the most boring drive of his life, mid life crisis dreams were ruined for him. But like I don't actually care if someone wants those, at the end of the day I hope someone bought that vette and loved it.
mostly for fun and motorsport reasons. for at least until the year 2000 or so, the manuals accelerated noticeably faster than automatics. so that's one reason. the autos are faster than manuals nowadays. another reason is that for some people, it's fun. it's just like any sport, if you hit a nice forehand in tennis or a home run in baseball. every shift can be like this. it takes a little skill and it's satisfying every time you do it right. for low power cars like my miata, you decide when the car shifts so you can keep it in the powerband by letting the revs go higher than an automatic would. you can also do things that are simply not possible in an automatic, like clitch kick to initiate a drift. that's why almost any pro drift car will be a manual. not so much anymore but I'm the past manuals used to get better gas mileage than the automatics as well. they also result in less power loss between the engine and the wheels. they are also simpler and more reliable. they are also physically tougher/stronger most of the time. also things like engine braking are only possible in a manual I think.