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The end of the manual transmission is near?

popularmechanics.com

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Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#261

Post by Ancalagon »

StanislavPetrov wrote: post #221
tenpies wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can I add a request? A car that doesn't phone home. That is, one that the government is utterly unable to remotely turn off, monitor, or impose distance quotas. One that cannot be hacked through a poorly secured server in a car maker's server farm or government server with the username/pass admin/admin.

> A car that doesn't phone home. One of many reasons I will never buy a new car and will always buy classic cars no matter how much they cost.

Or really anything built before about 2012

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#262

Post by throwaway_4ever »

analog31 wrote: post #199
kazinator wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> dual clutch automatics are much faster than manual transmission and most modern automatics have 7 to 10 gears for better fuel efficiency In what < $15K econobox? :)

Where can I buy a < $15k econobox? Seriously, I'm looking. Yes I'm also looking at used cars, but they're also expensive.

Chevy Spark: https://www.chevrolet.com/cars/spark

Nissan Versa at $15.5k: https://www.nissanusa.com/vehicles/cars/versa-sedan.html

Kia Rio and Hyundai Accent aren't too far off at $16.5k: https://www.kia.com/us/en/rio

https://www.hyundaiusa.com/us/en/vehicles/accent

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#263

Post by epalm »

NoPicklez wrote: post #111
rabuse wrote: post #65

I ride a motorcycle most of the time, and I will always love manually pulling the clutch and clunking into the next gear; gives me more of a man and machine bond.

Growing up I raced motocross where changing gears, rev matching etc became second nature. Even on two stroke bikes were you typically perform more gear changes than on a four stroke engine But I must admit, I struggled a little in a car. Car's required much finer movements than I was used to.

Don’t sell yourself short, aside from some select Italian brands, motorcycles usually have wet clutches (clutch basket bathed in oil) and are quite forgiving compare to the usually dry clutch in cars.

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#264

Post by ptmcc »

tmh88j wrote: post #197
kazinator wrote: post #107

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> dual clutch automatics are much faster than manual transmission and most modern automatics have 7 to 10 gears for better fuel efficiency In what < $15K econobox? :)

The prior gen Ford Focus and Fiesta had a DCT, along with the C-Max. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_PowerShift_transmission

It was disastrously unreliable, and they knew it, and got sued for fraud over it. So they don't use a cheap DCT anymore.

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#265

Post by mertd »

tjr225 wrote: post #13

Manual transmission fetishism is perplexing to me. I’ve owned two manual transmission cars… an old Hyundai Elantra and an even older Toyota pickup. I can’t think of a single reason I would not rather have the automatic version of either. I also presume manual transmissions will continue to be available to the enthusiasts and professionals/sportspeople who have an actual reason to desire them.

I believe people are imagining the automatic transmissions from the early 2000s and before. They were terrible.

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#266

Post by sbaiddn »

iamevn wrote: post #152

I love driving manuals, learned on an 5 speed New Beetle and mostly drive a 2012 Mazda 6 now. My partner has a newer automatic Mazda 3 and it just feels wrong to have the car guess what I want lagging behind me rather than me just telling the car directly ahead of when I need it. The only argument that's swayed me away from being entirely on the side of manual cars is that if I'm out hiking with friends who I've driv…

This happened to my sister. She dislocated her right shoulder and among her friends:

- Two didnt know how to drive

- One didnt know how to drive stick

- the guy who ended up driving her to the hospital, didn't have a drivers license.

I told her next time to get it rolling on second, leave it there, and drive then herself.

But a good argument for autos is engine longevity. The autos really pamper it

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#267

Post by adgjlsfhk1 »

legitster wrote: post #202
KennyBlanken wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Huge premiums != large market. It just means the market is bigger than their production. Manual transmissions are not "an order of magnitude less complex and cheaper." They're far more expensive because the volume is much lower and every configuration has to be crash-tested, so the cost of that crash testing is amortized over a much, much smaller number of vehicles. Manual transmission vehicles get significantly wors…

> Manual transmissions are not "an order of magnitude less complex and cheaper." Don't take my word for it. Just look at the size of a manual drivetrain vs an automatic. The increase in steel is directly proportional to the engineering required/number of moving parts. >Manual transmission vehicles get significantly worse mileage While it's true that CVTs have finally surpassed manuals for fuel efficiency, I think you…

What you're missing about the cost is that engineering cost is amortized. If you spend $10m on the engineering for the manual, and $100m on the engineering for the automatic, the manual will be way more expensive if you only sell 10 of them.

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#268

Post by msla »

blackfawn wrote: post #141

I doubt I'll never buy an automatic transmission vehicle. If that means never buying a new car after some point, then so be it. I've had quite a few manual transmission cars over the years and have driven them through all the things people complain about like steep hills in icy winters, stop and go traffic for an hour or two commute, etc. and I'd still go for a MT every time. Not only is it cheaper and less complex,…

> I doubt I'll never buy an automatic transmission vehicle.

That certainly seems like the way of things.

Re: The end of the manual transmission is near?

#270

Post by matheusmoreira »

tenpies wrote: post #30
recursivedoubts wrote: post #7

I reiterate my compromise proposal: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32397975 I will give up my manual transmission, if you will bring back pull-knobs, twist knobs and other tactile switches for the main controls of my vehicle, with the appropriate tactile feedback at set points so I can set them without looking. After thinking on it, I am going to raise my demands, however: you also need to produce cars that are…

Can I add a request? A car that doesn't phone home. That is, one that the government is utterly unable to remotely turn off, monitor, or impose distance quotas. One that cannot be hacked through a poorly secured server in a car maker's server farm or government server with the username/pass admin/admin.

> government is utterly unable to remotely turn off, monitor, or impose distance quotas

This is reality already? I'm starting to think maybe computers were a mistake. I mean how much more screwed up can our world get before it turns into a cyberpunk hell?

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