To book automatic driving lessons for DD

We aren't yet at the point where all cars are automatic so it might be a bit limiting for her. My family still own a mix of manual and automatic, and all insured on each-other's cars, and there really have been times when this has been extremely useful - eg when I got too sick to drive while 60 miles from home with DC, Dad drove us, and my car, home and went back to his by public transport. I rarely drink, so if Mum & Dad want wine with dinner if we go out when we're staying with them, I drive everyone home in their car.

I suppose for me it's the fact that one route means you can only drive one type of vehicle, the other means you can drive both. So if she wanted a manual in the future she would literally have to redo her test. Totally get what you mean about availability of a car to practice in however. I think it's worth throwing the money at getting lessons in a manual and then taking her test in that car. If it helps, I ended up doing a job in a far flung place (never part of my life plan!) where the ONLY vehicles were manual, I never would have got around if I couldn't have driven manual. So a decision in 1995 (god I am old!) meant that in 2017 I didn't have a problem.

So?

3 times as many women take automatic tests than men...

People need to get with it, we don’t live in 1990 anymore. I have an auto licence. It’s never disadvantaged me.

Unless they have the budget for a fairly new car, i would definitely go for manual, as others have said, it gives far more choice. I have a lot of family and friends who work in the motor trade, and there's no way manual cars will be obsolete anytime soon! Also, automatic gearboxes cost a fortune to repair if there are issues, sometimes more than the car is worth!

20yo DD shares my Audi A1. It was £26k new, her first year of insurance was £4k. No way in hell that the average 19yo can afford that. When DD finally buys her own car it will be something far more basic!

A Mercedes A class didn’t cost too much 🤣🤣 Only on MN!

Do you seriously think that the average 19 year old can afford that?

Recently I had to drive someones car for them (they were over alcohol limit). It was automatic but honestly I would never ever drive someones car again. (barring the raging lion) I really need time to get used to a new car, its just the type of driver I am.

I only have an automatic (got it 20 years ago). I did actually learn how to drive a manual car - initally I had a foreign license which didn't diffrentiate so I took a few lessons but when I got a ROI license it does.

Sometimes car rentals are cheaper but I don't like renting cars anyway so its never bothered me.

Yes, I suppose theoretically I might be fleeing a raging lion and need to jump into someone elses manual car. It hasn't happened yet.

Define “cost too much”?

how much to buy and insure?

I wonder why people seem to struggle to imagine situations could arise when only being able to drive automatic woukd be very limiting and potentially cause difficulties.

We don’t all always only drive our own car. There are numerous circumstances where someone might need to drive another car….and given the majority if cars on the road are still manual and likely to be for a good while, you simply keep your options open.

I don’t th8nk anyone is disputing that lots might have good reasons to choose to buy and drive an automatic. Fair enough. But what about if you need to hire on holiday, drive a work pool car, partner’s car, have a courtesy car etc etc. Often what’s available will be manual.

Some people who have struggled to learn to drive or who are dyspraxia etc might really struggle with manual and for them automatic might be the only real way to be a driver. But most other people would benefit from having the option to drive manual, even if it’s only on odd occasions as the need arises.

It's probably best if you can to learn manual to have full choice though if it is really difficult for some to get to grips with gears, then automatic is best, DS took his test about 15 years ago and probably would have been better in an automatic as he has slight dyspraxia and found the coordination difficult. Most people seem to get on with gears ok though.

My son got a Nissan Note and my daughter got an auto Mercedes A class, both of which didn't cost too much.

Two of mine passed in automatics and bought automatic cars. Both mine are auto too so there's only the option of driving auto in our house.

What will DC do if they later have a job that requires to to drive pool cars or hire cars ….and only manual are available?

The point is, there are times in life where you may need to/ it would significantly increase options if you can drive manual too. This doesn’t mean you need to buy manuals if you prefer automatics.

How many people drive their partner’s car or have ever had a hire car for work purposes etc? Most people will.

Manual cars are not out of date especially for young frivers, who tend to need cheaper, small cars. Few of these are automatic and expensive.

Taking the broad view, having the option to drive both is more useful than excluding what remain a key option.

It's probably worth also pointing out that there are quite a few jobs where one would be required to drive a manual pool vehicle.

Yabu. (Unless you are all loaded and she can start off with an auto car.)

It'll be a couple of decades before almost all cars are electric / auto. Don't restrict her just yet.

If she insists on wanting to drive stick then fair enough. But automatic is so much easier. I think hardly anyone drives stick now unless they have vintage cars.

Quite.

Both my driving Gen Z DC learnt in manual and bought/are looking at petrol cars. The cost of anything else is ridiculous.

I passed 10 years ago, auto only, no issue.

People go on about it being a useful skill - why? Why is it a useful skill? Do you realise how expensive driving lessons are these days? Learning a skill for the sake of it is just stupid. The aim of a driving test is to be able to drive, to get from A to B. An auto test does that perfectly fine.

Er, no they didn't. What a silly generalization. But I will admit that coming to the US decades ago and driving my first automatic long before they started to get even remotely common in the UK, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.

It's nonsense though. I wouldn't teach my children how to use a mangle because there aren't any about. There are plenty of manual cars and will be for many, many years to come.

How is it safer? Not changing gears doesn't make you a safer driver.