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Original poster

Daughter leaning to drive in an automatic

122 replies

Areallyboringperson · 22/10/2023 20:04

We Have an electric car. It’s an automatic (obvs). My daughter will soon be 17. We either:

Get her driving lessons so she can get a licence which allows her to drive a manual;

Buy a small manual run around for her to learn in; or

Just let her learn in our automatic and then she’ll only have an automatic licence.

I’m thinking option 3 but is this unfair on her?

OP posts:
PonyPatter44 · 22/10/2023 20:29

I really don't like automatic cars, and would never choose one for myself, but what does your DD want? Will you be buying her a little automatic runaround once she passes her test?

1990thatsme · 22/10/2023 20:30

As all new cars will be automatic soon, I can’t see the point of buying a manual car especially.

If DD wants to get a manual licence then she can just do formal lessons can’t she?

Zeldaaa · 22/10/2023 20:32

Automatics are becoming much more popular. According to carwow less that 1/3 of new cars are available with manual gearboxes. I don’t think it’s going to be ‘limiting’ to her to only have an automatic license

SirenSays · 22/10/2023 20:32

Automatic. she can always take the manual test if she really needs it for something later in life.

amicissimma · 22/10/2023 20:32

I agree with PP that it's better for her to have some lessons with a professional instructor anyway, but she could practise in your automatic as well.

Then, as is common, she could take the test in the instructor's manual. She would then have the option to drive a manual if she wanted/needed to at any point in the future, without another test.

Rainbowqueeen · 22/10/2023 20:33

Our car which we bought in 2017 is only made as an auto. Next car will be an EV. So all 3 DC have learnt to drive an auto only. So have the majority of their friends

Id just do the auto. Then she will be able to drive your car. And there’s nothing to stop her learning to drive a manual later.

SecondUsername4me · 22/10/2023 20:34

Do people really buy their new driver late teens brand new cars? Surely they'll have a second hand cheap car as their first? So the fact that most new cars are auto won't apply?

MargotBamborough · 22/10/2023 20:36

amicissimma · 22/10/2023 20:32

I agree with PP that it's better for her to have some lessons with a professional instructor anyway, but she could practise in your automatic as well.

Then, as is common, she could take the test in the instructor's manual. She would then have the option to drive a manual if she wanted/needed to at any point in the future, without another test.

Yes and no.

I think driving practice in a parent's car can definitely help with getting driving experience and potentially reduce the number of lessons needed.

But I have always found switching between a manual and an automatic hard and wouldn't want to be doing this all the time as a learner.

So I would either get driving lessons in a manual and then switch to driving an automatic after passing the test, or get driving lessons in an automatic and supplement the lessons with driving in the parents' car.

I drive a manual and prefer it but I'm pretty sure that in the not too distant future they will stop making them, so it's not a hill I would choose to die on.

MargotBamborough · 22/10/2023 20:37

SecondUsername4me · 22/10/2023 20:34

Do people really buy their new driver late teens brand new cars? Surely they'll have a second hand cheap car as their first? So the fact that most new cars are auto won't apply?

My first car was a 2004 plate Vauxhall Corsa and it was an automatic. So it's perfectly possible to get a cheap runaround that is also an automatic.

Member589500 · 22/10/2023 20:38

I had the same dilemma. I have a small automatic I bought especially for mine to borrow once they passed. 40% of cars are now automatic and increasing.
I thought they would need fewer lessons.
but the end it was near impossible to find a decent driving instructor with an automatic. Around here lessons are £38 and only double lessons are offered (£76 a time!) and even then I can’t find a good instructor. We bought ten with a taciturn bloke with poor English language skills who my son just didn’t feel confident with.
They are now doing manual lessons with a lovely local woman.
So yes, auto makes sense but good luck finding an instructor

Blanketpolicy · 22/10/2023 20:39

Personally I think it is too early to be restricted to automatics only.

It will be easier to pass in an automatic, but being able to drive a manual is still likely to be useful to have while she is learning anyway.

Monkeymonkeymoo · 22/10/2023 20:40

I learned to drive a manual. I haven’t driven once since I passed my test nearly 20 years ago. I didn’t have a car at uni, then moved to London where I didn’t need one, then I couldn’t afford a car and just used public transport so didn’t drive for 6 or 7 years.
When I finally did start driving again I needed a car quickly (I was about to start a job with shift work and driving between patient’s homes). I chose to get refresher lessons in an automatic and buy an automatic car because I knew I could get up to a safe standard much more quickly.

I definitely couldn’t safely drive a manual car now, so I’d say that if she isn’t going to drive a manual then it’s probably better for her to just learn in an automatic and then get a manual license later if she decides that it’s something she needs/wants. I find renting a car in the UK more expensive and difficult because I need an automatic but it’s always been fine when I’m abroad (I’m yet to go to another country where automatics aren’t really common).

Although I would say that cheap, second hand automatics are almost impossible to find now. My first car was a 10 year old pergeot that I got for around £1000, but cheap, small and reliable automatics just don’t seem to be available anymore.

Princessconsuelabananahammock9 · 22/10/2023 20:41

I don't know anyone who owns a manual car. My first car was a 1998 Pontiac firefly and it was an automatic, second hand car.

I would not bother learning manual.

jlpth · 22/10/2023 20:41

Buy a small manual.

Depending on what kind of electric car you have, the insurance may be astronomical.

VeniVidiWeeWee · 22/10/2023 20:42

Mydogmybestfriend · 22/10/2023 20:24

Manuel cars are cheaper and better for young drivers she should learn manual

Would those be Seats?

VisaWoes · 22/10/2023 20:46

Dd learnt to drive in an automatic. We had both a manual and automatic for her to practice in. She started off in a manual but has dyspraxia as well as a physical condition which affects joints, she couldn’t get on with a manual at all.

so swapped to automatic lessons and I took her out in my car as well. Massive difference. The insurance for learning in mine was no higher than in the manual.

her insurance for the small automatic we bought her after passing may have been slightly higher, but not terrible I don’t think. Was around £700 the first year?

joan12 · 22/10/2023 20:48

I have a manual license but have only ever driven an automatic. I'd have passed a lot more quickly and cheaply on an automatic and have never had a problem eg loaner cara from garage, rentals etc

Where I work though there is a team that use a fleet of small cars for home visits and I am pretty sure they are all manual. I guess if she were in a work situation like that she would need to change her license which might be a pita? Or perhaps they can negotiate to use their own car and claim mileage, not sure.

Sparehair · 22/10/2023 20:48

I’d do automatic only. Can always upgrade to a manual license later. Only issue might be hire cars but loads of hire car places won’t rent to under 25’s anyway, and in 8 years time pretty much all hire cars will be automatics as they are only ever a few years old. I mean there might be the odd time when it would be convenient to be able to drive someone else’s car back from the pub but you have to weight that up against the extra costs.

StaunchMomma · 22/10/2023 20:53

I have a manual license and have an automatic. I'd never happily go back to a manual.

Some people think of them as 'lesser' but that's pure ignorance and snobbery.

Automatics are becoming steadily more popular and it would make passing so much easier.

If it works for her, I'd go with the automatic so she can practice in yours.

Drfosters · 22/10/2023 21:02

We have been having the exact same debate. I have not driven a manual in 15 years and I can’t envisage when I would ever get the opportunity again. Since EV’s are going to be the only option in 10 years no one will have the opportunity to drive a manual or even have the opportunity to learn on one. There will be no small hatches to learn on with a manual stick. We can’t work out of it is worth the children learning on a manual or not. Seems a bit pointless now. Even racing cars are automatic.

Essenceofpetunia · 22/10/2023 21:07

We have two automatic cars but our DD learned (and passed) in a manual. We’ve bought her a cheap second-hand car which is manual, but even if she’d bought her own car, her first one would have been more likely to be a manual because older second-hand cars usually are! I think your DD would really be restricting herself unless she reckons she’ll be able to buy herself a newer automatic car for her first car.

A bit different I guess if she’s not planning/hoping to buy her own car within the next few years,

Stealthtax · 22/10/2023 21:09

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wildwestpioneer · 22/10/2023 21:17

Automatic cars with the increase of electric will become more and more common, with manuals eventually dying out. But, I've said to my dd that she should learn to drive a manual. It gives her the option of both. Plus smaller, cheaper cars are usually manual and will remain so for the next 10/20 years

theduchessofspork · 22/10/2023 21:19

She’s going need driving lessons anyway so she should go for a manual license, after she gets it she can drive your automatic

Nawh · 22/10/2023 21:22

I have an automatic licence. Only issues I’ve ever had is when getting a courtesy car, you need to specify that you can only drive auto. I’ve been caught out a few times and forgot to tell them…

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