To book automatic driving lessons for DD

[driedapricots101]

Everyone I tell reacts as if we're mad, yet surely it's only a matter of time before all cars are automatic? It's like learning Russian with no intention of using it surely?!

Purely automatic makes sense for people who might struggle with manual, but why wouldn’t you go for manual as then you can drive either? You have far more flexibility, particularly given that most of the used car market, particularly smaller cars are manual transmission. Same goes for the rental market - vast majority are still manual. At least if you learn those skills you have them for life. Why restrict yourself?

I think it makes a difference if you ever want to drive a van for example (handy when moving home for example) and you are limited when renting or buying cars - perhaps not such an issue in the future but if you are relying on the second hand market you will be limited for a while.

I battled through my manual driving test (I was a late, nervous learner driver) because my EXH told me I’d be mad not too. My kind, current partner saw I was still struggling years later and suggested I try an automatic, it was a revelation. I’ve never driven a manual since, and suspect I never will. It’s honestly never been a problem.

I think it's difficult to know what's best at this stage. Our decision has been made, in that we've just replaced our car with another manual, so DD will have to learn manual if she wants to be able to use our car. It may well turn out that she never drives another manual after that, but we don't know. I'm told that vans are more likely to be manual, so it may be more difficult to hire a van with only an automatic licence.

Learning to drive is going to be quicker (and hence cheaper) for an automatic licence, but possibly not that much, and the extra supervised experience is probably no bad thing.

Are they very well off, most new drivers wouldn't be able to afford these cars whatever their beliefs were

I think it makes a big difference between a teenager passing their test and driving at 17, to someone who’s held a licence for many years, or even a new middle aged driver choosing automatic.

yes I’d probably say if you’re 30 don’t want to learn manual do auto only.

the difference is the insurance. When it’s parents buying the car, paying for maintenance, insurance etc then the most cost effective is manual.

most independent adult have the means to buy and insure and automatic. Anyone under 25 is likely to struggle.

if it’s me paying for my dc they can learn manual. If they want to learn auto only they get a car when it’s affordable, which will take much longer.

My DD has a manual licence but after two years not driving then bought an automatic. What she says is...

The manual licence is useful when she needs to drive her office pool car (she also uses the pool car to keep her manual skills), and

The manual licence is useful so she can be on her partners manual car insurance (she rarely drives it but maybe if they've gone out and he's decided to have a drink, or the vehicle needs moving and he's not home)

Whilst she loves her automatic and thinks that's what she will always buy, having that extra ability to.drive a manual she finds useful.

Driving lessons are SO expensive now. It took me a very long time to learn to drive when I was young. I have no doubt (I now drive an automatic) that I’d have passed far more quickly if I’d been learning to drive an automatic instead of a manual. It’s so so easy to drive, so no anxiety about stalling and hill starts etc.

1. Manuals are more fuel efficient
2. Manual cars are more effective if you need to accelerate quickly i.e. to avoid a crash
3. Manual cars are more 'fun' to drive, i've had both
4. If you can drive manual you can drive automatic, not so other way around...

i could go on...

Electric cars are far cheaper to drive, if you charge at home. Mine is around 2p a mile.

Well that is a separate question, as they say all electric cars are automatic, but not all automatic cars are electric...

Not all automatics are electric though - you're comparing fuel with transmission type which is apples and oranges.

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

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.

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.

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.

Quite.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.