Big yes! Mid 20s and currently daily drive my miata
All my cars, bar one, have been manual transmission, as is my current one. To be honest, as I'm lazy, I do prefer auto, but it's easier to buy a car with manual transmission here in the UK, as you have more options.
Yep - been driving for around 30+ years here in Australia (I'm late 40s). Grew up driving manual, have owned several manual vehicles, including my current one.
I'm 42, and can drive manual, but I've had an automatic the last 5 years.
My son is now learning to drive, but he will most likely not need to drive a manual ever.
Yes, 40, Germany. And I actually do.
Nope, never learned. I'm 31 in the US. Never had the need to learn as I was raised with automatics only.
I'm 19-20 and I'm from the eastern part of the US.
In a car, I have about 8 hours of experience and could do it in a pinch, although I'd feel unconfident with it.
On a motorcycle, I have about 20 hours of more recent experience and I feel fairly comfortable with it.
France, early thirties, I can. Automatics are still pretty new on the market, most people I know cannot operate one. It's easier of course, but kinda throws you off at first. My wife owns one and it's great for traffic and keeping a low fuel consumption, since the thing is made to shift gears exactly when necessary. The tradeoff is no sportsy driving, of course, but I can live with that for some time.
Yes, I'm from the UK so pretty much everyone here can even if they own an automatic. It's not seen as a big deal here, it's just normal.
I prefer manuals, I won't be buying an automatic until my leg falls off.
37, Eastern PA. I CAN drive a stick, but I don't like to. It's another distraction I don't need while driving. Can pay attention to all the other idiots on the road when not worrying what gear I'm in or when to shift.
I'm 36, I live in the UK, and I've driven a manual car since I was 17. I've only driven an automatic twice in my life and I'll probably never own one.
Nope, manual transmission isn't common in Ontario,, I lived in the US for a bit and everyone seemed to drive stick, but I never figured it out. I don't understand why anyone wants to drive it.
US late 20s. Yes I can and every car I've owned for the last 8 years has been manual
I go out of my way to find them.
Yes Midwest, U.S. 40y
35, Canada, and manual is my preference although my current car is an automatic.
I learned to drive on an automatic, but bought a manual for my first car and got my ex to teach me how to drive it. It was important to me that I be able to get into pretty much anything and drive it. After driving an automatic exclusively for the last year, I miss having that level of gearing control, especially on hills and corners.
USA, 33, daily drive a stick.
Bought my first car with my own money in 2013, a 2014 WRX, it only came in manual. I've been driving it since.
Italian, 45 here. Always driven manual.
From India, late 30s and I drive manual. I learned to drive less than an year ago in a manual that I own. Manual cars are cheaper and I bought one since I believe switching from manual to auto would be easier than the other way around. I don't feel comfortable driving an automatic; and it is only recently that I realised that ALL of my friends and family drive automatics! I live in a large crowded city with terrible traffic problems and I sometimes wonder if driving an automatic would be easier.
Yes. European. It's the norm.
...american; when i learned to stick-and-clutch fourty years ago (driving fifty-year-old used cars) we still called it a standard transmission...
...we like to say that i married my wife because she drove a standard, but when she traded in my last hatchback the manufacturer only offered automatics in the new models; would've been a dealbreaker for me but she liked the car...
30 years old. US. I can and do drive a stick shift.
Really hard coming from a family with only automatic cars. Very few people have stick cars, and even fewer are willing to teach you in their own car.
Can't even rent a stick shift to practice on. Your best bet is to sign up with a driving school that offers stock shift lessons, which I almost did.
Instead, a buddy of mine was kind enough to let me practice for 2 hours with him in a beater he had. Then I went and picked up my brand new WRX. Stalled like 12 times on the way home. But I figured it out!!
Does a motorbike count?
23, German, yes I can and I do
I am 17 and don't even have a driver's license (I already could). However I don't want that in the first place. I don't feel comfortable about being in control of a heavy vehicle moving at relatively high speed. I know I'd drive over a pedestrian the first month because I got lost in my thoughts and completely forgot to pay attention to being in a damn car.
Or just fall asleep. Being in a train, bus, or even just playing a bus simulator on my phone immediately makes me sleepy. Sleeping driver is not a good driver.
Additionally there's the high prices of gas to consider, low prices of bus transport, and for me as a student non-existent prices for trains.
Why pay extra to create additional traffic and kill people?
41, can and have been driving manuals exclusively for the last decade. I only learned about 15 years ago when I picked up a beater Datsun 720, but once I went manual I was hooked. Every car I've bought since has been a manual. Keeps me awake and engaged while driving.
Yes, 29 from Belgium. I got my first automatic transmission in January. Everyone around me drives a manual
36, Canadian, 10/10 would recommend. Winter driving is way more fun with manual, and it can be a lot easier on gas if you're in the mood.
- 5 speed '93 Suzuki Sidekick 2006-2009
- 6 speed '05 Jeep Wrangler 2009-2021
- 5 speed '10 Mazda B2300 2021-Present
Yes. If I hadn't learned to drive manual while getting a license, I wouldn't have been able to drive them legally, which I figured would have been unnecessarily restrictive.
That being said, I prefer driving automatic, since you don't really gain anything from driving manual anyway these days. Also I don't own a car and drive maybe 4 times a year, so it's really whatever.
My brother always use to tell me that driving manual is just driving with extra steps. Lol
In Norway where hills are common I prefer either manual or fully electric. Automatic tends to wear down the breaks down hill, and you often forget to enable the manual mode on automatics
Yes. Learned to drive with one. Got my license with one.
Sadly, don't own one right now, but, will prob get one in the future again. Every 2nd or 3rd car I have picked up, has had a stick.
I'm from the mid-west USA.
Yes, late 50's US and I drive a 6 speed Jeep daily. Taught my 23 year old son to drive a stick and he just bought a Tacoma stick shift.
I learned on my grandfather's 3 on the tree 1968 Dodge camper van. If you can drive a 3 on the tree, you can drive anything.
I drive whichever vehicle doesn't get my data harvested.
Zoomer from Mexico, I can and I prefer it. I daily drive a manual car.
US, late 30s. The answer is "yes" but I've only spent a few hours behind the wheel of a manual car. I wouldn't feel comfortable with it without more practice. I don't prefer it as it's more thinking and stress for me in a commute that is already stop and go traffic. Automatic requires less work from me. Just my opinion and I know more people prefer manual because of the extra work it takes to drive. I'm just not interested in adding that to my driving experience.
Yes! I'm in my early 20s, and bought a manual transmission car just 2 weeks ago. It was also my first time driving alone, so it has been quite stressful
38 Ireland, yes, it's the main transmission type here, the same as most of Europe.
Mid-late twenties, US, I know how but have only ever done it on a motorcycle. I don't even know anyone who owns a manual car.
I think I'd like a manual sports car. Automatics are boring.
Yes, US, mid twenties, I learned when I was 16 and I've really only driven manuals since. I taught myself how to heel toe four years ago. I'm not under the impression that I can shift gears quicker than a performance auto or more efficiently than a modern auto. I don't think either has been true for at least a couple decades, not for driving in a straight line. It's just fun. Manual transmissions make shitty cars bearable. I was surprised after leaving my home town to learn that hardly anyone knew how to drive stick. Not all of my pears growing up dailied a manual, but they all knew how.
Yup, I daily a 2021 MX-5 RF (Miata). Luckily I work from home most days so it's not too bad.
In the bay area, 26yo
Yes, Italy, 36 (since I'm 18).
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