Automatic or Manual Car

[divasteph]

jess - you cant truly be an angeleno if you cant drive and talk on your cell phone at the same time - so i vote auto so you can do your duty of being a citizen of la

[divasteph]

there's actually a specific hill that i'm talking about in la. it's on la cienega(?) and sunset blvd. there's a stop light at the top of the hill... and i HATE it. it's fine if it's a green light cuz you just drive right through. but if it's red, i get nervous if there's a car too close behind me because when i take my foot off the brake for .5 seconds the car rolls back. ya know? no? whatevs. hahaha.

agreed - that hill sucks - i always turn down melrose or 3rd and come back up to sunset via another street because I HATE IT!!!!!!

[tylor2000]

I can't believe all you environmentalists still drive cars.  It's so twentieth century.  :wink:

[Jessica]

jess - you cant truly be an angeleno if you cant drive and talk on your cell phone at the same time - so i vote auto so you can do your duty of being a citizen of la

haha, yeah that would take some getting used to...(and no more searching through my purse either).. but thats what blue tooth is for. i think the mini cooper comes with it if i get the premium package. and we cant drive with our cell phones as of july 2008 anyway..

[eclv]

I miss my little Del Sol so much (stick) so much fun to drive a stick.

I find that even driving an automatic in SF you'll roll back on a hill. I'd go with a stick. You should have a Bluetooth or some other type of hands free device anyway. Steph! It will be the law soon.

Yeah, so I totally didn't read what Jess wrote, looks like we're on the same wavelength anyway. Sorry.  :oops:

[Manda]

I think in the end you should just test drive both cars and make your own pro's and con's list and see outweigh both the positives and negatives, and decide which one you want. No matter what you choose, its your decision and if you don't like it there will always be a new car somewhere down the line and you can go back to automatic, or get the stick you've always wanted. good luck Jessica!!!

[zurielshimon]

Just start pushing on the gas a little bit before you let off the brake.  I've had to do it a few times in situations like that.

[NESSAussie]

I do prefer driving Manuals; three of my four cars including the current one
are such. Unfortunately, whilst a manual is in theory much easier to start in
the event of batery failure, it would be much nicer I my lil' bro hadn't left my
car where a push start wasn't a viable option. I'll have to try again tonight
or call RACQ again, and see if they can fix 'the problem' 2nd time around  :roll:

Peace

Aaron

[Morgan]

I can't drive yet, but when I can, a manual has a lot more perks to me than an automatic does.

[me and my piano---tim]

My first car was automatic, and yea... it was nice. But my 2nd car was stick-shift... and DAMN. Way more fun.

[zurielshimon]

I do prefer driving Manuals; three of my four cars including the current one
are such. Unfortunately, whilst a manual is in theory much easier to start in
the event of batery failure, it would be much nicer I my lil' bro hadn't left my
car where a push start wasn't a viable option. I'll have to try again tonight
or call RACQ again, and see if they can fix 'the problem' 2nd time around  :roll:

Peace

Aaron

Yes, I hate that you can't push-start an automatic.  I think the electric starter is a wonderful invention, and I thank Cadillac for introducing it in 1912.  But getting rid of a crank or push-start as a backup was a bad idea.

[me and my piano---tim]

I do prefer driving Manuals; three of my four cars including the current one
are such. Unfortunately, whilst a manual is in theory much easier to start in
the event of batery failure, it would be much nicer I my lil' bro hadn't left my
car where a push start wasn't a viable option. I'll have to try again tonight
or call RACQ again, and see if they can fix 'the problem' 2nd time around  :roll:

Peace

Aaron

Yes, I hate that you can't push-start an automatic.  I think the electric starter is a wonderful invention, and I thank Cadillac for introducing it in 1912.  But getting rid of a crank or push-start as a backup was a bad idea.

ooo good trivia!  

[tylor2000]

You can push start an automatic....or at least you could with the transmissions I've known.  The problem is you have to get the car over 20 or 30 miles an hour so the transmission fluid is spinning.  If you are on top of a hill you can sometimes get the car to start.  It's not good for the car as well.  But neither is push starting a manual.

[zurielshimon]

You can push start an automatic....or at least you could with the transmissions I've known.  The problem is you have to get the car over 20 or 30 miles an hour so the transmission fluid is spinning.  If you are on top of a hill you can sometimes get the car to start.  It's not good for the car as well.  But neither is push starting a manual.

Well, yeah, I suppose that's possible.  The whole reason you can't normally push-start an automatic is because once the engine is turned off, fluid pressure is lost.  If you can get up enough speed to build up pressure in the torque converter, it could cause the flywheel to turn.  I have had an automatic to restart rolling down the highway simply by turning on the key and shifting back into drive from neutral.  What I was doing in neutral rolling down the highway with the key off is none of your business.

[tylor2000]

You can push start an automatic....or at least you could with the transmissions I've known.  The problem is you have to get the car over 20 or 30 miles an hour so the transmission fluid is spinning.  If you are on top of a hill you can sometimes get the car to start.  It's not good for the car as well.  But neither is push starting a manual.

Well, yeah, I suppose that's possible.  The whole reason you can't normally push-start an automatic is because once the engine is turned off, fluid pressure is lost.  If you can get up enough speed to build up pressure in the torque converter, it could cause the flywheel to turn.  I have had an automatic to restart rolling down the highway simply by turning on the key and shifting back into drive from neutral.  What I was doing in neutral rolling down the highway with the key off is none of your business.

I think we have had this conversation before in the past...

 I'm starting to remember...I had this Dogde Omni(small car) that I used to push start all the time.  I forget why I had to push start it all the time, but I remember purposely parking it on the top of a slight downhill grade just so I could push it to 25 mph and jump start it. Only someone like me would find a way to push start an automatic.  Or fix a car with rope.  Duck tape is very useful.  :razz: