Are we becoming an A/T country?

[MAXBUWAYA]

Have you notice that car manufacturers are bringing more and more A/T in our country? Like Mazda and Fortuner are all in A/T (well mazda is semi a/t hehehe) And most top of the hi end brand are only available in A/T like civic 2.0 altis 1.8 ano pa ba?

People I know whos age are 20 to late thirty still prefer Manual. For reasons that it has more power and more durable and fuel efficient.

It may not be a big slice of the market but I know more people still prefer M/T

So what do you think guys?

What do you want

M/T or A/T?

[mbt]

without a doubt, A/T is becoming more prevalent. and it's because the manufacturers (and probably, some people) think that an M/T is cheap on a high-end car

[pixelparadigm]

Personally I still prefer M/T over A/T. It's just not that fun to just press on the pedal and let some computer or mechanism teach you where the power is. But I'll be happier if I had a sequential gearbox still on an H pattern with minimal clutch takeoff resistance, or a semi-automatic. And I'm no F1 wannabe... so I kinda hate the idea of paddle shifters.

Reliability too is also the reason why i'm still sticking my mind to M/T. Although I drive one ancient vehicle (90's car naman), there are times that I was very fortunate that its a manual. Minsan bimigay yung baterya ng kotse namin, buti na lang pwede itulak at iyon nai-start ulit at naidrive sa pinakamalapit na car battery shop.

[badkuk]

i kinda enjoy manual shifting, feeling ko ang galing kong magdrive(feeling lang). but then again my knees are relatively healthy pa. hassle kasi sobra if you have, say, arthritis, tapos you're stuck in traffic on an M/T ride.

[yebo]

it's because of the traffic dudes! mas madali mag-drive ng a/t kesa m/t sa traffic. green light na, shift ka sa first gear then nagrerelease ka pa lang ng clutch mo nasingitan ka na ng naka-a/t! once you've driven an a/t and nagustuhan mo kung paano kadali sumingit sa mga "sloooooow-reaction-must-be-an-old-lady driving" m/t cars you will change your attitude towards an a/t. and it's less tiring to boot.

more durable ang m/t? naaaah! a/t change atf ka lang, m/t dami wear and tear like clutch disk, pressure plate, tranny... if you maintain your a/t right it will outlast an m/t. naka-overhaul ka na ng m/t tranny and 4 na palit ng clutch disk and pressure plate umaandar pa din ang a/t na correctly maintained. of course the expenses even out in the end kasi it is more expensive to overhaul an a/t. bigla nga lang ang gastos unlike the m/t tranny pakonti-konti gastos sa overhaul and palit ng clutch parts.

more power? kaya nga nilagyan ng more powerful engine to compensate. and not everybody drives at near the red line all the time anyway so who cares if we don't get G forces pushing from our leather seat covers. besides modern a/t like cvt have very minimal power loss and may even be better than an m/t. even modern conventional hydromatic a/t have efficiencies comparable to m/t.

technology has caught up dudes, need to change the way the brain thinks!

[mbt]

all true, but you'll trade convenience for driving involvement with an A/T.

ako, A/T for the city car, M/T for the weekend toy hehehe

[Bogeyman]

I'm more at home with an M/T; I love the security of being in control, not to mention that there's a certain discipline to driving with a stick shift. And since it gives my left foot and right hand something to do, mas focused ako on my driving, as I should be. An A/T is nice, but I don't want to enjoy behind the wheel too much to the point that I'm no longer alert. And I'm not comfortable with the notion of letting the car think and decide for me. After all, I am the driver. I should be telling the car what to do, not the other way around.

Besides, I don't have any problems with my "clutch" leg. Mas nangangawit pa nga yung right leg ko kaka-shift from gas to brake and vice-versa.

[ssaloon]

all true, but you'll trade convenience for driving involvement with an A/T.

ako, A/T for the city car, M/T for the weekend toy hehehe

amen!!

[Sheep]

im all for m/t but just thinkin' about the stop n go stituation in the southsuper -crawlway and the traffic makes me think twice...if i would be able to get another car in the near future i wouldnt think twice on getting a car with a/t after all whats a few more bucks for fuel if in exchange of a more stress free and relaxed driving

[66bunny]

Yebo, about to type the exact sentiment you've posted. Right on.

I work in Makati so A/T is a must.

[squala]

It's true that many Pinoys switch to automatics because, as yebo said, of too much traffic. Even so, there are still many others who want to shift gears themselves. Shame that many manufacturers no longer offer manuals in their top models. True, the extra ability brought by larger engine options (Altis 1.8G, Civic and 3 2.0) may be useful, but it's quite obvious that they'll perform even better with a stick. Manufacturers no longer tend to cater to what consumers here really want.

[al_motor]

Manufacturers no longer tend to cater to what consumers here really want.

on the contrary, manufacturers try thinking a couple of steps ahead.

for one thing, they live on the idea that "the market is aging", so the models of cars also "mature" as its clientele does.

they also introduce technologies and conveniences that are innovative but are at the same time a gamble to the receiving public.

[kyle618]

ako, A/T for the city car, M/T for the weekend toy hehehe

same here... traffic is a pain. at first i wanted an M/T car kasi masmabilis papunta sa school pero after a while i realized how fortunate na A/T un ginagamit ko. Traffic is hell in the philippines. STOP AND GO and round and round it goes.

[gearspeed]

M/T pa rin ako hindi kase ako natuto gumamit ng A/T eh..hehe
Iba pa rin kapag M/T para sa akin.

[yebo]

di naman masyado magastos a/t sa gas if you drive right. remember the car is only half of the equation, the other half is your right foot. i still can get 8 km/l city driving on my 1.6 lancer in the worst traffic (yun e pag naipit ako na talagang gapang). most days, edsa traffic, non rush hour, it's around 11-12km/l. (see, i never drive during rush hours so tipid ako sa gas ) highway, i still get 16+km/l.

[likot]

di naman masyado magastos a/t sa gas if you drive right. remember the car is only half of the equation, the other half is your right foot. i still can get 8 km/l city driving on my 1.6 lancer in the worst traffic (yun e pag naipit ako na talagang gapang). most days, edsa traffic, non rush hour, it's around 11-12km/l. (see, i never drive during rush hours so tipid ako sa gas ) highway, i still get 16+km/l.

bakit yung rav4 a/t chaka honda accord a/t at crv a/t ang lalakas lumunok ng gas?? tanong lang po.... im just wondering... pede ba pang drag race sa pinas ang a/t????

[al_motor]

as a friend of mine told me, "i will not have an M/T unless the car is stupidly fast."

i couldn't agree more. Unless of course if i were to drive a MB SLR McLaren...or any other fast car which has received a similarly intelligent tranny.

[jim]

M/T for me. I don't like to rely on electronics. Sanayan din lang ang paggamit ng clutch. Saka mas kaya kong i-DIY mekaniko ang M/T pag nagkaprob yung buong mekanismo

[EL Chicane]

Comparing a MANUAL transmission vehicle with an AUTOMATIC transmission vehicle, is like comparing a TV with manual controls versus a TV with a remote control: CONVENIENCE.

Why would anyone like to stand up from the sofa, walk 2 meters to the TV set just to change the channel, when you can do the same thing with a remote control? People will give you plenty of reasons: (1) It's ok, i need some exercise anyway; (2) a TV with manual controls is cheaper so it's more affordable; (3) if a manual TV breaks down, it's easier to repair unlike a remote-controlled TV with too many complex electronics.

It's the same thing with a car. Many people can think plenty of reasons to stay away from convenience.

We also have to factor-in, the psychological barrier behind it. Like a friend of mine who insists that LP recordings of the Beatles sound much better than the CD-version. Or an old lady neighbor of ours who insists that she can type much faster using a typewriter than using a computer.

When i was in the States, the only cars using stick shift which you can rent from the Rental Car companies are the sports cars or the trucks. Everything else are automatic. In fact, almost all of them have cruise control - i don't even need to use my feet no more!

There are two reasons why MANUAL transmission is still being marketed in Pinas: (1) they are CHEAPER (Pinoys are budget-conscious); and (2) there are still substantial market from people who insist on using old technology.

[squala]

Comparing a MANUAL transmission vehicle with an AUTOMATIC transmission vehicle, is like comparing a TV with manual controls versus a TV with a remote control: CONVENIENCE.

Why would anyone like to stand up from the sofa, walk 2 meters to the TV set just to change the channel, when you can do the same thing with a remote control? People will give you plenty of reasons: (1) It's ok, i need some exercise anyway; (2) a TV with manual controls is cheaper so it's more affordable; (3) if a manual TV breaks down, it's easier to repair unlike a remote-controlled TV with too many complex electronics.

It's the same thing with a car. Many people can think plenty of reasons to stay away from convenience.

We also have to factor-in, the psychological barrier behind it. Like a friend of mine who insists that LP recordings of the Beatles sound much better than the CD-version. Or an old lady neighbor of ours who insists that she can type much faster using a typewriter than using a computer.

Perhaps you may have forgotten about the fun factor in your remote control analogy of gearboxes. Yes, it's no perks, all work when you have to stand up and change the channel or adjust the volume of your TV, but it's not true with manual gearboxes. You call the shots here, completely. Automatics rob you of that excitement, shifting even if you don't feel like it.

Manumatics today (INVECS, Tiptronic, etc.) do not quite bridge the gap between the two yet. They haven't been perfected, and technically, they are still automatics. The manual override somehow gives you control, but no performance gain. They sometimes also shift automatically, and annoyingly inaccurately half the time.

The best development so far is the likes of BMW's SMG (Sequential Manual Gearbox) and Ferrari's F1-Style paddle-shifting gearbox. They almost, if not equal their stickshift counterparts, while allowing the driver to cruise like an automatic if he or she pleases. It's just that the technology may still be too expensive to be implemented in cheaper, more common cars.