FRS AT/MT for first car post college

[Re~Mix]

@dietz . Berkeley for the masters.

Worried about the hills and traffic in the bay, but I feel like to get the full potential of a car like the FRS the manual is the way to go.
@S2kphile Bay area isn't cheap at all, unfortunately. And I do have college debt. Luckily I locked down a steady job the chip away at those payments.

[FrX]

I do not believe that you will have too hard of a time learning to drive a MT. My first car was a manual. I bought it without knowing at all how to drive manual. The first couple of hours were somewhat shaky, but you get the hang of it fast.

[dietz]

Nice! Got mine from GA Tech.

A good place to practice hill starts is in a parking garage. I did that on my motorcycle when I was learning and it helped a lot.

[Re~Mix]

So big dilemma today.

Saw a 2005 MazdaSpeed Miata w/ 20K miles on it at a dealer today. Thing was mint and a blast. Do I take the fair price they were offering it for at $17K or hold out for the Scion FRS.

Test drove a Mazda Miata and Honda S2K to get a feel for the type of car this will be, LOVE IT.

[MVJ1975]

With the rain you get in the Bay area I'd pass on the Miata. Convertibles leak.

If this is your daily driver, you want a hard top. Hold out for the FR-S.

[Re~Mix]

Originally Posted by MVJ1975

If this is your daily driver, you want a hard top. Hold out for the FR-S.

yeahh... It was a nice looking car and definitely a special find. Felt a little feminine and outdated though. Hoping I can look at the FRS soon.

[SioXie101]

Real man drive stick, although if your married and have a lovely wife, an AT is an accepted excuse.....

[#87]

Shame on you if you don't teach your life partner manual transmission.

My friend bought an auto because of his wife, I had a good laugh with him about it when they got divorced a year later.

[Mari0]

Originally Posted by Re~Mix

Berkeley for the masters.

Go Bears and Go Manual... That is all

[SioXie101]

Originally Posted by #87

Shame on you if you don't teach your life partner manual transmission.

My friend bought an auto because of his wife, I had a good laugh with him about it when they got divorced a year later.

oh nooooooooo! now that car will hunt him forever.....

[Quentin]

Originally Posted by Re~Mix

So big dilemma today.

Saw a 2005 MazdaSpeed Miata w/ 20K miles on it at a dealer today. Thing was mint and a blast. Do I take the fair price they were offering it for at $17K or hold out for the Scion FRS.

Test drove a Mazda Miata and Honda S2K to get a feel for the type of car this will be, LOVE IT.

If I were shopping Miatas, I'd buy the cheaper, newer 3rd gen. Yeah, it is a bit heavier and down on power compared to the MS Miata, but you can find loads of them on the cheap ($12k~$13k pretty easily). I ultimately didn't buy a Miata because I didn't want to deal with the convertible top.

[Moto-P]

Manual on an FRS is as easy as it can get!
One of the best cars to learn on... In fact ANY manual car sold these days are EASY to learn and are very durable for novice use.
And because the FRS is light-weight, and 2WD on relatively mild grip tires, any misuse will just translate to slight slip of the rear tires and even that is regulated by the VSC and TRC on the FRS so its safe and not very abusive.


You should have lived in my days, when we learned stick on a Italian cars of the 70's or other crazy setups where shift levers were not always H pattern or out of normal sequence, and some gears were not even synchronized, all while the engine coughed and choked if throttles were not at happy ranges of torque-band. Those days are gone! Everything is EASY today.

[Re~Mix]

Thanks for the opinions.

I've been convinced to go with the Manual for now. Decided not to go with the Miata, just didn't love the 05' version and the styling isn't the greatest.

Going to test drive a few more cars tomorrow, make some calls and see if I can't get my eyes on an FRS. Waitlist and no word yet...

[Re~Mix]

Had my first MT lesson on an old Toyota Corolla tonight...

Almost having buyers remorse before I even get in the MT FRS. Upshifting and street driving don't seem too terrible, but the thought off traffic, parallel parking and everything makes me wonder if AT with paddle shifters isn't a terrible option.

After having read Moto's thread, it still leaves me on the fence. I really only want the MT to learn manual, and have that acceleration and spirited driving on open roads. I will not be on the track or drifting with this car.

Perhaps I'll update my waitlist order to either an MT or AT in Asphalt and let the Scion gods decide.