Quote:
Originally Posted by TCGMark
Here is something I considered when buying the manual transmission. How much it costs to rebuild an automatic. Every automatic I have owned at some point needed transmission work....
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I've had the opposite experience with ATs. I've had two Chevy Astros that went 230,000 and 285,000 miles respectively, with only regular(ish) transmission services, and both were used to tow trailers on a regular basis.
Of all the cars I've owned over the years, my split was about 50/50 on AT vs MT. The only transmission I've had fail of either type is one that my oldest son inadvertently poured engine oil into the AT thinking it was the oil filler cap, then driving it about 200 miles.
I will admit with the exception of a Camaro and the FR-S, most of my ATs were in family cars that did not get abused other than towing or carrying heavy loads. All other "sporty" cars I've owned have been MT, and I loved every one of them.
But to answer @
Shark_Bait88, I've never felt more or less in control of a car (sporty or otherwise) just because it had an AT. Perhaps if I was racing them I would have back in the day, but definitely do not feel that way with the FR-S. Admittedly, my dead-pedal did take abuse on more than one occasion when I was in manual mode and muscle memory made me press the pedal when changing gears.
I think it's great we can have this discussion, and respect all those that prefer a MT. Maybe what we need is an AT with a manual mode that includes a clutch!