manual v auto

[toolsplus]

just wondering what you guys prefer when off-roading

manual or auto?

i think manual's more fun and you feel like 'you' did it,if you see what i mean

but auto's a nice relaxing feel,well chilled out

what your ideal gear-box then...?

cheers

 

[Shayne]

I know what you mean that's why i have a manual truck auto's bore me to tears .

 

[karl webster]

For off roading auto is my choice any day. Got a manual now though.

The auto is nicer as you don't miss a gear when you really need to change up.

 

[MarkW]

A

for me, autos bore me and I don't feel connected to the car, mostly my back ground with hot hatches and track days. Driven auto hire cars before and felt like I had lost 2 limbs

 

[Chas]

I prefer an auto, it seems to me that those who prefer a manual have to justify it rather than drive it, and their arguments make us auto lovers out to be lacking in some way, just sayin'

 

[Shayne]

Interesting comment Chas and looking at it from your perspective i can see where it comes from . I think it reflects an inability to explain our preference rather than anything else . It's a personality thing i suppose a manual box makes me feel more involved , adrenaline's pumping and i wanna get physical and flipping through the box sort of feeds that need . Different strokes for different folks .

 

[clivehorridge]

I've owned both at different times. The auto had tiptronic and I liked that more than the full auto setting. Maybe it was the type of car, a Pajero 4 speed auto 3 liter petrol, but it never seemed to change at the right time for my liking, always screaming "change up" to me, far too late a change.

Manual now, and I never think I wished it to be an auto.

 

[Chas]

Interesting comment Chas and looking at it from your perspective i can see where it comes from . I think it reflects an inability to explain our preference rather than anything else . It's a personality thing i suppose a manual box makes me feel more involved , adrenaline's pumping and i wanna get physical and flipping through the box sort of feeds that need . Different strokes for different folks .

I do understand just what you mean, I can remember feeling like that when I was younger, I suppose I've got lazier in my advancing years, I haven't owned a manual for over 30 years. It's when people use expressions like, "It feels like I've lost a limb" that I was really referring to.

EDIT
I've just remembered I did have one manual in that 30 years a Morris 1000 Traveler.

 

[Pat]

I grew up when there was no such thing as synchro boxes and when younger always had a bias towards manuals.my first car was a 1928 ford model A and the next was a 1929 Packard straight8both of course with crash boxes.cars were not so reliable then so you never took a girl out unless she was a good pusher.When the car was hard to start looks didn't matter but a good pusher was worth her weight in gold.you couldn't push start autos but now my Prato is an auto and I love it.Pat

 

[MarkW]

I do understand just what you mean, I can remember feeling like that when I was younger, I suppose I've got lazier in my advancing years, I haven't owned a manual for over 30 years. It's when people use expressions like, "It feels like I've lost a limb" that I was really referring to.

EDIT
I've just remembered I did have one manual in that 30 years a Morris 1000 Traveler.

So I guess it was a dig a me then Chas? I didn't post anything other than my opinion, did a slag anyone off for preferring autos? no just my feelings driving autos and I explained why.

 

[froggy Steve]

I have had both - for a big 4x4 Auto every time. The first auto was a 2.6 Isuzu trooper Citation, 2nd was the Range Rover, and now we have the LC. For smaller 'sportier' car manual box gets it. The 3.9 Rangie was swapped for an MX-5 - slightly different!
My Dear old Dad has lost a leg, he has hand controls - thats scarey ! lever fwd = stop, lever back = go! (or is it tother way round?) I keep thinking " is he ever going to stop?"

 

[stumog]

i like a manual for touring and a auto for a comp truck or very hard offroading as you have alot on you mind.

 

[toolsplus]

i prefer an auto for going to Aldi,for a coffee,spot of overlanding,in traffic,in towns...
for everything off-road as well,makes it a relaxing cruise,tends to keep me calm and drive responsibly

but when you're facing 'that' hill or 'a section' or you feel like a hooligan
then i wish for a manual
'cause if i make it,i feel like i did it

but as i'm getting older i feel the need for just cruising
in my own little world
so it's auto's for me

but i'm sure i'll always watch the manuals with a secret desire...

 

[Crispin]

In something nippy - manual. For something heavy like an LC - auto. Why do you want to faf? Snap-changing on a 2 ton vehicle is pointless.
I had a manual 120 which was terrible in traffic and normal driving. Clutch like a truck. I then had a 150 auto which was a dream to drive (albeit a bit sloppy on the gearbox)

 

[kamaangir]

Having owned 4 surfs, 3 autos and 1 manual, I feel I can offer some exerience. The autos were great in town and on motorways, they are reliable and smooth. My latest surf is a manual and you would not believe the amount of torque the auto box wastes to make your drive smooth! Mine has larger rolling diameter tyres which should reduce torque but even my surf specialist mechanic commented how much torquier the truck was compared to the autos.

Others have commented that when offroading its easier with an auto as you don't have to worry about bitting points and clutches etc.. To that I have countered, that only really applies to green lanning, remember your driving wheels are always trying to push you forward even when you are braking! In a manual you lower the clutch to adjust your speed quickly in slippery stuff.

Also your manual box does not play silly buggers when you get a blocked fuel filter or brake light lamp blows (both times auto box would not shift up peoperly).

ultimately the choice is yours and your use of the vehicle. Ask 3 people on any forum about anything and you get 6 opinions.

By the way I don't have anything against autos as have had more autos than manuals.

 

[Shayne]

I've never driven an auto LC but the Hummer had the best auto box i could imagine just blip the throttle and it would drop a gear and roar with an aggression that would register alarm on the faces of every motorist within a hundred feet regardless of what speed i was doing . It did make me smile but i guess that was down to the 6L V8 more than anything else . Has to be said though i did feel somewhat detached from the action , it didn't change my driving style (read terrible) but never once while driving it did i feel the need to sit up physically poised to react sort of keyed up and focused . Like i said i think it's a personality thing that has no answer . I have a swb 90 that will give most hot hatches a run for their money and a manual box lets me drive it like one but i still remember the immense satisfaction i felt as a teen when driving diggers and the go pedal just defeated all obstacles without breaking stride .

 

[Gary820]

Had manual 4x4s which worked great for what I wanted and now have an auto 80, wouldn't swap it for a manual. Great on and off road.
The beemer Is a manual and great for driving hard on twisty roads.

 

[Chas]

So I guess it was a dig a me then Chas? I didn't post anything other than my opinion, did a slag anyone off for preferring autos? no just my feelings driving autos and I explained why.

No Mark it wasn't a dig at anyone in particular, it was rather a comment on the type of reason some were giving for preferring a manual. Like I said it was as though they needed to justify it. I'm well past the boy racer stage (Now don't read anything into that) I'm knocking on a bit now and I realise my reaction time is not what it was so I prefer the lazy style of driving that autos give me. When off-road in a tricky situation I feel more secure knowing I'm in the correct gear most of the time if not always, it allows me to concentrate on where to place myself rather than am I in the right gear for it.

 

[Doodle]

Part of the problem is that by comparison to other offerings, the Toyota autoboxes are actually pretty woeful in use. My biggest gripe is that they never lock up soon enough, so you're thrashing the TC pointlessly when it's really not necessary under the circumstances.

 

[Chas]

Part of the problem is that by comparison to other offerings, the Toyota autoboxes are actually pretty woeful in use. My biggest gripe is that they never lock up soon enough, so you're thrashing the TC pointlessly when it's really not necessary under the circumstances.

On normal driving mine locks up at 40mph, I know from the slight 'lurch' what speed I'm at without looking at the speedo. For many years it didn't lock up until Julian V found a problem and fixed it until then I didn't even know it should lock.