Should i get Stick or Automatic?

Question

Ok, so i want to get a G35 Coupe and fix it up a lil. I like to drive fast sometimes. The problem is that i live in Los angeles, and sometimes there alot of traffic. People tell me that im gonna hate driving stick in LA which i know i will, but then again i think about it and its a g35, which is like a sports car, so how can you not get it in stick. Im always out till late at night when there no traffic at all, so i know that driving stick then would be lots of fun. What should i do? Get stick or Automatic? Theres also one more problem, i dont know how to drive stick so if i got the g35 in stick i would have to learn on it, but i dont have any problem with that because i want to learn. So really my question is am i going to hate driving stick when theres traffic? Should i get an automatic G35, or a stick shift because i think whats the point of having a fast lil car if its not going to be in stick, but i just want to make sure if i get stick, that i will like it.

Answer 1

My dad had a really great theory about the whole stick versus automatic controversy.

when I was learning to drive, my dad explained that when you learn how to drive a stick, you are automatically qualified any kind of car. its easier to learn how to drive an automatic than to drive a stick, but by knowing to drive stick, you can drive any car. so if you ever get stuck, lets say driving a friend home from the bar, using their car, you'll have no problem may it be stick or automatic

Answer 2

I will get a standard transmission before I get an automatic. I don't think it would matter where I lived. I actually get better gas mileage and maintenance costs out of a standard transmission than out of an automatic. I feel I have more control over the vehicle. I use engine compression for braking while deaccellerating. Putting less wear on my brake pads and shoes when I apply them. So they last longer. In fact, I have had to change steering and suspension parts before I changed brake pads in one new truck I bought. That was caused by the condition of the roads and not by my ability to drive.
I have an automatic too. It seems when deaccellerating that the whole car becomes dead weight against the brakes while they are being applied. Wearing them out faster. An automatic does not have the feel of using engine compression as an aid in braking.

All I am saying is you have a decision to make and your choice will be the right one. I will give you the best answer I know comparing the two transmissions from experience.

Answer 3

Get a stick. It can be annoying with heavy traffic, and if you have to deal with that all the time maybe you should go with an automatic, but if your time out of heavy traffic outweighs the time spent in it, a manual transmission is the only way to go. One word of advice, learn how to drive it where there isn't much traffic, and make sure there is no one around when you teach yourself how to start up on a hill.

I learned to drive with an automatic, which I needed to because there was no way I could have handled learning the rules of the road and how to handle a manual transmission, but once I got my first one............. I never want to go back. I suppose it depends on the person, but half my friends have the same view, and my husband, (who had to have a crash course in driving a stick - his van had the seatbelt get stuck so I would have to go to a junkyard to get a replacement, well anyway, this was on a Sunday. He had to go to work on Monday. So, he learned how to drive my car Sunday night, then took it to work on Monday) Even though he had that crash course in it, he was hooked. His van had very high milage (250,000 miles), so when we were looking for another vehicle he stated that a requirement was that it had to have a manual transmission.

And of course, like you said, what's the point of having a sports car if it's not a stick?????????????

Answer 4

You'll LOVE it.... I forgot to ask, and was given an automatic rental car last month---& I HATED it! ...
But, asking the ? is like asking if you should own a Powerboat as opposed to a sailboat. There's pros & cons of each. You sound like 'fun' is more important to you...well, a sailboat is more FUN than a powerboat---& a Stick is more fun than an automatic. Jeeezzzzzzzzz THINK about it...why do you think 'blue-hairs' drive more automatics than sticks? Another thing worth mentioning is that with a stick you'll have more control over your moves.
VIP (very important point)...don't get a stickshift UNLESS you have a TACH (tacometer)..to tell you WHEN to shift. If you learn the right way, you'll learn to shift when the tach gets to between 2,500 to 3,000 rpm. I 'listen' /or 'feel' for the sound that tells me when the 'engine is getting bogged down or I need speed more than I need to conserve ---& you will go by your sences too later on; but for now, you need to know!...ask around to those who drive Hondas...they'll know.

Take CONTROL of your driving...and get a stick shift! LA? ---ever tried to get out of a bad situation FAST with an automatic? Try it with a stick---you are in control.

UNLESS of course you're getting a MERCEDES! Ask a Porsche owner...or a Ferrari owner...! heck! ask a Honda owner!

Answer 5

I commute 50 miles through the bay area every day in my 2003 passat v6 with 95,000 miles on the original clutch. I car pool with a guy who had a 2001 BMW 325 with 105,000 miles on his original clutch. Neither of us would want automatic. Those 'register a preference' pseudo manual mode things don't cut it either. I find the whole experience of driving a sludgebox unsatisfactory, I detest listening to the fluid coupling spinning away the power while the engine accelerates and the car does nothing.

People who think automatics shift at 'the correct time' obviously don't drive much, how can a sludge-o-matic know that just round this corner I'm braking for there's a straight where I'm going to gain a second on the slug in front of me who's going to be waiting for his computer to tell his automatic transmission that he really needs a lower gear now!

Answer 6

If you like to drive a sport car and want to be in control get the
stick. But the car will perform better with an auto. Because it
will shift at the correct moment every time. But like you said in
heavy stop and go traffic it may be a pain.

Answer 7

I'll bet that it is easier to buy an automatic than a manual transmission. That might influence your decicion. And i'll bet that with the G35's power, the automatic is quicker. (I have always had a manual transmission because I like to be in control, but I know that its limiting)

Answer 8

i also live in la get the automatic the difference in power is not enough plus it shifts faster. i would not give up my automatic for anything i had a stick last.

Answer 9

sticks the only thing i had since i was 16 and i am 35 now

Answer 10

I live in La too. Get automatic much eaiser to drive in La.