The manual transmission is sometimes regarded as godlike in car culture. Enthusiasts who worship at the altar of the manual often believe that all vehicles are made better with a third pedal. Most of the time, I’m inclined to agree. There has yet to be a car that I’ve driven that was made worse with a shift-your-own-adventure transmission. But this cannot be the case for every car that has ever existed. Is there a car that was somehow made worse with a manual transmission?
Admittedly, this question was pretty hard for me to answer because I am a huge fan of manuals. My insane car-buying habits have meant that there were times in which I owned the automatic version and the manual version of the same car at the same time. Being able to compare both transmission options within minutes of each other is shocking.
In one of these cases, I owned a 2012 Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen TDI DSG and a 2010 Volkswagen Jetta SportWagen TDI six-speed manual at the same time. Both cars had the same options, the same engine, and the same interiors. The only difference was in color and gearbox. The 2012 was fine! VW’s DSG is lightning quick, and when it works right, it’s something that works smoothly in the background that you never have to think about.
On the other hand, the 2010, despite being pretty much the same car, felt far more engaging to drive just because of the change in transmission. It was awesome. I’ve even once gotten the chance to drive a Smart Fortwo with a real five-speed manual, and it was so good that I bet Smart haters would be complimenting the little city car.
But is that going to be the case with every vehicle?
I think if there’s a vehicle that maybe had been made worse with a manual transmission, it could be a heavy-duty pickup truck built in the past two decades or so. I’ve once driven an older manual Super Duty, and while it was so cool to row my own in a heavy work vehicle, the clutch was a heavy unit. I could imagine my left foot getting really tired rowing gears while towing a trailer, or inching the truck along in dense city traffic.
But I also get why old manual diesel trucks are legendary. Automatic truck transmissions often sucked back then, no matter which brand they came from, so a manual was pretty much the best shot at stellar longevity. Also, manuals are still really cool! But were these trucks actually better to drive? The last manual-equipped heavy-duty pickup in America was the Ram, and that hasn’t had a manual since 2018.
If I had to give a wild answer to this question, it would be a diesel-mechanical locomotive with a manual transmission, which is a thing!
Pete piping in real quick. I can’t recall if it was the vanilla-spec Ford Focus or Fiesta that I’m thinking of, but I test-drove both circa 2013, each with a stick as well as the automatics. One if not both of them (definitely the Focus, I think) was done no favors by its manual gearbox. The throws were long and imprecise, and it just didn’t feel good. On top of that, the ratios were wack. I recall a very low (numerically high) first gear, and then a huge jump to second, a minor tooth-change for third, and then a too-tall fourth gear and another short hop to the fuel-economy-optimized fifth gear. Or something like that – but for sure, it was a lot of extra work for no extra fun. The autos, on the other hand, seemed to have reasonable ratios and responded with crisp-enough shifts and hesitation-free downshifts when I matted the pedal. Not thrilling, but not frustrating.
How about you? Is there a car, truck, SUV, or other vehicle that was made worse with a manual transmission?
Top graphic image: Ford
Anything made after 2000 that is not an enthusiast vehicle. Back in the 80s and 90s the slush box earned it’s name. If you wanted the most from an engine you needed the manual. Now with the computers and years of data used to program, it is more than you can do.
So unpopular opinion
Every moden car with a manual is slower and worse than an auto.
That being said I bought my nissan z with a manual as on the right day and the right road it is way more fun.
And in the world we live in now fun is more important than better/faster/more efficient.
2015 Mazda 3 (2.5L). The gearing was so small that there was no difference between 5th and 6th gear. Anything over 110 klms/h and it was revving at 3,000 rpm-very enjoyable for long trips in the “GT” spec Mazda. While I was getting a new transmission (bad syncros-TSB about it) my loaner was the 6speed auto, it was the first time in my life I realized the auto was better than the manual.
My 2013 CRV that I currently drive revs way lower while cruising at higher speeds, and has 1 less gear than my Mazda did. Gearing makes all the difference.
My buddy had a manual Gremlin back in highschool. The clutch travel was measured in astronomical units and required a hydrolic press to operate. The shifter itself had absurdly long throws and you were never sure if it actually went into gear. I don’t know if there was an auto example but it couldn’t have been worse.
E60 with the N62. The clutch throw was super long and it was kinda heavy, and both with and without the CDV, it was very difficult to shift smoothly due to the stupidly heavy DMF.
The E60 is a very large and comfortable car, and the whole luxury/comfort experience is ruined with a manual transmission.
Apparently the M5 manual is much better, but I think the straight 6 variants of the E60 would be similar, as my manual LCI E83 struggles with the same issues. However, I don’t mind it on that somewhat agricultural SUV since it’s more of a workhorse that can fit a ton of stuff, not a super luxurious executive sedan.
I worked on a project in northern Guatemala where we had a number of 1997 Ford F-350s with diesel engines. They were great vehicles even if they didn’t fit in Guatemala City parking lots and sank off-road in the jungle from weight. The only problem was having many different drivers some of whom weren’t too good with a manual transmission. Automatics weren’t great but probably would have lowered our maintenance costs.
This post wants me to ask so many questions.
They couldn’t be parked, couldn’t be driven, but “the only problem” was the manual?
Actually, they were pretty good. Better on the highway than off-road. We had a couple of old Toyota Hilux’s that were better off-road. The manual transmission’s were fine but when you have different drivers using the same truck, they’d not hold up so well and we had to rebuild a few. The project was up in Northern Guatemala on the Franja Transversal del Norte. It was only in Guatemala City that parking was an issue and most of the trucks stayed up there. The project was US Gov’t funded so we had to buy US vehicles even thought they weren’t the bust for the job. Earlier on in another job, I had a fleet of Toyota Land Cruisers with diesel, manual transmissions and dual fuel tanks in Nicaragua. They were excellent both on and off-road.
I have an 05 Ram 2500 4×4, Hemi with the 6spd G56 manual. I went out of my way to find one with a manual and have driven it for 18 years now.
Normal use, it doesn’t like to shift fast so not winning any drag races. It ran mid 16’s the one time I took down a drag strip, and I feel like it was a 13 second pass with 3 seconds of shifting in the middle. It’s more dump-truck than sports car.
Pros – Towing, especially on the highway I can let it lug up a hill without it trying to downshift 2 gears just before the hill crests.
Cons – Traffic, it’s not the heaviest clutch, but still gives a workout. It’s never been my daily driver but I made a rule of not driving it on snowy days unless the forecast was for more than 8″. Since most winter weather around here just results in traffic the 5spd Neon I was commuting with was much nicer in that situation.
Backing a trailer up a hill into a driveway sometimes you have to ride the clutch or it’s an on-off situation, not the most graceful. Even with a low reverse gear it’s still sometimes too fast when your are trying to maneuver in a tight space.
Towing another vehicle with a strap, have to have them drag the brakes a little when you shift to keep the strap from getting slacked and jerking the towed vehicle.
Using the truck to try and pull a stump, that was a lot of bouncing and way more drama than trying the same task with an automatic truck.
Reliability wise the trans has been fine, but I’ve had it out twice due a failed pilot bearing and then a failed throw-out bearing. It’s the only vehicle I’ve had to call a tow truck for.
The rear wheel drive Sunbird. The car was horrible no matter which transmission, but it was leg day every day for just one leg with the manual.
I’d say the 6-speed manual in the 18-23 Subaru Crosstrek. My previous daily driver was a manual 2021, and while it was fun in some ways, it really wasn’t a very enjoyable transmission to daily drive. It had awful rev-hang, and just felt very rubbery and numb compared to the other manual Subarus I had owned in the past (04 STi, 04 WRX, 99 Forester). I hated the feel of the clutch as well.
It was sadly totaled, and replaced by a 2023 Sport which didn’t come with a manual option anyways as it has the 2.5L engine. Honestly, after owning it for a couple years now I like the cvt more. It’s perfectly fine and usable for my commute, and I have zero complaints.
I have a 2016 Forester with a 6-speed that I drove in fairly rural areas. The transmission was never good, but I enjoyed rowing the gears at least a little bit more than I probably would have with driving an automatic Forester instead. Now I live in an urban area and minor issues with the long throws and numb clutch are very grating since I basically have to live with my left foot on the pedal due to the rotten-ass traffic.
I totally get that. My commute with my old manual Forester was short and fun, filled with back roads. Right around the time I bought my 2021, my wife and I bought our first house, and moved into a much more suburban area. Right after that, I got a new job, that came with a 30 minute commute filled with lots of traffic. That took a lot of fun out of the manual Crosstrek.
If/when my wife gets a new car and her ’19 Impreza is kept as a 3rd vehicle, I endeavor to swap its 5 speed for a 6 speed from a Crosstrek and see if an ECU reflash is an option to tame the obnoxious rev hang. Because you’re right, it takes a lot of the fun out of driving that car.
I had read on the forums that a pedal commander or similar device seemed to fix the rev hang, but I never had a lot of interest in going down that rabbit hole of potentially voiding the warranty on my slow daily-driver dad-mobile. It’s so odd that they would have given the Impreza the 5-speed when it’s the same body and engine as the Crosstrek. That seems so cost-prohibitive to me.
If anything I think the Impreza needs it more, with the smaller wheels/tires giving the drivetrain a numerically higher effective final ratio. If I remember correctly, at 70mph the engine sits at almost 3000rpm. It’s been a while since I’ve driven it on the highway.
Ours is now out of any powertrain warranty it had, so nothing to void there.
I would wholeheartedly agree. The Impreza needs it just as much, if not more. My old 5-speed 99 Forester was a little over 3k rpm at 70. Made it fairly miserable to drive on the highway for long distances because I felt like I was being pretty hard on it just to keep up with the flow of traffic.
I can’t really get along with the manual in my dad’s 2006 LandCruiser Prado. I think it’s just not well-suited to the 4cl turbo-diesel. The clutch also has too much travel and the throw is loooong. As someone who doesn’t use manuals on a daily basis I find it one of the most difficult to drive as it’s very easy to stall, especially off the line in first. This has been helpful as it was also the car I learnt to drive manual on, so everything is much easier in comparison.
As an example, I really got along with the manual in a 70 series LandCruiser with the diesel V8 that we drove up the West Australian coast. It was just so easy to drive – virtually impossible to stall with all that low down torque.
My Tacoma definitely took some getting used to. It’s like a heavy-duty truck in the lower gears, then a car in the higher gears. It’s laaaaaaaaaazy from 1-3 with wide gear ratios (start in 1st, wind to 3k or so, disengage clutch, wait 1-1.5 seconds for the RPMs to drop to about 1500, shift to second, repeat when shifting to 3rd), then bang-bang shifting all the way to 6th. But I still wouldn’t trade it for the gear-hunting you get from the auto transmissions in those trucks, and I think it’s a throttle mapping issue and not a gearing issue at the end of the day.
Having driven a number of manual pickups: they rule.
Either the long-shifter-on-the-floor with a front-bench-seat with just a nice lazy shifter and substantial clutch, or the modern shifter-in-a-console with bucket seats for a sportier-feel.
People seriously are missing out with an automatic.
I test drove a Volvo V70 once- it was peak 90’s and a base-base model; no ABS even. It had super cool geometric rainbow pattern cloth interior, rear-facing 3rd row, and I really wanted it. But the 5-speed manual was just awful. The clutch felt like it was damped with molasses, the shifter action was vague and gummy; the shift pattern felt like it was pitched forward 20 degrees, like 1st, 3rd, and 5th were spatially lower than the gears opposite in the pattern. The 5-speed Aisin automatic on those Volvos was pretty good and I didn’t see any advantage to the stick at all.
I’m sure opinions will differ, but I have absolutely no love for manual transmissions in offroad vehicles. Trying the manage the pedal dance while rock crawling or bogging through heavy mud or sand isn’t my idea of a good time. Give me the forgiving slush of a torque converter over that any day of the week.
About 20 years ago I switched from off roading with a manual to off roading with an automatic. After the first sandy steep hill in an automatic, I was sold and have not gone back.
Yupp, and being able to use both feet to drag the brakes and apply throttle to trick an open diff when you need a bit more traction is super handy
i think the base model fiat 500 is worse with the manual transmission. the 6 speed asin automatic is actually perfect. seems to always be in the right gear at the right time. the manual version is a 5 speed and the ratios are weird.
JK Wrangler. You’d think an enthusiast car would be better with a manual, but damn that thing is awful. Bought new, had issues shifting on the 3/4 shaft; would shift through the synchro, go no further but not actually engage the gear, and then just grind when you let out the clutch. Fixed under warranty. Later, another transmission (another warranty repair) had the same issue on 1/2 shaft, which was worse, because it would get stuck at a stop, and you couldn’t let it out to allow the shaft to rotate as easily since the wheels weren’t moving.
Also, when you’ve got something as slow and generally low geared as a Jeep, putting the reverse off to the side of the high gears is idiotic. Especially if it’s going to have such a weak excuse for a lockout. Reverse ALWAYS goes adjacent or across from 1. Anything else is insane and actively hostile to any drivers in snowy conditions.
My work van. It’s a 2021 model Ford Transit with four wheel drive. In order to get the four wheel drive Ford,being jerks,only made it available with a 6 speed manual transmission that is way too low geared and noisy for highway use. Fuckers.
All of them. I am the better transmission.
Any car available with a Jatco Xtronic CVT is made worse if you put in a manual instead, by definition.
Maybe the Subaru GL? There are a lot of reasons that I enjoy hating Subarus, but most can be traced back to that car. Shifter was tall, stiff, and had the longest shift pattern imaginable. God I hated that car. But who knows, maybe I would have hated it more if it was an automatic.
I cannot think of one. Doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist, just means I never had the displeasure of driving it. Of course most of my manual trans miles have been in cars I’ve personally owned so I don’t have a huge sample size. And I’ve never had something in both manual and automatic form for a direct comparison.
I dunno – a bus, maybe?
Though I rather enjoyed driving the manual-tranny buses in the fleet back in the day. It was certainly more of a challenge, which I enjoyed – and that was long enough ago that the automatics were *horrible*. Thirty plus years of bodily wear and tear would probably change my mind, but ultimately, even driving manuals in traffic, including my Land Rover Disco around Rt128 in Boston, doesn’t annoy me any more than driving an automatic in that shitshow. If you are shifting all the time you are doing it wrong, and having to use the clutch a lot or the brake a lot makes no difference to me.
Any vehicle that you have to drive regularly in DC-Baltimore Metro Area traffic
True story. Daily’ed a ‘69 C10 with a 3speed floor shifter for a year…DMV traffic was the worst. Loved that truck and it was a blast on back roads, but it had 4.11s so it hated highway speeds nearly as bad as I hated stop and go traffic.
I had a ’15 Veloster Turbo R-Spec, it had a factory short throw shifter that was adequate for a remote cable operated plastic doodad and a forgiving, mushy clutch pedal. It was mostly enjoyable, however, I felt like the ratios were all wrong for the 1.6 turbo 4. The combo of close ratio six speed, low end turbo torque and no top end meant there was almost no reason to down shift, it revved so slowly anyway that it just wasn’t worth it. I feel like the car would have been faster and happier changing it’s own gears. Or with a 930 turbo style 4 speed.
The Daihatsu Midget II is one vehicle where I’d take the automatic over the manual any day, for a specific reason unique to that vehicle: Passenger capacity.
You see, the Midget II, being an extremely small truck, has an extremely narrow cab.
The cab is so narrow, in fact, that if you select the manual option, you don’t get a passenger seat, because there’s no room for it! You get one or the other, a manual transmission, or a seat for someone to ride along with you.
Now, this is just my opinion, but I don’t have any desire for a single-seater vehicle. A huge part of the joy of interesting vehicles, and driving in general, for me is the potential to share the experience with someone else. If I’m driving a sports car, classic car, ATV, SUV, absurdly tiny JDM trucklet with adorable styling and an unfortunate name, or any other type of vehicle, I want to be able to bring a friend along for the ride so they can get joy from it too – there are few things more fun than getting to share enthusiasm with someone else!
For that reason, a single-seater version of anything is a dealbreaker for me, so an automatic version with a passenger seat is infinitely more desirable.