Automatic cars

[Fan of Big Tone]

For the last 50 years I’ve driven a manual car, the other day I tried a brief test drive in an automatic, I found it a bit weird.

My question is have you swopped from manual to automatic? How long did it take to get used to it? Did you regret it?

I’m a bit cautious at spending thousands then finding I didn’t like it, I’m also wondering if Mrs. T would cope as well, she does drive far but she likes to keep her hand in by driving locally.

[Robbie]

I've had one automatic car in 51 years of driving.It was a BMW 316i Saloon Car I bought in 1995, & I had it for 4 years. 

It was a great Car. It was a little strange to begin with. Your left foot gets a little confused but you soon get used to it.

My car had Park, Neutral, Drive, Reverse and gears One and Two that you could select manually.Many automatics had a total of three automatic gears then. 

So on my car if you wished you could select gear 1, drive off and select 2, then drive. I always used Drive mode unless I was in a traffic jam or rough road. Then I'd select 1 or 2.

It's a personal choice how you use it. Some just use drive mode all the time.

I went back to manual because I felt more in control, but the automatic served me well.

I suppose automatics have moved on since 30 years ago, so I'm sure they've improved somewhat since I drove mine.

[Blake]

I don’t drive, but automatics seem to be more popular now. It shouldn’t take long to adjust to the change. It might feel a bit strange, but it means there are two fewer things to do while driving. When I can, I want to get an automatic car.

[Robbie]

@Blake

Try to learn to drive in a manual first. If you learn to drive in an automatic you won't be able to drive a manual, once you passed in an automatic car 

Your licence will be restricted to automatics only.

[JIMBO]

I drive a manual car, but I believe that as we get older, it’s easier to switch to an automatic. I don’t want to sound rude. I would make the change myself because it would be more comfortable and makes driving simpler. Is that part of your reason for switching? Stick with it; it might take a few weeks, but once you’re used to it, you won’t notice the difference.

[liampie]

when i was learning it was suggested to choose automatic but i could not take to it. i dont know, you will probably adjust with time but it felt strange for me that i had no control over the gears. so, i went with manual and im very happy.

[Chris]

I was recommended consider an automatic because my legs do tend to have a mind of their own. I'm pretty confident I could pass in a manual car tomorrow if I had a test, but with the way my disability affects me, I lost the confidence to pursue it. I did hope by now, I would be in a position to drive. @super_pie, is now looking to drive, and I think he'll do very well too.

When I don't think my legs will hold me back, I might actually look at an automatic.

Keep us in the loop with how you get on, Tone. I am sure you will adjust to it.