Are you really impressing her with your manual transmission?

Just yesterday, I overheard a group of guys’ debate on why you ought to know how to drive a manual. “At least if you own an automatic, make sure you still know how to drive a manual” one guy blurted out loudly.

These words rang in my head over the course of the day and I was so grateful my dad insisted I knew how to when I turned sixteen. But then again, I still would have made an effort to learn if he hadn’t pushed.

Let’s face it, men would always love cars as much they love sports, gaming and maybe… women. A tad bit. All these combined honestly seem like fundamental male rites of passage that all men should have a taste for at a point in their lives. Might not necessarily be all, but at least two of the aforementioned.

Maybe it’s directly embedded in our genes.

Over the years, cars have evolved into such lovable and beautiful steel machines. During this process, cars have managed to secure a solid place in a man’s heart. It’s truly not a wonder how they managed to find room in there.

There are a number of things; actually, there is everything to love about steering a wheel and Cars in general. Yet, today I would solely discuss car transmissions and how it is directly aligned to our egos.

It is quite important I start off with a short brief on this important part of the vehicle.

The transmission might as well be described as the heart of the vehicle since it is responsible for transmitting mechanical power from the engine to the drive wheels. The common types of transmissions include the manual transmission, automatic transmission, CVT (continuous variable transmission), semi-automatic transmission, Tiptronic gearbox and the DSG (direct shift gearbox).

However, the automatic and manual transmissions are the most common. In the past, the manual transmission was everywhere but today the automatic is more desirable. Regardless of the switch, Stick Shifts are still highly regarded amongst men. The quote from the beginning is then pretty much explained.

Over the years, I have met a number of women who think it’s quite impressive when men drive manual cars. Maybe their logic is based on the fact that a few of them find it hard to wrap their heads around operating one. Or maybe, the stick shift just looks sexy while switching gears.

…Just maybe.

Regardless of what these women think, here are 5 reasons why you might want to handle a stick shift as a guy.

Fuel Economy

There’s a better chance of saving fuel when you drive a manual car properly. Your fuel economy can be increased to as high as 15 % when you drive a manual instead of an automatic. The main reason for this is from the power losses from the torque converter and hydraulic pump. These small power losses are directly linked to the fuel usage in the car.

Also, I know a number of people who place their manual cars on Neutral more often than they do when driving automatics. Low power is used in Neutral, thus, fuel is also proportionally saved. Man, get yourself a manual and save yourself some fuel!

Easier Maintenance

Stick shifts come along with easier maintenance than its automatic counterpart. Why are you then stressing with maintenance? The reason for this is that the build of manual transmissions is less complex than that of the automatic. Change your clutch when necessary and you are good to go!

Better Control

Did you know that you get a better sense of control with your manual than you do when driving the automatic? Think about it, you are responsible for changing the transmission modes of your vehicle whenever you switch your gears. If the automatic fails to switch your gears accordingly, the drag felt is terrible.

Fewer Chances of Dying on the Road

Yes, that’s exactly what it means. With stressful schedules, people tend to concentrate less when they drive automatic vehicles. The stick shift, on the other hand, would keep your attention on the road so that you don’t kill yourself or others.

Maybe the guy you killed was about to breakthrough in his software to find the best places for employers to post jobs. Yet, you killed him. Now more people don’t have jobs. Poverty is struggling to decline now. It’s all a slippery slope.

Are you happy with this? No? Then get yourself a manual!

Jump Starting a Car is Boring

Why all these wires to just start your car when your battery fails you? Now your car looks like it’s in ICU, sad. What if you are in the middle of nowhere and your battery fails you? With the manual, all you have to do is give your car a ‘rolling start’ then, voila! You are good to go.

Here’s one extra reason…

Driving a Shift Stick is simply Cool!

Imagine this: it’s a sunny day and you have your pair of Ray Bans on, your hair is brushed to the side, and there’s a pretty lady to your right. Now you are right at the traffic light waiting for it to turn green. Just then, another car slides besides you and starts revving its engine.

It’s a Race!

Oh yes, you can rev your engine with an automatic but… would you even win the race? If both cars have similar horsepower, the manual would surely win.

Random thought: I still haven’t come across statistics on how many times a guy looks back at a car just because he was struck in awe. If there was data, I am pretty sure it would double that for females. Maybe you can share that information below if you know of such data.

And obviously, there is no way I was going to end this article without asking…

As a man, is it absolutely necessary to know how to drive a car with manual transmission?
 
 
Author’s Profile: Manny Obeng is a Ghanaian raised writer with high hopes that his written work would serve its quota in making a world a better place, especially Africa. A graduate of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and technology in Kumasi – Ghana, I steered straight into creating online content since it’s always been a little passion I sought to develop. Copywriting on topics I am interested in is a great way of reaching and informing more people on what is out there. Since information is key, I am quite interested in what it can do to bring people in Africa out of the Dust. Thanks for reading and I hope this was resourceful.