Manual or Automatic? Whats a good car choice?

TylerS

TylerS

Active member
So im turning 16 in a few weeks and im looking to get a car in the spring. I live in NY. I need somthing that can handle getting up the mountain.

I was curious about stick shift, it seems really fun once you get the hang of it. Ive driven dirtbikes and atv's before and i undertand the system of it.

Also whats a good car under $5000 for a beginner car? Ive been looking at anything from a 1999 Audi A4 to a 1997 Jeep Cherokee.

Please help me out!

 
Go with a stick, once you get the hang of it you won't regret it. It can be a pain if you live in a city some times, but you have so much more control of the car with a stick especially in the snow.
 
Stick FTW.

I'm 16 and learning how to drive stick. It's so much more fun than automatic (but a hassle to get the hang of at first)

And it's a lot better for going down hills cus you don't need to use the brake as much when you're in a low gear.
 
I live in Niskayuna, definetly not a city. More like a suburb i guess. Is it also true that manual costs less?
 
pros for each

manual: more control, many say more fun, not so boring

auto: laid back driving, dont have to concentrate as much, can eat/smoke/drink do whatever while driving much easier

and dont get an audi if ur only spending 5k on a car. do you know how easy it is to get 5k of repairs/maintenance on an audi. stay away. sure they're good cars, but not ones that are selling for 5k.

jeeps are good if they've been kept in good condition/had regular maintenance. but more expensive to run than other cars. gas is coming down, but expect it to jump up again next summer.

even tho its not so great for the winter, look into getting a cheap honda. civics last forever, and they're relatively cheap. or if u find a cheap subi thats been maintained, look into that, more expensive to maintain and buy tho. those, or anything else that has relatively low miles for $5k and isnt too bad to maintain. getting something snow-crazy thats gonna last more than a few months most likely isnt gonna be in ur budget.
 
Yea it sounds like stick is definetly my top choice as of now, but whats a good stick car under 5g?
 
^ engine braking is hard on your engine. i always think that its cheaper to buy new brakes then a new engine. not saying not to do it but try to avoid it. As for whether manual or automatic, it depends what you get. No offense if get a car and its slow get a auto. As for trucks or suvs idk really. It gets to be a pain and its one more thing to worry about especially if your just learning to drive.
 
not necessarily, it depends on how you drive it. if you accelerate to the same rpm on an auto and let it shift at the same time you shift a manual, its basically the same. but if you drive one's rpms higher, then the other is gonna be better on gas.
 
def stick, a good one nissan altima, can get them in good condition cheap like 01 02 or so, and run forever, and really nice to drive.
 
Get a stick they're sooooo much more fun than an auto and if you learn how to use it they can be more fun in the snow too.
 
stick for sure, so much more control over the car especially in snow and ice, takes like a week to get super solid on and then it's second nature and way better
 
MAN YOU ULL!

there even better than automatics in snow because you can start rotating the wheels super slowly more easily so that you can get a good grip in slippery conditions before accelerating more

just make sure you dont buy one with a super worn down clutch, i just had to replace mine and it cost $1500 on a roughly $3000 car =(

... and don't worry about not being able to drive well instantly, it just takes some practice and then youll love it
 
sorry for the double post but I forgot to answer part II

it depends on what your after purchase budget is. If you got extra bank (like 2gs a year to be safe) then get an Audi, I love mine but they are expensive to maintain.

if you want a workhorse get an old Tacoma (those things never die)

it really depends on your needs. as my needs are changing I'm gonna need a truck here soon enough myself but plan on keeping my A4 till either it dies or I graduate college.

I would say if you need ground clearance look at a 4runner also.
 
manual. im pretty sure all the reasons why have been posted. i love my old saab, and an added benefit is some girls like when guys can drive manual cars really well.
 
agreed. i learned how to drive on an automatic which was a good idea b/c it taught me how to drive. when i got my license though, i started driving stick and i dont regret it at all. it doesnt take too long to learn how to do it, and about 30 minutes to learn it enough to get around (but you will stall a lot for the first few days)
 
get yourself a subaru or a old saab in a stick for sure. audis are sick but you gotta have a bunch of money to maintain it. those things break a lot and parts/labor is lots of cash
 
yeah go stickshift, now that im used to it, when i driver automatic its about as fun as driving a golf cart
 
thank you for proving that women drive automatics. i pity your loss of manliness at having to drive your sisters old car.
 
get a manual civic, less expensive car you can get when buying used, less expensive when repairing it (i can have stock engines for 200$), if you drive them normally, they cost nothing in gas, you can beat the shit out of it without expecting it to explode (to a certain limit...) plus you won't want to kill yourself if you scrap it.

seriously, its your first car... i know youll want something fast, newer and more pussy attractive, but man, youve never drived and a car can be a weapon. have fun with your first car and when youll have more money, then youll be able to have your dream car.
 
you can get a sick 98ish outback for under 5 gs easy. i see them going on craigslist for 3-4 all the time.
 
jettas are amazing. My brother has a 99 and has been driving it for about 5 or 6 years now and he drives it like an asshole, but yet nothing has gone wrong in the car. he thinks that every road is a racetrack, so alot of wear and tear on the car and it and only a water pump has been replaced. And right now i am looking at a 2001 jetta glx vr6, 5 speed. but yeah if you can find a good jetta for the price your looking at then i would go for a jetta.
 
I dunno if you're determined to get a car, but look into getting a truck. They're selling so cheap right now the amount of money you would save will more than take care of the extra gas you'd spend. It's your first vehicle so you probably won't be driving it for too long anyway.

Other than that I'd definitely look into a Jetta or Golf tdi. If you want to keep the car for a while.. they'd be easy to sell in three years though.
 
Tyler remember what would have happend, if you had taken my job? well the same thing will happen to you if you get a car before i do
 
Manual. I used to drive a Jeep Cherokee which was an automatic and loved the car but you have no control over it. The car does all the work.

Go with a manual and you have more control over the car and can save gas if you know how to drive it. You also reduce on braking if you have good timing with shifting and you'll save brakes. Manual is a lot more fun to drive too. I have a 2008 Kia Spectra hatchback in a manual and love it. I'll never go back to an automatic.

On another note, if you drive a lot in the city, ie traffic lights and stop signs then you might want to think about an automatic. It gets to be a pain in the ass if your driving in dowtown whatever and you have to constantley shift from 2nd to 3rd to 2nd to 1st to 2nd to 3rd...

 
Ben I think its hard to get a job if you show up to an interview like this:

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automatic, you can do other shit, when you wanna go fast just punch it, doing cookies is easier cause you dont have to wirry about over revvs and you can drive with your knees like i do hah
 
i prefer manual, but your wrong on this one

automatic transmissions are a lot faster than manual because the shifting is all electronic, meaning the your already in another gear in like .1 sec, while when shifting manual, it takes a lot longer!

just watch drag racing cars: most of them are automatic (im talking race-ONLY car, not daily drivers)
 
you fail. manual is a faster way to shift if you're good at it. says so in every drivers license book ever made. i would like to see an automatic beat a manual in a race, where the driver of the manual actually knows what they're doing. just look at F1, you think those guys use automatic? they'd fucking die if they did.
 
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