How Do You Choose Between A Car With Automatic Or Manual Transmission?
• Here’s some basics. Just like that of a manual transmission, the automatic transmission’s primary job is to allow the engine to operate in its narrow range of speeds while providing a wide range of output speeds. • Without a transmission, cars would be limited to one gear ratio, and that ratio would have to be selected to allow the car to travel at the desired top speed. If you wanted a top speed of 80 mph (130 km/h elsewhere), then the gear ratio would be similar to fourth gear in most manual transmission cars. • You’ve probably never tried driving a manual transmission car using only fourth gear. If you did, you would quickly find out that you had almost no acceleration when starting out, and at high speeds, the engine would be screaming along near redline. A car like this would wear out very quickly and would not be drivable. • When choosing between manual and automatic, one of the considerations is power. • If you want the most power from your engine, going with a manual transmis
• Consider power. • If you want the most power from your engine, going with a manual transmission versus an automatic is most likely going to be your best bet. • While some modern automatic transmissions, i.e. CVT transmissions, manumatics, and conventional 4 or 5-speed automatic transmissions allow for some excellent acceleration, there is still usually a substantial difference in 0-60 times between these types of automatics and a 5 or 6-speed manual transmission. • For example, an automatic equipped Dodge Neon has a reported 0-60 MPH time of approximately 10.5 seconds. • The same Neon when equipped with a 5-speed manual has a reported 0-60 time of 8.1 seconds; a huge difference. While most cars do not have this large of a 0-60 MPH gap between auto and manual transmissions, 99 percent of the time you will receive noticeably better performance from a manual gearbox. • The acceleration offered from a vehicle when equipped with a manual transmission is usually superior for a number of re
