"The umbrella for who can be a car enthusiast can be very large." "I am not for being exclusionary," Sharon Carty, the current editor-in-chief of Car and Driver, told ABC News. Of course, not being able to drive a manual begs the question: Can someone call themselves a true car enthusiast? He went on, "I live in the land of traffic in Southern California and I don't want to drive a manual car." No young person will want a manual when they can have an automatic that's relatively inexpensive." "Yes, you can exploit the whole engine range and there's certainly an enjoyment aspect that people miss out on," he told ABC News. Knowing how to drive a manual was useful when renting a car in Europe. In any model where an automatic (or clutchless manual) was an option, the manual transmission has become much more desirable."ĭoug DeMuro, a car aficionado whose YouTube channel has 3.56 million subscribers, said manuals are increasingly becoming a hard sell with new drivers. "Buyers want the cars that are rarer and more fun to drive - the ones with the manual," Eric Minoff, a specialist in the motoring department at Bonhams, told ABC News. Older manual cars in particular are experiencing a revival from enthusiasts. MORE: NASCAR champion Joey Logano taught me how to drive stick but it's more rewarding because it's slightly more complex set of skills you're mastering." "I won't say you won't screw up and stall or have an embarrassing moment. There's no immediate gratification," he said. "The interest in manual transmissions and the driving experience is really strong."Ĭarroll acknowledged that the learning curve for driving a manual can be steep. "I know a lot of people who are in their 30s who want to learn but never had an opportunity," he told ABC News. Access to a manual transmission vehicle may be the biggest factor squelching sales, he argued. Rory Carroll, editor-in-chief of Jalopnik, has taught 35 people and counting how to drive a stick shift, including his wife, his wife's friends, coworkers and interns. Toyota does offer four models with a manual - the Corolla, Corolla Hatchback, Tacoma pickup and 86, a sports car that's been around since 2012 and has an impressive take rate of 45% for the manual version. MORE: Supra, Defender, Bronco: Automakers tap into nostalgia to boost sales If they knew the excitement that accompanied a perfectly timed heel-toe downshift, I can guarantee they'd be hooked." The staff at Car and Driver magazine launched a " Save the Manuals" campaign in July 2010, urging drivers to join the crusade.Įddie Alterman, the magazine's former editor-in-chief who now serves as chief brand officer at Hearst Autos, pleaded to readers that summer: "If folks learned to operate the entire car, not just the steering wheel and occasionally the brakes, I'd bet they'd like driving better. Three pedal driving took a hit when automatic transmissions started to offer better gas mileage, faster acceleration and the advanced driver assistance technology motorists have become dependent on.īut that didn't stop a small but growing number of gearheads to actively campaign for their return. "A lot of people still love to control the gears especially when rock crawling. "Customers have been asking for a long time to bring back the Bronco and a lot of them will spec the manual," Dave Pericak, director of Ford Icons, told ABC News. For many, the best part of the serious off-roader, which was last on sale 24 years ago, was the SUV's seven-speed manual transmission. Car enthusiasts had a lot to get excited about when Ford released images and details of its hotly anticipated 4X4 Bronco last month.
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