poldrv

My ex brother inlaw calls stick shift cars Fun Cars. That maybe, but shifting gears in rush hour traffic is more of a nuisance than anything else. You can always tell a manual vehicle in traffic it is always the one that starts off slowly from the stop line. With my 2005 Mustang automatic I am way ahead of everyone else. My automatic performs very well an so far I have had the mustang at 130 mph or 220kph. Automatic and manual are personal choices. If you like shifting gears and it gives you the feeling of being Mario Andretti on the oval hey great. For me its the automatic. This is my 3rd Mustang with an automtic transmission, they have never disappointed me. N.B. Kinda hard to stall an automatic!

pk2112

My wife picked the tranny-manual it is! Actually she picked everything. I gave up my beloved black for torch red, but will have a Mustang nonetheless!

MustangDan

Auto = GUI
Manual = cmd

I'm a Mouseketeer!

FRITZ

All the young guy's at work (i'm 52) gave me a hard time about not getting the stick. It is nice to just get in the car, put it in drive, relax, and listen to the exhaust.

Fritz, Silver "05" GT Coupe IUP and everything .....

basicblack

1) I'm 45 years old and have never driven a stick - never learned.
2) It's a pain just to drive an auto in stop and go city traffic as it is.
3) Got mine off the lot - came automatic.
4) I'm uncoordinated - I can barely walk and chew gum at the same time.
5) I do agree tho - that a manual would be more fun to drive.

Rondosa

Wow I really can't believe how many guys give up the manual for the sake of their wives I wouldn't have anything but a manual, but hey that's me. The one thing that's a little weird is how everyone keeps saying "auto = two usable cupholders, no dipping your shirt in the drink". (you yanks and your cupholders!! :moose...I don't know about you, but when I drive a car, I don't generally get into the habit of bringing an open cup or glass of liquid beverage in with me. generally, coffee shops, they give you lids . Besides, just because it's a manual, doens't mean your hand is glued to the shifter...in fact I've always been told that you shouldn't rest your hand on the shifter when you're not shifting.

Bah...anyways...good to hear a different point of view for a change. While I don't really feel the same way for most of the points raised here, it helps me to understand!

And for those who said that the Mustang isn't a sports car... :scratch:

Haha...see ya! (I'm having a GOOD day - finally got to reorder my 06 Mustang!!)
kristina

moc1976

Kristina, I say (and "they" say) always go with your 1st intuition, which is the manual! I have the manual GT and love it, although it is not a daily driver, but my civic dd is also a manual. My last car had a manumatic, which was nicer than a regular automatic, but just wasn't the same w/out the clutch.
I remember going to Germany when I was in high school, and they told me, "oh no, nobody gets an automatic transmission, unless they are handicapped". Well, I'm glad we have the option, but it also brings up a good point, if you are not able to drive a manual tranny, maybe you shouldn't be driving. I'm not talking about those of you that chose an automatic, I'm talking about people that physically can't drive a manual. It would eliminate some of the people that have no business driving. Of course getting a license is much harder there than here. Anyway, I agree, with a manual, I actually feel more involved with driving and pay more attention, which a lot of people could benefit from if they did the same!

shestangs

35 isn't old, your only as old as you feel

Rondosa

HAHAhahaha I find that hilarious - I can just picture some stern German fellow saying that very matter-of-factly, as if to say "doesn't everyone think this way??"

But sure - that's just it. I feel so much more connected to what's going on around me...it's hard to explain. I just find when I'm driving an auto car I get bored and my attention wavers...it's not nearly as much fun to command the car around when you can't tell it what gear to be in! hey, different strokes...

96vert

It's been aluded to a few times, but no one's come out and said it - you CAN choose which gear you're in with this auto - 1,2,3 are selectable. Further, D (with overdrive off) is 1-4th depending on speed and throttle, and OD adds 5th gear.

I went to a high-speed driver's education a few weeks ago, and manually shifted my '05 auto between 3rd and 4th (D with O/D off) for most of the weekend. Kept the rev range in the 3.5k-6k range and it handled it great. My wife (who also attended and drove the same car - but in a different group) just used "D" and she was very happy with the way the auto handled it too.