How America lost its love for the stick shift

Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by sebazzz on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @04:14PM (#17962937)

In your country maybe. It is very much a cultural thing. In the Netherlands to get your driving license, you learn to stick shift by default. If you don't want or cannot learn to stick shift, you can get your license but you get a notice in your driving license that you are only allowed to drive automatic transmission. Learning to drive automatic is still very much an exception here.

Most consumer cars in the Netherlands are still sold as manual transmission, probably because the price was usually lower compared to automatic transmission. But we won't have a choice forever, since we are heading to an hybrid/full-electric future and almost all electric cars have a CVT anyway.

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Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by RyJones on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @04:29PM (#17963061)

I've tried three times to rent a manual car at Schiphol, and ended up with an automatic each time. I also noticed that my Uber drivers almost always drive automatics in Amsterdam.

I know, plural of anecdote is not data.

Oh well. My 1998 Tacoma with a five speed will die soon enough, and I'll end up buying an automatic, probably.

I will have :wq! on my headstone, though.

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Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by DonHopkins on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @06:01PM (#17963791)

As an Emacs user, that's the only VI command I know!

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Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by anafh83 on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @04:27PM (#17963039)

I'm in Spain and I don't think I've seen an automatic in my entire life and it's also not possible to get a licence for an automatic car.

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Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by whyaduck on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @07:46PM (#17964412)

I rented a car in Bilbao recently - reserved a manual, got an automatic (presumably because I'm an American, and they assumed I'd ruin the clutch on a manual transmission). So, that's one way to see an automatic :).

When you say it's not possible to get a license for an automatic car, do you mean it's not possible to get tested for a driving license with an automatic?

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Re:How America lost its love for the stick shift by anafh83 on Wednesday September 12, 2018 @02:57AM (#17966125)

Yes, that.

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