Automatic v manual

sniperman

hi folks,mate of mine is going for a mondeo,2L diesel,around the 181 mark,wants any advice on if an automatic,or manual would be better for long term buy,wont be pulling anything,just for use as a family car,thanks all,and seasons greetings:)

micks_address

sniperman wrote: »

hi folks,mate of mine is going for a mondeo,2L diesel,around the 181 mark,wants any advice on if an automatic,or manual would be better for long term buy,wont be pulling anything,just for use as a family car,thanks all,and seasons greetings:)

depends on what his driving is. I have an automatic and wouldnt be without it now. Stop start traffic on my commute on the m50.. so much easier in an auto.. just all round easier driving experience..

Idbatterim

wouldnt ever drive manual again, non of my mates who went auto will go back and all of my mates who arent currently auto, said they are going auto next time round. If you are in much stop start traffic, its a total no brainer! I'd have one regardless though!

micks_address

Idbatterim wrote: »

wouldnt ever drive manual again, non of my mates who went auto will go back and all of my mates who arent currently auto, said they are going auto next time round. If you are in much stop start traffic, its a total no brainer! I'd have one regardless though!

of course sometimes it comes down to price.. some cars are 3k more with auto new... in a few years... likely all new cars hybrid/electric will be auto anyway.. its definitely an age thing.. when i was 21 i could never see myself drive an auto... now in my 40s i wouldnt look back..

Cienciano

Add me to the auto fanboy list. It's a personal preference, some people prefer the "driving experience" of a manual. I would pay a lot more for an automatic, I wouldn't buy a manual.

Idbatterim

Cienciano wrote: »

Add me to the auto fanboy list. It's a personal preference, some people prefer the "driving experience" of a manual. I would pay a lot more for an automatic, I wouldn't buy a manual.

in some sporty cars, I can get the argument for manuals. but in your typical car, auto would be massive preference of mine...

Jb1989

Ungritted roads during frost are not as trusting to travel in an auto compared to a manual.

Duke O Smiley

Ford powershift box is absolutely terrible. I wouldn’t touch one.

RoscommonTom

if you buy one be sure to get the oil in the gear box changed when you get her serviced, itll cost a fortune if they break,

Leonard Hofstadter

Unless they've a bad reputation for reliability, I'd get the automatic. Manuals and diesels do not make for good bedfellows.

Gorgeousgeorge

Same as the lads above bought a dsg auto passat and will never go back to a manual again if at all possible. Comfort is unreal in traffic

Heres Johnny

Had manuals for my first few cars until I decided to move from an e46 to an e39 and ended in an auto completely by accident. That was 10 years ago and apart from an alfa 156 straight after the e39 I've stuck to autos ever since. In fairness I kept the alfa for only a few months and went straight back to another auto e39. Have bought 4 cars since, and all auto.

freddieot

Auto all the way. Been driving them since 2007 and would never drive a manual car again. Had auto during the last few really big snows and no issues whatsoever.

Most modern autos have manual changing and \ or paddle shifters sot you can still have the 'manual experience ' if you want.

colm_mcm

freddieot wrote: »

Auto all the way. Been driving them since 2007 and would never drive a manual car again. Had auto during the last few really big snows and no issues whatsoever.

Most modern autos have manual changing and \ or paddle shifters sot you can still have the 'manual experience ' if you want.

The ‘manual experience’ isn’t all about selecting particular gears.

Wildly Boaring

I would not be in a mad rush for a mondeo auto though. Unless the box has improved, drove a 2016 and it's like an old school auto. All revy and bad shifts

VW dsg and anything with zf all day long

doctorchopper

Jb1989 wrote: »

Ungritted roads during frost are not as trusting to travel in an auto compared to a manual.

More of a tyre issue than a gearbox issue. Majority of all cars and trucks in Canada/America are automatics where winters are much more extreme and longer than any irish frosty day

colm_mcm

Manuals give you engine braking. Most Autos coast. Engine braking is handy in slippery conditions.

JJJJNR

Duke O Smiley wrote: »

Ford powershift box is absolutely terrible. I wouldn’t touch one.

I've got one in the v50, think its a 6 speed double clutch, really good so far.

Cushtie

Would go Auto now all the way if given the choice. Always had manuals but drove an Auto for about 6 months recently. Nearly cried when I had to give it back and was given a manual replacement.

aFlabbyPanda

is there any other pros/cons between auto & manual, I remember hearing years ago that auto boxes were stronger & more reliable plus you didnt have the same clutch wear & tear.

trying to pick up a diesel auto around 2k at the moment but not sure if I'm mad or not.

colm_mcm

colm_mcm wrote: »

Manuals give you engine braking. Most Autos coast. Engine braking is handy in slippery conditions.

So buy a manual for the 5 days a year when we have slippery conditions?!

Auto all the way for me. On my 2nd, had a manual in between and never shut but about how much I missed the auto.

biko

Deleted User wrote: »

So buy a manual for the 5 days a year when we have slippery conditions

It's also handy going downhill so you don't overheat the brakes.

doctorchopper

biko wrote: »

It's also handy going downhill so you don't overheat the brakes.

You can select what gear you want to be manually with auto boxes, works the same on hill decents as a manual box

micks_address

biko wrote: »

It's also handy going downhill so you don't overheat the brakes.

Question for folks, are automatic cars easier or harder on tyres? I've 60k km on a set of michellen cross climate plus tyres which I think is pretty good going. I do most of my driving on the m50 so I suppose tyre wear is less. Car is dsg Octavia. I don't break hard or accelerate sharp..

Low Energy Eng

colm_mcm wrote: »

Manuals give you engine braking. Most Autos coast. Engine braking is handy in slippery conditions.

To me, coasting is driving out of gear.
Autos don't coast, they constantly stay in gear.

When you want to engine brake you drop down gears as per usual. As soon as you tap the gears it goes into manual mode for approx 60 seconds.

Sexual Chocolate

Very surprised at the amount of manual 5 Series for sale online. Supposedly there quite hard to come by in the UK but over here your not stuck for choice it seems.

Cian86

+1 for the auto here.

With electric and hybrid getting so much volume, people are becoming more and more accustomed to autos and those people will be unlikely to go back to manuals again - regardless of engine. Hence, your resale should be stronger in a few years vs a manual.

PsychoPete

For daily driving all the modern german cars ive owned have been auto. Wouldn't buy a manual as a daily

sniperman

thanks all for replies,looks like the autos win hands down,am really interested in any or all opinions on the mondeo diesels around 181 year,thanks

grogi

biko wrote: »

It's also handy going downhill so you don't overheat the brakes.

I have an a six speed Aisin transaxle and not only it does brake with an engine, it will also reduce the gear to increase the effectiveness of said braking when going downhill.

NIMAN

2 autos now.

Can't see myself ever driving a manual again, unless I really want a certain car and can't get it in auto.

bazz26

Sexual Chocolate wrote: »

Very surprised at the amount of manual 5 Series for sale online. Supposedly there quite hard to come by in the UK but over here your not stuck for choice it seems.

The Irish are a bit slow at catching on with this class of car but these days there are no manual options in that segment. Back in 2012/2013 BMW offered automatic as a no cost option over the manual on the 5 Series for a time. Audi A6 was the same, the majority of them sold here were manual up to about 2015.

With hybrids and electric cars becoming the norm over the next decade or so the manual gearbox will be going the way of the dodo.

Shefwedfan

I do wonder about Irish drivers sometimes.....automatic had issues back in the early 80's....we are now nearly 40 years later and some of the stuff posted on here I heard from my Dad in the 80's. He now drives an automatic.

DaveyDave

Can't go wrong with a good automatic. I think the Mondeo is a 6 speed PowerShift dual clutch? I imagine it's a decent gearbox being a modern dual clutch.

grogi

DaveyDave wrote: »

Can't go wrong with a good automatic. I think the Mondeo is a 6 speed PowerShift dual clutch? I imagine it's a decent gearbox being a modern dual clutch.

6-speed with 2.0 HDI is decent.

However PowerShift did not work that well with petrol engines - be it 7-speed in likes of Fiesta or 6-speed in bigger cars. So bad that Ford don't offer such combintaions anymore and have traditional torque-converter based boxes with petrols.

Cienciano

colm_mcm wrote: »

Manuals give you engine braking. Most Autos coast. Engine braking is handy in slippery conditions.

Why is engine braking an advantage over normal braking in slippery conditions?

micks_address

Cienciano wrote: »

Why is engine braking an advantage over normal braking in slippery conditions?

well i assume its your not press the brakes and locking the wheels? your essentially using down change to slow the car..

Shefwedfan

We live in Ireland, At worst we get a bit of a cold morning

People are driving in -28 in autos with no problem

freddieot

You can down change in an auto too. Handy in snow for reasons mentioned.

colm_mcm

Cienciano wrote: »

Why is engine braking an advantage over normal braking in slippery conditions?

It’s better than the ABS kicking in all the time, and it is just easier to control.

I’m not anti-auto by the way, far from it.

pablo128

bazz26 wrote: »

The Irish are a bit slow at catching on with this class of car but these days there are no manual options in that segment. Back in 2012/2013 BMW offered automatic as a no cost option over the manual on the 5 Series for a time. Audi A6 was the same, the majority of them sold here were manual up to about 2015.

With hybrids and electric cars becoming the norm over the next decade or so the manual gearbox will be going the way of the dodo.

One day, in the future, there'll be lads posting on Boards.ie reminiscing about 'the good old days when nearly all cars were manual, not like the automatic sh1te we have today.' :pac: