Automatic vs manual car?

beckman

I see this has been asked previously but I am looking for more up to date info to help me decide between the two.

My last car was a 5 speed , newer cars are 6 speed , all the gear changing up and down, the grinding etc etc

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an automatic over a manual with regards to:

-Insurance costs
-Getting it serviced repaired
-resale
-Price
-fuel efficiency whether it be diesel or petrol ( diesel in particular as thats what I would be getting )

Any advice greatly appreciated .
Thanks

Buddy Bubs

beckman wrote: »

I see this has been asked previously but I am looking for more up to date info to help me decide between the two.

My last car was a 5 speed , newer cars are 6 speed , all the gear changing up and down, the grinding etc etc

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an automatic over a manual with regards to:

-Insurance costs
-Getting it serviced repaired
-resale
-Price
-fuel efficiency whether it be diesel or petrol ( diesel in particular as thats what I would be getting )

Any advice greatly appreciated .
Thanks

Insurance - no effect that I know of
Servicing - no effect that I know of
Reapirs - in the unlikely event a gearbox fails and you have to replace an automatic gearbox will be dearer
Resale - depending on the type of car you are buying, resale might be much easier with an automatic. For most cars there will be no negative effect on resale, usually positive.
Price - automatics start life dearer than manuals so there will prob be some sort of charge for it even on used cars
Fuel efficiency - negligible differences if any

easyvision

beckman wrote: »

I see this has been asked previously but I am looking for more up to date info to help me decide between the two.

My last car was a 5 speed , newer cars are 6 speed , all the gear changing up and down, the grinding etc etc

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an automatic over a manual with regards to:

-Insurance costs
-Getting it serviced repaired
-resale
-Price
-fuel efficiency whether it be diesel or petrol ( diesel in particular as thats what I would be getting )

Any advice greatly appreciated .
Thanks

Insurance was maybe €50 more, could be individual circumstances or company tho…. Shop around

Serviced, basically the same except for if you need a gearbox service, which nowadays are are big intervals

Resale, def holds its value over a manual, becoming more and more popular

Price, usually more than manual they hold a premium of 2-3k

Fuel efficiency for newer ones anyway are the same if not slightly better as more gears in autos, up to 10 now on some cars so lower revs at motorway speeds

I’ve a 2017 auto GTD, I’d never go back to a manual, so much easier and smoother and you’re in 4th before you’d be in 2nd nearly pulling off fast from a light. You’re never in the wrong gear and never that 1st to 2nd lurch 😂 hope it helps

Murph85

Auto are vastly more convenient and comfortable.... if it's a lot of start / stop town driving, manual is madness

Stallingrad

Depends on what car and what gearbox, but in very general terms...

-Insurance costs - No difference in my experience.

-Getting it serviced repaired - Some VAG DSG's require oil changes every 40,000km, others don't, ZF 8 speed boxes are 'Sealed for life" but also require oil and filter changes with age. Most auto repairs will be costly compared to manual.

-resale - People increasingly like autos so they are desirable, but some people view them as trouble and prefer manual. Again, make and model are important, an automatic Mini may not be as quick to sell as a manual.

-Price - Autos generally command a premium.

-fuel efficiency whether it be diesel or petrol - Once again, depending on which car, not much in it. Some autos are more frugal than manuals. Not really a consideration. We have a DSG and manual Superbs (petrol) in the family, nothing in to with regard to fuel consumption.

These are broad answers, if you have particular a make and model then you may get more useful answers.

AndyBoBandy

My 2006 BMW 320d Auto has 307,000km on the clock, and the auto box is as smooth as any new car I've driven over the last few years (rented a lot of cars for work, mostly Audi, Mercedes, BMW, Volvo etc... and all auto).

The gearbox in my car is a 'sealed for life' unit, and BMW claim it will never need a service/oil change....

User1998

Depending on the car an automatic commands a hefty premium. Small automatic petrol cars are usually imported from Japan and can easily be €2k more expensive then their manual counterparts. This is for sub €10k cars

beckman

beckman wrote: »

I see this has been asked previously but I am looking for more up to date info to help me decide between the two.

My last car was a 5 speed , newer cars are 6 speed , all the gear changing up and down, the grinding etc etc

What are the advantages and disadvantages of an automatic over a manual with regards to:

-Insurance costs
-Getting it serviced repaired
-resale
-Price
-fuel efficiency whether it be diesel or petrol ( diesel in particular as thats what I would be getting )

Any advice greatly appreciated .
Thanks

I am looking at a Hyundai i30 191 1.6 (?) diesel if that helps

Buddy Bubs

beckman wrote: »

I am looking at a Hyundai i30 191 1.6 (?) diesel if that helps

You might find that particular car a bit more expensive in automatic than manual because there will be quite few of them I'd imagine. I have never driven a Hyundai auto so not sure how good their gearboxes are etc but plenty here will have knowledge and experience of them.

Do you have a particular car in mind? Might be tricky enough to find one.

ShadowHearth

New auto boxes are definitely a lot better then the ones in older cars. Its just personal preferences at this point.

Luxury/Premium car - you want it Auto. Having car like this with manual gearbox is just wrong. Always makes me puzzled to see not too old Audis with manuals.

Family cars - nothing wrong with auto or manual. If you can find and afford auto, then I don't see why not. Its nice comfort thing.

Sport/hot hatch - I will be a bit of Nazi here and say - manual only. Sporty cars are a lot more fun to drive with manual gearboxes a specially hot hatches. Stuff with DSG will be faster, but manual will give more fun.


Important to note what kind of auto box car has. For example bmw ZF8 and any Vag DSG are really nice and pretty much the best out there. Something like CVT gearboxes in Lexus, Toyota, Honda, Mazda, Ford? are a not so great and have very different style of driving. Might be very annoying for people who know and care, but people who don't care won't even notice it.

sadie1502

I've an automatic the last 6 months. Car is a year old. Have driven manuals the last 20 years and would never go back to a manual again. Love the automatic. Insurance no difference. Fuel no difference not that I can tell. Haven't had it serviced yet its due in December. Was more expensive to buy but so happy with it.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

Are you thinking of buying something fun, mx5, s2000, gti golf or planning on doing a lot of driving on mountain roads? Buy a manual.

Is it to get the kids to school and drive you in and out of work? Buy an auto. It's a no brainer. 90% of people should be driving autos but nearly get sick in your face when you suggest it. Most of them are driving some bog 1.6 diesel or below too.

Auto all the way.

atilladehun

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 wrote: »

Are you thinking of buying something fun, mx5, s2000, gti golf or planning on doing a lot of driving on mountain roads? Buy a manual.

Is it to get the kids to school and drive you in and out of work? Buy an auto. It's a no brainer. 90% of people should be driving autos but nearly get sick in your face when you suggest it. Most of them are driving some bog 1.6 diesel or below too.

Auto all the way.

This.

beckman

atilladehun wrote: »

This.

Also looking at a Skoda Octavia Ambition if anyone knows anything about them?

colm_mcm

beckman wrote: »

Also looking at a Skoda Octavia Ambition if anyone knows anything about them?

Depending on what year you’re looking at they can be a bit basic.

The automatics are DSG, which is a nice gearbox.

eirman

Make sure your Automatic has Cruise Control.

The Automatic feature comes 'into its own' during city driving.
The Cruise Control feature comes 'into its own' during Motorway driving.

colm_mcm

colm_mcm wrote: »

Depending on what year you’re looking at they can be a bit basic.

The automatics are DSG, which is a nice gearbox.

I have a Superb DSG petrol, and I love driving it. To answer the OP's question I can't see any issues in terms of insurance or fuel costs. I've had no repairs as yet, and the one service I've had done was the same price as I paid for my previous Octavia manual.



I had two Octavias from new before the Superb, and each time I bought the Elegance (or whatever it's now called) spec with a couple of added extras, because as you rightly point out the Ambition could be basic.


I was quite fond of the Octavias as well, I do have to admit.

beachhead

Buddy Bubs wrote: »

Insurance - no effect that I know of
Servicing - no effect that I know of
Reapirs - in the unlikely event a gearbox fails and you have to replace an automatic gearbox will be dearer
Resale - depending on the type of car you are buying, resale might be much easier with an automatic. For most cars there will be no negative effect on resale, usually positive.
Price - automatics start life dearer than manuals so there will prob be some sort of charge for it even on used cars
Fuel efficiency - negligible differences if any

Agree with all the above except some automatics have a noticeable drop in fuel efficiency compared to the manual equivalent.

Damien360

beachhead wrote: »

Agree with all the above except some automatics have a noticeable drop in fuel efficiency compared to the manual equivalent.

Might depend on the car. Had a Skoda Superb DSG diesel and could get comparable to better fuel economy. Regularly got 1100/1200km to a 60L tank if driven nicely including motorway. My current car the Seat Tarraco DSG diesel is worse on fuel than it’s manual equivalent. Have it a couple of weeks and best is 950km per tank. Same engine as Superb but 300kg heavier.

beachhead

Damien360 wrote: »

Might depend on the car. Had a Skoda Superb DSG diesel and could get comparable to better fuel economy. Regularly got 1100/1200km to a 60L tank if driven nicely including motorway. My current car the Seat Tarraco DSG diesel is worse on fuel than it’s manual equivalent. Have it a couple of weeks and best is 950km per tank. Same engine as Superb but 300kg heavier.

950km seems fantastic.But off hand don't know fuel tank capacity for Tarraco.Would expect around 800km