All my cars have been stick. I hope to never own an auto!

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1982 240D - 292,000 miles and counting
Same family for 33 years
Newly rebuilt Monark injectors
Newly replaced clutch
New Bilstein shocks

From the Other German Automobile Manufacturer...
'Best of Both Worlds.

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'84 300SD sold
124.128

Triptronic is a joke, it has no clutch so it's still auto.
I have triptronic in my 300SD Because what difference does it make to move shifter side to side or back and forth?

Automatics are for play.
Manuals are for work.

Many years ago, my first Fintail was an automatic 1966 230. The jerky-shifting I could live with. But engaging first-gear requred burying the gas-pedal into the kickdown-switch, or rowing the shifter into low-range. Not pleasent! Otherwise, it would start off in second-gear, which made for leasurely acceleration.
The fact that, the same week I went too sell that car, the tranny died on me, also soured me on vintage automatics.

Now my modern work-vehicle, a Nissan Altima, happens to be an automatic (It's hard to find one of these with a stickshift) This Nissan automatic works very well. But there are still occasions where I disagree with the gear it has selected.

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW

I forgot to mention the control issue. Hard to believe that because that is one of my biggest issues with the automatic. I need to know what gear I'm in or else I kinda loose it. I guess I'm a bit of a control freak. I needed to drive my brothers auto ford escort once and I decided to just floor it to see how much power it has, forgetting that it's an automatic and the thing shifts down to 1st or 2nd, not good. The tiptronic kinda solves this problem, but none of the others, not to mention it defeats the purpose of an automatic: not to worry about the gears. I have to sympathize with the auto guys because I do like every now and then to drive our auto Honda Odyssey, which has plenty of power and shifts well.

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1983 240D 3.0T 4-speed manual, now sold

1989 Subaru GL Wagon 5-speed Touring Edition

Another note: apologies in advance to all you old folks, but I hear a story about some elderly driver accidentally jamming on the gas instead of the break and plowing into a group of people or a store or something about once a week. I feel this problem could be solved with manual transmissions considering a) manual transmission helps you concentrate on driving and b) generally, you step on the clutch and the brake at the same time, so if you DID hit the accelerator instead of the brake, you'd just end up revving the engine. I do understand the knee problem some people have though, so this shouldn't be set in stone, but instead, advised.

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1983 240D 3.0T 4-speed manual, now sold

1989 Subaru GL Wagon 5-speed Touring Edition

Besides the ailing knees, us “elderly” folk have a limited resource of neurotransmitters and can’t be overloaded with unnecessary tasks like trying to figure out when to stomp on the clutch and jiggle on the stick while we’re juggling with the burgers, fries, coke, cell phone and the GF

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1995 E300 Diesel
2002 GMC Duramax CC LB 4X4

As a mechanic: Manual

Daily driver in traffic: Auto

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$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

Stupid fat and lazy Americans, keeping many of the car companies from giving up higher end cars with manual transmissions.

When you go to the BMW dealership and the salesman says that BMW had/will not EVER sell a diesel with a manual transmission...anywhere. Yes, the guy was obviously uninformed and rather full of himself, but that's not the only occasion that's happened. It happened with Mercedes dealerS <-- (emphasis on the 's') too!

I've got a lot more, but we'll just leave it at that. Rant over.

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My Primary Driver - '85 300CD - 4-speed conversion, 2.47 rear, lowered, euro headlights, rebuilding (not restoring so much)

Wife's - '08 Saab Sportcombi Aero

Riding a '03 Yamaha Warrior

Manuals are just more fun and I feel give you more engine and consequently car control. Simpler to maintain too.

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1981 240D 143k 4 spd manual -SOLD

2004 VW Jetta TDI 5 speed 300k -still driven daily