Manual transmissions often get a bad rap in our opinion. They are still a part of life on the road in Arizona.
Stick Shifts: Falling By The Wayside?
Sometimes, it’s sad to lose things from our past. Here is what happened where manual transmissions are concerned. From CNN.COM:
“After General Motors released the first automatic transmission — the 1940 Oldsmobile Hydra-Matic — automobile manufacturers swiftly moved away from manuals. By 1957, 82.7% of American-made cars were equipped with automatic transmissions, according to “Ward’s 1958 Autom
otive Yearbook.” Though manuals have accounted for about 4% of American car sales in recent years, experts were surprised to see the percentage jump almost 3% in the first quarter of 2012, according to a report by Edmunds.com. The percentages may seem small, but with nearly 12.8 million cars sold in the U.S. last year, those sales add up to more than a half million manuals. Some manufacturers have inferred that the 6.98% “take rate,” or percentage of total cars bought, signifies a manual comeback in the consumer market.” SOURCE ARTICLE
Did you hear that last part? Manual transmissions may be making a comeback. Why? Because of millennials, the generation that reached adulthood as the century changed. They like retro things from the past, but also love the technology of the present. A perfect fit where manual transmissions are concerned. Another reason that millennials love manual transmissions is that they are low maintenance compared to automatics.
Learning to Drive a Stick Shift
A lot of us who reached adulthood learned how to drive a stick shift. It was a rite of passage for us. Even now, we can probably chant the mantra of Clutch Shift Release. To those of you out there who don’t know how to drive sticks, you push down on the clutch pedal, you shift gears, and then you release the clutch.
So remember, that while automatics are largely the norm on the roads these days, you want to make sure that you don’t discount manuals. Manual transmissions may be coming back.
Trail Transmission
11240 East Apache Trail
Apache Junction, AZ 85120-3529
(480) 986-7367
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