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Curious Why it Seems so Many People Want a Manual Trans?

Catmandu

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Plain and simple, I enjoy driving one. I feel way more connected to the driving experience.

However, if the manual/clutch setup is not good it becomes more of a chore. I have driven some horrible manual drivetrains in the last and can assure you all the Bronco has one of the better setups I had the pleasure to row.

My original order did not have one as I found the 10sp to be a great transmission on the 2020 Explorer. This was mainly due to the fact that you feel the downshifting which reminded me of a manual. Once I was able to test drive the Bronco setup, I changed my order immediately.
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AZshot

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In my 40s now and have had a manual in every car that I've had since I was 16. Got an AMG Mercedes and sold it in 14 months to go back to a manual Mustang GT. I hate driving automatics. Don't know what to do with my left foot. Feel a total lack of engagement. Can't stand having to put the car into P to turn it off. My bet is that most of the people selecting automatics have either given up on fun or never knew how to drive a manual in the first place.
Yep, I'll buy that.
 

NurseDan

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I’m barely ever going to take my Bronco off-road (fishing/camping few times a year) so that doesn’t factor into my decision. Small city of ~100K people so Stop-and-Go doesn’t factor in. Daily drove a manual compact for 13 years and just recently was forced into newer, auto trans car. I prefer manual because it forces me to be more actively engaged in operating the vehicle. In an auto, I get bored or loss focus and that’s not good for anyone. I believe if more people drove manuals, a lot of the distracted driving situations would be diminished.
 

chobit

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In my 40s now and have had a manual in every car that I've had since I was 16. Got an AMG Mercedes and sold it in 14 months to go back to a manual Mustang GT. I hate driving automatics. Don't know what to do with my left foot. Feel a total lack of engagement. Can't stand having to put the car into P to turn it off. My bet is that most of the people selecting automatics have either given up on fun or never knew how to drive a manual in the first place.
I was on the same boat when I purchased my M235i xDrive Cab new (Auto). It was fast, and the auto-box was excellent, very easy to drive fast with little skills required which translate into - a boring car to drive. I took the bullet and sold it in a little over a year. My JLU is my answer to customization which will soon be the Bronco, an my Miata is my answer to what driving is about. They may not be the most practical, but I leave that to my wife who's driving a 7 seated MDX Hybrid at the moment which we may replaced it with a 2022 Sienna hybrid that provides 36mpg & over 600 miles range a tank.
 

flatlander40

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Manual vs. Auto is a preference

Modern autos probably more efficient. In a Bronco, you can do more cool stuff with the auto. Less work on and off the road. Probably better off-road.

I’m manual
I suppose there’s a small bit of the nostalgia factor. I really wish I could get a long stick that goes all the way to the floor. :)

for me, more connected and active, therefore more fun to drive

I want to teach my boys to drive a stick.

also, I don’t know how long, but manual transmissions in general are on the way out.
 
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goatman

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Some people enjoy the engagement of the act, coordination, thinking, it is just more fun. Like some folks (not pointing fingers) who question why a manual...those folks like watching porn, while manual drivers like being being actors in it.
Assuming your post was inviting a response. :giggle: If I have a sports car, I want a stick. I have a track race car which is a stick. I have a collector edition pick up that is a stick, and I love driving it. My F450 is a manual, for the exact reason someone above stated that older vehicles had 3 and 4 spd autos and my F450 is a 6 spd, I want the extra gears and better ratio splits when towing. However, if I was willing to have a newer truck with an auto with more gears I would prefer the auto. For a daily driver I prefer an auto, mostly because I'm just getting somewhere and I'm lazy.

For off road I prefer an auto mostly because they just work better. Now, driving dirt roads and exploring? Doesn't matter. Harder trails that are more technical and have rocks, the auto is superior. Sure, a stick works, and a few prefer it, but the auto definitely works better. One area that an auto is superior off road is when adding bigger tires the torque converter has it's own reduction for slow speed technical sections, where with a stick it needs very low gears and low enough to start the truck in gear if the engine stalls idling over something. Pretty cool that Ford included a very low 1st gear in the stick to help with this, Jeep doesn't do that in their manual.

So, I like both manuals and autos depending on what I'm doing. Whichever is the best for that thing, rather than stuck in one direction because of personal bias. :ROFLMAO: 😁
 

AZ_Liberty

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My personal car has been a manual since 1989 or so.

Getting harder and harder to find a stick shift. If the Bronco didn't have a stick, it wouldn't even be a contender. Hate driving an automatic.
 
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goatman

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It looks like the major points have been covered. Never met an auto that behaved anything close to how I want it to.
Low range in my rock buggy with an auto and letting it shift on it's own is perfect. Always in exactly the right gear seemlessly. Now, in high range it's a different story. :giggle:
 

Lakelife36

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It “seems like so many people want a manual,” but really, very few do buy one.
As someone in that camp I can tell you it's because manufacturers either don't offer them or only offer them with far less desirable options. It's become a self-fulfilling prophecy. This is one of the things that makes this vehicle so compelling for manual buyers, and also why so many are screaming about not being allowed mid on the bigman or blackman.
 

broncoj11

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Manuals logically don’t make sense. But people like to hold on to nostalgia which often leads to poor decision making lol.
 

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I wish my upcoming Bronco was a manual. Had the Ranger Tremor out crawling in the rocks and it did magnificently.. Except when you are in neutral, shift to 4L and then switch back into drive. A huge lurch every single time. I now have a nice dent in the bottom of my rear driver quarter panel from said lurch slamming me down on a boulder. Would've never happened in a manual.

Virtually the same transmission (10r80 in Ranger, 10r60 in Bronco..?), so I'm expecting the lurch to follow me into the new Bronco. Good news is there is no truck bed to slam at least.

I'm all ears if anyone has a way to avoid the lurch..
 

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I enjoy driving a manual. I shift 18 speeds all day for work, shifting a 6+1 is like a vacation. Lol.

it doesn’t bother me driving it for everyday use, and for the times I get to head out and really enjoy it on the trails, the gear ratios with the advanced 4x4 is off the wall. Better than anything I’ve ever owned before. It’s a win-win.
 

Lakelife36

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Automatics are more efficient, manual is more fun to drive.
Automatics are more fuel efficient than manuals under the prescribed EPA test conditions for each, but are they significantly more efficient in real-life driving conditions? We constantly hear about new autos learning how the driver wants it to act and drastically changing shift patterns over time - do you really expect them to keep the same fuel consumption after that?
 

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I wish my upcoming Bronco was a manual. Had the Ranger Tremor out crawling in the rocks and it did magnificently.. Except when you are in neutral, shift to 4L and then switch back into drive. A huge lurch every single time. I now have a nice dent in the bottom of my rear driver quarter panel from said lurch slamming me down on a boulder. Would've never happened in a manual.

Virtually the same transmission (10r80 in Ranger, 10r60 in Bronco..?), so I'm expecting the lurch to follow me into the new Bronco. Good news is there is no truck bed to slam at least.

I'm all ears if anyone has a way to avoid the lurch..
Shift into 4L before you attack the obstacle. That’s always my rule of thumb. It’s better to shift early and not need it than to stop all forward momentum to do it. I learned the hard way. Seems like the only way you truly learn lessons.
 

Lakelife36

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Had the Ranger Tremor out crawling in the rocks and it did magnificently.. Except when you are in neutral, shift to 4L and then switch back into drive. A huge lurch every single time. I now have a nice dent in the bottom of my rear driver quarter panel from said lurch slamming me down on a boulder.

I'm all ears if anyone has a way to avoid the lurch..
Would've never happened in a manual.
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