"Manual Transmission Could Be Forced Into Retirement"

[HotdogThud]

Back in his day, if you wanted to text and drive, you pulled over and chiseled into a stone tablet like a real man.

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[Efthreeoh]

The unintended consequence of automation is that when (not if) technology fails, people won’t be ready to operate manually.

Here's how I put it simply. No one sits in their kitchen and watches the dishwasher wash dishes. Once a task is automated, it is human nature to not pay attention to the task. The more the act of driving is automated the less humans will pay attention to the act of driving, let alone practice in the art of driving. The OP is exactly right.

 

[MaverickMan]

Dag gummit, but thats where the hackters are, up there in the cloud!

But for real I grew up around racing. I just want all the cars on the road to be like a stock car. Manuals, roll cages, no keys just mad max switch sequences. Only vans are allowed to have carpets. 5 point harnesses are mandatory but only need to be used when you are driving at autobahn speeds. And we need an autobahn here. If people dont like any of that. Take the train.

 

[918v]

It also cuts the throttle and the automatic transmission downshifts to a lower gear to match engine speed being retarded by apply the brakes and closing the throttle. A manual transmission needs to me manually shifted, which the driver, if he's not paying attention enough to prevent the automatic braking system to activate, is most likely not going to either downshift the transmission into a lower gear to speed match the engine, or drop into neutral, or disengage the clutch.

again it is not a requirement for the clutch to be disengaged or the trans to shift to a lower gear.

if the system cuts throttle during emergency braking and applies the breaks believe me the driver will automatically go for the break pedal and clutch pedal out of muscl memory and panic.

 

[pan-y-cerveza]

Nick, at what point will we be idiot proof? I too have lost people to automobile accidents. It sucks! But do we outlaw ladders? Guns, definitely get rid of guns. All those sugary sodas...gone, too much diabetes! Fatty foods, gone, too many heart attacks!--(already doing that) Where does it end? One of the main reasons cars are so expensive now is due to all the "tech" being built in! I don't have any hard answers either. l just believe in our mad rush to make EVERYTHING safe, and create this elusive utopia, we are going to slowly but surely lose what makes this country great...our Freedoms! The man knows everything we say, even in the privacy of our own homes now! Every text, call, email, all of it is scanned now in the name of safety. Sorry man, not attacking, just ranting!

These are false equivalencies. Your ladder won't kill me or my family, your fatty foods won't kill me or my family, your sugary drinks won't kill me or my family. Those are a person's choices that they make, that affect them. I won't be killed by you eating a cheeseburger.

A driver's inattention at the wheel could affect them and everyone else around them.

I'm not speaking about you specifically of course.... Just in general. But if someone's vehicle stops them from slamming into me at an intersection I don't give a damn how many cheeseburgers they ate. I'll be glad that the technology was there.

I'll still gripe about it as well, just like you, but I get that these technologies do save lives. More so than a manual transmission.

The manual argument is a laugh. I'll bet the majority of us MT drivers have been eating a cheeseburger with one hand, shifting with the other, and steering with our knees. At least with an auto you have a free hand.

I don't believe that a manual is safer. You could likely convince me that, especially nowadays, a driver of a manual may be a better driver than your average driver but I imagine that may even be arguable.

 

[JTBros]

I am all for this technology. The only company thus far I have seen that has trouble implementing it with MTs is Subaru but I am sure they'll have it worked out with the next gen WRX. The idea that a MT makes you less distracted is SO far fetched. Maybe the first week or so I was driving my Fiesta I was wholeheartedly concentrating on driving it. After that it's very easy to eat a burger, drink a coffee, and yes even send a text message if someone desired. When you're going 65mph down the freeway in 6th gear it doesn't matter what car you're in. The MT effectively becomes an AT. Some of the systems are invasive but I'd rather have them be annoying 90% of the time and prevent one accident that keeps my insurance rates from going up, causes injury to my passengers and I or injures others around me. Not saying distracted driving is acceptable but people are simply not paying attention if a hot coffee spills on them, a kid starts crying, something grabs their attention in another lane, etc.

There is one instance which I don't like the systems and that's when they're portrayed as being ok for distracted driving in commercials. Other than that bring it on.

Must be Gen Z. All that crap just makes you a worse, lazy driver and in my opinion less safe. You're supposed to pay attention and actually DRIVE! You should drive your vehicle not the other way around. Geeze what a world...

Do you really want to put that to the test? I have been in a car when it was slammed into by a distracted driver driving guess what, a manual transmission. It did not feel good and closed half a bridge but fortunately I got away without injuries. These safety systems help prevent accidents just like that.

 

[GeotechDuck]

I obviously don’t know much about Corvettes due to the fact that I made a comment about factory delivery and was promptly schooled, but I do know that you can’t get a manual Corvette now.........and the taillights suck..........but other than that, it’s pretty nice.

No manual option in the new Shelby GT500 either, which I think is crazy.

 

[ManSquatch]

We are a dying breed. I wouldn't be surprised if every automaker eliminates manuals from their production.

 

[Jdc]

These are false equivalencies. Your ladder won't kill me or my family, your fatty foods won't kill me or my family, your sugary drinks won't kill me or my family. Those are a person's choices that they make, that affect them. I won't be killed by you eating a cheeseburger.

A driver's inattention at the wheel could affect them and everyone else around them.

I'm not speaking about you specifically of course.... Just in general. But if someone's vehicle stops them from slamming into me at an intersection I don't give a damn how many cheeseburgers they ate. I'll be glad that the technology was there.

I'll still gripe about it as well, just like you, but I get that these technologies do save lives. More so than a manual transmission.

The manual argument is a laugh. I'll bet the majority of us MT drivers have been eating a cheeseburger with one hand, shifting with the other, and steering with our knees. At least with an auto you have a free hand.

I don't believe that a manual is safer. You could likely convince me that, especially nowadays, a driver of a manual may be a better driver than your average driver but I imagine that may even be arguable.

I think its also important to note that while there were probably considerable development costs the majority of this tech isn't very expensive to the manufacturers. They just use them as excuses to milk more profit from customers. These things are in so many cars they're basically commodity items at this point.

 

[Denny Swift]

https://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1108673_manual-transmissions-will-survive-heres-how-and-why

 

[Efthreeoh]

If you want to understand the difference between distracted driving and paying attention driving, drive a motorcycle in any metropolitan city.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

They make skipshift for emissions, they could do something similar to kick the trans into neutral with the rest of their safety system. Just cheap little solenoids.

I don't give a plugged nickle about the crap personally. Its great until the sensors get covered with mud or snow and you are one wheel speed sensor failure away from having stone age tech.

My wife's car cracked the tone ring on the front right axle last winter. Lost ABS, TC and AWD. Sometimes it was fine, sometimes the ABS would go nuts on dry pavement and pull you left for no reason and sometimes it was in safe mode with all the lights on and everything related disabled. Unless the lights were on all bets were off what you were going to get when you touched the brake pedal which keeps a guy awake. Drove it an hour home and the pig got stuck in 2" of snow getting up our our driveway because there is no way to activate the AWD without the computer seeing wheel slipage. That was a fun day.

 

[DrStrange]

https://fordauthority.com/2021/05/m...rced-into-retirement-as-safety-tech-advances/

I know this stated in here Ford has added "safety" features to the Bronco that will become mandatory on all vehicles in the future. Emergency braking, etc.. how autonomous is this world becoming? This is a scary article. To think that not only low take rates for manuals, but now safety requirements would get rid of it? That is ridiculous. There is less texting and driving with a manual, and less distracted driving in general with a manual. What are your thoughts?

This is another reason I'm getting the 7mt. Not ready to let go of the stick.

I suspect that a dual clutch transmission (like in the new Corvette) would be compatible with these autonomous features and safety requirements. It's not exactly the same as a manual, but should be able to do everything a manual can do.

 

[CrownCityMisfit]

Instead of getting in to the weeds of this conversation, I'll just say I'm glad I ordered the 7 speed.

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