Battery life, lol. Fully charged to zip in short order with what im using. No worries. It was an experiment anyway. I wanted to verify with others about ohms law and amp drain and safety zone. I got this. Only thing that i really need, and ill get later on, is a good battery for this. I consider my first efforts a screaming success, and lived to tell about it.
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I owned a 56 Chevy 3 speed, a 65 Mustang Fastback 4 speed, and a 67 Olds 442 4 speed in my younger years. As I got older I switched to a 73 Firebird 400 with an auto trans. That was a high end luxury model compared to my previous rides. Then, I drove company vehicles for decades that I could bring home. During that time I owned a Triumph TR7 straight shift and a Datsun 280ZX auto for weekend transportation.
Many modern automatic transmissions, especially in muscle cars, can shift faster than a human, IMO. These days I prefer an auto. My muscle car days have transitioned into a preference for comfort, handling, and ride. NASCAR guys would disagree!
I've always preferred a manual transmission to automatics. I have a locked and lifted Wrangler. When I drive my wife's car I find myself unconsciously looking for the clutch pedal. I learned to drive in a sandrail with a manual transmission when I was 10yo but of course didn't drive a street car until I was 16yo. My first car was a fiberglass body dunebuggy. I've had many vehicles with auto transmissions but have always had at least 1 car at all times with a manual transmission since I was 16yo.
Uh, I started driving in BOTH. I VASTLY prefer stick shifts for the following reasons: you don't get bored, it's good exercise, if you are good with them (I am) you can preserve fuel, have more control, and in rain and snow you can downshift instead of brake (or do both, if necessary) and like.... It's just all around better.
Automatics have none of that. I guarantee you, in snowy weather (and I have had practice) I'm going to have better outcomes than some twit in an automatic SUV who thinks he can go 40 miles faster than he SHOULD... until he has to hit the brakes. I can't tell you the number of 4WD folks I have seen just FLIPPED over in the snow, including a dude who DIED right in front of my FACE AND totaled my stick shift Saab and messed up a couple kids in a THIRD car. It sucked, but well.
Be grounded to the road. The only major accidents I have ever had were freak ones like that he pushed the woman's car into mine, I was exiting the MVA with my "you are good for 3 years" emissions thing. Otherwise, I get ungrounded when I'm parking although not so much any more cuz I know my car
Insurance totaled it. I begged my parents to just let me keep it and have it repaired (I knew Saabs were not long for this world) but no instead they gifted me this automatic Volvo thing. It sucked.
What does this have to do with mechs? Well, if mechs are manuals I don't want one actually because I am the kind of vaper that does not want to have to pay attention All the Time. But I also think if you are that person well have at it.
I also (for a bajillion reasons) think mechs should exist and we should not be required to drive electric cars when we punch in the coordinates.
For the longest time the DC metro was fully automated but like, they had drivers. Mainly so they could PATHETICALLY attempt to stop the train if there was a jumper but if I know ONE thing is that at some point, every automated thing FAILS. Regardless of the number of FAILSAFES.
Something that makes you think YOU are ultra safe (like an SUV) can actually be the thing that kills you.
anna
I prefer a manual but today, I trust a/t more than my seventy-four old knee to function properly all the way home.
Personally I think both manual and automatics have their place. Manual is definitely more fun to drive when you can actually drive, but if your daily commute is stop and go with way more stop than go, then a manual just gets tedious. I work from home now, but my previous commute was just 13 miles but coming home at 5:00 it took me about 1 hour and 15 min to drive that. I often sat at the same red light two or three times to get through and top speed was like 10-15mph. No way would I want to do that, day in and day out, in a manual transmission vehicle.
I had my share of stick shifts, but these days I like a good automatic. My 2017 Ram Longhorn Hemi has a really nice 8 speed auto that is said to be of German origin. It's a solid gear box that seems to always choose the right ratio and it has automatic hill hold that's really nice when it's needed.
There's few things more fun than driving the right car with a good stick shift trans, though.
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Been there done that, the manual gets real old, real fast in hilly stop and go city traffic on a snowy winter day.
I drove a semi for quite a few years, 10 speed and 13 speed transmissions. With a heavy clutch pedal. Drive thru Chicago at the wrong time of day. Or Atlanta. Or Nashville . Lol.
Great thread 
I bought a Mazda 3i Sport with a 6 speed manual a couple of months ago after driving a Camry 6 cylinder for about ten years. They are a very different driving experience. I enjoyed the Camry but I got bored with it and am loving the new car so far
I also pulled my old Reo Grand out from hibernation a few weeks ago and am really enjoying it again. My main vape is still a Doggy on a Pico 75 (specially for work), but the mechanical Reo is really hitting the spot for after work and also sometimes on the go. It's funny how these things work, sometimes it's better to be able to change things on the spot and sometimes it's better to be able to run pre-programmed, carefully scripted scenarios. Both are different in significant ways, and while both have different real world feels, both are also very good if you do them right.
You've got great responses already @Coyote628 and I think you know what you're doing. Stay safe my friend
I bought a Mazda 3i Sport with a 6 speed manual a couple of months ago after driving a Camry 6 cylinder for about ten years. They are a very different driving experience. I enjoyed the Camry but I got bored with it and am loving the new car so far
I also pulled my old Reo Grand out from hibernation a few weeks ago and am really enjoying it again. My main vape is still a Doggy on a Pico 75 (specially for work), but the mechanical Reo is really hitting the spot for after work and also sometimes on the go. It's funny how these things work, sometimes it's better to be able to change things on the spot and sometimes it's better to be able to run pre-programmed, carefully scripted scenarios. Both are different in significant ways, and while both have different real world feels, both are also very good if you do them right.
You've got great responses already @Coyote628 and I think you know what you're doing. Stay safe my friend
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