People eating, drinking and using mobile phones .. I think the luxury of having a hand free with automatic transmission is a contributing factor.
Stick shift requires a certain level of attention/engagement that might actually make for safer driving IMO.
For one thing, manual transmissions require physical activity and coordination. That's not true with programming languages...
I'm noting that C++ vs Rust is basically this: every article that someone writes which goes over "we're still choosing C++" has the same vibe as people who choose manual transmissions in 2025. There's no real reason to do so at this point, other than if you want to.
I worked on one recently.
I learned on stick and I still feel a nostalgic appeal, sure. I test drove a used hothatch Volvo C30 T5 Polestar edition last fall before ultimately settling on an electric performance car (Polestar 2) to feed my midlife indulgences. And I have to admit a certain ... thrill... from the turbo lag and the process of shifting.
But it all seems a bit silly when compared to instant torque at any RPM.
When an EV actually has a suspension setup and overall weight that doesn't feel like I'm piloting a boat at sea, then I'll probably care. Porsche & co seem like they're still aiming for it so I've got some hope we get there.
They refuse to take 'I do it because I like it' as an answer.
(I've been stuck on planes for 20 hours with little sleep, so ignore it if it doesn't make too much sense lol)
I almost had a panic attack driving an _automatic_ up Lombard. (Sadly an old minivan with bad-lish tires).
In stop and go traffic (is there any other traffic in SFO?) it moved so much backwards and spun so hard every time I tried to move forward/upward.. I swore never to return. I haven't been back on that road since.
(and in this scenario you’re also usually sharing the car with other people so driving automatic would make everyone’s lives easier)
