I can understand not wanting, or being able, to pay exdtra $1000 for a CVT.

But why would anyone *prefer* manual transmission?

All that shifting and clutching!

 

Probably for reliability. My '92 accord had 250,000 miles + and the manual trans never had a problem or had to replace the clutch and got a little better FE than the auto. But it was a pain to have to shift etc when stuck in "beep and creep" every day of my rotten 80mile commute... So now all my cars are auto..matic....

 

Most people who prefer manuals do so because of the "fun to drive" factor. I now have a 2006 HCH cvt, but I really miss shifting my old Integra GS-R. For many car enthusiasts it is about being more connected to your car, and having more control over power delivery, etc.... There was nothing like the feeling of downshifting into second and redlining the Integra's VTEC engine to 8100 rpm. The Civic is fun to drive also, just in a different sort of way.

Had a 5-speed manual been offered on the 06 HCH I would have bought that instead........ if I could have convinced the wife that is.

 

I got my manual 2004 HCH because:

1. It was the only HCH on the lot the night I wanted to buy.

And if you grew up with a manual tranny, as I did in my formative driver years of 18-25, then a manual really becomes just second nature to you.

I had gone about 18 years between my last manual tranny car and my HCH, and I just fell right back into all the good habits, like shifting from second to fifth to save time, etc etc......

 

With all the advances in the last 30 years, automatics still are not as efficient as manual transmissions. My rational reason is the manual transmission delivers more power and FE.

My irrational reason is I'm in control. Actually it's the truth. Until engineers make a transmission better than a 5-speed, I'll feel like my shifting judgement is that extra edge.

 

It's really sad that the HCH no longer comes as a manual......I too like the control of the manual tranny HCH, and am sad to lose that control next year when I buy a 2007 HCH as planned....

 

Of course cell phone users are probably not 5-speed fans....

 

I agree that the control factor is the most important. With a manual you are always aware of how fast you are going, etc. In an automatic it's easy to not be aware of that or many other things.

I have CVT, but was fairly hesitant about getting it and not holding out for a manual. Although I learned to drive on a stick my first "real car" (i.e. one I did not destroy within the first few weeks of having it) was an 89 Corsica, automatic. I quickly lost me license for 2 years for multiple speeding tickets and a few accidents. After I got my license back I only drove a stick, and never got a ticket again.

Now that I'm back in an automatic I feel myself becoming less aware of how fast I am going and generally more distractable. It's simply too easy to drive - it can't hold my attention. And with cruise control and good alignmment, I practically don't even need to touch any part of the driving counsel.

 

Errr....

The 06 Civic manual is rated at 30 and 38, while the auto is 30 and 40.

But looking at competitors:

The numbers net out the same, but in city driving, the EPA numbers for the 06 Jetta/Gas/4cyl is just slightly better for auto than for man. But the difference flips the other way for Highway so both models end up the same.




The problem is, now, with computerized transmissions, the car can make shifting "decisions" much-much quicker than the human brain can see/feel/react/shift. So as things like the CVT continue to get more and more complex, auto trans should start kicking the pants off a manual, even if you had one with a big "Shift NOW - Dummy!" light in the middle of the dash

 

For the Insight, the 5-speed is 66/66 (city/hwy), but the CVT version is 57/56.