Best choice for wife, Automatic -vs- Manual

[Cosmo]

As i wrote above, she is very capable of driving a manual transmission car. I am the performance driving enthusiast in our household and she quite frankly just "doesn't get it". She has been spoiled by two 4cyl Accord LX ATs and a souless 4cyl Camry AT for the last 16 years and doesn't care about twisty road fun. The Fit will be her commuter car. She would prefer an AT for the "point and shoot" ease of driving, but can and will accept an MT for pure fuel economy reasons if it does in fact get better highway fuel economy. City fuel ecomomy is a non issue since she will only be driving about 10% of her weekly miles in very light to non-existant traffic.

[TurboManGT]

All cars should be manual IMO. Go with the MT especially since she knows how to drive one.

[mahout]

[quote=Cosmo;356638]This fall my wife will be due for a new car. I have pretty much talked her into buying an 09 Fit Sport due to fuel economy/utility instead of the CR-V she was wanting. She knows how to drive a manual but prefers an automatic. Here are the specifics:

18 miles interstate @ 70 mph each way
3 miles city (2 miles 30-35 mph & 1 mile @ 40 mph) each way
3 stop signs & 2 traffic lights each way with very light traffic if any

Looking at this from a pure fuel economy standpoint (she doesn't care about a performance driving standpoint), would the manual or automatic (I know the fuel economy of the 09 is supposed to be pretty much on par with the 08 models) make the most sense? Yes, I have read for hours through numerous manual and automatic fuel economy threads, but almost all pertain to various hyper-miling techniques that she will most likely (definately) will not incorporate into her driving habits.


The manual gets better mpg at all levels. Expect 2 mpg less with automatuic.
Now having said that, the automatic is much easier on the driver. My wife spends a lot of time on the highway in home health so she drives a Civic HX (not a hybrid but vtec 1700cc tuned for economy) for the 40+ mpg (documented for IRS) which only came with 5 speed manual. However when we're at home she takes my Fit Sport instead 'cause its easier'. The Fit gets 30 mpg when she uses it at her work.
Your wife should make the choice. Hopefully the 09 will have the CVT automatic and if it does both of you may find it preferrable. The paddle shifters on the steering wheel are great for those of us who have shifted all our lives.
Oh, considering the run on Fits you might want to develop a sales arrangement on the Fit ASAP.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by mahout

Oh, considering the run on Fits you might want to develop a sales arrangement on the Fit ASAP.

Having spent the last 18 years in the car business (the last 5 years with an Acura dealership) I have a long time friend who is the General Manager of a Honda dealership that will let me buy/order what ever I want for invoice price.

[mahout]

Originally Posted by Cosmo

Having spent the last 18 years in the car business (the last 5 years with an Acura dealership) I have a long time friend who is the General Manager of a Honda dealership that will let me buy/order what ever I want for invoice price.

These people will be hanging all over you. Don't let 'em know where you live. cheers.

[Red Iron Crown]

Originally Posted by TurboManGT

All cars should be manual IMO.

Really? Whatever for? People seem to like automatics, they outsell manuals by a huge margin, why would you mandate manual only?

It seems to me that a not-insignificant portion of the driving public can barely keep up with staying in their own lane and being aware of what's going on around them. How are these people going to deal with a manual?

[TurboManGT]

Haha I'm just a manual gearbox nazi I guess

[solbrothers]

Originally Posted by TurboManGT

Haha I'm just a manual gearbox nazi I guess

WOO HOO!! glad im not the only one! lol. i agree all cars should be, adn definately benefit from a manual transmission

[TurboManGT]

I couldn't agree more my friend

[jeimusu86]

i think in the end, ur wife is gonna do whatever she feels like doing, women are impossible to convince, so im pretty much saying that she's going with the AT whether u like it or not

[pb and h]

LOL, so true............if momma ain't happy, ain't no body happy!

[RedAndy]

My .02: If she'd want the MT only for fuel economy reasons, and almost all the driving will be on the freeway at steady speed, I'd have to say get the AT for her and let her be happy. Fuel economy will make little difference on the freeway at steady speeds, and the AT may even do a bit better. (For details see consumer reports review 12/06 which gave city/highway/combined miles for the MT and AT. From memory, the MT won overall, and did much better in city milage, but slightly worse in freeway mileage than the AT - sorry, can't recall the exact #'s off the top of my head)

IMHO the MT is much more fun to drive. But if your wife was 'spoiled' by a Camry, I'm guessing the 'fun to drive' factor isn't a big deal for her

This is coming from a die hard MT guy. The Fit's AT actually pretty good as slushboxes go and for all freeway driving, mileage is pretty much a wash. Get what makes her happy....

[chinaman727]

Yeah, when I got my Fit I had a choice between a Auto or stick and I went with Auto. For a while I doubted my decision but I think in the end I'm going to be happy either way. Good luck with your(her) choice!

[pb and h]

Another thing to think about, insurance rates. The Wifes CRV EX is about $97 cheaper for 6months than mine is on the FIT sport. I am not sure why and I have bigger discounts than she does.

Oh, when I said my wife gets 26mpg in the city that is with the A/C on. Women have to maintain that appearance and can't sweat.

[Cosmo]

Thanks again for all the insight and opinions everyone. Now, all we have to wait for is the 09s to come in and her liking the car well enough on the test drive.

[myexpertise]

Hi,
Oh, Im a woman too.. Well, as for the choice, we are really into automatic.. It's where we can easily adapt although we both know how to drive manual and automatic cars..
Well, we can't really set aside the consequences for choosing it such as high fuel costs..
Anyway, Im sure you and you're wife will surely patch things and make the right decision..
Good luck =)

__
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[Unforgiven]

It's probably best to have one of each (I'm not saying buy 2 Fit's) if for some reason one of you hurts one of their legs, it is sure hard to drive MT. My wife fell down some stairs a couple of years ago and hurt her foot. Fortunately we had an AT and a MT so she could at least drive the AT to work.