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Dealers sell VERY few standard transmission cars these days; especially in the big Cities.

In the near future, I could see some or all of the dealers in North America not stocking cars with a stick because they sit on the lot forever.

   

Conversely, you can't buy a Mustang GT 500 (Shelby, KR...) with an automatic.

   

Why would anyone want a Rustang, automatic or otherwise?

   

The race circuit idea would be to train people how to handle a car at speed and improve concentration.
The obstacle course would also be a great idea.

   

To avoid the embarrassment of telling people that they drive a Buick.

   

They'd both have advantages, as would any advanced driving course. But, the faster you go the more likely a small error will have big concequences. I just shudder at the thought of cracking up daddy's car when little Billy is taking his test.

   

Not true. Maybe in Toronto where people don't know how to drive.

I've never had any problem finding one. I drove one right of the lot as they just had it delivered the week before and it had the trim package I was looking for.

   

I work for a dealer group in Ontario with 30 stores across all brands.

Dealers in Toronto don't move a lot of standards and when they get one, they end up sitting on it for ages until it moves. Most dealers hope someone else will order a few so if they do need to get one, they can make a dealer trade.

I see aged inventory reports on a nightly basis and standard transmission cars top that list almost daily.

Standard cars also bring in far less trade value for the customer because people generally don't trust used standard cars as you have no idea the way it was driven or the condition of the clutch, etc.

   

It's funny, that cultural difference. In Europe (at least my part of Europe) everyone drives a stick. Lessons and road tests are with sticks. If you take your road test in an automatic, you get a note on your license and are not allowed to drive a standard for the first year

   

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we never had a doubt you were fully qualified

   

I love driving standard. Mostly, I have driven standard and I am starting to teach my 15 year old daughter to drive standard. I think that it makes you a better driver ... a far more aware driver, anyway.

   

Like I said that's Toronto. This resale value stuff is hogwash. If a car is 10 years old the AT vs the MT is probably 300 bucks in the blackbook.

Considering it was 1000 to 1500 bucks less to start with its not an argument against standard transmissions. As long as you stay away from cars that teenage girls want to buy it's not hard selling them off either.

I had my dealer call me and ask me if I wanted to trade in my MT vehicle because he had a customer that wanted one. It was the perfect small SUV to pull behind his motorhome..MT with FWD.

   

I ride my bikes most of the year and I live in Alberta. My worst year was 9 consecutive months and my best was 23 consecutive months. The donor comment comes from lack of appropriate legislation. You would not let a first time driver start out with a Ferrari so why should the first time rider be given the privilege of riding a bike that makes the Ferrari look slow. The Europeans have rules that prevent first time riders from riding bikes over set power levels. Some manufacturers install chips to limit the power and when the rider is qualified they replace it to allow the bike to perform at a higher level. They build there skills on a vehicle that matches their capabilities.

The concept is sort of here with progressive driving licenses for cars, but there are lot of people I see who cannot properly manage the vehicle they drive. Driving tests do not properly measure the persons driving ability in a variety of situations. They do not even check to see if the side mirrors are adjusted properly.

   

The other difference is that professional driving lessons are mandatory in a big part of Europe. Here, I can teach my kid how to drive at 16, and all she has to do is do as I said during that 30 minute test, where if you have mandatory driving lessons, the experienced and licensed instructor decides when it is time to show your capabilities during a road test.

I am sure tho that North Americans will see that as a 'cash grab'...

   

I had a standard transmission Subaru Forester for a decade and 300,000 kms. (A manual, all-time 4 wheel drive is a great combination in snow, btw.), Anyway,when the drive train finally need replacement, it was going to cost the price of a cheap car to do so because there were absolutely no manual transmission versions of it to be found in North America. It would have cost literally a few thousand dollars less if the parts were destined for an automatic because they were common. Anyway, that was the end of my relationship with the nicest driving little car that I've ever owned.

   

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