In the Netherlands, everyone basically learns to drive a manual car. That is simply the norm in Europe. But if you go to America or Japan, there's a very high chance you'll be given an automatic. In those countries, they embraced the automatic en masse years ago.
Why does everyone in America drive an automatic?
That originated decades ago. As soon as the machine When it was introduced, Americans immediately took to it. Which isn't surprising, of course, if you consider the road network they have. It's very common there to drive long distances daily on straight highways. Without too many bends or other obstacles along the way. An automatic transmission is ideal for that.
For years Consumption one of the disadvantages of an automatic transmission. The engine simply used more than a manual gearbox. That was also a good reason for many Europeans to opt for a Manual car to choose. In America, petrol prices were (and still are, for that matter) a lot lower than here, so that wasn't a problem for them. Nowadays, the fuel consumption of an automatic is hugely improved, by the way. Thanks to modern technology.
The advantages of driving an automatic
No matter how you look at it, riding in a machine still has a bit of a Tersely evocative. This is mainly due to Dafjes with a Variomatic, a gearstick that you pushed forward to drive forwards and pulled back to drive backwards. The car did the rest itself. And because of that, the car received a ‘old women stamp. Nowadays, you often still have to justify yourself when you choose an automatic gearbox.
However, more and more Europeans are slowly but surely seeing the benefits of driving an automatic. Firstly, you can much more relaxed while driving. This also happens to be the biggest advantage. You only use one foot, you don't have to operate a gear stick and you can keep both hands on the steering wheel. In other words, you have to perform far fewer actions to achieve the same goal. You can therefore also focus your attention entirely on the traffic, which means a vending machine is also safer.
When you many files are travelling (and who doesn't do that in the Netherlands?), an automatic is ideal. You only need to accelerate and brake, changing gears happens automatically. It makes driving in traffic a lot more pleasant because you're not constantly fiddling with your gearbox. And the car can't stall either, which is nice.
The advantages of a manual car
For the Sporty drivers among us who like Control When it comes to owning a car, there's nothing quite like a gearbox. You can simply pull away a little longer at traffic lights or when you need a bit more power to overtake a lorry on the motorway. In the past, a manual car had a more powerful engine. Nowadays, technology has improved so much that this is no longer entirely true. The power is almost the same.
We Europeans do feel that manual gearboxes have their merits. charm that you only feel like you're ‘really’ driving then.
Automatic or manual?
It now seems that driving an automatic has many more advantages than driving a manual. Objectively speaking, that may well be the case. But ultimately, you always decide for yourself what you find most pleasant. 20, 30 years ago the choice would have been easier. An automatic was uneconomical and dowdy at the time. Nowadays an automatic transmission is even more economical than a manual gearbox, because an automatic gearbox has more gears and therefore always drives at the optimal engine speed. And as soon as younger people also start driving automatics, the frumpy image will disappear by itself.
You can always go for the golden mean choose. Many brands have a dual-clutch or provide a semi-automatic, such as the Fiat 500. This allows you to drive with an automatic transmission, but if you drive a lot in the mountains or on winding roads, you can also change gears manually. Or if you're just feeling sporty. The best of both worlds then!
Automatic driving with Adrem
The majority of cars available for hire from us are still manual. However, our fleet is also changing. The hybrid cars (cars that run on both unleaded petrol and electricity) are all automatic. This also makes these cars more economical. So, if you choose an automatic with Adrem, you're not only choosing a more relaxed drive but also an economical one.
What kind of car do you prefer to drive? Manual or automatic? Let us know in a comment below! Automatic or manual Car hire in the Sittard regionThis is possible at Adrem!
6 responses
I'm only reading advantages here, don't forget the disadvantages.
An automatic gearbox needs to be “rinsed” or “flushed”, garages recommend doing this every 100,000 km (costs approximately €400-€500).
Is the automatic transmission control module (automatic transmission computer) broken? Cassa, around €1300.
With a manual gearbox, you don't have any of these at all.
That's entirely correct, Rob!
And if you need to have the automatic gearbox overhauled, you'll spend a lot more money than with a manual gearbox.
This article is primarily intended for people who are hiring a car from us and are unsure whether to opt for a manual or automatic gearbox.
I have now opted for an automatic transmission, I think the pros and cons in terms of cost are the same and a bit in favour of the automatic nowadays. More economical, but a bit more expensive to buy, and more expensive if parts are needed. But you drive much more relaxed, whereas you could have an accident with a manually operated car, because your attention to traffic is not as good.
Mark is 44-years-old
Nonsense. When you're driving, your focus is on the road and the traffic. Changing gears is done ‘automatically’ - it's fun, sporty, and you're the one in control. New generations of cars are all automatics with speed limiters. Fun driving is really different.
Automatic. Always.
It drives so much smoother, especially in traffic jams. I'm a big fan of automatics myself.
Besides the fact that an automatic transmission drives a lot more smoothly in my opinion, it's also a lot better for the environment. So I would choose an automatic myself!