Automatics..for newbies..really???

2014 ,. drive whatever u like

 

I've have driven both 13 speed and 18 speed I'm now in a western star auto. Its a great truck. I find the auto you tend to get a bit lazy .its pretty basic. Auto I find hills at first were tricky you got to remember to lock that shifter because with a heavy load going up a hillyou don't want it shifting. And if I'd does it always takes a bit for it to pop into gears so it will really mess you up. Auto vs stand. It don't matter a truck is a truck and a pay cheque is the same no matter what you drive.

 

And remember the autos have the clutch pedel as well. You got to push and hold that clutch pedel at red lights just like a standard. You just don't use the clutch when it shifts

 

My auto doesn't have a clutch pedal! I like it. Especially in stop and go traffic. If I need to control the gears I put it in "manual" mode and can shift with the push of a button.

 

Yes the new modern autos don't have clutch pedals. Automatics get better fuel mileage, and they are considered safer by insurance companies because the driver doesn't have to give one thought to shifting and he can concentrate more on traffic conditions. Automatics are going to be taking over the industry even more than they have already. Even though old supertruckers don't like it, which is insane. Why make the job harder than it has to be? You should take advantage of every technology you can. I remember when old worn out supertruckers threw a fit cause a truck had a cruise control on it lol. Companies can literally save millions of dollars by switching to automatics which is why it is a trend growing rapidly. The automatics of today in 2014 make the ones from even 5 years ago look like antiques from way back in 1990 or something. In an age of self driving cars and advanced tech it's stupid and backward to have a manual.

 

I felt the same way before I started driving an auto. I still prefer manual, but you do have control in an auto. It's just different.

 

any company near Chicago with auto trucks?

 

only auto worth drivin is the new Volvos.

 

Really? You've never driven a Pete with an auto I take it. I've driven the Volvo and driving a Pete now. In my opinion the Pete is far better.

 

Insurance companies "considering" autos safer just affirms to me they don't know as much about truck driving as they think they do.

Im sorry if shifting makes YOUR job harder; I happen to enjoy it immensely. I don't consider shifting a difficult part of my job at all. Operating the equipment is my draw to the industry. The ever-changing view out the windshield is a nice perk, but for me it's all about the truck.

I actually like doing my PTI's too.

Anti-manual opinions like this are as ridiculous as the anti-auto opinions you try to ridicule.