Automatic vs. Standard

I've driven many standards and the two and three pedal Eaton Fullers. I hate the two pedal systems and I'm not a real big fan of the automated trannys in general. I've grown from hating them to tolerating them as companies are very quickly going exclusively to automated trannys. I love shifting and quite honestly can shift better and smoother than they can. I've also seen a lot of problems with them and have sat on the side of the road with tranny problems on several occasions.Out of three trucks with them, the three pedal truck had the ability to skip shift in any way or situation and this made it a thousand times more tolerable. I'm looking for a new job right now and anyone who says they have standard shift trucks has a better chance with me. It is only one small piece of the puzzle, but it holds some weight with me.

 

L.A. can be brutal to the left knee--esp. if have a little tendonitis like I do! As long as I can 'keep moving,' I can grab a gear & NOT clutch.

But the problem that I see with Autos is if get used to & then change co.s back to Manual---good luck on your driving test for the new co.!!

 

An automatic would make it easier to turn a corner, while eating a donut, talking on the CB, and drinking a cup of coffee!:smt003 :smt025

 

I kinda like the automatic's, You get up in the hills of Va, or you get on a old two lane back road with a bunch of curves, and You'll appreciate the Automatic.
its been about a year and a half since I drove a big truck with a stick, But I believe its like riding a bicycle You never forget. The problem I see is The brand new driver's that go to work for company's that have the Auto's then later on they take a job with a company that has Standard transmission's. They have a hard time, And will probably have trouble passing the driving test.

 

Actually, when I hired in where I am, they took me on my road test on an Autoshift equipped truck. I pointed out that I had never driven one before, and was told that it made the test all the more challenging then. Our procedure wasn't so much so much concerned with me demonstrating my basic driving skills as it was confirming whet they already knew from checking my references.

About the only problem (or embarassment) I had on the driving test was trying to get the truck into reverse, and the guy testing me pointed out some of the quirks of the Autoshift at that time. After that, I drove a stick equipped truck for the next 3 months until I got one with an Auto, then stayed with them until the end of june last year when I got a 2006 with a manual.

I think it's needed to learn initially on a stick, but once you develop those skills, they don't atrophy. And if a company is really looking at you asa driver, the test and the tester should be willing to take into account your recent past.

Wne I went to get my CDL license, at the time I had not been behind the wheel of a truck at all in 7 years. I practiced for 15 minutes the night before just to familiarize myself with the 13 speed I would be using, and never once practiced any backing maneuvers. i passed with no problems. Once you develop these skills, they tends to stay with you.

 

Oh for the days of the old Mack Triplex or a good set of 4X4 married boxes. A gear for every speed and every condition. Yes, I am an "oldtimer" and I want no part of the new autoshift transmissions. I like to control my driving as much as I can and with the newer tranny's this is not possible.
Having never driven one, I can not make any personal observations, but have many friends that have. They all would much rather have a manual transmission. Repair costs are much less for a manual, a slight electronic glitch will not let them down in the middle of nowhere, andthe fuel mileage is considerably better with a manual transmission.
Granted, for newbie drivers it may be the way to go, but if they cannot use a manual setup, they don't have any business being out here. The trucking business is more and more getting to the point where all that these companies want are "steering wheel holders". But that is just IMHO.
They do not want the driver to have any control over the engine or the transmission operation, just "guide" it to the destination point.

 

I like shifting better. Preferably Super 10's!

 

Well, as much as I hate to disagree with my elders, I have to take issue with some of Runamuk's claims concerning Autoshift transmissions.

I too remember the good old days of triplex and Quadraplex trans, and learned my way on them as well as some even older monstrosities in the trucks available for me to learn on at the ripe old age of 11-12 or so. So I learned the correct old time way, and still can drive any stick that gets under my right hand. But, the Auto does not present you with a loss of control. You have the ability to select when it does or does not shift through the control buttons, just as you have the set it and forget it capabilities of the trans. You are still able to lug the truck down if that is your desire, or rev it to the max if that suits your fancy.

I never found any problems or differences with the fuel mileage of the Uato's, and consistently tracked my fuel mileage and it matched up with what my stick equipped truck had done before, and was a hair or two better than my current truck with a newer generation engine and the emissions things that go along with that. Set me on a specific stretch of road and I can probably beat the Auto by a fraction on fuel mileage because I can anticipate hills and grades that it is not capable of doing. But I cannot afford to concentrate at that level all day long for hours at a time, and in the long run, the Auto and it's programmed upshift/downshift points are able to eke out a little bit better mileage than I can. any of us may be able to out do it for a short period of time, but not on a day to day, year by year basis.

I do have concerns as I stated and would not recommend one to someone buying a used truck, and despite my liking for them would not buy one myself. But that is due to my inherent financially conservative nature and my desire to minimize risk of owning a truck. My Auto trans never failed or left me unable to shift, unless somethign else failed and the truck was not capable of beong moved anyhow. The one incident was a bad alternator, and when the batteries discharged, the trans stopped shifting. But by that point the fuel shut off to the engine since there was no power to the solenoid, so I can hardly blame the trans for that event.

Sorry to disagree, but I come at the issue from having driven all manner of trucks, and have to call it like I see it. Were I to buy a brand new truck, with full warranties, then an Auto would certainly be considered. I respect your opinion not to have one, but they are not quite the evil wrath of satan some people make them out to be. Just another advance in technology, and that is to be expected.

 

ok i am confused the truck i was looking to buy has only 2 pedals the gas and the brake as in a car but there is a button to slide from auto to manual and ya can shift down or up like a manual transmission without a clutch i am soooo confused

hawkeye

 

What you are most likely looking at is a 2 pedal design, most likely the Eaton Ultrashift model. The 3 pedal types still require you to use your foot on the clutch for starting and stopping. The two pedal designs add in a control that allows the clutch to be disengaged and re-engaged based on the input from the two remaining pedals. it is a little bit more complicated and will take you a little bit longer to get smooth with it while backing under trailers and backing up to docks and other times when you would normally engage the clutch with your foot.