Deeply concerned about automatic transmissions.

Hard to have sympathy for anyone who says they need an automatic because it's "too hard to learn to shift AND focus on driving WITHOUT hitting crap". Good heavens, how much do we have to dumb down trucking for these spoon fed, tit-sucking, red doper diaper babies for them to get it right?!?

 

as long as there will be cry babies and whiners and morons, and the companies needing someone with a pullse to drive, we will most certainly see a dumbing down of the industry.

i suppose next will be, that all drivers dye thier hair blond, to match such a dumbing down...

 

The truth is though the new autos are great. They do get an extra 1.5 miles to the gallon on average over a manual but does depend on the driver a bit. Plus companies aren't working on clutches all the time. I will say the auto I think made me safer. I would sometimes drive the equipment on tight residential streets and I never hit anything and when I needed power all I had to do was hit the go pedal.

 

This scares me. Maybe I'm just getting old, idk.

 

A manual one isn't any better, I hear my company Averitt is done purchasing them now, don't know the truth to that

 

CS when your turning on a 18 ft wide residential street with a quad axle low boy and cars parked on both sides not having to remember what gear I'm in or rpms helped me focus on manuvering instead of worrying if I'm gonna stall the truck

 

Having the I shift makes getting to the Love's at exit 163 on I40 in Dickson, TN from EB 40 a lot easier with a heavy wagon. That ramp is a bear, especially in a cummins with the progressive shifting software installed. Having it max out at 1600 rpm in 1st gear is not cool.

 

Something worth considering...

 

This argument reminds me of my youthful days back in the late-60's when most of the drivers ed cars were straight drive. Then they switched to about a 50-50 auto/straight combination because they realized most new cars were autos, but the old heads thought everyone at least needed to be trained on a straight drive and then they could easily transition over to an auto. Several years later they went all auto and as far as I know have not looked backed.
Yep, basically the same argument going on here 45 years later.

 

I agree everyone should know both but if you were to ask what I prefer I'll take a good truck with an auto everytime