Manual vs. Automatic is the skill set really needed?

Doing so is dangerous. i would refuse to operate a truck with this disabled. I wonder if anybody can think about why this is dangerous?

 

Key word is “can’t”.

Two drivers ran into an icy road situation on an incline in Mississippi. Joe couldn’t throw chains and needed a wrecker. John threw chains and got off the incline to a safe haven.

A recovery company needed to pick up a truck that had a super10. Joe can’t drive a manual and John can. Who do you send to recover the truck?

Got a hot load paying obscene money, picks up at 8pm and has to be 500 miles away by 8am without fail. Joe can’t drive at night and John is a vampire. Who do you send?

Two drivers leave the house at the same time on Monday. They both run the same loads during the week. Joe can’t figure out how to manage his time and only has 10 hours available at the end of the week and John has 19. Got a Saturday pickup that’s going 1000 miles. Who gets the load?

CAN’T makes one less of a driver. Didn’t say anything about personal preference, you said CAN’T.

Sitting in the drivers lounge, Joe laments that he can’t make any money at your company’s. John just smiles.

 

I would absolutely QUIT if I found a automatic with a manual disabled.

I ran in a team situation our Automatic Rockwell Meritor that had a manual paddle as part of the options to hold a gear in mountain or ice work if I decided it's ok to hold it. We never abused it over 221000 any flaws it had was towards never shutting engine off at all, which it's factory manual did state that it must be turned off a minimum of 30 minutes every 7 days to flush buffer or it bricks just like a windows computer and have to be rebooted and all software reloaded and then reflashed. That takes a little time.

I hate to say it, that particular century other than being governed at 63 (And what's worse, FFE chose to camouflage it with a false speedometer reading of 65... until my personal GPS and laptop uncovered that little secret) That tractor did good, everything we asked of it it did. It might have spun a wheel or three on ice proper a time or two or slide a little. But nothing too wild. You are supposed to do a little dancing on the ice anyhow.

Any company (Stupid enough to... YES I say STUPID....) that disabled a installed manual mode on a automatic has lost me as a driver. I'll find someone else to run for. It will be their loss and the new employer's gain. I would have no problem quitting such a stupid employer. Disabling stuff on a tractor trailer implies a distrust of some sort too far beyond my ability to explain towards a driver.

That's the other reason I like manuals so much. You cannot disable gears or how they are shifted. If you are a good driver the company has nothing to be afraid of. Ive actually broken trucks before in bad abusive shifting or clutch work. And I have had trucks that simply broke. (And still I am blamed for it. I guess its easier to blame a dumb driver who has no respect in eyes of boss man who now has to replace a tranny or rears in a truck that honestly is too old for that work.) Who is the stupid one here? Not me. It will be the employer who failed to purchase a more up to date tractor.

 

Preference.

For one I don’t like how autos start downshifting super aggressively if you have the Jakes on. The second you let off the gas it’s trying to stop the truck. I guess you could flip them off but I prefer just to leave them on and not worry about it.

I like manuals. Gives me something to do if nothing else.

 

I personally enjoy shifting. Why? I don't know but I'll take a stick over an auto if presented with the choice of one over the other. 8-18 speed, doesn't matter. As long it's a stick, I'll drive it. I have driven a couple of Auto's for a day while my truck was in the shop, and it was definitely strange at first.

 

100% agree that I don't care auto v. manual - I can drive both. But I also won't drive an auto with the manual-override disabled. And I will flat refuse to do so in the winter time (Northeast).

When old schizo goes hunting for a gear on a slick upward hill you're pretty much screwed, traction and Tac are compromised while the idiot truck shifts like it's on dry land 7-6-5-4-6-4-6-4-6-4-3-stuck. Tac it & hold it. The override affords you that luxury. Otherwise you're at the transmissions mercy.

 

Tac to 22-2400.... stupid hard on the engine. I hate it too.

About knocked the warehouse down the first time you tried to bump a dock, didn't ya? Then you bounced forward only to goose it back and nail it again. Lol.

 

Spot on lol. I was shuttling trailers locally so the boss threw me in a day cab auto pete he rented while my truck was in the shop. Brand new unit and I thought "ehh not too bad I'll just drive it for a day." Got the the first drop, got set up to back, and SMOOTHLY gave it some gas and nothing, then a second later to sucker took off. Hit the brakes and thought "strange." Long story short, the warehouse folks knew I was at the door, I assure you of that. Not the mention the constant act of "going for the clutch" and having nothing there, as well as not knowing what to do with my right hand. It was an interesting day lol. Next day I was back in my usually rig and happier than hell.

 

Does MS have a 'Manual Restriction' on their license?

Maine does. If you test out in an Auto you get an 'E' Restriction: No Manually Equipped CMV's. And this is something potential employers look at - 'what can you drive?' If the fleet is even beat to #### 10, 13 & 18 Ken's - 600k on every ODO, that guy with an 'E' on his license isn't even getting looked at.