New learner driver - manual or auto

Affieplaas

Affieplaas

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My son turns 17 in two months, and I have to start thinking about teaching him to drive once he gets his learners.
Both my wife and I do most of our driving in peak work-hours traffic and have switched to cars with auto transmissions. I don't own a manual car.

The question is, should my son learn to drive a manual or start off on auto? I guess there are pros and cons to both sides of this coin.
The biggest consideration for me is that if he learns manual, I will have to get a manual car specially for this.

If I look at all the new cars, even entry level models all come out in auto in any case so I guess in 5 years' time you won't even be able to buy a new manual car unless it is a special order.

Any compelling reason why I should not let him learn on auto and get an auto only driving license?

I'll listen by the radio, fanks.
 
"The biggest consideration for me is that if he learns manual, I will have to get a manual car specially for this."

There is always the option of getting an automatic...
 
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If your car is manual then insist he learns Auto. That way when he gets his licence he will never ever touch your car, you will always have a car with petrol in it. A friend of mine did this and he is laughing all the way now, even when his own son has no more petrol in his own car. Serves the Gen Z right. Pathetic bunch
 
No reason not to learn in an auto.
Clutch control and gear shifts are a tiny part of driving - the road sense, reflexes, road rules, speed control, observations are all the same in an auto and are arguably much more important. Master that, then have a couple of lessons in a manual car to get the hang of the gear skills, then do manual license.
 
Affieplaas said:
Any compelling reason why I should not let him learn on auto and get an auto only driving license?
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That should be compelling enough of a reason. He'll only legally be allowed to drive automatics.

Learning to drive in an auto then trying to migrate to a manual for the test is about the worst idea ever I've ever heard.
 
bwana said:
That should be compelling enough of a reason. He'll only legally be allowed to automatics.
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Exactly. Think of car hires or if he ever had to drive a vehicle for work or borrow someones car. He would not be legally licensed to drive a manual.

Manual license can drive both, costs the same and invest same amount of time.
 
Kosmik said:
Exactly. Think of car hires or if he ever had to drive a vehicle for work or borrow someones car. He would not be legally licensed to drive a manual.

Manual license can drive both, costs the same and invest same amount of time.
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Exactly - when I got my UK license it was the same as here and you could drive both types if you too the test in a manual.

In the US there wasn't such a distinction, at least not in NY, so the carnage inexperienced drivers wreaked upon any manual gearbox they encountered was horrifying.
 
Affieplaas said:
if he learns manual, I will have to get a manual car specially for this
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most of those "driving school" peeps will have a manual available and you can practise for and do the test with their car

after that you don't need a manual car in the equation at all unless you specifically want one
 
Don't limit your son to an automatic-only license. Find a driving school with manual vehicles. If you want to take him for practice runs on your automatic car, that's fine, but let him obtain his license in a manual car.
 
With a manual license you can drive both manuals and autos.
With an auto license you can only drive autos.

Get a good driving school that has their own vehicles in both manual and automatic. Get him to start off learning in a manual and see how it goes.

If he really can't drive a manual well (like me XD, I just couldn't get confident with clutch control no matter how many times I tried even in 4 different vehicles) then move over to auto - most of the stuff from the lessons would carry over (parking tips about when to turn and what steering angle, tips for on-the-road etc) so you're not wasting money.

Driving an auto car with hill hold assist has made driving fun for me. I never got the whole "real men drive manuals" thing because there's nothing manly about fondling a stick every 5 seconds versus holding your GFs hand while you drive one handed in an auto.
 
bwana said:
That should be compelling enough of a reason. He'll only legally be allowed to drive automatics.

Learning to drive in an auto then trying to migrate to a manual for the test is about the worst idea ever I've ever heard.
Click to expand...
I got my license in an auto. But convinced the tester to give me a 'normal' one. Changing from auto to shift is not that big a deal.
 
If you want his future girlfriends to think he's secretly gay then teach him only automatic.

A driving school will teach him fairly easy in a Hyundai Getz. It's how I learnt.

Manual.
 
NR7 said:
Driving an auto car with hill hold assist has made driving fun for me. I never got the whole "real men drive manuals" thing because there's nothing manly about fondling a stick every 5 seconds versus holding your GFs hand while you drive one handed in an auto.
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What is the point of Hill Assist in a TC Auto?
 
Didn't know auto-only license was a thing. Manual for sure then.
 
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