Your Guide to Driving in a Roundabout
Driving in a roundabout can be confusing and sometimes dangerous if you aren't aware of the proper protocols. Read our guide.
Read more about Your Guide to Driving in a RoundaboutManual or automatic? The debate has raged for many years, ever since automatic transmission technology became good enough to popularize these easy-driving vehicles. Once upon a time, almost every car on the road used a manual transmission, and learning to expertly release the clutch and shift gears was an immutable fact of growing up. Now, it’s mostly driving enthusiasts hanging on to that tradition. But is there anything more to the argument than the quality of the drive? In a word: yes. But to get to that, we need to establish what the transmission is in the first place.
A vehicle’s transmission is the component that feeds power generated by the engine to the wheels. It effectively determines what the proper amount of power to use is at any given time. At slower speeds your car requires less power, meaning the transmission will shift into a lower gear. As you accelerate, more power is required, necessitating a shift into a higher gear.1 In cars with automatic transmissions, this all happens without any input from the driver besides pressing the gas pedal. In a car with a manual transmission, the driver is the one who determines when a shift will be necessary, executing it manually with the clutch pedal and stick shift. But in the battle of manual vs automatic transmission, which is right for you? Learn the manual vs automatic pros and cons of each transmission type so you can make an informed decision.
As the name suggests, a manual transmission requires the driver to manually shift their car into the proper gear. In order to make this happen, manual cars have to include a couple of features that cars with automatic transmissions can forgo. The first of these is the clutch pedal, located just to the left of the brake pedal. The driver presses down on this pedal to temporarily cut engine power to the transmission. With this done, the driver can then shift their car into a different gear using the stick shift, which sits in the center console.2
An automatic transmission does everything a manual does, but without any effort on the driver’s part. Inside every automatic transmission is a part called the planetary gear set. This part creates different gear ratios that ensure the engine and wheels are not spinning at the same speed.7 You’ll notice when riding in a car with an automatic transmission that the engine RPM’s rise steadily with acceleration, then dip back down before continuing to rise again. That’s the planetary gear set at work, upshifting to put less of a burden on the engine as the wheels spin faster. It accomplishes this by using transmission fluid, which creates the pressure needed to enact gear shifts and also cools and lubricates moving parts.8
Shopping for a new or used car can be exciting, but there are lots of big decisions to make and among them is whether a manual or automatic transmission is better. If you are considering a switch to manual from automatic, or vice versa, make sure that you do some test drives to give yourself a feel for the difference. Ultimately, it comes down to your preferences and what you’ll be using the vehicle for. If you are considering buying a car soon, use these tips for buying a car from a private seller or a dealership.
1https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
2https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
3https://www.aeroautoparts.com/blog/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-a-manual-transmission/, Accessed August 2021.
4https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
5https://www.aeroautoparts.com/blog/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-a-manual-transmission/, Accessed August 2021.
6https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
7https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
8https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
9https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
10https://www.edmunds.com/fuel-economy/five-myths-about-stick-shifts.html, Accessed August 2021.
11https://www.drivparts.com/parts-matter/learning-center/driver-education-and-vehicle-safety/manual-vs-automatic-car.html, Accessed August 2021.
12https://stevesimports.com/blog/the-pros-and-cons-of-automatic-transmissions/, Accessed August 2021.
Disclaimer:
The information included is designed for informational purposes only. It is not legal, tax, financial or any other sort of advice, nor is it a substitute for such advice. The information may not apply to your specific situation. We have tried to make sure the information is accurate, but it could be outdated or even inaccurate in parts. It is the reader’s responsibility to comply with any applicable local, state, or federal regulations. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, its affiliates and their employees make no warranties about the information nor guarantee of results, and they assume no liability in connection with the information provided. Nationwide, Nationwide is on your side, and the Nationwide N and Eagle are services marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. © 2021 Nationwide.