I'll be the snob here and say it: manual is driving; automatic is just pointing the car. But to be honest, sequential manual transmission is the best.
I really like manual transmissions, I learned manual shifting around age 12 on a 1950 Ferguson TO-20 tractor and a 1954 GMC, no synchromesh. I taught a number of my classmates to drive a manual at the school driving range. When I bought a new car after I got married, I thought I would get a manual-shift, save $800, and teach my wife to drive it. What I learned from that experience was: I should have just bought an automatic.
Two Toyotas, both bought new: 2003 Highlander with ~80k miles 2006 Camry Solara with ~29k miles There's nowhere to go in Fresno unless you're going OUT of Fresno, so low mileage.
^ "Last spring we did Europe in nine days...and then we went to Bakersfield...and then we ended up in Fresno. Fresno? No one goes to Fresno anymore!" - Airplane II
I assume all of my cars have high levels of intelligence, along with the ability to navigate streets without my input.
Honda, Subaru, Ferrari, Porsche, Volkswagen, Buick, Cadillac. ...hey - don't look at me like that, I am aware I have issues.
I was gonna say that looks like a Saturn. Then I see your pic name when I quoted it. I used to have a 94 Satty. Loved that car.
She has 140,000 miles on her, she has a leak or two when it rains, the driver's seat needs some light re-upholstering where spongy padding pokes out, and she's a bit noisy because there might be a hole in the exhaust I need to fix (and soon), but I can't help but love this car. It's a shame Saturn is no longer in existence. Here's a picture of her in the daytime:
Neither am I. A few of the cars I've had, including my current car, have cruise control, but I've never used it. I cannot drive without my foot on one of the pedals. As for my car, since September it's a 60-reg (2010) Volvo V50 auto diesel in dark grey. I don't go for somber colours, but second-hand auto transmission cars are rare in England, and beggars can't be choosers (and I sure as hell couldn't afford a brand new Volvo).* I grew up in Volvos, and have a soft spot for them and always wanted one for myself. When I wanted to get rid of my old car, a 60-reg Vauxhall Meriva which I'd purchased new (Vauxhall electronic parking brakes can fuck up very, very badly, as a warning), I was lucky to find my current car, as it has less than 15,000 miles on it and was within the budget. It's a big car and can be a bit of a pain to park, but the whole family fits into it comfortably, and it's lovely to drive. *Yes, I live in England and drive automatic. In fact, I'm not allowed to drive manual; I have an automatic-only licence. I drove auto in Canada for nine years before I moved here, and since I wanted to pass my UK driving test ASAP I went for auto. Don't judge me, okay?
I agree that its a total shame that Saturn no longer exists. We loved our Saturn Vue, it was a sad day when we traded it in. However we need the additional room for three kids and with Saturn being scuttled, we thought it was prudent move to make to get the most out of it. We figured if we held onto it any longer, the value would drop even more. Here is our last Vue, we owned several before this but this is our last one at the dealership. and here is what we replaced it with, a 2011 Honda Odyssey. The day we got it at the dealership.
The 60 tells you the year and period (March or September) that it was registered. As an example, a car registered NX51 XXX would have been registered in Autumn 2001 and probably have been registed around Stockton. When it got to 2010, they started with 10 for Spring and 60 for Autumn if I remember correctly. Before 2001, it worked differently. As an example, from older cars that I've owned, the registration may have looked like:- S123 ABC (September 1998 - signified by the S. T would be March 1999) I think that they started going half yearly on new registrations in 1998. L123 ABC (Registered between Aug 93 and July 94 per the L) This commenced in August 83 with A registrations. Before that (and we come to the first car I've owned - chevette) the registration may have looked like:- ABC 123Y (Where the Y tells you it was registered between Aug 82 and July 83) According to Wiki, that went back to 1963