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2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
The same could be said about almost any mid-size or large SUV. However, for its size, the Tribeca handles pretty well. I also agree with Nippononly that many (if not most) vehicles can be improved with DIY shifting :P
-Frank
By the way I have found two 3/4 ton trucks that may be worth looking at with a manual. Both are in San Diego county so I will have to wait till after this weekend to look at them but one is a Dodge Cummings Diesel. The other is a V-10 Ford. I will let you know what shape they are in but they seem priced right.
Or why the BMW X3 and X5 enjoy the following they have.
But it seems as if Mini Van and SUVs and anything above a C class sport MB reached that point some time ago.
The mini-van stopped being mini. A Honda Oddity is bigger than a 80s Dodge 1500; ditto for the Toyota. The Mazda5, which is about the same size as the original Caravan, is available as a manual.
MB, the German Toyota, doesn't make much of anything with a manual, and typically has an older buyer than BMW, which makes almost everything with a manual.
True and really a shame. I recently purchased a 2005 SLK350 with a 6-MT and it's a very sweet shifting transmission. So it's not that they can't make a good MT. Unfortunately, MB has discontinued offering the manual option with the 08 models
-Frank
So nearly 100% of the automatics that they sell are to rental and fleets, which is why they just drop any crap transmission in it and ship it out the door.
As a result, the manuals are awesome. The automatics, which are the same for the U.S. market most of the time, are junk. The problem is that every car can be had in Germany - every last one - with manual. In the U.S., only a few.
While I have yet to drive a Tribeca, if its road feel is anything like Subaru's other vehicles, it is still a driver's vehicle. As such, a manual transmission offering would be good. A minivan is not a driver's vehicle, is a passenger's vehicle.
500hp and automatic... I wouldn't touch it, either.
I am not saying it should be this way but in a capitalistic world somethings are worth making and some things aren't from a corporate perspective. That is what leaves room for the niche market so it may be a good thing.
It goes both ways...Toyota produces transportation modules for a general population. Since the majority of the population only needs a transportation module, this works out well. There are some groups that feel a vehicle provides more than transportation to work and back, or to school and back or to soccer practice and back. It should provide some entertainment value, or as Cadillac says, when you turn it on, it should return the favor. If you make something bland that meets the basic needs of most people, you can market to most people.
I am not saying it should be this way but in a capitalistic world somethings are worth making and some things aren't from a corporate perspective. That is what leaves room for the niche market so it may be a good thing.
I concur. A niche market provides opportunity. BMW is one of the most profitable car companies today, with a very low volume and very high product mix. Honda still makes one of the better 5 speed manuals, and Ford et. al. MTX75 is a good unit as well.
Because of some weird circumstances, I am finding myself again in the market for a car. The reason I got the Accord EX 5spd manual last time around was because I was unable to find a Mazda6 manual. This time, I am required to get a FoMoCo product, so if I can't find a manual (Mazda6, Fusion, Focus, Mayyyybe a MS6) I will be looking at a sub-10k '05/06 Taurus, and then something else I actual enjoy driving (maybe an E36 M3/4).
Woo hoo, way to go Soob! :-)
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
Last go around timing was a big issue. Now I have a little more time to find what I want and wait for it if I have to, so that might be an option.
I'm going to agree with that 100%.
I feel uniquely qualified to comment because we had a loaner Tribeca for an entire week, even took it on a road trip. And we own a Sienna. And we have 2.3 kids (the extra .3 is a dog) and a nanny.
The Tribeca is one of the lighter crossovers. It's smaller and sporter. Steering feel is very good, and it handles well for its size.
The Sienna is ginormous, feels twice as big, inside and out. It's over a foot longer, seats 8, weighs more (especially with AWD). The emphasis is on ride comfort and isolation, not sporty driving. It makes no compromises whatsoever - it's very well focused on its mission of coddling a large group of people and their stuff.
Putting a manual on a Sienna would just be silly.
Putting a manual on a Tribeca, well, that would make a whole lot more sense. Subaru has always offered something different, and cater to enthusiasts. Tribeca is the only model they sell without a manual currently, for instance.
They may also steal more sales away from roomier crossovers like the Pilot if they catered towards the Sporty crowd more specifically, and I can't think of a better way to do that than offering a manual.
Our society isn't interested in driving as entertainment. They haven't been for years and aren't likely to look any differently at driving as our highways get more congested. Some call it lazy but is driving exercise? No walking or bike riding is exercise driving is to get from one place to another. Driving is a faster way to get somewhere. When driving isn't fast enough people take planes to get where they are going. Yes we can enjoy driving but it is still secondary to why we get in a vehicle. There was a time when people drove for entertainment but those days are long passed and so people are looking for comfort and ease in their vehicles.
People vote with their wallet and with 90 something percent of the people voting for a automatic any company interested in selling more cars will make more automatics. Until people can be convinced there is a reason to switch back to manuals that is simply the way the trend is going to continue. Companies Like Toyota will continue to gain status and power in the corporate world and so have more influence on the cars people buy. That may leave more room for niche vehicles and even niche companies but it didn't work for Saab and may not work in the long term for Volvo.
What do you think are the chances of Subaru putting a manual in a Tribeca?
Sadly, they also have a 90-degree V6 (which requires balance shafts) and a reputation for horrible electric/electronic reliability.
But they can come with a real transmission, which is why they're on my list at all.
I think the odds are small. Subaru is more likely to put in a CVT than a manual in the Tribeca.
They don't have one overseas, either, so it's not like it's on the parts shelf.
They'll do a CVT, possibly a diesel engine, before they do a manual. Likelihood? About 0%. :sick:
will be sold only with a six-speed Twin-Clutch Manumatic. The tranny is mounted aft in unit with the differential in the new AWD car which succeeds the famous Skyline series but will not carry the Skyline name. The new GT-R is benchmarked at the performance of the Porsche 911 Turbo.
Can the demise of the three-pedal trans be far off if it isn't being offered in the cars of the uber-performance category?
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
Let's see what real car companies are doing.
Well that's certainly nothing new. There are several supercar manufacturers who have only offered "FI-style" trannies in their cars. The Enzo is 1 example.
And, yes, ny540i6, I would consider Ferrari a "real car company," as I would Nissan.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
I have found two more 4x4 3/4 ton trucks that might have a manual. They are both located in Costa Mesa and one may turn out to be a six speed automatic but they are worth a look. One of them is a diesel 4x4 crew cab so if it looks good it may come home with me next week. I have to get my mechanic to go down and look at it with me.
Oh yeah, the B-class has a manual...but Canada gets it and not the US.
Nissan now uses them in the Maxima and Altima, too.
Well, turns out he must not be comfortable after his one lesson (although he did OK), and wants to drive the minivan instead, and even wants to get an automatic for his car.
Have to grill him for a specific reason, although it certainly is less to think about when your primary goal is to not run off the road or into another car!
Once he gets more comfortable with the whole driving concept I will get him out agian on the stick. Otherwise, he isn't going to get much practice, since he is usually with me when there is a chance to have him drive.
Or it is an excuse fo rme to get a G35 auto, and another sports car to keep the stick going!
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
But fast forward to the last five years and I have taught at least five kids how to drive a manual. only one of them ended up getting a manual for their first car. The other four wanted to pass the test so bad they opted for an automatic and that is what they bought after they passed the test.
I am not aware of a single AMG model that comes with anything but a slushbox. No manuals in any of the models I've driven (C32/55, SLK55, CLK55, E55/63). Not even a decent SMG or DSG.
You would think that by the time they broke through the 500 hp / 500 ft.lb barrier they could have diverted some of that engineering ability to a decent transmission. But no, they just went right up to 600hp and 730 ft. lbs of torque in the slushbox only V12 "65"'s mounted, if I'm not mistaken, to their old 5-speed slushbox.
How bad is it when the owner of my Acura/Mercedes dealership personally drives a Cayman S? After buying a TL and MDX from him, when it came time to get a sports car, he called up a Porsche dealer he was friendly with and sent me off to get a 911. When I asked for a test drive in a SLK55 just for the fun of it, he accomodated me, but with the comment, "don't mistake it for a 'real' sports car."!
On the manual transmission subject, I do not like column shifts.
V anything, frankly, they are at best hit or miss. A couple of specific V8s are fantastic, most V6s are rubbish, V12s... better have a trust fund.
Of the newer ones, the C230K was the only one that impressed me. Supercharged I-4 with manual AND you could get it in a sedan. Great to drive, very reliable, and 30+mpg combined. Basically all the advantages of a TDI without the problems of diesel. Win-win.
They still sell this in Europe, and it's one of their top sellers in the C line, right after the diesel. In the U.S., we get the barely more powerful, much heavier, and less efficient V6. For more money, no less, to add insult to injury.
They also make excellent diesels. A much as Americans hate them, nobody I know of actually has anything bad to say about their reliability.
I agree with those engine sentiments. The old 60s inline 6 family and the 80s M103 engine are excellent. Some of the V8s are good, some of them not so hot. The V6 cars seem to have more than their fair share of troubles, especially those of the late 90s.
I wonder if NA will see a diesel manual MB again.
I'll be honest and admit I'd probably end up with an automatic anyway...I'm lazy
I would love a diesel. But I agree with those who said it is fine with an automatic. I have not found diesels lend themselves well to sticks. But, then again, maybe its just those that I've driven.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
My god, was that thing slow to accelerate (I ended up getting a custom plate for it that read "REAL SLO"), but once you got up to speed, it was so nice to drive. My family took it on a road trip from LA to Sacramento, and at 65 MPH, it was a dream to drive ... except for the excessively stiff throttle spring (no cruise).
I've looked at the most recent diesels that are available in Europe and wonder why we don't see more of them here in the US. With the torque they offer, I think they'd be perfect for the stop and go traffic we see so much of in the major cities.
However, having said that, I'm not sure that mating these new class of diesel engines with manual transmissions would make sense. The RPM limits are so low with them that folks would be shifting all the time.
What's the problem?
and she freaks me out because it seems like she doesn't realize when she is rolling backwards. After about the 3rd or 4th time when i had to yank on the ebrake to keep her from hitting the person behind us, I kind of lost the desire to keep training her. I'd say we've spent maybe 3 or 4 hours trying to get her used to it and she is no better at the end than she was before she started. She'll launch nicely one moment, but its like she didn't learn from the experience and stalls it out the very next moment. I think the key problem is her lack of "feel." She doesn't feel the clutch grabbing or the rpms of the engine or any of that stuff. The connection to the car just isn't there.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
There's a spot in my fantasy garage for a 5-speed manual 190D 2.5 Turbo.
My Dad had a (ca. '68) 250 sedan that had the same problem, the throttle spring was so stiff that it was annoying to drive even a short distance. I didn't care for the ponderous cornering of it either.
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
-Frank
I am a diesel fan. But the problem in the US verses Europe has always been air quality issues. Until very recently Europe has allowed much more particulants in their air that the EPA has. Add to that CARB standards and you had a few years when new diesels were prohibited in California. You still had to have a 3/4 ton or bigger vehicle to get one even this year. Now they have particulant traps but it will still have to be seen if they will pass the requirement that they be maintainance free for 60,000 miles or whatever the requirement is for CARB vehicles.
But it does seem as if light vehicle diesels gain very little with a manual. When your torque comes on at such low RPMs and cap out in so few RPMs later it seems like a waste of time to shift manually.
Maybe MB just isn't trying to be seen as any kind of sports car. I don't see AMG cars as real sports cars, in the classic sense anyway. More along the lines of high powered touring cars or in some cases even supercars...but not really sporty like a Porsche or old Jag etc. Most of what they have offered with a sporty pretense has either been ages ago, or not for the US market. The manual 4cyl C-class was an exception.
rublesdollars that would cost.Edit: there is this slushbox for $9500 firm. :surprise: I bet it sells for that, too.
You wouldn't get one any cheaper in Europe, a good one anyway. Quite a few dodgy cars there, especially if not bought from Germany.
And, yes, ny540i6, I would consider Ferrari a "real car company," as I would Nissan.
The Enzo had a prodution run of what, 50 cars? Every other Ferrari comes with a 6-speed manual.
And please, don't put Nissan in the same solar system as Ferrari. Or even Honda for that matter. They completely screwed up the current Maxima with a bloated Love Boat redesign and a CVT rubber band transmission. Sales have dropped to barely above Enzo levels. The 350Z, supposedly a reincarnation of the spirit of the old 240Z weighs nearly 400 lbs more in coupe form than my 1995 Maxima and 600+ lbs more in roadster form. They made good use of their spare parts bin, but they didn't come within a mile of the 240Z spirit.
So now they come up with the GTR, a 2 seater that weighs nearly as much as my old Isuzu Trooper. Sorry, for the same price, I'd take back my old Honda S2000 with go cart like reflexes and a manual transmssion. I might not win against some Bozo in a stop light drag race, but I'd have a car that's a lot more fun to drive, IMO.
Nissan is screwed up, big time. The GTR may be interesting to some, but I think it's merely an interesting distraction to the train wreck that the company is in. Forget the 911 Turbo comparisons or 800 lb lighter F430 comparisons. It's likely to get "out-muscled" in a head to head comparison with the newest Corvette. And as much as I am not a fan of GM, at least a 6 speed manual and a 2 seater that doesn't challenge an SUV to a weigh in, is what a sports car should be. Or just stick it in with the M6 and SL65 and hope that the guy with the 730 ft. lbs of torque doesn't decide to embarass you at a stoplight.
There, got that off my chest.
P.S. I wasn't directing my comments at you specifically. Just at the GTR.