[shashanka]

^^^ I think I have entered my above post in the wrong thread!
Mods with your permission I will transfer it to the other thread (Poll: Which type of Automatic Transmission do you prefer)

[GTO]

There's a tectonic shift happening. Even a mid-weight manufacturer like Ford is seeing 40% of its sales come from ATs in markets like Mumbai, Delhi & Bangalore.

Mehrotra said that there was a clear shift towards Automatic Transmissions (AT) as well that accounted for 20 percent of their vehicles sold. In cities of Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi AT accounted for 40 percent of their sales. “A shift from semi- automatic to full automatics has been seen after a certain price point.”

Source

[rajshenoy]

Originally Posted by GTO

There's a tectonic shift happening. Even a mid-weight manufacturer like Ford is seeing 40% of its sales come from ATs in markets like Mumbai, Delhi & Bangalore.



Source

Sign of how chocked our cities are. We anyway could be the last generation driving manual cars !!

[A M]

I voted for "it depends upon the car".

For me it depends upon the type of the car, its intended use and the geography it is going to be primarily used in. In the hills, I would prefer to drive a manual car anyday. It gives me more control over the car, more control over engine braking and its easier to find mechanics to fix over an AT. But in a city like Mumbai, an AT car makes more sense in the chock-a-block traffic.

I'm not surprised if Ford is also getting 40% of its sales from ATs since the brand does not have a rural penetration where manual cars still rule the roost.

Originally Posted by rajshenoy

Sign of how chocked our cities are. We anyway could be the last generation driving manual cars !!

Or maybe the last generation driving cars.

[acidkill]

At Age 25 - Manual Any Day!
At Age 35 - "Why manual? Crazy or what? Whos gonna sit and change gears in this traffic. Bro whatever your budget, buy the automatic. dont be a hero"

In fact my next car will be the Jimny Automatic. Waiting for it to launch

[deadguy25]

For me:
18-40:
AT for the city traffic.
MT for the highway.

41-till whenever:
A chauffeur.

[sridhar24]

It's a manual any day for me over the automatics as an automobile enthusiast as they are so much fun to drive. But the DSG experience has completely changed my perspective about automatics and made me fall in love with it. The other factor is the maddening city traffic of Bangalore. My next buy would be definitely one with DSG box for sure.

[nik hill]

I drive a Vento TSI DSG which leaves me spellbound on highway as well as in cities, my other car is a Ford Ecosport TDCI MT which is equally delightful. Only a few times in Delhi's maddening traffic have i felt that an AT is better.

[psp62in]

With the current high density traffic situation in most cities and even on highways, it's AT for me.
Have been driving AT abroad for many years and then MT while in India. Last few years traffic pattern changes madd my choice-AT.
Currently driving Creta AT, not missing MT at all.

[torquecurve]

Three cars in the stable - one MT, one AMT and one DSG. I still feel the MT is the choice when you have a tractable engine with a wide torque band and a peaky HP graph. The AMT is the go to in the city esp. when you need to visit congested areas where the head jerk is reduced due to speed restriction. It also keeps you relatively less stressed at the end of the journey (read 90 mins for 10 KM's). The DSG amazes me with quick shifts and the sport mode is crazy. Very comfortable. As GTO put in the OP barges are meant to be used with AT.

[agbenny]

Both cars in our family were moved to AT after a decade+ in MT. The reason is simple, in the City traffic condition when most of the time the job is to shift the gears between 2nd and 3rd, there is no much sense or enjoyment rather than pained feet and frustration.
Modern ATs (DSG and CVTs) are better in highways too, as the fun factor is not missed much, MT doesn't convince to own one. Fuel efficiency was a reason once, not anymore.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by itwasntme

Floor the pedal in a DSG / ZF gearbox in S mode with or without paddle shifters and even many enthusiast types will not go back to a MT again :-)

True - but that's because the DSG at its core is an MT - albeit a glorified one, with algorithms doing the dirty work instead of the left foot!
Just as the AMT is an MT also, as its name suggests - tho'a less glorified one!

[sgiitk]

I still regret that the Jazz AT was not available when I bought my Brio AT. I am too lazy to get a MT (also my wife only drives ATs). Modern 'intelligent' ATs (esp CVTs) give a run to the MTs in terms of of economy and do not lose out in terms of performance either.

[sumannandy]

I have been extensively driving ATs. In my opinion ATs are any day better. Right now I own two AMTs and one AT (Torque Converter). In case you would like to use the manual mode, most of the ATs and AMTs provide the option to shift gear manually anyways.

[MBstoTBs]

I voted for MT or AT depending on the car. I'm currently in the market for a C2/D1 sedan, and test driving cars. I'm a sedate driver in the city and prefer the convenience of AT there, but do feel the need for MT to overtake on highways, while going at 90-100.AMT seems to offer best of both these worlds, but in real life, I disliked it and wouldnt touch any car with it.



So I loved the AT in city Elantra etc - cars with powered up engines, but hated the Yaris CVT and the Verna AT was quite underwhelming too. So I guess, if the engine is powerful and mated to a CVT, it makes more sense. But an underpowered engine makes far more sense with a MT.


My take is AT technology hasnt yet matured in India, and when it does, I guess ATs will replace MT. In the future, I would like to have a small AT for the cities, and a big MT for highway use, as have a smartphone for my daily use, and switch to a featurephone when travelling, as battery life, recharging etc is a non issue with it.