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-   -   Do automatic transmissions make drivers calmer, less stressed & more disciplined? (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street-experiences/231972-do-automatic-transmissions-make-drivers-calmer-less-stressed-more-disciplined-4.html)

Its more than 15 years now, I prefer and drive automatics.
But I derive equal pleasure in driving a manual on a highway or bendy roads.

Having said that, a clam, less stressed and disciplined driver is a result of many other factors. I have seen drivers with zero discipline on an automatic.
My experience is that an automatic is not as physically demanding compared to a manual.

I voted "depends on the driver". A couple of personal anecdotes
1. A colleague from India office visiting the US office was driving an automatic rental car. During a casual conversation he told me that he was having difficulty adjusting to using both feet! I was surprised and told him no matter what you drive, the right leg is to work the accelerator and brake. There should never be a situation when you work both accelerator and brake, unless you are a stunt driver. He wasn't a novice driver either!
2. Another friend broke his left foot playing tennis, but used to drive around in his acura (automatic). Automatics are great when you are differently abled - temporarily or otherwise.
and a well known one -
3. During the infamous random acceleration of Toyota cars fiasco, once the media coverage about faulty floor mats died down, the cases were ascribed to the panicked drivers pressing the wrong pedal. Those were automatics.

I guess the point here is to take which foot works which pedal by heart and you should be fine using either car. A manual might stall occasionally and cause the driver behind you to rear end you, but is no way more dangerous compared to an automatic. If anything, the freed up hand/foot in automatic may distract you to do stuff other than driving - like fiddling with your car's touch screen ICE :-)

I think the other way.

Automatics has made me more focused but on the contrary aggressive.
Maybe its the migration from the 1.3D to the 1.6D & the sudden surge in power & aggression to overtake some irritating driver (thats how I see them)

At the same time, the Cruise Control in the Auto has given some long due relaxation to the left foot

Definitely it's a lot less stressful especially when you know how hard or soft to rev for that sudden power

The question says "more disciplined". That purely depends on the driver.

If the question was "more relaxed", then the answer is definitely yes. In ghat sections in a SUV, having an automatic (in my case with AWD), helps me manoeuvre the car without worrying about constant gear shifts. The same goes for congested traffic in toll plazas, cities, etc. I am definitely more relaxed after day long drives with the automatic.

Automatics have definitely made my commute less stressful. In fact I don't mind autorickshaws or Tata Aces at all now. I drove the polo 1.2 TDI for 10 years in predominantly bumper to bumper traffic and I can say this - Long clutches of VWs coupled with underpowered diesel motor are definitely stressful in the long run. But I didn't find the same long clutch travel annoying in my friend's 1.6 GT TDI. REASON? THE TORQUE AND THE DRIVABILITY.

So manuals with underpowered engines (like those sold in entry level cars in India) are definitely annoying. Whereas manuals with good power (say more than 100 bhp) and low end engine torque are excellent.

Perhaps the mods can modify or add a new question - Do underpowered engines with poor drivability are the main cause of stressful driving?

Voted Yes!

Although it depends on the driver, voted yes assuming a general Indian scenario and my own experience.

Whenever I'm driving an automatic, it does reduce stress a lot. The fact that I do not have to change gears every time there is a 'slowdown scenario' makes me hate them less. Thus speed breakers are no longer a problem and similarly others cutting in front is not as stressful. However, on highways, it sometimes increases stress when there is too much traffic and overtaking is not just necessary, but required quickly.

I, of course cannot speak for others, traffic and traffic manners seem to have become worse after the opening of the lockdown.

However, for me, changing from a manual to an automatic has for sure made my commute significantly calmer and less stressful. Coupled with features like Hill Hold, make driving a real breeze. The Autobox also gave confidence to my better half to start driving. Have accordingly voted "Yes".

This is true, 101% true!

When I was in India I used to drive a Gen1 Baleno(2006) and later I moved to Saudi after my studies (in 2017), and in the last 3 years, I haven't driven a manual car at all!

Started with a Hyundai Accent 1.4AT, and then moved on to a Nissan Sunny 1.5 CVT. I would say that the Sunny CVT has influenced my driving style a lot! Just to hide the rubber band effect I practiced soft foot driving and from then on that is how I drive. Later in 2018, I purchased my first new car Changan EADO 1.6AT which has a TC unit, but coming from a CVT I carried over that soft foot driving style and the drive is so comfortable and relaxing these days.

Yes, it doesn't give the adrenaline rush that I used to have while driving the 2006 Baleno (I still love that stick shift from 1.6 Motor!) back home, but I admit that the trade-off is acceptable when the comfort of AT is considered. :)

100% Yes, in my family, we have moved away from manual to Automatic because of the chaotic trafffic in mumbai.

From WagonR (CNG) and a City to now Ignis(AMT) and Seltos (DAT).

Driving is far more relaxed and sedated. I do miss the soundtrack of City's (IVTEC), but when I am driving any of the automatics the trade off being relaxed is better than an enthu soundtrack which will probably make you drive even faster.

It used to be stressful to drive Mumbai -Nashik good 180km with western ghats, which would require minimum 1-2 breaks between, now it is easily doable with no breaks at all.

In our recent trip to Gujrat to Mumbai 275Km journey was completed in 3.30 hours without a break. It is just a testiment that automatics (drive it anyway you want) wont stress the driver at all.

Yes - automatics make for a calmer drive and here are my reasons. (pity I can't vote on the poll as yet!)

1. In a manual, during traffic conditions, in the anticipation of a gear shift, we sometimes keep the left leg on a high alert ( if you do not believe me, keep a close watch; you might be ok to do it - but the leg is always in some sort of strain) to either depress or release the clutch. This is also something that may us drive a bit aggressively since we want to close that gap ahead or over take some one and then give our left leg a break.
This does not happen in an AT and takes this variable/factor, out of the equation

2. AMT's/CVT with a pronounced rubberband effect.
I once drove a friend's Kwid AMT 1.0 and that car just refused to hold on to higher revs and used to upshift pretty quickly - that means adieus to any quick overtaking manoeuvres which in turn translated to a more relaxed drive. (No wonder I saw 17-18kmpl on the MID) as you know, come what may, you just cannot get the required grunt.
A CVT with a similar lull in the initial revs, will also discourage any enthusiastic desires and hence one would rather feather the A-pedal vs flooring it.

I voted for Neither, as with 20 years of driving experience I can safely say it's all in the hands of the driver. Its natural tendency to feel more relaxed when the left hand has nothing much to do, as a result of which a person may become wary on the road. As all of us know, "Savdhani hati, durghatna ghati" (carelessness will lead to accidents)

However,, all this will not matter to an experienced person, who will focus on the road and little else. I feel that the manual otherwise keeps a person more occupied, having to coordinate the two movements and thereby paying more attention. Personally, I love driving the manual more (true enthusiast)

Given the options, my vote was for the "Driver".

However, along with Driver, the car in had also matters. A slow car, ironically, can make you calmer, as there is hardly much you can do with it. I occasionally drive my brothers Ertiga petrol, while I am at my home town. With majority of Kerala roads being 2 way, driving Ertiga provides a different perspective altogether.

Another aspect is, how much you are isolated from road noise. Less noise, less connection to the stress-inducing elements.

A third aspect I've noticed is how much your car belongs to the crowd. For example, driving a Safari, or Thar is cumbersome, but then you are also sitting on a different plane, thus alleviating the need to do what everyone is doing.

Of course, one could get frustrated with all the above too, that is where we say all boils down to the driver.

Couldn't have said any better.rl:

IMHO this could be a case of correlation not implying causation.
Your need for speed, irritation could be a function of Indian road conditions and traffic, especially after coming from the much better infrastructure and disciplined driving of the ME.

Disagree- depends on the driver

Notwithstanding the type of transmission- Automatic/Manual, the Discipline cannot be bought, but has to be imbibed. A careless driver shall drive carelessly regardless of the transmission.

Sure, the Automatic is effortless to drive and therefore less stressed, but it is implausible to state that this stress-free drive entails disciplined drive.

Of course, the automatics are the primary choice of the senior citizens and elderly drivers of late , due to the obvious comfort and this may seem to portray that the drivers of A/T are more disciplined, but that discipline , it can be observed , is of those specific group of drivers and the type of transmission has no bearing on it.

However, a spirited driver who has migrated to A/T , keeping in view the paltry mileage and realization of a bigger hole to his pocket, might change his style becoming more sedate. rl:

Voted Yes. I have driven an Automatic City since 2018 and used to drive a Manuals earlier. I still occasionally drive the manual Swift.
With the automatic the drive is more leisurely. My family too mentions that the drive is smoother on the automatics as it automatically irons out the acceleration on a gear switch, to a smoother level than on a manual.
One big plus I see with the automatic is the Cruise mode. On highways the cruise helps prevent from over speeding and I can restrict myself to the set speed, even though sometimes you feel it's going slow.