| Re: More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by Oxonhutch at 17:19, 17th September 2025 |     |
| Re: More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by John D at 14:09, 17th September 2025 | |
Just looked up all the cars for sale on auto-trader for current year 2025 which is a sample size of 49,840
Turns out 85.5% are auto, just 14.5% are manual
Rather suggests manual cars are a dying breed.
Having lived in London Suburbs until 5 years ago, we have had autos since 2001, 24 years ago. Nowadays my car has auto lights, auto wipers, auto climate control etc, so why would anyone select all these automatic features then specify a manual gearbox. Illogical (as Sock would say)
| Re: More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by CyclingSid at 12:26, 17th September 2025 | |
It is some change, when I passed my test 60+ years ago our car only had synchromesh on 3rd to 4th and you had to double de-clutch going down the gears. Either that or slow down much more to get them to mesh without too much of a crunch!
I remember double de-clutching on crash gear boxes of army lorries. Became a habit that I ended up doing on what ever I drove. Useful if you wanted to change from high to low ratio on the move in a Series II/III Land-Rover.
| Re: More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by bradshaw at 12:02, 17th September 2025 | |
We converted to automatic when we bought a CVT Yaris a couple of years ago. I would not now go back to the manual Yaris we had for 10 years. There is much better control, especially at low speeds. Speed adjustment is much easier and the knowledge that you are unlikely to stall when following people uphill on narrow lanes.
It is some change, when I passed my test 60+ years ago our car only had synchromesh on 3rd to 4th and you had to double de-clutch going down the gears. Either that or slow down much more to get them to mesh without too much of a crunch!
| Re: More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by ChrisB at 10:54, 17th September 2025 | |
That's the point made in the BBC article
| Re: More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by Oxonhutch at 08:53, 17th September 2025 | |
Took my motorcycle test in a heavy downpour. From the look on the examiner's face as he donned his large Mac, I was sure I had failed before even leaving the testing centre! I passed - and then promptly fell off my bike for the first time on the way home.
My son took his test in a manual car and passed first time. He now drives an automatic. As he pointed out to me, once electric cars dominate the market, every car will be an automatic.
| More and more driving tests are on automatic cars. Posted by grahame at 07:13, 17th September 2025 | |
From the BBC
One in four driving tests in Great Britain are being taken in automatic cars, according to new data, as drivers opt for more electric vehicles (EVs) and shy away from manual gearboxes.
Figures from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) show that 470,000 of the 1.8 million driving tests taken in England, Scotland, and Wales last year were done in automatics.
Figures from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) show that 470,000 of the 1.8 million driving tests taken in England, Scotland, and Wales last year were done in automatics.
I was one of a tiny minority who took at automatic test way back in about 1972 ... followed by a motor bike test a couple of years later, and a manual test in 1978. All three passed; the first two in Sevenoaks and the last in Luton. These were all before the days of separate theory tests - a few questions on the Highway Code and and about driving as the candidate sat in the car with the examiner.
