Gaming to blame for impending death of manual transmission vehicles

[Jefke]

Murder. Assault. Robbery. Rape. Kidnapping. Shootings. Stabbings. Hit-and-Run. Rioting. Bullying. All, if you believe the doom-mongers, examples of societal ills caused by the great unwashed and their demonic love of videogames.

 

And we can now add the impending demise of the manual gearbox to that long list of complaints, after Chevrolet marketing manager John Fitzpatrick suggested videogames are to blame for rising customer preference where automatic vehicles are concerned.

Although Fitzpatrick conceded that ageing drivers often prefer to abandon having to constantly operate their vehicle’s clutch, he was only too keen to say that younger drivers choose automatics because general videogame driving removes the need for manual shifting.

“There are a lot of people out there who, as they age, do not want a third pedal,” he told WardsAuto during a GM event for the high-performance Camaro ZL-1. “And then you have younger people who have never been exposed to a manual transmission.”

 

According to Fitzpatrick, the concept of losing performance through an automatic gearbox doesn’t register with many young drivers because they have grown up experiencing videogames that provide high speeds through either automatic in-game changes or via their controller’s quick-shift paddle system—no clutch required.

 

The opinions of Chevy’s exec are seemingly supported by vehicle data measured over the century’s first 10 years, which shows that some 89 percent of cars purchased in 2010 were automatics—a clear increase from the 88.3 percent registered in 2000.

It’s perhaps worth noting that the 6.2-litre, V8, Camaro ZL-1 (580bhp) comes with Chevrolet’s new paddle-shift Hydra-Matic 6-speed automatic gearbox technology, which is—you guessed it—controlled directly from the muscle car’s steering column.

Naughty, naughty videogames!

 

source (only one in english I could find and didn't want to translate ^^): http://www.thetechherald.com/article.php/201138/7631/Gaming-to-blame-for-impending-death-of-manual-transmission-vehicles

[TulsaGeoff]

I blame F1, BMW, Ferrari, and Lamborghini for setting this standard not us innocent gamers! Fact of the matter is that it is faster on these high end auto clutches.

[ajnl]

I hate automatic cars. I'd much rather have a stick shift.

 

Also, games don't make ppl kill others. They would've done it anyways. If games rlly did, than there would be a lot more murders out there.

[General]

People wan automatic cars because they are easier to drive....So stupid....I like manual cars some because theyre fun to drive and some are beasts when shifting etc

[Jefke]

in-game I always used to shift manually (had a wheel with shift stick => f***ed up now ^^ so no more racegames for me)

 

Atm I learn to drive with manual car:

 

-almost all cars in Belgium are manual

-otherwise I may not drive the manual cars :s

[ajnl]

manual cars r better anyways. Most of the cars in the Netherlands are manual. But mine isn't... :'(.

 

But I do know how to drive a manual lol

Edited September 21, 2011 by ajnl

[KevinBacon]

I must be in the minority...my last 2 cars have been manuals and that was my preference. There is the potential for better fuel economy, women think they are sexier, the get-up-and-go factor is there, and they are cheaper to fix when they break down. I had to replace my transmission last year, and ended up upgrading to a Ford passenger car transmission in my little coupe. What resulted was higher speeds at lower RPM's....WINNING!

[Chuckun]

LOL. What a lame study. Any person who doesn't understand how a manual gearbox gives you more control over your driving (therefore your overall speed), needs their head testing and shouldn't be allowed to drive.

 

Automatic shift is also unethical. The fact that an automatic gearbox cannot predict a junction and/or corner like the driver can, means that over-firing the engine due to impractical gear selection burns more fuel than necessary. But that's only minor of course..

 

tl;dr? - Manual > Auto.

[Achiyan]

LOL. What a lame study.

this is the closest that anyone has gotten to what should have really been said....in other words, its not the video games, its the consumers choice. its easier and more 'practical' for everyday use. what in life hasnt been getting 'upgraded' to 'downgrade' the human function? thats also how people lose jobs, "Lets use this machine to automatically line up cows and milk them insteada using all this manual labor!" why work harder when you can work smarter (says the guy on the 56th floor drinkin 300 dollar whiskey). same applies to the way people want to drive..."release gas, apply clutch, change gears, release clutch, apply gas....nah, imma just get the automatic." this study would be like sayin, "Man, I'd rather shoot up adren and jump into the middle of war instead of sit back and take cover." <---no relevance right? NEITHER DOES VIDEO GAMES AND AUTO/MANUAL SELECTION IN CUSTOMERS!!!

 

P.S. i prefer manual transmission myself. not really for the performance, but just for the pleasure and fun.