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Manual vs Automatic

There are a number of factors to consider when deciding whether you’d like to learn to drive in a car with manual or automatic transmission.

In WA, if you sit and pass your licence in an automatic vehicle, you actually won’t be licensed to drive a manual. On the other hand, if you sit your licence in a vehicle with manual transmission, you’ll be licenced to drive both manual and automatic vehicles.

Wherever possible, we encourage our students to learn to drive in a manual vehicle. Our instructors are fun and professional and will have you driving a manual in no time, no matter how nervous you are to begin with!

Know the difference between the two:

Manual

Benefits

  • With a manual drivers licence you can drive both a manual and automatic vehicle – this is handy when you need to drive a vehicle that’s not your own e.g. at work or in an emergency
  • You have more control over the performance of your vehicle and will learn how it runs, great for reducing wear and tear
  • Manual vehicles are usually cheaper to buy, run and fix. They rev at a lower rate than an automatic vehicle and are generally more fuel efficient.

Negatives

  • Can be hard work if you drive in heavy, stop/start traffic on a regular basis
  • Can be more costly if you don’t have manual vehicle to practice in
  • Can take longer to master than an automatic vehicle.
Automatic

Benefits

  • Easier to drive in heavy traffic
  • Generally quicker/easier to learn how to drive in an automatic vehicle.

Negatives

  • If you have an automatic licence you cannot drive a manual vehicle
  • Less fuel-efficient as higher rev rate
  • Automatic vehicles can often choose a gear that is quite right for what you need, resulting in high revs and less fuel efficiency
  • Automatic vehicles can have a much slower take off
  • For an experienced driver, they can be boring to drive
  • Automatic vehicles generally cost more to purchase, run and fix.

Please contact us if you are looking for info on what might be the best for you.

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