It's such a shame these cars didn't come with a manual
- Thread starter Foran
- Start date
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BamSHO
SHO Member
They days of stick shifts are slowly coming to an end.
Sad but true.
sperold
Last to Know
It would be nice to know how many guys go down to the dealership to order their manual transmission car, and get talked out of it at the last moment.
Questions asked by wives / girlfriends like.... who will move your car in the driveway when you want to switch cars; and who are you going to get to share the driving when we do our visit to the coast?
Having a manual transmission car option seperates out a lot of purchasers from the herd. The fact they don't end up buying one should not take away the value of a sale, unforturnately, of an automatic.
Questions asked by wives / girlfriends like.... who will move your car in the driveway when you want to switch cars; and who are you going to get to share the driving when we do our visit to the coast?
Having a manual transmission car option seperates out a lot of purchasers from the herd. The fact they don't end up buying one should not take away the value of a sale, unforturnately, of an automatic.
I can see an auto when you have to deal with a lot of traffic. No doubt about it. My last car was a Fiesta ST, when our BMW 335d came down with its inherent carbon build up in the intake manifold and they told me it would be over a month being repaired, I decided to buy a ST , instead of renting.
My wife was a good sport about it but she hated the manual. That and one of the stiffest rides ever for a production car. It turned out to be one of my most favorite cars of all time and they are manual only.
There's a place for both but the thought of a manual in the SHO is very appealing.
My wife was a good sport about it but she hated the manual. That and one of the stiffest rides ever for a production car. It turned out to be one of my most favorite cars of all time and they are manual only.
There's a place for both but the thought of a manual in the SHO is very appealing.
The cost to bring a Fusion Sport manual to market is likely prohibitive when you consider the number they would sell.
My wish would be high performance Fusion more in the Charger R/T scatpack league. A twin turbo 3.5 tuned to around 450 HP along with the upcoming 9 speed automatic would be nice.
My wish would be high performance Fusion more in the Charger R/T scatpack league. A twin turbo 3.5 tuned to around 450 HP along with the upcoming 9 speed automatic would be nice.
I'd take the Fusion Sport with 325 hp with a manual. To me, it would be much more fun to drive than a high horsepower auto.
They say that a manual is one of the best theft deterrent items on a car. A lot of younger people have no clue how to operate one.
They say that a manual is one of the best theft deterrent items on a car. A lot of younger people have no clue how to operate one.
Barry Raymond
Member
I miss my manual, but I could not see this big car with a manual transmission. Automatics are for big cars, SUVs and pickup trucks. Manuals are for hot hatches, Jeeps, coups and roadsters. The Focus RS is the killer manual transmission offering from Ford and I've heard its a damn good one. Its just too small for a family ride.
I feel any so called performance car could use a manual option. Seems like these modern autos have a hard time deciding what gear they want to be in.
Barry Raymond
Member
I think the exception to that rule is that a manual is not required in a car that can haul 3 or more dead bodies in the trunk.
I'd say no.
Chris Horner
SHO Member
I'm a diehard manual transmission fan, and had a manual Mustang before my SHO. But in the day to day slog around Charlotte, where it takes me an hour to go 15 miles, twice a day, the stick lost its appeal quick. In the SHO I'm impressed with the trains - it doesn't seem to hunt around much.
For a weekender car though I'd go back to a stick without hesitation.
For a weekender car though I'd go back to a stick without hesitation.
For me, I would have gone with a stick shift all day long. I also don't live in a city where I sit in traffic for long periods of time. The worst is if I'm downtown at rush hour and I have to sit through 10 lights and that takes maybe 5-10 minutes.
For me I've never had an automatic transmission that shifts how I want. While the SHO does a good job of not hunting for gears, it never downshifts when I want. I don't want a transmission that's tuned for maximum gas mileage and always be in the highest gear. I don't want to come out of a corner ready to gain speed (but not smashing the gas) at 1100 rpm where there's no power. I would rather come out of a corner one gear lower so easy on the throttle still allows me to accelerate. But with an automatic transmission it comes out of a corner in a higher gear, I slowly press the accelerator to speed up, it down shifts to the gear I wanted, and then takes off because it gains gearing, power, and my foot is too far down since it wouldn't shift without that much go pedal. It's why I always drive automatic vehicles in the select shift modes (even in my wife's slow as pond scum Kia Sorento). It allows me to anticipate the road ahead and be in the correct gear for how I want to drive.
I would have loved for this car to have a manual.
But I understand why there is no manual option. There's way less demand for them anymore. Ultimately most people buying the SHO are wanting something more luxury with some pep and don't want to hassle with a manual. Most people who really want a manual are going to go with a primary focus on performance.
For me I've never had an automatic transmission that shifts how I want. While the SHO does a good job of not hunting for gears, it never downshifts when I want. I don't want a transmission that's tuned for maximum gas mileage and always be in the highest gear. I don't want to come out of a corner ready to gain speed (but not smashing the gas) at 1100 rpm where there's no power. I would rather come out of a corner one gear lower so easy on the throttle still allows me to accelerate. But with an automatic transmission it comes out of a corner in a higher gear, I slowly press the accelerator to speed up, it down shifts to the gear I wanted, and then takes off because it gains gearing, power, and my foot is too far down since it wouldn't shift without that much go pedal. It's why I always drive automatic vehicles in the select shift modes (even in my wife's slow as pond scum Kia Sorento). It allows me to anticipate the road ahead and be in the correct gear for how I want to drive.
I would have loved for this car to have a manual.
But I understand why there is no manual option. There's way less demand for them anymore. Ultimately most people buying the SHO are wanting something more luxury with some pep and don't want to hassle with a manual. Most people who really want a manual are going to go with a primary focus on performance.
Boomer
New Member
I miss my manual.
As cheaply built as my SVT Contour was it was one of my longest owend cars. 7 years and I drove the snot out of that car put almost 180k on the car mainly as my winter DD. I really had my hopes up for the new Fusion to be a 6 speed manual. I was really hopeing it would be an ST/RS model. But when I found out it was going to be a sport with a 6 speed auto I quickly decided aginst it. I had siad if they were to put a manual in an AWD ecoboost in a Fusion it would have been the first NEW car purchase.
So a week after finding out that there would be no manual I started looking more at the RS/ST Focus and SHO as a DD. Finaly I found a good deal and pounced on a 2011 SHO. With a 100+ mile commute daily I am overly happy with my purchase. (Massaging seats are a bouns)
As cheaply built as my SVT Contour was it was one of my longest owend cars. 7 years and I drove the snot out of that car put almost 180k on the car mainly as my winter DD. I really had my hopes up for the new Fusion to be a 6 speed manual. I was really hopeing it would be an ST/RS model. But when I found out it was going to be a sport with a 6 speed auto I quickly decided aginst it. I had siad if they were to put a manual in an AWD ecoboost in a Fusion it would have been the first NEW car purchase.
So a week after finding out that there would be no manual I started looking more at the RS/ST Focus and SHO as a DD. Finaly I found a good deal and pounced on a 2011 SHO. With a 100+ mile commute daily I am overly happy with my purchase. (Massaging seats are a bouns)
