When starting your driving lessons, one of the first choices you will have to make is whether you want to drive a manual or an automatic car.
Both types of vehicles have their advantages, however, it will usually come down to personal preference as to which one you go for.
Here we take a look at some of the benefits of driving an automatic car and how these will transfer across to your driving lessons.
4. Easier to Drive
The main draw for automatic cars is that they are considered to be easier to drive than manual vehicles. After all, you will no longer need to worry about changing gears when confronted by a new situation, plus worrying about clutch control is also out of the equation.
All you will need to know is how to switch between forward driving, reversing and parking. The rest is handled by the car.
For the nervous driver this can be especially helpful as it means fewer things to worry about and less potential for getting mixed up when driving. It also allows you to concentrate on the road, rather than what you are doing with your hands and feet.
3. Accuracy
When it comes to driving a manual car, accuracy is one of the biggest problems that people face. To successfully change gears timing is of the essence. You must be at the right speed and complete the motion quickly. Failure to do so can lead to gears grinding and damage to the transmission.
With an automatic you don’t need to worry about that. Transitions between gears will be nice and smooth, in addition to being accurate every time. This means you no longer need to worry about timing, plus your transmission will last longer for it.
2. Easier in Traffic
As any experience driver will be able to tell you, one of the most frustrating things about modern driving is getting caught up in traffic. Ignoring the effect this has on your journey in terms of time lost, an added level of stress can be added if you are driving a manual vehicle.
After all, because of all of the stopping and starting that you will be doing, a lot of good clutch work is required just to edge a little bit further forward when caught in a traffic jam.
With an automatic car none of that is an issue. All you need to think about is accelerating when you need to go forward and braking when you need to stop. There is no extra fiddling around with pedals, making the whole experience a lot simpler.
1. Resale Value
While you surely won’t be thinking about selling your car anytime soon after passing your driving test, the resale value of your vehicle is definitely something that is worth considering.
Automatic cars tend to maintain more of their value than their manual equivalents, partly because they are easier to driver and thus easier to maintain, but also because there are fewer of them available to buy used, which brings the value up when demand increases.