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Driving to drive a car with a manual transmission used to be something akin to a right of passage. Over time, cars sold in the States became more Americanized, ditching the third pedal in favor of convenience and fuel efficiency. But this removed a crucial element of driving: Fun. Last week, Honda announced that it was launching a campaign to bring the joy back to driving by teaching the next generation of drivers how to drive a car with a manual transmission.
Honda invited 53 people to its "Shifting Gears" event in California's San Gabriel mountains last week to show off its line of manual transmission cars. The Japanese automaker brought 16 of its cars to the event with the goal of teaching the participants how to drive a three-pedal car in a closed lot or allowing more seasoned drivers to experience the thrill of California's dynamic roads.
"The Shifting Gears event was a great opportunity for manual transmission drivers of all experience levels to enjoy the increased control of driving stick," one of the more novice manual drivers in the program, Kristen Lanzavecchia, told Honda, "As a newer MT driver, the Honda team's behind-the-wheel training boosted my confidence to make driving manuals fun instead of daunting!"
Honda brought some interesting and exciting cars to the event for participants to try their hands at driving. Attendees could choose from vehicles like the new Civic Type R or the classic Civic CVCC. Honda also brought some of its performance-oriented models like the S2000 CR and Prelude SH into the mix.
Honda is one of the last remaining manufacturers to remain committed to offering manual transmissions in its lineup. The Accord, Civic, Fit, and HR-V all have various trims available with a manual gearbox, and some models, like the Civic Type R and Civic SI, are exclusively offered with a three-pedal configuration, something that isn't often seen in this day and age in the United States. Sure, some manufacturers are choosing to keep a manual transmission in their cars, but are they actively advocating for its use or teaching new drivers how to drive?
There's no denying that the manual transmission is on its way out. More companies are ditching the stick in favor of CVTs or semi-automatic dual-clutch transmissions in the name of efficiency, and with the rise of electric cars, there are very few reasons for automakers to push for the continuance of the manual gearbox. Fortunately, events like this give me hope that we'll see at least a few more years of stick shifts in the States.
__________________ "The guy in the CR-V meanwhile, he'll give you a haughty glare. He's responsibly trying to lessen his impact, but there you go lumbering past him with your loud V8, flouting the new reality. You may as well go do some donuts in a strawberry patch and slalom through a litter of kittens." Dan Frio, Automotive Editor, Edmunds
That video was too long, I Skimmed it to see if he would touch on the auto rev match feature. I drove a Civic Type R last week, from a stop it added way too much throttle.
Idk what's up with the rev hang but it seems to be an issue with a lot of direct injected cars. That being said, I think Honda makes one of the best manual transmissions ever. Shifts buttery smooth every time even @ 200k+ kms
Would be great if Honda delivers them to dealers. We've been waiting forever on a shipment but they keep stalling. They slowed Accord production in the states so thats most likely what is causing the delay.
Would be great if Honda delivers them to dealers. We've been waiting forever on a shipment but they keep stalling. They slowed Accord production in the states so thats most likely what is causing the delay.
Yeah, it's kind of ridiculous. The dealership here only got one and they sold it the day I went in for a test drive. Fortunately, got to test drive the only one in Nanaimo later that day before they sold it the following week.
Yeah, it's kind of ridiculous. The dealership here only got one and they sold it the day I went in for a test drive. Fortunately, got to test drive the only one in Nanaimo later that day before they sold it the following week.
What did you think of the Accord? I was considering talking the wife into getting one mainly due to the new tech features and fuel efficiency vs her present SUV. Then I went and drove the 2.0T 6spd. The engine is good but I did not like the visibility, the brakes are so touchy. I don't see anyone with last gen Accord getting the new one. I'll push the wife towards a CRV or Pilot.
What did you think of the Accord? I was considering talking the wife into getting one mainly due to the new tech features and fuel efficiency vs her present SUV. Then I went and drove the 2.0T 6spd. The engine is good but I did not like the visibility, the brakes are so touchy. I don't see anyone with last gen Accord getting the new one. I'll push the wife towards a CRV or Pilot.
Engine felt really good. I had driven the Civic EX-T and Civic Si earlier in the day and it definitely felt a lot more powerful and sounded better than the 1.5L. I took it down some rough, twisty back country roads and out on the highway and the suspension was really good, IMO. Definitely less choppy than my BMW while still feeling planted. Not as nimble as the Civic Si, but you get beat up less. The cabin is comparably far quieter despite being a larger car and substantially lighter. I'm guessing that's from the noise cancellation.
I didn't really notice the brakes being touchy and visibility wasn't as good as the Civic sedan or my BMW (way better than the Civic coupe), but I thought it was still good. The mirrors are massive, which is good for visibility, but I thought that they were larger than you should have on a sports sedan.
The rear seat is cavernous compared to the previous generation Accord (and my BMW 3-series). It's pretty tight in the back seat with 5 adults in the back of my car, I feel this would be much more comfortable for my friends when we head to a hockey game.
The updated touchscreen is much better than on the Civic. Sharper, easier-to-read in bright sunlight, faster response, and better UI design.
A lot of the features I'd like are options, unfortunately, like the auto-dimming rearview mirror, rear USB ports, wireless charging pad, and trunk drawer and they're ridiculously overpriced to boot.
Some other things annoyed me like the tachometer being on an LCD screen and you couldn't have both the tach and the fuel economy up at the same time. Not the end of the world, but still annoying.
Overall, I really liked it. I had it out for probably like 30-40 minutes. It was my fiance's favourite of all the new cars I've test driven lately (Accord Sport 2.0T, Civic Si sedan, Civic EX-T coupe, Toyota Corolla SE, Mazda 3 GT sedan, Hyundai Elantra GT Sport, Golf Highline, GTI, Cruze, Sentra SR Turbo, maybe a few others I'm forgetting).
Idk what's up with the rev hang but it seems to be an issue with a lot of direct injected cars. That being said, I think Honda makes one of the best manual transmissions ever. Shifts buttery smooth every time even @ 200k+ kms
Honda has been doing it on other engines. The old V6s are not DI and they also had the rev hang.
It basically forced me to drive the car like a grandma and that's no fun.
And yeah, it's not a Honda-only issue from what I have heard, but it's really annoying.
Oh well, at least you could tune the rev hang out if you have the cash.
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S2000 CR, Civic Type R for newb stick drivers to try out?
