Today: Manual Transmission Myths Debunked
"Dear Tom and Ray:"
“When I first learned to drive, a million years ago, my father (who knew nothing about cars) advised me to always drive a manual transmission because they handle better, are easier to repair, are cheaper, get better mileage, etc.” …
CSA
That is a good point, but I think that most of us in this forum are too savvy to fall for the myth that car manufacturers try to put out there about their…almost maintenance-free vehicles.
LOL
“Manual transmissions are cheaper and easier to repair. Well, that one’s true. On cars that offer you a manual transmission option, it’s often $1,000 less than the automatic. And should your automatic need a rebuild, it’s expensive, because it’s like doing one of those 14,000-piece jigsaw puzzles without the box-top picture.”
I’m glad that’s the only claim I made. As to the rest of the modern myths, I agree. They don’t get better fuel economy and they don’t handle any better, not anymore.
…and I don’t know where Tom and Ray were getting their clutch jobs done, but $1,000 is about $600 more than I paid for my last (and only) clutch replacement.
I’m in Los Angeles, and I can say the “cushion approach” also doesn’t work here 
More like a “pin cushion” here in San Jose … lol …
In over 1/2 century of car ownership I’ve only worn out one clutch… that one at 295,000 miles… after teaching two kids to drive on it. As a matter of fact, it didn’t wear out until after I gave it to my daughter.
Properly driven, clutches can go a very long time before needing replacement. All of mine did.
But if you drive in Los Angeles stop and go traffic, to name just one example, I don’t see anybody getting 295,000 miles out of their clutch
Driving “properly” helps, but it’s not just disc friction surface wear that results in a clutch repair. There’s worn pressure plate springs, failed throw-out bearings, worn cross-shafts, cross-shaft bushings, failing slave and master cylinders, pilot bearings, not to mention a leaking main seal causing clutch problems.
I’d say that along with proper driving technique that you were quite lucky. 
CSA
Not ALL manufacturers. In fact because they sell so few, manuals are in many cases are MORE expensive then an automatic.
I’ve rebuilt a manual tranny once. I won’t touch an automatic.
Again that’s vehicle dependent. My 98 Pathfinder (last manual I owned) was easily $1000. Remove transfer-case, transmission, Exhaust…almost everything under the vehicle.
Those first two quotes weren’t my quotes, they were Tom and Ray’s quotes, and I’m pretty sure they were talking about average costs (as in the mathematical mean, which doesn’t disprove or discount the statistical outliers you mentioned).
I realize you’re itching for a debate, but you really should take it up with Ray Magliozzi by commenting here: http://www.cartalk.com/content/today-manual-transmission-myths-debunked
…rather than misquoting me.
I was commenting you what YOU said. You’re the one who said that $1000 is way too high for a clutch job.
If the other part was quoted from Tom and Ray, then maybe you should have specified that. Want me to show you how.
LOL
…and here I thought putting quotes around the quote and italicizing the quote would be enough.
Sure, please do show me the proper form to quote a blog in this forum (other than using quote marks, that is). I look forward to it. 
Of course, most people will realize it was from the link CSA posted without the hand-holding, since I was responding to his post.
This is the very reason I have a manual, and will keep driving them as long as I can.
I don’t think the manual transmission is going away any time soon. There remains a substantial and very stubborn following.
I disagree, ESPECIALLY about the “substantial” part
My wife broke her left foot back when we had a manual transmission car and was on crutches. She couldn’t get the clutch pedal depressed with one crutch, so she was having to use both crutches to disengage the clutch. She drove the car by double crutching
Also, when we had been on a long trip and decided to drive straight through, Mrs. Triedaq took over part of the night shift of driving so I could get some rest. I would almost be asleep when. I would hear this “tappa-tappa-tappa click-click” and then another “tappa-tappa-tappa click-click”. Mrs. Triedaq was working the dimmer switch with her crutch. (How many of you remember the floor mounted dimmer switch?)
I certainly remember those dimmers! A friend with a Ford Falcon, a 65 I believe, had a floor mounted windshield washer/wiper control, too.
Wow! You can ordinarily rest while your wife drives?
CSA
If it were luck I would have worn out other clutches over the past half century. 
You mean like how stick shift is available on only the most basic of basic models of a limited amount of everyday cars(Civic, Focus, Fiesta, etc) and how even the high end super cars are going to automatics these days?
That view is myopic in that it only considers the NA market. Elsewhere, MTs are thriving.