I’m looking for a used Honda Fit to replace my 1997 Ford Ranger. I have narrowed it down to two; 2007 Fit Sport auto with 36k, one owner, great condition for $10k, 2008 Fit Sport manual with 48k, one owner, great condition for $11,500. The question is manual vs automatic, vs year and mileage? I have never owned a automatic but I’ve driven plenty of rentals. which would you own?
One factor to consider is acceleration.
The Fit has a really small engine, and as a result you will get much better acceleration with a manual trans.
As to gas mileage, that may not differ very much, as the newer automatics are frequently as fuel-efficient as a manual trans, and some are actually more fuel-efficient.
I’d set my sights on the manual, but would want to talk them down a grand.
Personal preference here.
Hands down a manual for me. I think automatics are absolutely dreadful in cars. Trucks they are fine as they really are not interesting to drive anyway.
Honestly, if these are two dealers that have these two car, I would tell the one with teh manual transmission that you like their car, but you found an automatic with less miles for $1500 cheaper, and you are going to go with that one instead.
I bet they will match the price.
I prefer manuals, too.
BC.
I agree with the others. Go with the manual transmission and try to get the price lower.
MANUAL…NO QUESTION… A Manual trans can last WELL beyond the lifetime of the vehicle and or the engine…YOu would need to put a clutch or two in it…but thats NOTHING…compared to full Automatic Trans failure
Of all the automatic transmission cars my family has owned since the 70’s, not one has ever required anything more than transmission fluid and filter changes. Currently have 239k on a '89 Accord transmission. I think the decision on whether or not to choose auto or manual shouldn’t be based on cost of replacement (unless you’re looking at a model with known AT problems).
I have to agree.
With the exception of my lemon '74 Volvo–whose transmission leak was apparently unstoppable–I had no automatic transmission problems of any kind on my other cars, including my '63 Plymouth, my '66 Ford, my '71 Dodge, my '86 Ford, my '92 Honda, my '97 Subaru, or my '02 Subaru–and some of these cars went well past 150k miles. Of course, I did perform proactive transmission maintenance on all of these cars.
On the other hand, I had some significant problems with the self-adjusting clutch on my '81 Chevy. However, the clutch on my '74 Karmann Ghia was flawless.
Never sure how on earth they get an auto which inherently wastes power to out-perform a manual mileage-wise, but this is true. I have a friend with an auto fit, and it is under-whelming. Get the manual, as shadowfax says, for about 1K less