No kidding.  My parents in their 70s had no trouble with a manual.  And driving a manual shift honda civic or whatever is not shifting an eighteen wheeler. 

The roads in Montreal and Quebec just murder those things. Low profiles are not common here. I also read somewhere that for pavement rallies, some drivers don’t choose the ultra low profile tires, they say the slightly taller tires grip better and are just plain faster. 

Ah yes, our Canadian cheapskate blood. We also tend to buy more smaller cars which lend themselves to manuals. And even though I haven’t seen to many FRS/BRZ ‘s I have only seen one auto.

Forget the turbo, a NA 4 is plenty, and just give it a basic 5 speed. Make 5th gear long for good highway economy. Make the backseat useable. A basic interior. We don’t need 10 speakers or 9 way power seats or leather door panels. Give it smaller cheaper wheels. Da youts can upgrade with parts from the dealer, like…

Always take advantage of any semi clean bathroom that you come across and give things a try. And always carry some toilet paper and wipes with you.

I talian R ebels O ut C ruising.

Whatever your next adventure vehicle is, start working on it NOW. And do a few test runs before the big journey.

Lugs his hockey bag between Rochester and Toronto ?  Don Cherry 2.0 ?

All the more reason to bring out a cheaper 4 banger version. 

Drive those cars and you know why the Japanese murdered the American car industry. 

Yup, my bad. I see it now. With a regular auto stick, when the stick is in the Park position, you know its there, you dont have to trust a light or a sensor. And an E brake is supposed to work when all hell breaks loose, all sensors, servos, batteries, computers, engine power, belts, ect ect are busted, you still have…

Spoiled it for you ??? Its a talk show that discusses with the most popular current issues. Idiots.  

The fact that it is saltwater make the battery/fire situation worse ?

What the hell is that ? And those stupid stupid E-parking brakes, because pulling on a stick when you park is a huge burden. 

Like Lord Harry says they put all this effort into making a hybrid and then a tiny battery. That may have been acceptable in 2012 but not now. Even the ‘torque fill’ of such a battery must be quite limited. For Joe Wealthy to use this car on a semi regular basis it should be able to putter through residential…

Resale value for manuals is very low but in 20 years that thing will be a collector item because of the manual. Another plus is the reliability of a manual transmission. Some of us really do like to drive their cars into the ground instead of the ‘great leasing options financing trade in drive away low payments ‘ BS.

The newest crossover to be found in its natural habitat, the Starbucks drive through.

I worked with someone who’s house caught fire. Him and his wife made it out ok. The wife went back inside to get the cat. Neither of them made it out.