The Indian has always preferred manual transmission over the automatics. However, in recent years, the situation has changed, especially with the arrival of affordable automatic vehicles and the introduction of products like AMT in the market. The demand for automatic vehicles has been increasing off late in the Indian market. However, should you be buying an automatic over the manual transmission? If you are one of the five kinds of people listed below, you definitely should not.
Enthusiasts within a budget
While the “enthusiastic” Dual-Clutch Transmission has made its way into the sub-Rs 10 lakh mark in the Indian market, there are a lot of cars with performance engines that don’t get them. Apart from the Skoda Rapid DSG, Volkswagen Polo GT TSI, Volkswagen Vento and Hyundai Venue, none of the affordable cars offers a dual-clutch transmission. Vehicles with turbocharged petrol engine like the Ford EcoSport, Tata Nexon, Maruti Suzuki Baleno RS and more do not offer an automatic transmission. Enthusiasts on a budget get greater choices in the manual transmission segment.
Fully loaded options
Automatic transmission options can increase the price of the vehicle by a lot. This is why quite a lot of manufacturer stay away from offering the most loaded version with an automatic transmission. This keeps the price of the car realistic. There are quite a lot of examples of top-end variants not getting an automatic transmission. Recently launched Hyundai Venue’s top-end version is available only in a manual version. So if you want a fully-loaded vehicle with all the features advertised in the brochure, a manual may be your only choice.
People staying in remote areas
Automatic transmissions are complex mechanism but over the years they have become extremely reliable. However, it should be noted that if an automatic vehicle fails and the gear is stuck in parking or any other gear, it will require a flatbed to reach the service centre. People living in areas that do not offer such services easily should stick to the manual transmissions and be on the safer side.
Mad about mileage
There are a lot of vehicles in the market that offers higher fuel efficiency with the automatic transmission as per ARAI certification. Well, under test conditions where you’re keeping the vehicle at a constant speed, automatic transmissions may offer a greater fuel efficiency but in real-world conditions, situations are different. Manual transmissions will always return a higher fuel efficiency than the automatic transmission. If you get driven around in a chauffeured car, buying a manual makes more sense since you do not have to drive and you will save big on your fuel bills.
Frequently drive through water crossings and flooded roads
Manual transmissions offer great control over the engine RPM, which is absolutely needed when going through deep water crossings and flooded roads. Keeping the engine at a certain RPM ensures that the water does not enter the exhaust and in an automatic transmission, the gear upshifts after reaching a certain RPM. It can be a pain to drive an automatic through the flooded roads.
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