|
|
My Advise - Learn To Drive BothSep 20 '00 Write an essay on this topic.When I first learned to drive, I learned on an automatic. For a long time I had no desire to learn to drive a stick, until one day when I decided to buy my Scout. It was a small pickup with just enough room for my boyfriend and I. It got great gas mileage, and I figured that I could take it anywhere since it had 4 wheel drive. The only drawback was that it had a standard transmission instead of automatic. As I said, I had never driven a stick, but I decided to learn. I bought the Scout without ever having driven a stick before. Then my boyfriend took me out on some back roads and turned me loose. In a short time I was shifting gears without too much problem. I drove around all the back roads for a while until I got a bit better at driving it, and then I began taking it on the main roads too. It really didn't take that long to learn the basics and I'm glad I did because when it comes time to buy another car, you have a much better selection if you are not limited to one type of transmission. Since that time my oldest son learned to drive on my Cavalier (also a stick) and even though my daughter learned on an automatic through drivers training, I have also gotten her to at least try driving a stick a few times. She isn't good at it yet, but with practice, I'm sure that she will do OK. Why Do I Want My Children To Learn Both? I think that it is important to learn to drive both types of vehicles for a few reasons. Even if you don't choose to own a stick shift yourself, it's a good idea to be able to drive one. One of the biggest reasons for this is that there is so much better selection of cars available if you can drive anything. Of all of the cars I've owned, more than half of them were stick shift. I always buy used cars and the more selection I have, the better. Another very important reason is that if you can drive either, you can take over driving if another driver gets overtired, has too much to drink, or is injured. I've been called on more than one occasion to come pick someone up because there was no one available to drive the stick shift that sat in the driveway. I've also been asked to drive a neighbor's child to the doctor because her husband had taken the automatic that day and she was not able to drive the stick. When my car broke down, I was able to borrow a car without any problem. If I had not been able to drive a stick, I would not have found a car to borrow. I would have needed to find a ride to my appointment instead. Other Things To Consider Pros In my experience, sticks get better gas mileage than automatics do. You also have a lot more control with a stick. If you have starter problems or a dead battery you can push start it. Often costs less. Cons Can be confusing to learn to drive. Can be difficult to drive with knee, leg or back injuries. Greater concentration and coordination is required, especially when you must stop at the top of a hill and then go again. Conclusion I don't think there is any reason why most people should not at least learn how to drive a stick. Like I said before, even if you don't own one, it isn't that hard to learn and can really come in handy to know. Which car you should buy is really a matter of personal preference, but if you know how to drive both, you have many more options available to you.  |
| Read all comments (6)|Write your own comment |
