Automatic or mechanic: which is better

When choosing a new car, the type of gearbox installed on it plays an important role. To date, all used transmissions can be divided into automatic and manual transmissions. What is each of the types of gearboxes, what are their positive and negative characteristics? Which of these transmissions will end up being better? Let's analyze these issues in the article.

Mechanics: reliability and economy

A manual transmission is one of the oldest transmission types. Here, the driver is directly involved in the choice of gear. Gear shifting is carried out by the driver using a gear selection mechanism and synchronizers, therefore the transmission is called a manual gearbox.

Driving usually starts with the first gear, and subsequent gears are selected based on the current speed, engine rpm and road situation. Gear shifting occurs at the moment of separation of the engine and gearbox using the clutch.

The torque in the manual transmission changes stepwise, and accordingly the transmission itself is considered “stepwise”. Depending on the number of gears, the gearboxes are 4-speed, 5-speed, 6-speed and higher. The most popular was the 5-speed manual transmission.

Depending on the number of shafts, two-shaft and three-shaft mechanical gearboxes are distinguished. The former are installed on front-wheel drive and rear-engined passenger cars with a transverse engine arrangement, the latter - on rear-wheel drive and trucks with a longitudinal internal combustion engine.

Automatic machine: comfort and convenience

In an automatic transmission, the clutch function is assigned to the torque converter, and the electronic control unit and actuators are responsible for gear shifting: friction clutches, band brake, etc.

The driver selects the automatic transmission operating mode and the direction of travel using the gear selector installed in the car. When installing the machine on front-wheel drive cars, the gearbox design is complemented by the main gear and differential.

Modern automatic transmissions are adaptive, that is, their electronic system is equipped with a "memory" of the driver's driving style. In less than an hour, the automatic will adapt to your driving style.

There are the following types of automatic transmissions: hydromechanical transmission (classic automatic), manual transmission with two clutches, robotic transmission and continuously variable variator. But still, an automatic transmission always means a classic hydromechanical planetary gearbox.

Automatic transmission or manual transmission

Let's make a comparative description of the two types of transmissions in terms of their advantages and disadvantages. We will take the following criteria as a basis: price, maintenance and repair, efficiency and acceleration, reliability, service life, winter driving conditions, comfort, adhesion and engine life and vehicle behavior on the road.

Price issue

For the price, the automatic transmission is more expensive than the mechanics. And the fuel consumption on the machine will be 10-15% more than on the mechanics. Basically, this applies to city driving, outside the city the difference in fuel consumption will be slightly less.

Service and Repair

Maintenance and repair of a car with an automatic transmission will be more expensive. An automatic machine requires more oil than a mechanic, and it costs more. The oil filter also requires replacement. In comparison with an automatic transmission, a manual transmission is easy to maintain and does not require expensive consumables and spare parts.

Efficiency and acceleration

The acceleration dynamics of a manual transmission is better than that of an automatic transmission, and the efficiency of the mechanics is higher. The manual transmission makes it possible to realize all the engine power and its torque. The exception is robotic transmissions with two clutches.

Reliability

The simplicity of the device in comparison with an automatic machine allows the mechanic to claim the title of a more reliable transmission. Long distance towing with a flexible or rigid hitch is only possible for vehicles with a manual transmission. It is recommended to transport a car with an automatic machine only by a tow truck. The operation of a car equipped with mechanics, when driving in icy conditions, on mud and off-road conditions, will be better in comparison with a machine gun.

Service life

And this criterion speaks in favor of mechanics, the service life of which is higher. Some mechanical boxes can function even after the failure of the "native" car engine. What can not be said about the automatic transmission, which will only last until overhaul.

Winter driving

It is easier to drive a car with a mechanic on slippery surfaces and slip in the snow. For a machine, these actions are not desirable - the transmission oil may overheat.

So, for the six items under consideration (price, maintenance and repair, efficiency and acceleration, reliability, service life, winter driving conditions), the manual transmission wins. Let's see how the machine responds.

Comfort

An automatic machine has a higher level of driver comfort than a mechanic. Even an inexperienced driver will be able to move away calmly and without jerks, without creating an emergency. The mechanics, on the other hand, require increased concentration and attention from the driver. Constant gear changes and the need to constantly depress the clutch pedal, especially in city traffic, tire the driver.

Engine and clutch resource

In this regard, the automatic machine also wins: it controls the speed and does not allow the engine to overheat. On mechanics, if the gears are shifted incorrectly, the motor may be overloaded. Beginners can forget and not change gear from low to high in time, forcing the engine to run at increased revs.

The same goes for clutch. In a car equipped with an automatic transmission, there is no need to constantly disengage the clutch.

Vehicle behavior on the road

A car with an automatic gearbox moves smoothly, without jerking, it does not roll away on a hill. The automatic machine has a "parking" mode, in which the engine is disconnected from the transmission, and the output shaft of the box is mechanically blocked. This mode allows the machine to be held securely in place.

Well, three against six! Is mechanics better than a machine gun? May be. But the developers do not stand still and come up with new and more and more improved types of automatic transmissions. If, for example, the acceleration of a car is taken as a criterion, then the mechanics accelerates faster than a classic automatic machine, and the variator box in terms of efficiency is definitely not inferior to a manual transmission, and sometimes even surpasses it.

Conclusion

Which gearbox should you choose? There is no consensus on this question. It all depends on what is a priority for the driver, as well as in what conditions he is going to operate the car. If you mainly plan to drive around a city with numerous traffic jams, then the best solution would be an automatic machine. When driving outside the city, both checkpoints are permissible. And the operation of the machine in difficult road conditions clearly dictates the choice in favor of mechanics.

Today, the most practical is a manual transmission. But the machine does not lag behind, becoming more perfect and more reliable from year to year. If comfort and quick learning to drive are in the first place for you, choose an automatic machine. If you want to feel the speed and spin the engine to the limit - buy a car with a manual transmission.

And you can also pay attention to a hybrid of an automatic machine and a mechanic - a double-clutch gearbox, which combines the main advantages of both transmissions. The new generation gearbox does not have a clutch pedal, the gears change automatically, but the principle of operation is similar to a manual gearbox.