adrienne

BTW - reverse does not always work the same in all cars in the US.

logos999

It's called gear transmission ratio and it depends on which gearbox is used. Someone that only "drives" automatics won't ever know about this. A human should now better when to change gears than any machine. Those automatics are just not safe to use and driving schools are so bad that they don't teach their limitations and proper opeation. There are even fodorites that brake with their left foot!!!! or don't gear down when going downhill in their automatic.

I can't change it, but on the road, I try to get as much distance between such a driver and me. EU regulations forced us in the late 1980s to let people that can only drive an automatic, operate a car on German roads..

Learn to drive, people. Invest the money you save on rentals in a proper driving school! They must have them in the US too. And it's not a question of age.

roadmovie

You can ask for a guidance of finding the reverse from the staff at the rental.

Another thing about the fuel: just ask it on the counter at the rental, if it is gasoline or diesel. You cannot fill diesel into a gasoline car but you can fill gasoline into a diesel car. But, as I mentioned, just ask and they will tell you.

ribeirasacra

Yep Americans and automatics...they even wanted the quintessential British sports car the MG B with an auto-box.
I have American guests who drive shift sticked cars so there must be places to learn this art!

logos999, sorry I dont understand this" can't change it, but on the road, I try to get as much distance between such a driver and me. EU regulations forced us in the late 1980s to let people that can only drive an automatic, operate a car on German roads.."
What are you trying to say?

logos999

It was verboten to drive a stick shift on a German road, if you only learned to drive automatics until 1987 at least.
That was a good law!
You can easily identify most US drivers by watching the brake lights. They will be lit constanly when going downhill and they will flash when there's no reason at all and the driver isn't actually breaking.

I'd prefer to be stuck behind a hundered trucks on a tiny road.

ekscrunchy

AP: Yes, I chose my details as resident of Italy.

I got a price of 470 Euro. They only had one class of automatic at that location. (Brindisi airport; there is no city location in Brindisi)

It sounds as if you got a fantastic deal! I am curious--what is the location--a major city?? (Maybe I should rent there and drive to Brindisi!)

I do realize that this whole automatic thing is silly, by the way. I will not now trot out all of the excuses as to why I do not know how to drive a manual, and say only that now it is quite late in the game.

AP6380

it is Lamezia Terme, in Calabria. I think if stick isn't what you were taught and you're not used to driving it regularly, doing it for possibly 2 weeks a year in Europe after some potential some crash course driver's school might be a bit anxiety provoking.

adrienne

<< I have American guests who drive shift sticked cars so there must be places to learn this art! >>

My mother taught me to drive a stick shift many years ago. And I, in turn, taught my nephew to drive a stick (although he stinks on hills).

Logos - I must tell you that every time I see a brambory (and I've seen truck loads of them) I think of you! And of the Pilsn Tesco ATM that has never recovered.

logos999

Didn't they install a new one? I always thought those things can take the "abuse", but this one was looking "vintage" right from the beginning. . I got what it deserved anyway.

StCirq

<<even if you choose standard it is a different transmision >>


Sure, technically it might be a different kind of transmission, but it doesn't change a thing about how you drive the car. As long as you know how to get it into reverse, which is sometimes quite different from how you do that in US cars, you're good to go.

And no one needs more than a "crash course" to learn how to drive a stick shift. It's not rocket science. A good half day of practice, including on hills, is all anyone needs. Now, if you have a disability or just don't want to, that's fine - just don't complain about how you have to pay more because you don't have that skill. There are very good reasons why you will have to pay more for an automatic in Europe.

logos999

Of course IT got what it deserved, I wasn't beaten up by the cops that much.

NYCFoodSnob

<i><font color=#777777>"Yep Americans and automatics...I have American guests who drive shift sticked cars so there must be places to learn this art!"</font></i>

I have a history of owning sports cars with manual transmissions, while living in New York City and Beverly Hills, and I still prefer to rent an automatic in Italy. I love the art of a really smooth drive.

IMO, cars with manual transmission have no place in big city traffic, especially ancient cities built on a hill. Manual transmissions can be a royal pain in the ass to drive.

Safety? Two pedals requiring both feet, a stick for your hand (you better know the shift movement of that stick in order to maneuver quickly) and one hand on the wheel, while your eyes dart in every direction: you call this safe driving? I don't think so. In slow moving heavy traffic, it's all limbs on deck with serious concentration and a real jerky drive. No thanks! I get a headache just thinking about those past experiences.

I once rented a manual BMW in France and had an awful time getting the stick into Reverse. The stick found the slot but the car remained in Neutral. I eventually discovered the finesse required to get the gear to lock into place but you can't imagine the utter frustration.

Who owns a car with manual transmission in America? Would someone please show me an owner of a car with a manual transmission who is willing to use his/her car to teach some Fodorite how to drive it? Why do Fodorites continually say, "why don't you learn to drive a stick shift?," when finding an opportunity like this is extremely difficult if not almost impossible? What kind of helpful advice is that?

I often wonder what shape those Italian manual transmissions are in because I'm convinced there are plenty of tourists who refuse to pay the automatic prices and force themselves to learn on the spot. It seems to me, the automatics in Italy are the safest cars to drive.

logos999

Hm, tried to learn how to drive, but nobod was teaching it. Maybe I should open a driving school in the US. Poor sports cars.

ekscrunchy

Thanks, AP. Very interesting that renting in Lamezia Terme is so much cheaper than renting in Brindisi. I will have to bite the bullet and spring for the big price tag, but plan to check various sites before I book. Last time, on a trip to Piemonte, I had good luck with the AE Italian site, so will check that first.

If anyone has ideas, please fire away!

AP6380

I am in NYC and when I called several driving schools awhile back, I had no luck. Noone here seems to have found a place either. So we can complain all we want!!!!

AP6380

Ek- I used to have luck with rent.it and thrifty.it. Try them.

ekscrunchy

Thanks, AP! I will check around for my dates.

A few years ago when I rented a house in France with a group of friends (all from NYC) , we had a small car accident because the driver of one of our rental cars, who happened to be a reporter, was unfamiliar with manual driving and wrecked the clutch. He then returned home and investigated driving schools in the City and actually took lessons. Here is the story he wrote that appeared in the Daily News.


http://www.nydailynews.com/travel/20...in_europe.html

Paul1950

Most people who drive manual transmission cars are so bad at it that they are an irritant and sometimes even a danger on the road. Missing gears, not getting anywhere near the proper shift point when accelerating or decelerating, poor uphill stopping skills. Today's automatic transmissions are so refined that 95% (more or less) of current manual transmission drivers worldwide would be much better drivers overall if they switched to automatic.

Though I will agree that it is scary to think of how many automatic transmission car drivers use their left foot to brake.

alihutch

"Most people who drive manual transmission cars are so bad at it that they are an irritant and sometimes even a danger on the road. Missing gears, not getting anywhere near the proper shift point when accelerating or decelerating, poor uphill stopping skills. Today's automatic transmissions are so refined that 95% (more or less) of current manual transmission drivers worldwide would be much better drivers overall if they switched to automatic."

Jeez, that must mean that most of us in Europe are the most appalling danger on the road! I don't know anyone who holds anything other than a manual license.

AP6380

Thanks ek!!!! Probably not for this trip, but maybe for the next I might take some classes.