When we take the crew bus from european airports to the hotel, usually a
Merecedes Sprinter or equivalent. 10+ pax. It is almost always a stick.
Diesel as well.
I have seen a dodge caravan diesel manual shift over there.
Scott Hutchinson
Pilot, NetJets Aviation
Mobile 843.290.2805
----- Original Message -----
From: Graham Harlowe [mailto:gharlowe@comcast.net]
Sent: Thursday, November 28, 2013 08:24 AM
To: tigers@autox.team.net <tigers@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: [Tigers] Manual Transmissions
...."I was even surprised to learn that Ford offers a manual box for the
latest Fusion, but you have to pester the dealer and swear on your childrens
children that you won't cancel the order once it's placed, and that's a car
that Ford makes a bunch of(with auto boxes)."
The dominance of automatics seems to be a US/North American phenomenon.
Manuals are still quite common in Europe where gas is 4x more expensive. I
rented a Ford Fusion while on vacation in France that had a 4 cyl diesel
engine with 6-speed manual. It even had an "upshift" indicator light to
optimize gas mileage and when you put the car in neutral while idling at an
intersection, the engine would shut itself down. Engaging the clutch to put
the car in gear again would quickly restart the engine. The first few times
the engine suddenly 'died' in Paris traffic was discomforting. Getting
stuck in a 4 hour traffic jam en route to de Gaulle airport made me homesick
for my Volvo automatic.
Cheers,
Graham Harlowe
B382001466
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