I live in lower Manhattan and am seriously considering a two-year lease on a stick-shift 2008 MCSC that I'd keep in a garage. I'd expect to use it for road trips and weekend getaways far more than for city use, naturally, though of course I'll be doing my share of urban motoring as a result of shopping, errands, etc. The issue is that my brother and stepfather both think I'm a barking madman for considering a manual car with such a powerful engine when I live in the city--the incessant stop-start pace of urban driving, they say, would drive me nuts and subject the transmission to a lot of extra wear and tear. On the one hand, since they don't live in New York, I'm inclined to dismiss their opinion out of hand--but on the other, since I haven't driven a stick regularly in years, I'm also wondering if perhaps they have a point. I'd love to hear what you guys here think...

 

terribly sorry, but

you are asking US if you're crazy?

yep - you are!

welcome, and enjoy your Mini...

 

Yes, a stick in stop-n-go is very annoying. If you're going to spend more than 10-20% of your time in traffic, you'll have a sore left leg.

Of course, you'd ALSO be crazy to have an automatic in Manhattan too...

 

Or ine leg much larger than the other

 

Doesn't bother me to shift in the city or the outlying 'burbs with the stop and go traffic. the shifter action in the mini is very nice, especial with a Whalen! Then again, in a previous life, I made deliveries in the metro area via a standard tranny.

As for wear and tear, that really depends on the driving style. True, components like the throw out bearing may need to replaced sooner. But the gestalt of being one with the machine? priceless!

 

Yeah I would never do it- suicidal!

 

I wanted the stick but the Sidewalk with slushbox was calling my name. Now I am glad I did not have a choice. When I am feeling lazy in morning traffic I stay in full auto and can still mess with gear changes when I want to whilst staying in full automatic. When I want to be a little more brisk and the phone is quiet, I can switch to manual shifting and get with it.

Get the automatic would be my thought after having real world experience.

...and so you have an idea of my real World experience, my car list (in reverse), runs like this:

Honda Odyssey Touring
Toyota Camry Hybrid
Ford Explorer V8
Ford Explorer Sportrac
Ford F350 Superduty dually diesel (chipped 450hp)
Lotus Elan
Juaguar XJR
BMW 635CSI
Infinit Q45
Nissan 300ZX
Triumph Vitesse
Mini 1275GT

and this is not counting my ex-wives cars!

 

I drive into Brooklyn from LI many days a week. I take the Belt from Sunrise Hwy to Pennsylvania Ave. My car has a stick, and I have no problems in the AM (and PM) traffic grind. My legs are fine. I wouldn't have my car any other way.

TheGateKeeper

 

Ozarkgolfer, there wasn't really an automatic I could go with--my dealer's wait list for custom orders is stretching into September, so if I wanted to lease a Mini and have it this summer, I had to go with what the dealer had on hand in their inventory. I've had the car for just shy of a week now, and I'm very pleased to report that driving stick in Manhattan has not been a problem for me in the very least! I'm absolutely, helplessly in love with my vehicle (an MCSC with the Premium and Cold Weather packages), which seems like an almost perfect city car--the handling is just fantastic in situations where I have to zip around other cars and change lanes quickly, while the engine has enough power to really let 'er rip on the FDR or the West Side Highway. Having the car in the city is a very expensive proposition to be sure, but so far the experience has been worth every dime.

 

Mate - happy to hear you are having a great time. Just have to ask...what the heck is that hat?

 

I have a mini in manhattan too. Just got it and garage it in the Village where I live. It is automatic for the reasons you stated. I do know a lot of people who have stick and they live in the city (Stick and the City) and love it. Its really a preference

 

I was in NYC last Sunday. My daughter and I saw Spring Awakening. We took Obie in. Next to a motorcycle, a MINI is the way to make time in Manhattan.

Zip

 

The only way to enjoy a MCS is stick, however if you hadn't had a stick before probably it will be more convenient auto. I'd been in LA and Chicago traffic with stick, no issues, however all my cars been stick.
Good luck and enjoy!!

 

I lived in Chicago for many years always having cars with manuals. A popular misconception is that the only way to drive a stick in heavy traffic is to slip the clutch. That's not true. You can drive v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y with your foot off the clutch at idle, and even slower using the brakes if needed without stalling. I would not consider a Mini with an automatic.

 

It's a Yankee batting-practice cap. I'm not a big fan of the team, but if you shave your head like I do, the official MLB batting practice caps made by New Era are really just about the most comfortable baseball caps in the world. I was loving the black-denim MINI baseball cap the dealer gave me when I picked up the car, but I seem to have misplaced it already

Before getting my new toy, the only other time I'd driven a Mini was an automatic non-S hardtop that I'd rented last summer to go to a wedding...but as soon as I got behind the wheel of my manual MCSC for the test drive, I was totally in love. I've been living in the city for 17 years now and haven't had a car in that time, though I used to mostly drive stick in high school and college. All the driving I've done in recent years, on rentals and my mom's car, has been auto, but driving stick seems to be one of those muscle-memory things, like riding a bike, that come back pretty instantaneously.

 

Glad you're having a blast with rowing the gears. I can highly recommend a Whalen shift ****. I had originally thought "what a piece of bling! People must be justifying the cost with their comments. I'll save up for a short shifter." Well, after receiving it as a gift from the missus, I thought "well, it looks cool, I'll give it a try." You will not believe the shift action with the stock throws. Luckily I had not voiced my original opinion anywhere public, so I didn't have to eat crow.

QFT.

 

Doesnt that count as lugging the engine though, which is generally thought of as bad?

 

Not if you are going reeeeeeeeealy slow in first gear, it's actually similar to an automatic that creeps along.

Since first gear operates just fine at lower rpm the slow speed is OK on the engine but if you were in third gear trying to go as slow then you'd be lugging.

I have a scan gauge II and when going along really slow in heavy traffic the gas mileage is not that bad about 20 mpg. It's hard acceleration from stops that is the gas burner. Go easy on the throttle and coast when you can.

 

I have been driving a stick in NYC since I used to drive my 1967 Chevelle 396 to school every day from queens to Manhattan. I say go for it. After a couple of days you won't think at all about shifting and when you do get on some twisties you'll be glad you did.

Rich

 

When I lived on long Island and had my 02 cooper S I would drive the Southern state Pkwy, L.I.E., Belt Pkwy. Cross Island, Staten Island Expwy, Through Manhattan, all of jersey, Philly, Hartford, Maryland, Delaware and Virginia on a weekly or bi weekly basis.

People always said i was crazy to drive stick in those area, but once traffic opened up I was glad to have a stick.

Also Driving a mini makes you always want to take the long rural route to anywhere

 

Oh man...since my vehicle is leased, the number of ways I can customize it is pretty limited, but I think I could get away with replacing the OEM shift **** with a Whalen as long as I put the OEM **** back on when the lease is over...right? I just did a search on the Whalen on the board here, and it really looks fantastic--and the "S" logo vinyl insert really just looks insanely cool...

 

I feel the same way about the MLB Genuine Merchandise Twins Enterprise 'The Franchise' fitted caps. I have them from a few teams and wear them almost all the time. I, too, am follically challenged.

Zip