Ask Bark Brief: #screwthemanuals

Mark "Bark M." Baruth
by Mark "Bark M." Baruth

Nick writes:

Hi Bark,

I’m a sucker. My daily driver and only car is a damn Miata Club six-speed, but I’m getting married in a couple of months and my fiancée is not so stubborn. I’ve taught her how to drive stick, and she’s pretty good at it, but it’s not her thing. Driving really isn’t her thing, in fact. She doesn’t now have a car. When she used to live in a part of the country where you need a car, she had some plain Kia or whatever. Her only strong preference is for smaller cars over larger ones, as we live in a dense urban area.

Let’s say for argument’s sake I knock her up in the next 12-18 months. We’ll be in the market for another car. I wouldn’t be the primary driver, but I’d drive it often enough. She wouldn’t mind if it’s “fun and nice.”

I would keep buying stick shifts until they stop selling them, and I’d resent any car if I could have in a stick yet passed on the option in favor of a CVT. Still, I understand that’s not how the world works. I think the best compromise, then, is to get a car that isn’t available with a manual transmission.

In that vein, what are a few of the most fun and best automatic-only compact-ish (let’s say smaller than a Camcord) cars to drive? Luxury makes are fine.

Best,


Nick

Oooh, now this is an interesting question. Everybody always wants to know what the best stickshift cars are — I literally get some variant of that query five times per week. But best small car that you cannot get with a stick? Wow. I’m actually going to have to put some thought into this answer, and I’ll probably get it wrong because website configurators for new cars are often awful. I might be incorrect about one or two of these, despite my best attempts.

It’s surprisingly difficult, too, because despite all the bitching and moaning about saving the manuals, most small cars are available with a stick. Focus and Fiesta? Yup. Fit and Civic? Sure. Mazda 3? Of course. Sonic and Cruze? You know it. Golf? Jetta? Yep and yep. Versa and Sentra? Uh huh. Yaris and Corolla? Oh, wait, you wanted to know about good cars — but you can still get a stick with both of those, too!

Hell, even some of the good smaller CUVs and trucks have manuals. The Mazda CX-5 and Nissan Juke both have stickshift options, as do the Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon and Toyota Tacoma. Luxury options? The BMW 2 Series and 3 Series are both available with manuals, as is the Cadillac ATS.

So what fits your description? Again, surprisingly, it’s only a couple of cars.

My personal favorite among the entry-level sport sedans, the Lexus IS 350 F Sport, is autotragic only. I love this car. Problem is that the back seat is super tiny and might not accommodate your offspring in a rear-facing seat.

Another option (and this one is somewhat surprising, considering the heritage of its maker) is the Mazda CX-3. Nope, no stickshift here. See? I told you it was surprising. However, we’re going to run into the same space issue here. Despite being branded as a crossover, the CX-3 has a backseat that’s best reserved for use by elves.

How about an Audi A3? It used to be available with a stick, but no longer. Same with the Buick Regal.

However, I’m gonna go ahead and say that my choice would be a Mercedes C300 Sport. No stick shift available in the US (and yes, I know you can buy one overseas with a stick). They’re quite fun to drive and drastically underappreciated by the motoring press. I think the new C-Class is as good or better than anything else in class, and the rear seat is actually useable.

If you get one, you’ll have fun driving it, and you won’t regret not opting for the stick, because you can’t have one. It’s a steal at $42,000, or almost exactly how much you’d pay for a goddamned Focus RS that you’d like so, so, so much better. Oops. Sorry. Enjoy marriage! *cough* don’t do it *cough*

If you want to be neat, too, then email your questions to Bark at barkm3o2@gmail.com and follow him on the Twitters and look at pictures of his children on Instagram.

Mark "Bark M." Baruth
Mark "Bark M." Baruth

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  • Andrew Justus Andrew Justus on Dec 15, 2016

    A Ford C-Max checks the boxes of a small hauler without a manual option. It has a generous roof line to aid in loading the child seat and can be had at a discount since they don't sell very well at the moment.

  • ImAbeFroman ImAbeFroman on Dec 16, 2016

    A dual-clutch or automated single-clutch is the way to go. Skip CVTs and torque converter autos.

  • CanadaCraig You can just imagine how quickly the tires are going to wear out on a 5,800 lbs AWD 2024 Dodge Charger.
  • Luke42 I tried FSD for a month in December 2022 on my Model Y and wasn’t impressed.The building-blocks were amazing but sum of the all of those amazing parts was about as useful as Honda Sensing in terms of reducing the driver’s workload.I have a list of fixes I need to see in Autopilot before I blow another $200 renting FSD. But I will try it for free for a month.I would love it if FSD v12 lived up to the hype and my mind were changed. But I have no reason to believe I might be wrong at this point, based on the reviews I’ve read so far. [shrug]. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it once I get to test it.
  • FormerFF We bought three new and one used car last year, so we won't be visiting any showrooms this year unless a meteor hits one of them. Sorry to hear that Mini has terminated the manual transmission, a Mini could be a fun car to drive with a stick.It appears that 2025 is going to see a significant decrease in the number of models that can be had with a stick. The used car we bought is a Mk 7 GTI with a six speed manual, and my younger daughter and I are enjoying it quite a lot. We'll be hanging on to it for many years.
  • Oberkanone Where is the value here? Magna is assembling the vehicles. The IP is not novel. Just buy the IP at bankruptcy stage for next to nothing.
  • Jalop1991 what, no Turbo trim?
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