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To carry out his Italian mission, our hero (that's Iron Matt: Agent of the Bad Thing, for those of you who don't remember) has been given a loaded semi-automatic.
Semi-automatic car, that is!
So I've driven in eight countries (USA, Canada, Japan, Argentina, UK, Italy, Ireland, France). I am comfortable driving on the left or right side of the road, and I am comfortable driving a standard or automatic transmission. And when you're driving a standard, the side of the road matters -- you have to switch which hand is controlling the gear shift! I'm even [mostly] comfortable driving on the left in countries where the wipers and turn signals are in the same position as they are in the USA (i.e., England) and in countries where they are reversed (i.e., Japan).
But until this week, I had never driven a semi-automatic transmission vehicle.
For those of you who, like me until a week ago, have never driven such a car, allow me to describe it: In a semi-automatic, there is no clutch to press and the gear shift does not set actual positions. You just push it up to shift up a gear and down for the reverse. The car won't let you stall out -- when you begin to slow down, it will automatically downshift for you if you don't do it yourself. No corresponding upshift happens as you accelerate, though. Heck, the dashboard display even tells you when the car thinks you should be shifting a gear, though I quickly learned that it is fickle and not to be trusted. I've driven a standard long enough that I can figure out when to shift on my own -- thank you very much -- with no help from the car's brain.
In principle, this should be the best of both worlds. People who prefer a standard tend to say that they like the control it gives them. People who prefer an automatic tend to say that it is easier to drive. This car -- a four person "Smart" car -- gives me most of the control of a standard with most of the ease of an automatic. It's weird -- largely because it is unfamiliar -- but it is also pretty cool!
Semi-automatic car, that is!
So I've driven in eight countries (USA, Canada, Japan, Argentina, UK, Italy, Ireland, France). I am comfortable driving on the left or right side of the road, and I am comfortable driving a standard or automatic transmission. And when you're driving a standard, the side of the road matters -- you have to switch which hand is controlling the gear shift! I'm even [mostly] comfortable driving on the left in countries where the wipers and turn signals are in the same position as they are in the USA (i.e., England) and in countries where they are reversed (i.e., Japan).
But until this week, I had never driven a semi-automatic transmission vehicle.
For those of you who, like me until a week ago, have never driven such a car, allow me to describe it: In a semi-automatic, there is no clutch to press and the gear shift does not set actual positions. You just push it up to shift up a gear and down for the reverse. The car won't let you stall out -- when you begin to slow down, it will automatically downshift for you if you don't do it yourself. No corresponding upshift happens as you accelerate, though. Heck, the dashboard display even tells you when the car thinks you should be shifting a gear, though I quickly learned that it is fickle and not to be trusted. I've driven a standard long enough that I can figure out when to shift on my own -- thank you very much -- with no help from the car's brain.
In principle, this should be the best of both worlds. People who prefer a standard tend to say that they like the control it gives them. People who prefer an automatic tend to say that it is easier to drive. This car -- a four person "Smart" car -- gives me most of the control of a standard with most of the ease of an automatic. It's weird -- largely because it is unfamiliar -- but it is also pretty cool!
