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[theolodian]

Focus is one of the worse cars out there imho.  Couldn't wait to hand back the lease one we had, useless piece of junk.

The last 216 with Honda motor was the old wedge shape one (G reg to N reg), later ones are K series.

Hmmm.  Had a J-reg 214.  It was pretty good for £500, but I was looking for something a lot better for the g/f.  The chassis design is over 20 years old, crash safety has moved on a lot since then.

[AndersH]

I had a nice auto in a Mitsubishi Colt, that was a 1993 - don't know what the newer ones are like though, a very reliable car too!

[Paul M]

The Omega and autobox go together well, its what the car was designed for. It was never meant to have a manual IMO, its a big RWD car for the motorway cruise.

LOL that makes no sense whatsoever. Quite how a car is "designed for" a slushomatic I don't quite get, are there extensive chassis modifications required? Perhaps to make the handling as boring as the "stop or go pedal" slushomatic driving style? Cos they don't seem to have done this with the Omega, it's actually quite a fun car to drive and handles well for its size, twisty B roads with a manual box are rather enjoyable.

If it was meant purely for the motorway cruise why did they bother deveoping the chassis to the point that it handles much better than the Vectra does in my experience? If anything the Vectra is more suited to a slushbox as it's super dull to drive even with a manual. Yes the Omega is a great motorway cruiser, but that doesn't mean it has to be dull as ditchwater -- if I'd wanted a boring car I'd have bought a Scorpio as they depreciate even quicker than the Omega.

Maybe they should have made the Lotus Carlton with a slushomatic too, after all I'm sure that's quite a nice motorway cruiser. Really can't allow people to have fun in big cars now, can we? Move along now grandad, nothing to see here

[theolodian]

The Omega and autobox go together well, its what the car was designed for. It was never meant to have a manual IMO, its a big RWD car for the motorway cruise.

LOL that makes no sense whatsoever. Quite how a car is "designed for" a slushomatic I don't quite get, are there extensive chassis modifications required? Perhaps to make the handling as boring as the "stop or go pedal" slushomatic driving style? Cos they don't seem to have done this with the Omega, it's actually quite a fun car to drive and handles well for its size, twisty B roads with a manual box are rather enjoyable.

If it was meant purely for the motorway cruise why did they bother deveoping the chassis to the point that it handles much better than the Vectra does in my experience? If anything the Vectra is more suited to a slushbox as it's super dull to drive even with a manual. Yes the Omega is a great motorway cruiser, but that doesn't mean it has to be dull as ditchwater -- if I'd wanted a boring car I'd have bought a Scorpio as they depreciate even quicker than the Omega.

Maybe they should have made the Lotus Carlton with a slushomatic too, after all I'm sure that's quite a nice motorway cruiser. Really can't allow people to have fun in big cars now, can we? Move along now grandad, nothing to see here

Calling tunnie a grandad, now that is rich!

I've noticed that you aren't one of the more content and tolerant people around here.  Still seem to want a lot of attention.  

[Martin_1962]

The Omega and autobox go together well, its what the car was designed for. It was never meant to have a manual IMO, its a big RWD car for the motorway cruise.

LOL that makes no sense whatsoever. Quite how a car is "designed for" a slushomatic I don't quite get, are there extensive chassis modifications required? Perhaps to make the handling as boring as the "stop or go pedal" slushomatic driving style? Cos they don't seem to have done this with the Omega, it's actually quite a fun car to drive and handles well for its size, twisty B roads with a manual box are rather enjoyable.

If it was meant purely for the motorway cruise why did they bother deveoping the chassis to the point that it handles much better than the Vectra does in my experience? If anything the Vectra is more suited to a slushbox as it's super dull to drive even with a manual. Yes the Omega is a great motorway cruiser, but that doesn't mean it has to be dull as ditchwater -- if I'd wanted a boring car I'd have bought a Scorpio as they depreciate even quicker than the Omega.

Maybe they should have made the Lotus Carlton with a slushomatic too, after all I'm sure that's quite a nice motorway cruiser. Really can't allow people to have fun in big cars now, can we? Move along now grandad, nothing to see here

Calling tunnie a grandad, now that is rich!

I've noticed that you aren't one of the more content and tolerant people around here.  Still seem to want a lot of attention.  

He is only young - when he is in his 40s he will think differently.

Last thing I wanted in my 20s was an automatic, I just ended up with one about 5-6 years ago and got on with them.

[theolodian]

He is only young - when he is in his 40s he will think differently.

Last thing I wanted in my 20s was an automatic, I just ended up with one about 5-6 years ago and got on with them.

Yeah, I know what you mean.  The auto does frustrate me in the Omega, but it is better than a sore knee/back.  It is the first auto I have had in a car (that excludes pickups and SUV's).  I was hoping to avoid the age-old manual vs. auto debate and just get advice on what I asked, but oh well.  

[TheBoy]

The Omega and autobox go together well, its what the car was designed for. It was never meant to have a manual IMO, its a big RWD car for the motorway cruise.

LOL that makes no sense whatsoever. Quite how a car is "designed for" a slushomatic I don't quite get, are there extensive chassis modifications required? Perhaps to make the handling as boring as the "stop or go pedal" slushomatic driving style? Cos they don't seem to have done this with the Omega, it's actually quite a fun car to drive and handles well for its size, twisty B roads with a manual box are rather enjoyable.

If it was meant purely for the motorway cruise why did they bother deveoping the chassis to the point that it handles much better than the Vectra does in my experience? If anything the Vectra is more suited to a slushbox as it's super dull to drive even with a manual. Yes the Omega is a great motorway cruiser, but that doesn't mean it has to be dull as ditchwater -- if I'd wanted a boring car I'd have bought a Scorpio as they depreciate even quicker than the Omega.

Maybe they should have made the Lotus Carlton with a slushomatic too, after all I'm sure that's quite a nice motorway cruiser. Really can't allow people to have fun in big cars now, can we? Move along now grandad, nothing to see here

Calling tunnie a grandad, now that is rich!

I've noticed that you aren't one of the more content and tolerant people around here.  Still seem to want a lot of attention.  

He is only young - when he is in his 40s he will think differently.

Last thing I wanted in my 20s was an automatic, I just ended up with one about 5-6 years ago and got on with them.

Exactly. When I was Paul_M's age, I hated autos, and wanted to thrash around everywhere....

Now, whilst I occasionally miss a manual, its not often enough to make it worthwhile.  The gearbox fitted would not make me reject a car....

[Paul M]

I have to be honest, I hate them (as you may have guessed lol). Only time I ever drive one is either using someone else's car for whatever reason that may be (very rarely an auto) or when I go to the US and hire a car, as there are so few people who can actually drive over there that the hire companies generally don't stock manuals .

Personally I'd rather just be a passenger and get someone else to do the driving, since you're half way there anyway. I quite enjoy driving and would usually choose to drive rather than be driven, but when it comes to slushboxes that whole thing goes out the window. Doesn't really matter in straight lines (although I don't like the engine noise when pulling away quickly, very mushy sounding) and on motorway cruises it's pretty much irrelevant as most of the journey is in top gear anyway. But when it comes to twisty roads, particularly B roads I'm constantly frustrated at the lack of control -- it's always in the wrong gear as it can't anticipate what's ahead. And I absolutely loathe the rubber band effect of a torque converter where the revs can change independently of the speed of the wheels -- one advantage of a normally aspirated engine is the more linear effect of the throttle for when you're right on the limit of traction, but that's destroyed by a torque converter.

Yes I'm in my 20s and I'm often being told I'll turn into a boring old fart in my 40s however I'm not convinced as my dad is still very much in favour of his driving enjoyment and manual gearboxes -- he currently owns a 330Ci which despite the image problem is a very nice car to drive with great balance and of course RWD, a factor which played very highly in his decision. There are plenty of slushy 330s out there (less so with the coupe, but they're around) but my dad never looked at any, every one was a manual. Go figure

I wouldn't mind trying an SMG though, as it gives almost all of the control of a manual and has a proper clutch too, and it actually gains performance slightly rather than losing power. Not convinced I'd enjoy driving it yet though.

[Paul M]

Exactly. When I was Paul_M's age, I hated autos, and wanted to thrash around everywhere....

BTW I should clarify, that as much as I like my cars to be reasonably powerful and enjoyable to drive, I don't thrash around all the time. I'm actually a pretty sedate driver much of the time (such as around town and at cruising speed on M-ways), it's only once I get onto quiet B-roads and otherwise challenging roads absent of pedestrians and junctions every 10 metres that I like to open it up a little. Which is exactly where a manual car really shows its advantage over a slushy -- I'd probably avoid B roads rather than prefer them if I had a slushy as the fun wouldn't be there.

[TheBoy]

I have to be honest, I hate them (as you may have guessed lol). Only time I ever drive one is either using someone else's car for whatever reason that may be (very rarely an auto) or when I go to the US and hire a car, as there are so few people who can actually drive over there that the hire companies generally don't stock manuals .

Personally I'd rather just be a passenger and get someone else to do the driving, since you're half way there anyway. I quite enjoy driving and would usually choose to drive rather than be driven, but when it comes to slushboxes that whole thing goes out the window. Doesn't really matter in straight lines (although I don't like the engine noise when pulling away quickly, very mushy sounding) and on motorway cruises it's pretty much irrelevant as most of the journey is in top gear anyway. But when it comes to twisty roads, particularly B roads I'm constantly frustrated at the lack of control -- it's always in the wrong gear as it can't anticipate what's ahead. And I absolutely loathe the rubber band effect of a torque converter where the revs can change independently of the speed of the wheels -- one advantage of a normally aspirated engine is the more linear effect of the throttle for when you're right on the limit of traction, but that's destroyed by a torque converter.

Yes I'm in my 20s and I'm often being told I'll turn into a boring old fart in my 40s however I'm not convinced as my dad is still very much in favour of his driving enjoyment and manual gearboxes -- he currently owns a 330Ci which despite the image problem is a very nice car to drive with great balance and of course RWD, a factor which played very highly in his decision. There are plenty of slushy 330s out there (less so with the coupe, but they're around) but my dad never looked at any, every one was a manual. Go figure

I wouldn't mind trying an SMG though, as it gives almost all of the control of a manual and has a proper clutch too, and it actually gains performance slightly rather than losing power. Not convinced I'd enjoy driving it yet though.

Maybe due to the various jobs I have done which involved racking up many miles, I don't look forward to a drive any more like I used to...