I too have an auto but not by choice. I found it hard to find a used Rubicon with a stick that would bring down my $700+ payment on my ex six speed stick diesel megacab but when the auto goes out it's getting a six speed.

 

i have an auto because of my knee. to add to previous posts the auto will have a larger towing capacity vs stick until you get into big rigs and that is because they have twin counter shafts. the stick shifts in vehicles below 1 ton only have one counter shaft. so you are driving the output shaft from a couple of small teeth the twin counter shaft multiplies the surface area. i hope this helps

 

I have a '12 with the auto transmission and just added a dead pedal. My wife got in it yesterday and asked me why the clutch pedal was so stiff

 

Always had a manual.

I complained my 08 JKU stick would jump around like a cat on a hot tin roof when hitting bumps, wife said the damn thing almost broke her wrist wheeling it moved so much. They said "normal".

Tested a 2012 manual, same deal.

Auto is a luxury/far smoother - I'll never go w/out again, plus it's faster in every way.

Yea, stick is fun, see my sig.

 

I have an auto because I didn't want the hassle of a manual. I also have a c6zo6 and would not buy that in auto even if it was an option- would likely be a faster option. My jeep is my DD and weekend cruiser/beach vehicle. I just dont see the fun in rowing thru the gears in anything but a sports car. Personal preference. I am glad that manual is an option on the JK but I just not something I wanted.

 

If I purchased my Jeep again, I would go with auto instead of manual.

 

Agree 100%. We pick up our '12 unlmited rubi auto on Friday. We actually went to a dealer on Saturday just out of curiosity. We had no interest in getting a new one but figured the new motor and 6 speed combo would be "all that" so lets go test drive one just for fun. We first drove an auto Rubicon with 3.73's and that surprised the hell out of us. We then drove a manual "Artic Edition" and it felt like we were in our '07. The dealer even pulled the window sticker while I was driving just to make sure it actually had 3.73's. It definitely ran better but didn't have the wow factor like the auto did. One had 13 miles, the other 11 so neither was even close to being broke in.

After 134,000 miles in our '07 6 speed our '12 auto will be an interesting change.

 

I did the auto vs manual debate when buying my 2012. The 2011 I traded was a 6 speed and I could not stand the hill assist feature that was built in. It actually caused me to stall a couple of times in traffic when taking off the rpms would just sit at around 2-300 for no reason at all and finally the damn thing would just stall out. Embarrassing as hell! I have driven manuals for 20+ years and I could have picked either when I bought my 2012 and went with the auto. It just feels more at home with the new motor compared to the 6 speeds I drove. I really am liking it a lot now that I own it. Plus this new tranny can stand up to a lot of horsepower (600-700 est on stock internals) which makes me feel that much more confident in it!

 

All the autos are out there because the reality is they're better than manuals for what our Jeeps are likely used for.

Sitting in traffic during commutes, daily grinds with families, off road in difficult terrain, you name it the auto is more than adequate and likely better than the stick.

It used to be that standards were more efficient or faster, but the advent of lockup torque converters and electronic engine management gas negated all of that. In a computer controlled environment where every system in the car is intertwined, the driver is the weakest link, and the auto is more ideally suited.

Having said that, I still drive a stick, and hopefully always will. Driving is one of the simple pleasures I have in my life, and rowing through the gears makes it that much better for me.

Does traffic here in SoCal suck? Absolutely. Is it more difficult to wheel? Definitely. Does it matter to me? Nope. It's fun to me, and hopefully there will always be an option for manuals for the vehicles I want to drive.

 

I also personally think that society today is turning people in to being lazy and making people take the easy way all the time with all the electronics and new technology people are forgetting the basics i like manual because of the challenge and I do feel more connected as well as it is built more robust then the automatic