Automatic Or Manual Training. Help Me Decide

Hi. My son is about take his CDL class. (self paid) He is laboring of the decision to choose to take the class/test in a manual or automatic. How restrictive is the job market if you have the manual restriction? How much more difficult is the manual to pass? Myself I'm advising him to get the automatic and if the restriction is an issue pursue it later. I hate to risk passing.

Thanks for any thoughts. He's really excited about the new career but would like some input from those who know.

There is still the potential that being qualified on manual could be useful. Depends on what company he works for, what type of work they do and what type of truck will he drive.

Personally, I qualified on manual but my first truck and every truck thereafter has been an automated tranny. I do OTR and it’s getting harder and harder to even find companies with manuals. I would never want to drive a manual and don’t expect that to ever be an issue. Chances are it will not be an issue.

I've always been of the opinion to make yourself as valuable as possible, so when starting out, I got everything, all endorsements, twic , passport, no restrictions, etc. Even though none of that was needed for my first company, by the time I started looking for something else, it was nice, there wasn't a driving job I couldn't have. My current company (and the best job I've ever had) is all manual. Granted, a manual restriction is no problem for otr , but start looking at any other type of driving job, and even though autos are becoming more prevalent, manual fleets are still common. Why limit your options if the perfect job pops up?

My question is, does your son already have experience driving manual transmissions? If he already knows how to drive a car with a manual transmission the risk of failing his CDL exam because of a manual transmission is close to zero. If he has to start from scratch AND learn how to drive a truck there's more risk.

Most trucking companies replace their trucks after ~500k miles and most trucks will turn that in less than 4 years. The major carriers moved to all automatic transmissions about 7 years ago and most of the drivers they trained in the last 7 years have a manual restriction on their CDL. It's a case of the chicken or the egg. Since the largest companies use automatics most trucking schools don't offer manuals so most new drivers have a manual restriction so companies have to move to manuals or pick from a shrinking pool of potential drivers as the older drivers retire and the new ones have the manual restriction.

Your son will have no problem finding a job with a manual restriction and he can always go back and add it later. The companies still using manuals fall into 5 categories:

1) They don't turn that many miles. This could be seasonal work, like agriculture or like a cross-town moving company where they need the capacity to move a lot of furniture but don't drive very far.

2) They have parked trucks. Trucks that were either waiting for parts or were attached to a dedicated account that was cut. It can take a large operation months or years to decide where to reallocate a truck. Maybe a truck was in an accident and their fleet is large enough they know if they wait long enough another truck will be involved in a different type of accident and they can cannibalize parts to make a frankentruck.

3) Small companies owned by skinflints or large companies whose management have made poor choices. You'll see companies acting as necromancers - running trucks with 2m+ miles. Usually that's a red flag meaning they can't afford to replace their trucks. It's more expensive to maintain a truck with that many miles than it is to just buy a new one. Their interiors are bio-hazards.

4) Grumpy old men. Rare, but you'll see shops whose drivers are all over 55 who insist on running manuals to show that they're, "real drivers". Don't worry about these jobs - they won't like your son anyway.

5) Special use trucks that require a manual transmission. This would be heavy haul or or other special applications that make up < 5% of the industry.

That said, the company where I work had ONE truck with a manual transmission at my DC. That was the truck they used to give potential new hires a check ride. Two years ago they replaced that truck with a new one with an automatic.

OD has had a hard time finding drivers without the restriction since most of our trucks are still manuals. We have been getting autos now and supposedly all new trucks will be auto, but we will still have manuals for probably another 7ish years until they are all out to pasture.

I say go for the manual test, if I could pass anyone can. Plus people have been passing for years before the autos started taking over.

My question is, does your son already have experience driving manual transmissions? If he already knows how to drive a car with a manual transmission the risk of failing his CDL exam because of a manual transmission is close to zero. If he has to start from scratch AND learn how to drive a truck there's more risk.

Most trucking companies replace their trucks after ~500k miles and most trucks will turn that in less than 4 years. The major carriers moved to all automatic transmissions about 7 years ago and most of the drivers they trained in the last 7 years have a manual restriction on their CDL. It's a case of the chicken or the egg. Since the largest companies use automatics most trucking schools don't offer manuals so most new drivers have a manual restriction so companies have to move to manuals or pick from a shrinking pool of potential drivers as the older drivers retire and the new ones have the manual restriction.

You have hit on another point I made to him. He has at best a few hours on a manual. I told him to get on a regular car/truck and master that prior to taking the class. He does ride a motorcycle so the concept of clutch and gears is there but the and foot are reversed on two wheels.

Car manuals compared to double clutch truck trannys are two different animals. Some say it’s easier to learn how to double clutch a truck if you haven’t driven a manual car.

My question is, does your son already have experience driving manual transmissions? If he already knows how to drive a car with a manual transmission the risk of failing his CDL exam because of a manual transmission is close to zero. If he has to start from scratch AND learn how to drive a truck there's more risk.

Weirdly, I've always heard the opposite, that it's easier to learn to drive a manual truck with no prior stick experience. Was definitely true in my case, my personal vehicle is a stick and I really struggled to break some bad muscle memory habits.

This is my petsonal opinion. If you have the chance to get an unrestricted license do it.

First of all never driving a manual car/pickup is a plus. Very different than a semi transmission.

A CDL is for a long period of time, any one job isn’t. The mega carriers for the most part have gone to auto’s, but they make up about 10% of the total trucks on the road. Many less than mega carriers will have both or manuals. Case in point is OD. They are a large great carrier with mostly manuals.

Working for small carriers isn’t always a bad thing either if it fits what you want out if this industry. Also many carriers of all sizes are keeping assests longer than they once did. This economy is not a good time to be buying new equipment. Prices are still very high, interest rates are continually rising, and rates are consistently falling. Not to mention they are finding trucks built during the height ofvthe pandemic are having many more problems, likely due to lack of employee’s and laxer quality control.

My truck has an 18 spd transmission. I like it, not because I’m old and macho, but because there is no load I can’t do with it, much cheaper to replace than an auto if it breaks, and I can easily control it and not rely on a computer to control it, or push a few buttons to take control over it, if it’s not programmed to refuse the driver from operating it in manual mode.

My opinion is never say never, plan for tomorrow today and don’t put all your eggs in one basket!!

I've driven manual transmission cars and trucks most of my adult life,and learning to double clutch a semi is/was the most difficult thing for me.I barely passed my road test because of it,and it's mandatory to pass

My first driving job was in an auto.

My second one was with an 18-speed,where the owner taught me how to float the gears and I did very well with that technique