When I was looking at the 2007 Acura, the sticker said that the automatic would get 1-2 MPG better.  given the gear ratios in the highest gear of each, this seemed counter intuitive.  I asked the sales person how that could be.  His response was, "If you get in each car and drive 100 miles down an interstate, you'll get 2-4 MPG better with the manual."  I bought the manual and get 34 MPG on the interstates at 70 mph.  My conclusion (and apparently that of the salesman) is that there is something inaccurate about how the government computes mpg for various cars, but that the stick gets better mileage...and is more fun!

Forget the gas milage factor, if you are a real "driver" you would drive a stick.  I have had only sticks and i am on my 5th car.  They give you ten times more control over the car and help to save money not only on gas but on brakes and tires as well.  The only place a stick sucks is in stop and go traffic as your left leg becomes tired.  Someone wrote, a few comments above, that they only had one stick in their life and they went through two clutches in that car, furthermore he said that he went though one in under 5000 miles. Wow! That is an obvious case of what i like to call an idiot.  If he would have taken 5 min to learn how a clutch works and then an additional 30 min to learn how to drive it, the clutch would easily last 100,000 to 150,000 miles if not more, even on the crappy dodge omni he said he was driving.  

I learned to drive with a clutch at age 8 or 9 on farm vehicles.  It comes second nature.  However, so does shifting out just before the red line on everything I have ever driven.  I even make the mileage terrible on my motorcycles for the same reason.  It is a lot more fun to take the engine and transmission to the very edge each and every time.  Trust me, I am far better in this world driving a automatic for mileage than anything that can be shifted.  I also went from speeding violations everywhere to one every 3 to 4 years.  Don't even ask me how I do with boats...it is much worse.  I very much enjoy shifting anything, but I enjoy keeping my license even more.  To the person with clutch problems here is a hind:  Keep your foot off the clutch between shifts!  For those that drive like me, get a much heavier clutch installed and learn to speed shift.

Actually there are a few cars out in the market that has better gas mileage with Automatics.. Such as the Audi A3 and the VW GTI these cars have a dual clutch automatic that make them faster and save more gas it also helps both have FSI a direct fuel injection engines in their 2.0 turbos..

Percy's blog posted on 09/08/08 is correct only if you are driving a clutch type vehicle with a generator rather than an altinator.  When most automobiles came with a clutch they also had generator's as alternatore had not yet been introduced.  In those days it was also possible to push start a car with automatic transmission by simply placing the lever in the lowest range.  That way the engine revved enough to rotate the generator fast enough to provide an electrical current high enough to start the vehicle.  If you had a newer automatic that had an alternator this would not work.  I know this would work as I have had to do it on occasion back in the days of generators.

I have had a few of both and I like Honda's and Subaru's with a manual shift and with my trucks I like the automatics. Just personal preferance.  As for getting better gas mileage, I think it's possible depending on how the vehicle is driven. I shift at a lower rpm than my girlfriend by about 6-800 rpms.  I like to shift around 2500 or so and she goes over 3200 or more. This is all shifting depending on the terrain, i.e. flat with no load on the engine.  Another thing about sticks....I don't have a ferrari so having control over the rpms can be fun, especially on wet pavement!

A stick may be fun in many circumstances, and may save gas, but if you do a lot of stop and go driving in rush hour traffic where you are just crawling along at 5mph, then a stick is miserable.  And after a couple of years driving like that, your left (clutch) leg is twice the size of your right leg.  :)

I learned to drive both types, I've also owned both types.  When you learn, own and drive a MT everyday, you get use to it (or absolutely hate it if you have to go through rush hour traffice in Chicago).  My MT gets the most because of habits.  Rolling in neutral, pressing the clutch for blocks before you have to break.  Things like that can really help.  It always depends on the driver, and where they're going.  By the way, if you get use to driving a MT and then switch to AT,  something inside always wants you to shift; and give you that feel of instant power by downshifting.

I will only drive manual transmissions even if it means that it used more gas.  Why?  Because it puts me in much greater tune with the vehicle and is a far more enjoyable driving experience.  I am also a Much Safer driver because a stick shift forces you to pay more attention to actually Driving.  Automatic transmissions are so boring to drive that I refuse to do it.  The fact that in the vast majority of cases it means less gas is just a bonus for me.

For the "weakonomist" you are definitely correct about the Acura and BMW's and you make a very good point.  But, these are very much exceptions to the rule.  The vast majority of the low to mid-range domestic and import automatics are not equipped to provide better efficiency than manual transmissions of the same engine.  For example, there are no domestic automatics that are "efficiency" tuned like the Acura TSX or BMW 328i.    

I have a 2005 ScionXb which is what was tested in this article.  

$$$Economy- I enjoy $30.00 fill ups at the pump, $1,500.00 less sticker shock at the dealer ship and great gas milege when I don't drive it like I stole it!!

Drive it like you stole it - I love the fun and mental spark of the stick. It is also faster than the automatic version I test drove. I learned to drive on a stick and I enjoy the control of using a stick. It is real driving, ask any stock car racer or any racer for that matter. Long black streaks of rubber and big clouds of smoke are easier too!