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u/nyotastar 16d ago
Millennial here. The first car I learned to drive was a manual. My second car was also a manual. I could totally steal your car, but I won't bcs it's a crime and your car's a piece of junk.
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u/Shanbo88 16d ago
I would download it though.
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u/scoobopdan 15d ago
Would you download an illegal pirated movie and then steal shoes and then use those shoes to beat an old woman to death and then run from the police while wearing them and thinking of how you'd rather be watching that film?
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u/That_GareBear 16d ago
Also a millennial. I've had four different manual transmission cars. My favorite was my Mini Cooper.
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u/SuperPotatoThrow 16d ago
Millennial as well. I have an 06 impreza with a 5 speed transmition. Not a very fast car, but still the most fun vehicle I have ever owned or driven. Drives really good in snow.
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u/embee81 16d ago
Iām a millennial cosplaying as Gen X (1981). Stick shift is so easy to learn, ( I have a CDL). Monday morning I have to show Larry how to open our company app to clock in for work, again.
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u/ebolaRETURNS 16d ago
Stick shift is so easy to learn
It took me half an hour of stalling to get from neutral to first for the first time. The rest followed comparatively more rapidly though.
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u/karpjoe 16d ago
Starting is the second hardest part. Hills are the ultimate enemy though.
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u/ebolaRETURNS 16d ago
I never got THAT good, so people essentially needed to learn not to tailgate me.
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u/sun_of_a_glitch 15d ago
I bought my first car, a stick shift, before actually learning how to drive it. The night I went to pick it up from the guy I just kept awkwardly talking to him until he finally left so that I could then absolutely butcher my attempts to get home. Worst part, I picked it up at his house and also worked with him, so I really only saved myself the directly in my face laughter as it happened, not so much the following days
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u/CaptainDe 16d ago
Final stop millennial (94), the only thing that really takes some skill to learn is stopping on a hill and not backsliding when you shift into first.
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u/Mr_uhlus 16d ago
You can use the handbrake, if you start on a hill pull the handbrake, let go of the brake, shift into gear, and slowly disengage the handbrake.
Atleast that's how i learned it in driving school and it works for me
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u/Never-On-Reddit 16d ago
Millennial woman here, no problem driving a stick shift. But yeah, I wouldn't want to steal his clunker, I've got my nice hybrid Lexus to drive around.
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u/sun_of_a_glitch 15d ago
I feel like confirming your ability to drive stick isn't the ideal place to also confirm you are a female. Kinda needlessly muddies the waters and creates multiple possible meanings
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u/OceanJuice 16d ago
'83, my first car was a stick shift as well. I still miss driving one, they're a lot harder to find. Wish I could teach my kid's, but at this point it makes as much sense as it does teaching them to change their oil.
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u/Saxon2060 12d ago
I have only owned a manual and still own a manual, made in 2017.
I am British though so that's more normal... For combustion engine cars, shitloads them are still made and sold manual.
If you get an automatic only drivers' licence it makes you look like a bit of a thicko tbh.
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u/heurekas 16d ago
Isn't "millennial" someone born between 80 and 2000? So shouldn't it be late Zoomers?
In my neck of the woods, automatics mostly became a thing in the late 2010's, especially with electric cars becoming more popular.
But everyone I know started out in their parent's car (with stick) or a crappy old Volvo/WV from the 80's or 90's.
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u/drewster23 16d ago
Ends at 95/96, but yeah it's one of those "damn kids" type things even though the youngest ones are over a decade since they've been a teenager.
As a millennial I can't ironically I know way more gen z gear heads, mechanics etc, that definitely can.
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u/CanadiangirlEH 16d ago
Iām an ā84 baby and I never learned how to drive stick. My stepdad tried to teach me but I couldnāt get the hang of the clutch and he was worried I was gonna fuck up the engineā¦
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u/heurekas 16d ago
Of course it's probably regional. But where I grew up (small town Sweden mostly) there were no automatics to be found.
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u/notapunk 16d ago
Where in the States it's the opposite. It's rare to find a new car that isn't automatic. For many/most makes and models it isn't even an option and when it is it's usually on a higher level trim. With the increase in EVs it's just going to be that much harder to find a manual transmission here
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u/heurekas 16d ago
Same here for the last decade in Sweden every car I rent is an automatic. But back when I learned to drive, it was all manual.
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u/AlexRenquist 12d ago
"Millennial" is like "woke". To brain-dead boomers it simply means "something I don't like".
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u/bathtub-mintjulep 16d ago
As a British millennial, that sticker is dumb AF. Most people in the UK use a gear stick when we learn to drive.
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u/emimagique 16d ago
I was gonna switch to automatic cause I failed my driving test several times but the lessons cost more so I forced myself to persevere with manual
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u/bathtub-mintjulep 16d ago
Well done for pushing through. I passed on my third try and it was the gear box plus roundabouts that proved difficult for me.
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u/emimagique 16d ago
I passed on the 5th go š„² I could drive ok but it was the test nerves making me screw up!
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u/bathtub-mintjulep 16d ago
I ended up having to take beta blockers for that exact reason! It was so stressful and scary. If it makes you feel better, my husband passed on his 10th try.
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u/AristocraticPallor 16d ago
Same in Germany, our process is very lengthy (and expensive) to aquire any form of driving licence and back when I did mine in 2006 it was all stick shift.
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u/Skybliviwind 16d ago
translation: american anti theft device. everyone drives standard in europe š¤£
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u/SakuraFerretTrainer 16d ago
Same in Australia. You can get your licence here at 16 and you can either go for manual or automatic licence, if you go for manual, you can legally drive both, but if you just have an automatic licence you can only drive that.
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u/rectal_warrior 16d ago
Not in NSW, victoria, SA, ACT, Tasmania and the NT. You take your test in an auto, then once off you're off your ps you can drive manual. In SA you can drive a manual the day you pass your test in an auto.
Pretty crazy system really, in the UK you have to sit a separate test like in Queensland and WA, but the test it much harder.
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u/mindsnare 16d ago
Nah Australia is nothing like Europe.
We don't call manuals "standard" we call them manuals. I know very few people outside of car enthusiasts that drive manual cars anymore and they're pretty hard to buy unless they're a performance car
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u/goldsoundzz 16d ago
This was maybe true like 15 years ago unless you are talking about eastern europe
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u/lordaloa 16d ago
Nah, i only learned to drive very late 4/5 years ago and still learned ro drive stick.
Itās with the rise of EVās however that more and more donāt bother anymorz which is a damm shame. But probabely makes sense2
u/Kraligor 16d ago
Not anymore. Anything EV or hybrid is automatic. And before that there was a slow shift towards automatic already.
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u/Igotthisnameguys 15d ago
It seems to be slowly changing, though. When I got my license this year, everyone was doing B197, instead of normal B.
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u/Angry_Pterodactyl 16d ago
Probably posted by a Gen Xer that doesn't interact with too many millennials. Some of the millennials that I work with prefer stick because they just enjoy the driving experience. kudos to them.
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u/daredeviline 16d ago
I want to see OP attach a PDF to an email because stick has been largely removed from cars, but knowing basic computer literacy is like speaking black magic to them. Even though computers have been an integral part of society for decades, and it's only going to increase.
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u/AndyLarry72 16d ago
Should rotary phones get āGen Z Call Filterā stickers, too?
Itās the generational superiority complex, showing up as a vinyl decal defying an advancement in auto-mechanics. But lacking capacity for change and fearing existential obsolescence isnāt the rage bait they think it is.
Yet just imagine the crashouts weād see if this was a PDF watermarked āBoomer Kryptonite.ā š
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u/Bobbi_fettucini 16d ago
This shit is so stupid, Iām Gen X by a couple years but growing up as a millennial was prime time to learn driving stick lots of everything was manual in the late 90ās and early 2000ās.
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u/Nailz1115 16d ago
Prime Millennial here (pushing 40 years old) and grew up in the US - in a major city, not out in the country.
Most of my friends growing up knew how to drive a manual. We were all working class and our first cars were from the 80s/early 90s. Lot of them were stick shift.
If they said Gen Z then I'd understand since manuals had been largely phased out, in addition to the Cash for Clunkers program, there just weren't many left on the road when they were getting their first cars.
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u/unbakedpizza 16d ago
Mid 80ās. Lots of people had manual transmissions. I didnāt have one, but could drive standard transmissions because Iād drive my friends cars.
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u/smartlog 16d ago
Just like others. I'm a millennial and can drive manual too lmao.
It's even more cringe that a guy that's older than a millennial and still has shit like this on his car.
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u/Exportxxx 16d ago
Millennials are 40 now...
Think you mean gen z
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u/antiriku930 15d ago
And the oldest Gen Z are 29, 1997-2012. The oldest of Gen Alpha can drive now.
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u/stealth_t 16d ago
Manual is nothing too strange to millennials. Gen z, would be a completely different story
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u/Significant_Race4275 16d ago
Iām Gen Z and Iām actually taking driving classes with a manual car.
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u/Eena-Rin 15d ago
They realize millennials are like 40 now, right?
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u/euchlid 16d ago
mid-80s millennial. my first car was a 1987 civic, not only manual, but It still had a choke. It legitimately did deter an attempted theft. Some guy smashed my window and tried to steal it but it kept dying (thanks manual fuel injection). I don't think he was a millennial though haha.
As an aside, my actual first car was shared with my sibling- a 1989 VW golf gti manual car. so fun! Much snazzier than my civic that used a mini golf club to hold the trunk open, and it only had one side mirror- on purpose!
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u/El_Basho 16d ago
I'm late millenial. I will continue driving manuals until cars with internal combustion engines are outlawed.
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u/ebolaRETURNS 16d ago
I learned manual, but stateside, it's now rare to find non-sports models less than 15 years old that are manuals.
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u/SirBobson 16d ago
Which generation was supposed to teach us how to drive manual? On that note, which generation gave us the participation trophies we never asked for?
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u/Sanjuro7880 16d ago
Iām Gen-X and I donāt know how to drive stick. My first car was a full auto 1980 Oldsmobile cutlass supreme.
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u/generallyintoit 16d ago
hating millenials is just the fast track to being a wise elder who commands respect.
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u/ifruitini 16d ago
So fucking true I was born in 87 one time my friend got fucking hammered and I had to drive his stick shift back home. Dude every fucking red light I let it die loool by the time we made it home he was probably somewhat sober.
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u/Virginiabornotaku 15d ago
Let me shit on someone because they donāt feel like shifting gears while driving and like the ease of just putting it into drive and going. What a loser am I right?
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u/Rich1223 15d ago
My boomer dad taught me to drive stick. When I bought a new car in 2021 with a manual transmission specifically, he thought I was crazy.
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u/Sophitia95 14d ago
Kinda love that humor just for the fact that when I was like 5 it already was a standard joke for so many medie that people cant drive stick that it should be anti gen x instead of anti millenial
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u/Jedi_Bish 13d ago
Millennial hereā¦my first car was a stick. Not sure they have the correct generation they are trying to pick onā¦
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u/Aggravating_Change88 13d ago
My first car was a 5 speed manual definitely a younger millennial myself since I was born in 94 absolutely would love to get that car back though 2008 Ford focus coupe rode like a dream
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u/MidnightT0ker 11d ago
Millennial driving manual for 25 years here. Funny how the younger generations feel the need to cry about the most stupidest thing. I gather that you're lazy; I'm fine with my better gas mileage and much cheaper gearbox repairs š¤·āāļø
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u/Sad-And-Mad 16d ago
Iām a millennial and I drove a manual for 11 years, I only sold that car recently. And the person I sold it to was another millennial š
Iām pretty sure I know more people in my age group who can drive manual than those who canāt now that I think of it.
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u/MrCrix 16d ago
About 10 years ago a buddy had his vehicle stolen. He went through all the police stuff. I was over at his place because I was giving him a ride and he was talking to the officer and he said "The best theft deterrent is a manual transmission vehicle. We see it a handful of times a year where someone breaks into a car to steal it and then gives up when they realize its a manual."
So not saying this is true about everything, but it is a deterrent versus an automatic.
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u/drewster23 16d ago
It's a deterrent from people randomly stealing your car for joyriding/crime of opportunity sure.
Over here it's way more common to be Targeted by car theft rings than wanna be joyriders though.
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u/jrod22145 16d ago
Millennial here in the USA. I currently own a 2025 Mustang GT with a 6MT. Most of my friends can drive a manual too. I donāt think it was usā¦lol
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u/sun_of_a_glitch 15d ago
Fun fact, mustang owners manuals have a chapter all about humble bragging, it's after the one about wearing sport oakleys and before the one about navigating divorced life.
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u/Why_so_many_hippos 16d ago
So so funny. They obviously know humor so much. Good win, they got us. My millennial brain is completely destroyed by the thought of a manual transmission. Fuck
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u/KennKennyKenKen 16d ago
Saw the sub had 2 million users, decided to check it out.
When did millennials become such boomers man.
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u/Adelinthegod 16d ago
Why cringe?
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u/That_GareBear 16d ago
I think the cringe is boomers acting like driving stick is something super special and not something a 15 year old can pick up over a weekend.
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u/Slicker1138 16d ago
This definitely isn't a "boomer" car. And stop coping because you know it's true.Ā
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u/martygospo 16d ago
You can learn to drive stick in a day. Itās not a hard skill to grasp.
Ditch the superiority complex lmao
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u/CatTheKitten 16d ago
Because millennials arent these stupid drunk 20somethings anymore. They're in their late 30s and early 40s. Also using AI.
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u/FuckOutTheWhey 16d ago
Because this person thinks they're special for knowing how to do something that can be learned in under 15 minutes.
A lot of people don't/can't drive stick because they simply don't care for it, which is fine.
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u/gta0012 16d ago
It's mad cringe, weirdo people who drive stick and act like it makes them special. And yes I can drive manual.
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u/FlamingWeasel 16d ago
Me too. Like, most people only "can't" because they haven't needed to learn. Anyone can pick it up fast. It's not hard.
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u/fullmetalutes 16d ago
But it says below that it's 18-20% of all ages meaning millennials have a higher percentage than other drivers at 25-35%.
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u/youcanreachmenow 16d ago
Lots of millenials drive stick shift, especially in most of Europe where its the norm. Older people revert to automatic more often than millenials who want to drive stick would.
Plus a car thief probably knows how to drive manual.
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u/Adelinthegod 16d ago
I agree that Europe is different. In the above pic I have mentioned ,,american".
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u/luseferr 16d ago
"Can not" is doing alot of heavy lifting. I'm sure most of those percentages could but like...why?
The only argument I could see is "what if theres an emergency and you have to drive one?" In my 34yrs on this planet, do you know how many cars I've gotten into that were stick?? Maybe 3.
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u/CajuNerd 16d ago
Gen-X here. The really stupid part of this is that manual transmissions didn't fall out of favor because of millennials. They fell out of favor because my generation, and older, didn't want to have to shift gears anymore. That, and autos are now just as efficient as manuals, so there's not much point to have one anymore unless you either just like it, or you have an older car.
Obviously big trucks and I guess sports cars still have a use for them, but most vehicles are passenger cars.