I voted manual as 4 of my last 5 cars were/are manuals. And the auto was free. The wife's corolla is an auto. I have always preferred manuals...

However as I am getting older and moving out of being obsessed with turbo subarus, I am starting to see the appeal of an auto. I drove from Wollongong to Eastern Creek for 6 months for work and for a week I drove the corolla and not doing the 1st, move 3 feet, neutral, 1st, move 3 feet, neutral, shuffle was awesome!

So i'll have to dig this thread up in a few years and maybe see about changing my vote

As for those semi-autos like falcons, mazdas and whatnot: They are poo. You end up just leaving it in full auto anyway.

If you want to do it properly, you have to get something with a dual clutch transmission, like an evo, gtr, or golf gti (but even they have their issues)