Automatic Motorhomes vs Manual Motorhomes - Which to Buy and Why

When purchasing a motorhome, it’s important to take into consideration the type of transmission that may be required, for the most part purely comes down to personal preference however there are some factors that may help to sway you in favour of one or the other.

Automatic

An automatic motorhome is a motorhome that contains an automatic gearbox, said gearbox will change gears for you and generally make life slightly easier behind the wheel with only two pedals to think about and no need to worry about clutch control.

These are more common in the US as their cars often adopt this same method of transmission, over in the UK it’s much more common to see a manual gearbox however as times are changing, it is becoming more and more common to see automatic gearboxes be favoured by manufacturers.

Automatic motorhomes are relatively easy to drive, begone are the worries of gears and clutch control when on a steep incline, with only two pedals the driver’s left foot can afford to take a rest, some even opt to learn how to brake with their left foot.

In built-up areas with more traffic, not having to keep your foot pressed down on the clutch or find the biting point to move one metre at a time can be relieving, to say the least. This isn’t forgetting that they are also more environmentally friendly as their gearboxes have been designed to be as economical as possible changing gears at the perfect timing to boost fuel efficiency alongside smooth gear changes that reduce emissions.

There are of course some downsides with the major being that vehicles with automatic gearboxes are more expensive to purchase because the parts required to operate these engines cost more than you’d find in a manual transmission vehicle.

If you need to have work done on your engine or gearbox you need to either go back to the original dealer or find an automatic specialist as few garages have the special tools required to be able to work on these engines which can cause some issues.

You also lose the element of control, many drivers prefer to be in full control of their vehicle whilst driving which includes what gear you are in, driving an automatic means you do not have full control of the operation of your motorhome.

Automatic pros:

• Easier to drive
• More fuel-efficient
• Better acceleration

Automatic cons:

• More expensive to buy
• Less control

Manual

Manual gearboxes are the ‘OG’, they have been around since the dawn of vehicles time and are what many people across the UK are accustomed to driving, the manual element of the transmission requires the driver to change gears themselves and operate the clutch at the same time, this is much more difficult to do when compared to the automatic transmission.

The main advantage to a manual transmission is the greater level of control that is offered to the driver from upshifting to selecting the correct gear for their revs, for example skipping a gear when accelerating and downshifting to perform an overtake.

These are also much cheaper to purchase and to maintain as the parts are relatively inexpensive when compared to the automatic transmission vehicles, you also do not need to go to any specialised garages or dealers to have these worked on as nearly every garage can work on manual engines.

Of course, there are some cons to manual gearboxes including the fact that they are worse for the environment, that is unless you’ve somehow managed to perfect the gear change. Whilst driving a manual motorhome your fuel efficiency will be worse than an automatic as the automatic gearbox is programmed to change gears at the perfect time for maximum speed gains and fuel saving, in a manual you do not have this luxury and must rely on your driving skills to try and change gears at the best possible times.

If you are going for long journeys, it can become tiresome to constantly have to change gears yourself instead of relying on the automatic gearbox to do it for you, if you’ve been tootling across Europe, it can get very tedious.

Manual pros:

• Cheaper to purchase and maintain
• More control when driving

Manual cons:

• Worse for the environment
• More tiring to operate

As you can see, there are clear pros and cons to both. With the market adapting and leaning further towards the automatic side of things you may want to look at investing in an automatic motorhome purely as it is futureproofed, however we understand that old habits die hard and the thought of driving an automatic gearbox is too much to bear for many people.

Happy motorhoming!