Husband rented a Manual car!!!!

He drives standard transmission at home?

@Nigel
He drives an Automatic normally but we both have had Manual cars in the past.

Just takes a little getting used to. Biggest challenges are coming out of a petrol station, and knowing which way to look when you pull into traffic. Right hand drives is a constant reminder of which side of the road the drive on. The manual transmission is not a big deal if you know how already.

Have done it for the same reason and much much prefer automatic. All our other trips automatic. It can be done many people do it. I seemed to always shift from first to fourth but somehow got it done!! Can you convince him this is a vacation meant to enjoy and the difference in price when you consider airfare and everything else is worth it?? Anyway good luck and enjoy .

I drove a manual as a young adult and actually taught my husband when we married. (I'm 57). It sort of is like riding a bike. When I was with my young adult sons in mexico, I rented a manual (much cheaper, haha) it took a bit of reacquainting, and each car is different. After a couple days, I realized that the shift pattern on that car was very tight. When we drive in Europe, my husband drives and I navigate. We've not had much problem and we've always rented a manual. He always plays with the clutch and shift pattern a bit before we leave the rental car lot. On our last trip to Spain, my husband figured out a month or so prior to the trip, that his driver's license would be expired and because of the whole real ID mess, there wasn't time to get the new one. So it was too late to change to an automatic without a big price change. We drove through the mountains of Andalusia. We had some minor problems (think having to parallel park on a steep hill in San Francisco, but with MUCH narrower streets) in the villages, but all in all in was fine. My caveat to you would be that obviously having to drive on the "wrong" side of the street adds another dimension.

We both know how to drive a manual transmission, our current Mini Cooper has one. However people’s brains are wired differently. My husband has no trouble at all driving in The UK and Ireland with a manual. I can’t even fathom how I could adapt. If he has confidence and a place in the parking lot to practice when you pick up the car he may be one of those who can adapt quickly. If it were just me, I’d need to pay the price for an automatic.

I'm right-handed and a total klutz doing most anything with the left. I hadn't driven a stick in twenty years when we went to England, but it took less than 5 minutes to get used to shifting with my left. As an earlier poster said, one of the hardest things to remember is to look for oncoming traffic in the near lane when turning right. The centerline is always on the driver's side. My wife was my navigator and was very helpful pointing out the roundabout exits. Initially, it may take both of you to get where you're going, but you'll be fine.

I am sure he will do fine. For me, the first time I rented a car in the UK, there were two things most difficult to get used to. One, shifting with my left hand (I am right handed.) Two, the right turn being the 'big' turn. Other than that after the first day I did fine. My Mom was with me and I will always remember her postcards sent back home always mentioned how well I was doing driving. I think that impressed her more than anything I had ever done.

I pay for the automatic. That way I don’t need to try and shift when on those very rural, one lane, two-way roads with bushes brushing both sides of the car, hoping no car is coming from the opposite direction. An automatic make those situations less stressful.

Although my wife's Fortune 500 multinational pharma company had an exclusive worldwide contract with one of the two BIG rental companies, they regularly FAILED to provide the automatic transmission reserved for her in Belgium. Since none of the Millennials on her staff could drive a manual, that meant she got stuck doing all the driving.

My point is that anyone renting in wealthy northern Europe should be ready to be told that there are "no automatics today." (Or that the only automatic is an immense 10' interior van (which happened to me in Frankfurt/FRA recently.) The OP is really best situated to know the answer to this question. Without getting into it, it's also relevant whether they have previous experience with whether the non-driver is "empowered" to state (I mean, without retribution .... ) "KEEP LEFT!" or "LOOK LEFT!" at any time, or at every turn or exit.

Men don't typically suffer from lack of confidence (or unwarranted overconfidence), but women tend to be the polar opposite. If he's the sole driver and thinks he can do it, let him deal with the rental. Get good insurance to pay for any scrapes and damage, and don't lose sleep over this (you'll probably be able to afford the damage from the savings). It's perfectly normal to rent a manual car in Europe. In worst case, your husband can try out the car and bring it back if it totally doesn't work.

Related thread
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/ireland/is-driving-that-bad-people-over-dramatic

I'm sure that muscle memory with foot and hand coordination will quickly return. I would imagine (because we don't rent cars in Europe) that the more difficult adjustment would be moving the shift lever with my left hand. At least the accelerator, brake and clutch pedal position are the same with both RHD and LHD cars. Just hope that you don't have too may stop signs at the top of a steep uphill grade.

One thing that sounds silly but is worth checking out at the start is how reverse is selected as it still varies so much.

Chandra,
When is your trip? Is there still time to change the reservation to an automatic?

He may do just fine, but it is one of those travel things than can "test a marriage." Only you two know HOW this could affect the enjoyment of your trip.....could be no big deal, or it would be the beginning of a really miserable trip........or somewhere between.

When people (who otherwise have the money) make decisions based SOLELY on price, often they get what they are paying for.

Wishing you the very best, and a truly enjoyable trip!!!

Can you "surprise" him and reserve the automatic instead.........or would THAT (the surprise) "test the marriage" and cause the beginning of a really miserable trip...LOL.

Let us all know how it goes...........................................hopefully problem free.

My marriage would crumble if hubby drove a stick in Ireland. LOL ( kinda kidding) LOL

That's what I just drove in May. I regularly drive a manual transmission in Europe because I like the performance I get with small engines and the gas mileage. I had a manual transmission sports car in the US until recently. I'd only driven a manual on the left side of the road in Australia. I was surprised how quickly I adapted.

My problem this time was more to do with the gear layout in the tiny Kia than shifting in general. It took most of the rental time before I felt I had a good feel for where the gears were. That said, I had no accidents just not as smooth of gear work as I usually have in the little Peugots and Fiats I've mostly driven. It did get 45 miles per gallon. The suspension in the little Kia was horrible (noticeable on many rural roads) . If my car at home handled like that, I'd take it in for new shocks right away. This car only had 5,000 miles on it. It's hard to judge a brand by their base model but I doubt I'd ever buy a Kia. If they give you a Kia, ask for something else.