Searching for a Manual Transmission Car

The other day, I had a change of heart and wrote on my blog that I had decided to buy a used manual transmission car myself by summer this year. Since then, I’ve been checking used car websites almost every day.

ポルシェのMT車を颯爽と乗りこなす、かっこいい女性になるために。

Since I have relatively plenty of time, I wanted to take my time looking, so I checked Goo and Car Sensor daily, but new cars rarely appeared…

When I said to my husband, “Used car listings don’t get updated with new cars every single day, huh?,” he replied,

Well, that’s true. Even though new used car info comes up daily, the exact model you’re interested in doesn’t appear every day.

That made sense—of course it would be that way.

Also, even if I saw a price and thought “That’s cheap!”, many had very high mileage or were so old that maintenance costs would likely be high. Among them, there was one that seemed to have relatively low mileage and a good price, so I asked my husband about it, and he said,

This car is cheap because the suspension, muffler, and wheels have all been modified. If it were stock, it would probably cost a bit more even with the same mileage and year. Well, if you’re buying for fun or track use, modifications are fine.

When I said, “Even so, I can’t tell at a glance if a car is modified or stock,” he said,

The title says it has a Remus muffler, and the pictures even show the suspension springs to highlight the modifications. Certified used cars usually have little to no modifications, so it’s best to look for ones labeled “Certified Used Car.”

I realized there’s a lot to learn about how to research.

When you want a car that’s not too old, low mileage, reasonably priced, unmodified stock, and certified used, it’s hard to find one, and if there is, everyone probably wants it, so it sells quickly.

On top of that, if you say, “I want the body color to be this specific color!,” I feel like a car that fits me will never appear…

Honestly, I’m amazed at how people manage to find and buy their ideal car from such a huge amount of information. It’s really impressive.

Cars Are Expensive

Since deciding to buy a car myself and starting research, I’ve really felt that cars cost a huge amount of money. Well, I knew that before, but actually buying one makes it even clearer.

Also, owning a car isn’t just a one-time expense; the ongoing costs after purchase add up. Parking fees, fuel, car tax, ETC tolls, inspections, and repairs if something breaks…

Each cost might be small, but together they add up to a significant amount.

Five and a half years ago, when I became a mother for the first time, I respected all mothers for having gone through the incredibly painful experience of childbirth. Now, I feel the same respect for all car owners, thinking it’s amazing to own a car.

BMW 320i Is Coming Home…

Since declaring I would buy a manual transmission car myself, I’ve received various comments on the blog.

It might be good to analyze what your challenges are with manual operation before choosing a model. If you feel “the shift changes and clutch engagement shocks are too harsh” when driving a Porsche, you might want to buy a sports model and practice throttle control and half-clutch awareness. On the other hand, if “the half-clutch lasts too long and the revs rise too much on takeoff,” practicing quick clutch engagement without using half-clutch in a regular car might be better.

Italian and French manual cars tend to stall less and have decent power, so they’re easy to drive. I think test-driving multiple cars is important.

I learned a lot from these comments. I thought, “Since it’s a great opportunity, trying out manual cars from various manufacturers is a good idea.” So recently, my family and I casually visited a BMW used car dealer where I found a promising car on a used car site. My husband said,

This one is FR, so it’s good for basic manual driving practice. It’s turbocharged, so it has torque from low revs, making it fun to drive with a manual. Plus, with a 2000cc engine, the taxes aren’t too high.

But I had no intention of buying it at all; I just wanted to take a look.

And then, I ended up deciding to buy it immediately ((((；ﾟДﾟ)))

I was really surprised myself and couldn’t stop my heart racing even after signing the contract. By the way, this is the car I ordered.

2014 model BMW 320i. After seeing it, getting in, and trying the clutch and shift lever, I just felt a spark. I’ll share more about why I chose this BMW in a separate article later.

Wow, I never expected things to turn out like this… Life really is full of mysteries (lol).