Spring shop online at www.missourivalleyshopper.com April 14, 2015 • Page 9 Home Improvement Car Care These Professionals Stick Shifts Not Always What They Seem Can Help Maintain Your Home Many auto enthusiasts prefer stick shifts, or manual transmissions, over to those machines. Electricians can fix automatic transmissions. existing issues, but many also can design Such supporters of stick and install new electrical components shifts tend to feel as though and systems. The dangers of working a manual transmission with electrical systems are many, so engages drivers in ways that electricians typically must be certified an automatic one simply and licensed before they can practice cannot, making stick shifts their trade. Such danger is one reason more fun to drive than why even those who are adept at fixing the more staid, automatic problems around the house might want alternatives. to hire an electrician should an electrical While the fun factor issue arise. associated with manual transmission vehicles may • Plumber: A plumber is a professional be difficult to dispute, there whose area of expertise is in installing are other commonly held and maintaining systems for drinking beliefs about stick shifts water, drainage and sewage. Though not that are far easier to contest. all jurisdictions require a plumber be The following are a few licensed before he or she can practice, things about today’s manual many do, and it can take years of training transmission vehicles that and experience to master the skill of might surprise even the plumbing. Many people call a plumber most ardent automotive when a toilet or sink backs up, but enthusiasts. plumbers must have far more extensive * Manual transmission skills as well. Plumbers must be skilled vehicles are not necessarily in a number of areas, including having an cheaper than automatic ability to read and understand a home’s Home repairs are inevitable. For the transmission vehicles. blueprints, detect faults in a plumbing homeowner who also happens to be handy Stick shifts are often less system if the homeowner cannot install with a hammer, the occasional home repair expensive than automatics, and repair fixtures and systems, and be is nothing to fear and something that many but that’s not always aware of any legal requirements to ensure the case, and certain even enjoy. But there many homeowners who a home is safe. aren’t so adept at home repairs, and such manufacturers, including men and women typically rely on trained BMW, tend to charge • Landscaper: Homeowners have professionals when something goes awry the same price for their increasingly looked to professional around the house. For those homeowners vehicles regardless of landscapers to maintain their home’s who either don’t have the time or the ability which type of transmission exterior and subsequently ensure their to fix issues that arise around the house, the buyers choose. In the past, property value remains high. A typical following is a breakdown of three of the more manual transmissions landscaper offers his client an array of commonly called on home service providers. were almost always a less services, from cutting the grass to raking expensive option than leaves to more complicated tasks that • Electrician: An electrician specializes automatic transmissions gravitate toward landscape architecture. because they were easier in addressing a building’s or home’s A home’s curb appeal has been shown electrical wiring issues, stationary for manufacturers to to vastly improve a prospective buyer’s machines and the equipment related install, which enabled impression of the house, and automakers to cut back as a result many homeowners on labor costs, and those Need A Plumber NOW? rely on a landscaper to take Quality Work At A Fair Price savings were passed along care of their property. Many to consumers. While that landscapers an extensive difference in sticker price knowledge of the science might once have been In Business involved in tending to a lawn significant, nowadays it is Since New Construction and how to help it weather 1994 Home and Cabin often negligible, meaning Remodel and Repairs the seasons without losing its buyers won’t necessarily appeal. save substantial amounts of 89476 557th Ave. money by opting for a stick Box 1062 Fordyce NE 68735 Yankton SD 57078 shift. 402•357•3302 605•668•0177 ?Metro Creative Connections Kevin Zavadil Cell #605•661•2894 KEVIN’S PLUMBING SE RVICE , L LC * Stick shifts are not readily available in all models. As the popularity of manual transmission vehicles has waned, so, too, has their availability. According to Edmunds. com, 67 percent of 2013 model-year vehicles were offered only with automatic transmissions. While it might be possible for buyers to still purchase such vehicles with manual transmissions, that opportunity is not guaranteed. Even if it is available, buyers will likely have to pay a premium price to order such custommade automobiles, and it takes longer to deliver such vehicles than it does when buyers simply buy a car already on the lot. * Stick shifts may not be expensive to maintain. Some drivers of manual transmission vehicles like to bemoan the costs of replacing the clutch on their vehicles, and that raises some concern among buyers considering a stick shift. But skilled stick shift drivers need not be worried about constantly replacing the clutch, which tends to be most in need of replacement when novice drivers struggle to get the hang of a manual transmission. In addition, manual transmissions are often much less expensive to replace than automatic transmissions. Also, skilled stick shift drivers who can deftly downshift often note the positive long-term effect that such a practice has on their brake pads and rotors, which can last considerably longer on vehicles with manual transmissions than those with automatic ones. * Stick shifts may not repel car thieves or cost less to insure. Because vehicles with manual transmissions require more skill to drive than automatics, some feel as though this deters car thieves, who may not know how to drive stick shifts. But there is no evidence to support this theory, nor any evidence to dispute it. And while those who subscribe to this theory feel that manual transmissions are therefore cheaper to insure because they are at a decreased risk of being stolen, that is also untrue. While the standards used to determine the price of an insurance policy vary between providers, many insurance providers view manual transmission vehicles as more risky because they take longer to shift, stop and accelerate. But manual transmissions also are less expensive to repair, and insurance companies consider that as well when determining the cost of a policy. Such factors may cancel each other out, and drivers will be left with an insurance policy that’s roughly the same as if the vehicle included an automatic transmission. The demand for manual transmission vehicles continues to shrink, and there are things drivers should know about such automobiles before driving one home. ?Metro Creative Connections SchuurmanS Farm Supply 308 Capital • Yankton • yankton@hedahls.com We carry many USA made products! 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