For forever and a day, truckers drove rigs with manual transmissions.

Pop your head into any truck cab and you’d see the obligatory manual stick.

But as with everything, times change.

More and more often a cursory cab look will show not a manual stick, but an automatic shifter.

The question is, do automatic transmissions actually offer truckers any advantages?

And the answer to this questions is, in many cases yes. While there are staunch loyalists for both manual and automatic transmissions, the simple fact is each year more and more heavy truck drivers are opting for automatic transmissions.

There are many reasons for this.

First, in most cases automatic transmission equipped rigs get better fuel mileage, and when it comes to heavy trucking, fuel mileage is always a primary concern. Who doesn’t want to keep more money in their back pocket as opposed to in the coffers of the fuel companies.

But the reasons automatic rigs are becoming more and more prevalent go beyond financial.

Many people feel that automatic transmission rigs are safer than manuals since you can focus more of your attention on driving as opposed to shifting. And while this applies to summer and good condition hauling, it is even more acute in winter with snow and ice on the road.

And if we have to give you one more reason, here it is…

They’re just easier to drive.

Navigating traffic, roads, construction and weather in a rig that’s hauling thousands of pounds for hours each day wears on you. Just the physical strain on the clutch leg and arm shifting stretch can wear on you over time. Many drivers find that by having an automatic transmission, they are less exhausted at the end of the day.

As one of the most popular truck manufacturing companies in the world, Volvo has met, or exceeded the trucking industries needs for the better part of one hundred years!

With a relentless focus on driver protection, comfort and performance, Volvo has become the rig of choice for countless heavy truck drivers, fleets and trucking companies.

Gerrys Truck Centre in London Ontario has been a Volvo truck dealer for over 30 years. We offer sales of new and used (pre-owned rigs) as well as parts and service, and pride ourselves on top quality service.