Are you able to drive a stick shift in a car?

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Technically it is true, especially on the freeway. However, driving in slow traffic a lower gear would use more petrol and a higher gear would tax the engine. So costing can be a good thing.

I don't really see a situation where sticking it in neutral would be a more economical option. when you're coasting in neutral you're still burning fuel, whereas when you're in gear with your foot off the throttle it's not injecting anything. it would probably be better to just crack the throttle open a tiny bit to keep the speed constant. when you coast you're still decelerating so when you stick it back in gear you're going to have to accelerate back up to speed, which is less efficient than keeping a constant speed.

I've used nothing but standard (manual) transmissions when I drove. Many a time on a very icy road I would not use my brakes
to slow down, I would simply down shift and use engine compression as my brake. I never skidded out of control, even in an emergency. But it looks like I won't be owning a car with gas prices being what they are. My preferred means of getting around
is a motorcycle.

I actually prefer a stick shift on the floor, as manual transmissions are much more controllable, and inherantly less complex than an automatic transmission. --The cearning curve is a bit higher, but here's some of the stuff that is inherantly easier to do with a manual:

1.) You can start a car with a dead battery without jumper cables or other assistance.

2.) If your brakes fail, it is much easier to slow down, and perhaps even stop the car by downshifting.

3.) You can still drive even if one of your lower gears is missing, or if your clutch control is broken.

Nice car! If it's yours, could I suggest this seeming travesty?

Remove the steering wheel and the Plastic shift knob. Run wire from the dashboard light circuit through the steering column, into the hub of the steering wheel, and additional wire through the Shift selector. Terminate these wires with Red LED's, one in the shift selector, and pehaps several large ones in the steering hub. Have exact replicas of both the steering wheel and the shift selector made from polished, clear Lucite. --For maximum effect with the steering wheel, use either chrome plated steel, or highly polished stainless steel steering wheel forming wire.

I am assuming you mean a car with a manual transmission as compared to an automatic transmission. Yes the car I drive has a stick shift with no problem

I am able to drive a stick shift car, although I have not done it for 10 years. I learned right after I got my driver's licence in 2004 at the age of 19. I have had my current car, which has an automatic transmission, for the last 10 years. I have never driven a vehicle with four-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive, and I have never driven a truck or any large vehicle.

Yes I certainly can. Automatics are a horrible total nightmare, how do you do it? the things are un-driveable. I once found myself (pre-diagnosis) at the wheel of a mini bus with 3 children who were autistic like me on our way to a climbing wall in Lincoln. I was a little shocked to discover on entering the vehicle that not only was I a peddle missing but there was also a gear stick missing too....s**t. I bunny hopped to the end of the road, thought nahhhhh (In my finest Anglo Saxon) turned round and went back to the school. I won't be getting back in an automatic again.

I got my commercial license at 16 years, two weeks, driving stick on ice. My practice slides have saved me from two serious accidents. One time I flew to LA while they were having a gas crisis. The rental car situation was bedlam, but they still had a nice 4-speed Mustang sitting around that nobody else could drive!

I can but it's quickly becoming an obsolete skill. I don't see many cars even offering a manual anymore.

Yes.

drove better with manual, rather than automatic. there’s something about having that extra control over the vehicle that eased the mind, despite the extra processes. wouldn’t want to have to drive manual in a place with a lot of inclining streets though.

going to have to learn to drive again once allowed(neurologist has to say it’s safe), and can afford to... this area is too sprawled out to go anywhere using public transit. don’t care for the look of most modern cars though... so that had always been a negative toward finding incentive to drive in the past. the only head turning vehicle seen in years was a subaru impreza with a hatchback(station wagon-y... practical, small enough, and somewhat rugged looking.).