One of the things people get all hung up about when they arrive at a driving experience day is having to drive a car with a paddle shift gearshift. The controls seem unnatural and they’re worried about hitting the wrong paddle, what to do with thier feet and so on. They’ve been listening to Jeremy Clarkson on Top Gear telling you that they’re not as good as a manual, that he likes a stick shift, manual gearbox and that ‘Flappy Paddles’ as he calls them are no good.

The truth is, they’ve both got their good points, so much so that many supercars only come with a paddle shift gearbox today, with no manual gearshift version available as a option. If you’re heading out for your driving experience and you’re wondering if the car you’ll be driving has a paddle shift or a manual, don’t despair. Here’s a breakdown of eight great things about paddle shift gearchanges.

1. A manual shift will probably be familiar but within seconds you’ll get how to work a paddle shift.
2. A paddle shift will change the gears faster
3. You don’t need to lift of the gas to shift up a gear on a paddle shift
4. Most paddle shifts have shift up on one side, mainly the right, and down shift on the left
5. Paddle shifts blip the throttle on a downshift, making it sound like you just made a really slick racer style heel and toe downshift
6. Most paddle shifts have a safeguard built in to stop you going down too many gears at once
7. They all have an indicator on the dashboard that shows you which number gear you’re in, just so that you don’t get mixed up
8 You can keep your hands on the steering wheel all the time. Most paddle shifts are right behind the wheel, some even move with the steering wheel as you turn.

So if you’re worried that your driving experience car will not be a manual, don’t worry. Take your time on the first few gearchanges and you’ll soon find you’ll love a paddle shift and wonder what all the flap was about, if you’ll pardon the pun….