> you're stuck in a time warp dude - it's 2011.
>

WHOA. Holy smokes, thank you for that, Cap'n Obvious. ;-)

> er, how many clutches are there in a traditional auto? *how many
> hydraulic systems?
>

Quite a few, stacked together last time I checked. And one hydraulic
system that I know of. The point was that I was comparing a standard
transmission/transaxle to an automatic anything. The standard
transmission, in my experience, will go longer without a failure
because there are far fewer things to break. Further on that point, it
will be easier to repair if it does break, and since the 'automanual'
boxes are relatively new, long-term reliability is somewhat hard to
gauge. The syncromesh manual gearbox on the other hand has been around
since what, 1940 something?

> yeah, atf is not special...
>

$27 a liter isn't not cheap, and the DSG units do not take ATF. Maybe
the Ford's do? I'll probably never know because I won't buy a ford
anything. But keep reading.

> how about pausing to check your facts?

How about take your own advice?

Best,
Chris