right on kevin...
i personally "used?" to prefer a manual off road... even rock crawling. just like the control, but i gotta admit that ive put mine through pure hell and i love my at... absolutly bullet proof. if you go with an at, if it breaks it will cost you more to fix... but on the other hand with a mt youve got all the regular maintinance that will add up over time.
i think that when it comes to at vs mt, both sides are going to be pretty set in their ways... its all a matter of opinion/preferance.

98' BBJ Grand Laredo 5.2 locked and loaded,.01' Gen III XLS. Frankenmonty lives on in another.