Danger Ranger? You mean Ford Ranger? I had a 2003 Ranger with a 3.0L that I put over 200,000 miles on (never rebuilt). Many of those miles was in Los Angeles traffic. It was 5 speed with 4.56 gears and a Detroit Locker. It was mildly built for the desert off-road. I sold it like a month ago.
Did I ever get tired of the manual transmission? NEVER!! I miss that truck so bad. I'm driving a CVT automatic vehicle now and I have an utter distaste for not being able to control what gear I'm in.
But what if she grabs the wrong stick and tries to speed shift? OUCH!!!
Anyway....my vote is for manual transmission because it's more fun to drive.