Here's another preference poll. There might be less agreement here than on rear wheel drive. Which kind of transmission do you prefer to watch or imagine when someone gets stuck? If you enjoy getting stuck yourself, which transmission is your fav for that?
For me, it would always be manual transmission with stick shift. Manual transmission with the gearshift on the steering column would be almost as good, but I don't think these are made anymore. My reasons: (1) they are sturdier; (2) automatic transmission is common only in the U.S., and drivers almost everywhere else in the world laugh at the ineptitude and laziness of Americans for choosing it; (3) a skilled driver can safely shift between forward and reverse more quickly for rocking; and probably most important, (4) there's one more pedal to play with.
If a raconteur among us is looking for ideas, consider a story involving a driver who has experience only with automatic transmission. Then for whatever reason, he is driving a manual-transmission vehicle for the first time, and within a few minutes it gets stuck. Going into some detail over his fumblings with shift and clutch before he can gain enough familiarity to start rocking the car effectively could be an interesting aspect of the tale.
What do you think?