i will be doing this on a very tight budget as i am still in highschool and i only have a part time job. i will be doing things to it as i can afford to. i like the idea of scrounging junkyards for useable parts, everytime i'm in a junkyard i feel like a kid in a candy store. is a manual transmission a good choice? the reason i ask is that i have been toying around with the idea of the v-8 swap backed by a manual tranny. is an automatic better for cruising? is a standard more fun to drive?

jordan