Yeah, it is. I hate my 5 speed. My next one is an auto.

 

I may not be anyone but I think the manual 5 spd is a much better transmission than the automatic. The slave cylinder is not the best but the manual transmission takes a lot of heavy use without failing. I have over 98K miles on my 02 Ranger and many of those miles have been towing my race car all over the country. Other than some minor maintenance stuff, I have had zero problems since I had some early warranty work done. I expect to change the clutch sometime after 100K miles but still consider that maintenance. I have seen many automatics replaced or repaired at considerably less mileage than what I have.

I have used a Ranger (with manual transmision) as a work horse since 1989 and that is far from being useless. You are either unlucky or doing something wrong.