automatic OR manual?

It all depnds on what "you" prefer to drive every day. Our opinions should mean nothing. Plain and simple. You must live with the vehicle and slap down the cash to purchase it.



I have both and would much rather drive one of the automatics (C5 or Escalade) the majority of the time and still not sacrifice any performance or joy of driving at the same time drink my coffee without acrobatics or endangering other drivers on the road.

Nothing like having big hp and torque under the right foot no matter what the left foot may or may not be doing. :woot2:



When the mood hits me to manually shift I just pull out the '67 Z28, Chevy II 327 SS or '67 Chevelle 396. :getdown

But...... when I was younger (16-35 y.o) and had 2 good hips, I would drive (own) nothing but a manual (automatics in the 60/70/80's were not as refind as the ECU controlled units made today ).
 
I don't really care for the transmission type, as long as the auto has more than 3 gears. I have driven a 3 cylinders, 3 speed auto Suzuki Forsa once, 0-100 KM/H in like 45 seconds...



Some cars I think are preferable with automatic. While shopping, I tried a few cars and I can honestly say I didn't like the Nissan Sentra manual tranny, the shifter didn't feel right or move smoothly. If I had chosen that car, I would have opted for an automatic.



I realized I wouldn't want to pay a thousand bucks more to have an auto, so I eliminated Nissan. Finally found another car with a "just right" shifter.



I enjoy it no matter the conditions. I like small efficient engines, so I'm better off shifting by myself.
 
6 speed manual -- and I live in Los Angeles where the traffic sucks. And still, it's gotta be a stick.
 
7 SMG > all of yous :woot2:

Joke aside, I live in NYC and trust me the traffic its worst than anywhere else. I drive from Brooklny to Midtown Manattan its only 13 miles. It take me avg 90min from door to door :sosad Yup, I down with AUTO yo. All my last 8 rides I owned was a STICK :soscared:
 
My V6 is an auto; to be frank, I'm a car enthusiast and a Autopian when it comes to care (at 9500 miles my car still looks brand new), but my life doesnt allow much other than a commute to work and back during the weekdays (and its only 7 miles). I also live in Boston, effectively, so I love my 5-gear tiptronic.



I think if you get a "fast" sport tuned new car, I think you will find that its tiptronic mode will give you what you want *unless* you plan to autocross. My tiptronic works fantastic for planned "here I'm going to gun it" and for "ok, lets downshift and keep the revs high ready for gunning it and merging with traffic" or even "keep it in first gear to impress my friends with torque". I can do almost anything a manual driver can do short of harming the car (like I can't downshift from 4 to 1, but would a manual driver be doing the right thing??).



I can't see myself autocrossing very well, obviously since I wouldn't know perfectly what gear I'm in; but for drag, I think an auto has the upper hand in consistency. The computer (again assuming a decent new automatic car tuned for sport shifts) can't mess up the shifting!



Now, nevertheless, here's my story if I didn't need to worry about money: my daily driver, no matter how fun (my car is a blast right now! but still, auto it is.), would likely be an automatic. However, if I were to buy a second car, as a fun car like a miata, cooper, or other sports car, I would very likely make that a manual.



Finally....

research if the car you are interested in is known to have "issues" with its manual transmissions (or auto for that matter!). In my case, 05 Nissan Altima's have known issues with their manuals, but their automatics rule!!!



edit: rewrite some sentences as I wrote this while I was on the phone... :doh
 
eddieg said:
My V6 is an auto; to be frank, I'm a car enthusiast and a Autopian when it comes to care (at 9500 miles my car still looks brand new), but my life doesnt allow much other than a commute to work and back during the weekdays (and its only 7 miles). I also live in Boston, effectively, so I love my 5-gear tiptronic.



I think if you get a "fast" sport tuned new car, I think you will find that its tiptronic mode will give you what you want *unless* you plan to autocross. My tiptronic works fantastic for planned "here I'm going to gun it" and for "ok, lets downshift and keep the revs high ready for gunning it and merging with traffic" or even "keep it in first gear to impress my friends with torque". I can do almost anything a manual driver can do short of harming the car (like I can't downshift from 4 to 1, but would a manual driver be doing the right thing??).



I can't see myself autocrossing very well, obviously since I wouldn't know perfectly what gear I'm in; but for drag, I think an auto has the upper hand in consistency. The computer (again assuming a decent new automatic car tuned for sport shifts) can't mess up the shifting!



Now, nevertheless, here's my story if I didn't need to worry about money: my daily driver, no matter how fun (my car is a blast right now! but still, auto it is.), would likely be an automatic. However, if I were to buy a second car, as a fun car like a miata, cooper, or other sports car, I would very likely make that a manual.



Finally....

research if the car you are interested in is known to have "issues" with its manual transmissions (or auto for that matter!). In my case, 05 Nissan Altima's have known issues with their manuals, but their automatics rule!!!



edit: rewrite some sentences as I wrote this while I was on the phone... :doh
Click to expand...





if i were getting an auto for a daily driver it would have to be tiptronic/dsg/or whatever they are called im not sure :bounce i've driven the new 3 series with one and its cool, but in now way is comparable to a manual...yeah u can downshift and gun, i dont know if u can do more than a 1 gear drop (i wouldnt try as it wasnt my car)...downshifting to 1st gear in any car is just a bad habit :soscared: ...but manual rule in snow/slippery surfaces because u can slow the car down without the brakes and if done properly it wont damage the car..and one thing that an automatic/tiptronic will never allow me to do, heel to toe downshifting...i do this often i actually stop thinking, its just happens on its own :) and i truely miss it when driving an automatic coming around turns :bawling:
 
What a question! ;)



You already know the answer. If the majority of replies so far are manuals, even taking into account they are mainly from folks living in the ONLY country in the world where automatics are preferred, what would you expect from a crazy latin driver, living where manuals are the norm? :D



Autos are perfect to learn, but not for more. As far as traffic, if you have driven in Mexico city or any other 2 million+ city in Mexico (Guadalajara, Monterrey or Puebla) then you will learn that bad traffic has a new meaning..... Oh, and we even learn how to eat with the left hand and steer / shift / turn signal with the right..... And we don't mind manuals in traffic.



I agree in the statement that the best auto transmition shifts faster than the best driver (aprox 160 ms) but I will place emphasis in the term "best". Almost no comercial cars have auto transmitions that can beat a good driver. Where NO auto transmition can beat a good driver is in road focus. Go uphill and before starting climbing you already downshifted... the auto will take some time.





Alex



PS. I only drive auto if there is nothing else available..... and as a comment, my driving skills are not that great.... I struggled to learn stick, but once you get the feeling there is no way back.
 
Maybe some team in F1 will realize that manual transmissions are the way to go. Best drivers with an automatic will not stand a chance against another equally good driver in an automatic (computer controlled unit). ;)



For real life safe driving situations the differential between the forms of shifting is non-existant unless of course we are only talking about low hp/torque vehicles with narrow power and torque bands in which a manual will definitely make life in these vehicles much more tolerable and maybe even exciting.
 
I've had this theory -- what do you guys think?



An auto driver has an edge at accident avoidance; in an emergency, you are more likely to keep control and keep the engine running while doing emergency maneuvers. A manual driver doing a panic braking maneuver risks stalling the engine and then not being able to accelerate out of the way, if that became necessary.



I've run that by some friends - they claim "noo, no way it'd be automatic to brake/downshift properly". I would still claim many people would panic, leave the gear in fourth or fifth, slam it to 0 forgetting the clutch and stall.
 
I always hit the clutch soon after the brake in a panic stop. It's just instinct now. If you're slowing down quickly, you need to hit the clutch in too.
 
I've got a '99 Miata with a 5 speed and it is pure joy to drive, mostly because it has one of the slickest manual gearboxes on the market. It's reasonably peppy even though the engine only makes about 140HP and 110lb-ft of torque at the crank - then again it only weighs 2300lbs.



I also have a 2004 PT Cruiser Turbo with the Stage 1 upgrade. It has an automatic, but since it makes about 245HP and 270lb-ft of torque in its current modded state, it will crush the Miata in straighline acceleration (1/4 mile in 14.4 @ 95mph) and can spin the front tires from a 20mph roll. Seriously: stand on it, the trans kicks down NOW, the turbo spools fast and BAM! If I need to get out of the way in a hurry whether from a dead stop, a 20mph roll or the run from 60-90mph (again, stand on it and the trans kicks down NOW), between these two cars I'll take the one with the auto tranny!



Then there's my 1992 Camaro RS V6 - also an automatic - that I consider to be my foul weather car. Since I live in SoCal and we get very little foul weather, I don't drive it that much. With the same HP as the Miata but an extra 1000lbs of heft to propel, it is far from fast. Mashing the go pedal at freeway speeds mostly increases the noise level, not the speed. Nail the gas pedal and the tranny eventually stops hitting the snooze button, figures out what you're asking and rewards you with...well...noises that sound like you're going faster (but you really arent't).



The moral of my story: lots of power and torque coupled with a modern, properly programmed auto tranny (Stage 1 on the PT also reprograms the trans!), even if the wrong wheels are driving the vehicle, get you moving plenty fast!
 
Manual transmission > *



It's faster and more fun. If you don't care about either of those, then get an automatic. :tribe:
 
I have always equated fast and fun with hp and torque. Gotta have these two or your fast and fun just turns into playing boy/girl racer stimulating these items while running through the gears.



low horsepower and especially low torque : manual tranny

hi hp and torque: personally preference of type of transmission



Have a couple of each form of transmissions, high hp and torque and the question becomes which form of transmission do I feel like driving today. :woot2:
 
My daily driver is a 6 speed 330i with zhp and my toy car is a 5 speed 1986 Mustang GT. My wifes SUV is an automatic. If I have a choice it will be manual.
 
eddieg said:
I've had this theory -- what do you guys think?



An auto driver has an edge at accident avoidance; in an emergency, you are more likely to keep control and keep the engine running while doing emergency maneuvers...
Click to expand...





IMO it'll come down to the driver. But given the skill levels of most people, yeah, I tend to agree. And yeah, it's a lot harder to mess up so badly that you stall the car with an auto.



And in uhm, unusual types of emergencies, especially under great adrenal stress, the auto really is a lot easier to use. Ever try doing a no-warning, right-NOW! reverse-180 with a stick? Not easy; but it's pretty easy with an automatic, piece of cake with a column mounted shifter.
 
blkZ28Conv said:
Maybe some team in F1 will realize that manual transmissions are the way to go. Best drivers with an automatic will not stand a chance against another equally good driver in an automatic (computer controlled unit). ;)



For real life safe driving situations the differential between the forms of shifting is non-existant unless of course we are only talking about low hp/torque vehicles with narrow power and torque bands in which a manual will definitely make life in these vehicles much more tolerable and maybe even exciting.
Click to expand...



Aren't F1 transmistions sequential semi-automatics? The shift pads are mounted in the steering wheel. I remember reading that F1 went with sequential transmitions because the drivers were blowing engines at a high rate (7th down to 4th for example). With the sequential, to go from 7th down to 2nd you have to press the paddle a few times and go through all the gears in between.
 
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