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Manual vs Automatic Transmission

20643 Views 376 Replies 57 Participants Last post by BRZtoch, 2 mo ago

drdreyno

Discussion Starter · 3 mo ago

Gear shift Automotive design Vehicle Car Gadget

I am an old guy who has driven/owned many fast cars,motorcycles,3 wheelers, and I still have my 88 Quadzilla. The point is that I love to drive fast and always have. I am unclear about the hatred of automatic transmissions in the GR. I had a corvette that lifted the front end off the ground at 135. I had an automatic 2013 FRS as my sales rep job in SoCal traffic doing 35000 miles a year (😒) and I loved having the automatic. I had 1 of 350 1993 RX7's in CYM and it was the best driving car at high speed. I did 184 in that 5 speed and it stuck to the road like glue. With dual clutch automatic transmissions they have become quicker than ever before. I looked up some supercars and many have automatic transmissions such as the 2022 Mclaren 720S( 0 to 60 in 2.8 ang gets 22mpg ). If you happen to see an old guy passing you in an orange SE automatic its possibly me so just wave, beep your horn and smile because my knees are bad so I can't push a clutch anymore and I can barely see you. The real advantage of driving the manual these days is that you feel more engaged in the driving process AND that ALOT of people don't know how to do it. If you read my rambling thoughts, I thank you and happy motoring however you choose to do it... I hope to live long enough to take delivery LOL

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PhoenixM3

· #2 · 3 mo ago

I have a manual GR86 and a C8 on order. My knees are still good, and if the Corvette had a manual, I’d order it. Yeah, DCTs and slush boxes are wickedly quick, but there is something very satisfying with rowing your own.

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EVASIVE TRUENO

· #3 · 3 mo ago

I've owned an automatic FRS, manual 86 and now GR86.

The automatic FRS i put like 70,000 miles on. It was a fantastic car, and all of the mountain pass roads where I live I never felt out of place in the automatic.

That being said, if you have the physical ability to drive a manual I don't see why you wouldn't just go for it. It's quite literally one of the easiest manuals on the market to learn in and drive. I think the whole "i have to drive it on the highway" thing is a fallacy and excuse for folks maybe too scared to learn or too lazy. The clutch weighs near to nothing. It's an extremely fluid car to drive and you get such a performance advantage for CHEAPER.

The videos I've seen of the automatic GR, the computer looks a lot more restrictive than the outgoing model. Restrictive as in not liking you to downshift at what i'd consider still conservative RPM's if you're driving spirited. However, I haven't driven one first hand so I can't confirm. Both are good cars though.

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mesablu3

· #4 · 3 mo ago (Edited)

I’m not gonna lie. I prefer the manual for its driver engagement and the oneness you feel with the road. But sometimes when it’s late or really early I don’t feel like get down into the BRZ and it’s nice being able to jump in my wife’s Sante Fe to run around town… lol.

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Briansshop

· #5 · 3 mo ago

drdreyno said:
I had a corvette that lifted the front end off the ground at 135.

LOL! I was reading until the above statement.

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Colicious

· #6 · 3 mo ago

A few things to consider: Can you drive a manual? Do you absolutely have to have a manual? Do you want to wait for a manual?

I ended up with an auto because I jumped on a car that was in-transit. I traded a Focus ST for it. I miss the stick and third pedal, but I also enjoy the adaptive cruise control and inherent smoothness. It's just a matter of what you want. Don't let anyone shame you out of an auto.

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DylanJZA

· #7 · 3 mo ago

I went with an auto because I do a 4hr drive four times a month and because traffic in town and on the interstate is often congested for various reasons. The AT itself, extra 4-5mpg, and adaptive cruise make all of this MUCH easier for DD reasons. That said, it has a great manual mode and I keep it there at all times vs just popping it into D; regular auto mode is not something I care for tbh (it loves upshifting to the highest gear for fuel economy and thats not my thing). If it did not have this, I would have gone MT or passed on the car altogether.

Many people get straight up angry when you mention reasoning for AT and will typically say there are other better options for a DD in AT, but I disagree unless the only argument is practicality lol. Unless were talking A90 Supra (an extra $23k) or something else more expensive RWD. You still get an amazing chassis, handling, and an engine making 100hp/L, and that's why I bought it.

BUT if I lived in a place like I used to in FL that didn't have all the bullshit, I'd pass on the AT all day and go MT for sure.

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Ritter

· #8 · 3 mo ago

Briansshop said:
LOL! I was reading until the above statement.

If it was a C2, very plausible.

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pandafabrications

· #9 · 3 mo ago

There are zero reasons to get this car in an auto, and a million to get it in a manual.

Auto sports cars shouldn’t even exist, it’s a literal oxymoron.

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Ritter

· #10 · 3 mo ago

pandafabrications said:
There are zero reasons to get this car in an auto, and a million to get it in a manual.

The OP gave reasons that number > zero.

pandafabrications said:
Auto sports cars shouldn’t even exist, it’s a literal oxymoron.

Put down your bible. Ain’t nobody got time for MT monks who drink their own bath water because it’s a more pure bathing experience.

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rjt

· #11 · 3 mo ago

DylanJZA said:
The AT itself, extra 4-5mpg

DylanJZA said:
regular auto mode is not something I care for tbh (it loves upshifting to the highest gear for fuel economy and thats not my thing).

Hmmm...

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pandafabrications

· #12 · 3 mo ago

Ritter said:
The OP gave reasons that number > zero.

Put down your bible.

False. I literally know a guy without legs that drifts a manual vehicle. Not just drives, but participates in motorsports at a high level.

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Briansshop

· #13 · 3 mo ago

Ritter said:
If it was a C2, very plausible.

How is that?

DylanJZA

· #14 · 3 mo ago (Edited)

rjt said:
Hmmm...

It doesn't have to be in the standard AT mode for improved fuel economy, but I can understand your confusion. I was speaking to the gearing advantage, but also that I don't like it upshifting to like 6th gear when I'd prefer to be in say 2nd/3rd around town.

Gets 34-35mpg in M6 or D at 75mph. Around town, I likely lose a little keeping it in manual mode but I'm fine with that.

Ritter

· #15 · 3 mo ago (Edited)

The sport automatic works very well in this car. I’d venture to say it’s a better automatic among automatics than the manual is among manuals.

As @DylanJZA said, it’s programmed for fuel economy in Normal Drive mode. In Sport mode it gets very aggressive and yields hard downshifts on braking and will hold a gear on acceleration. In manual mode, it’s responsive but will deny downshift to protect the engine from exceeding redline. I don’t have a problem with that because the engine has a broad torque curve and downshifting isn’t necessary under such conditions.

The one zonk I’ll give it is that manual mode is wired opposite of what it should be. I swapped the switch wiring so it upshifts with a pull and downshifts with a push.

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Ritter

· #16 · 3 mo ago

pandafabrications said:
False. I literally know a guy without legs that drifts a manual vehicle. Not just drives, but participates in motorsports at a high level.

Good for the guy you know. Golf clap.

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Ritter

· #17 · 3 mo ago

Briansshop said:
How is that?

Poor aerodynamics at high speed.

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Mario0617

· #18 · 3 mo ago

Personally, I’ve never driven an AT that does what I want it to do all the time. Even Porsche PDKs piss me off because they won’t hold gear when I want them to, won’t kick down every time when I want them to and so on. And those are really good ATs.

Then again, sometimes I don’t put myself in the gear I want to be in - but then I can blame myself LOL. If I wanted something easier to live with though, I would have bought the EV Mini I was considering. Imo a “shiftless”experience most plays to the strength of EVs as a powertrain. If I’m buying an ICE vehicle at this point, I’m doing so consciously buying a mechanical thing. So a manual accentuates that.

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Ginny86

· #19 · 3 mo ago

My challenger was my first manual car and I was convinced by peers that it was “the only way to go” for that platform prior to this I had a 2009 CTS rwd that had less power than my challenger but was auto, and me and my girlfriend discuss this often due to “less to do” you do find yourself speeding or excessively accelerating and likewise I drove that car much harder than anything I have ever owned, the challenger is “faster” than the cts by every metric but the level of comfortability/confidence I had in that car trumps my HEMI’s power/abilities
When it came time to pick a transmission for the gr86 it was a really tough decision and since we are all adults here I’ll admit it, the ultimate reason I was drawn to this platform was “missing out” on hakone (that was used and marked up)that I had the pleasure to drive and loved it (was manual)
But me and her go round and round with this opinion and it’s truely never ending I have the same/similar discussion on my challenger forum

auto or manual doesn’t matter we all came to this platform/chassis for one reason or another and while I’m new here as a member, I’ve been reading info-on the Brz/gr86 from Here before placing an order

this I was an extremely long rant and apologies in advance for anyone that reads to this point,

this is a an amazing community and I’m glad to be a part of it
Thank you everyone

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Ritter

· #20 · 3 mo ago

rjt said:
Hmmm...

Check the transmission and differential gearing.

Reactions: 1

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