Regrets on Automatic?

[hotpanda1]

i have never owned a AT before, been driving for 18 years, but have drove a R35 and they shift ridiculously fast!! i just love shifting so i will buy a manual car until they are obsolete

[finch1750]

Originally Posted by Perihelion

@kchiang4200 @finch1750 what shift knob do you guys have? I'm in manual mode all the time and I want to change my knob.

Fat Perrin. Not the heaviest but a nice feel

[Huss]

I have an automatic G35 and I regret it lol. I miss manual. but I have driven manuals all of my life just waiting to pay it off and get another manual car!!

[frs10]

"no regerts" LOL

technology is a great equalizer

[Suberman]

Originally Posted by Mikem53

Blah blah blah.. You still don't get it, with all your vast knowledge..
I said I ENJOY driving a manual transmission. I didn't say it was superior.

Er, I bought the manual shift BRZ ....the automatic could be superior but Toyota said no and refused to change the gearing on the automatic to make sure it was perceived to be inferior.

Trust me, if Toyota had allowed the automatic to be re-geared or a shorter final drive installed the automatic would have been the quicker and more engaging version to drive.

My alternative buying choice was a Porsche Cayman. Had I bought one of those it would've been PDK.

[fistpoint]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Trust me, if Toyota had allowed the automatic to be re-geared or a shorter final drive installed the automatic would have been the quicker and more engaging version to drive.

I seriously doubt that. The only automatics that are faster than manuals are far from your average auto you'd find in any car near this price.

[humfrz]

Originally Posted by Monogram

I currently have a 2014 Lexus IS350 F-Sport in the driveway, spent 15 years behind the wheel of a 1971 240Z, and I ordered my FR-S with a manual transmission.

While the paddle-shift automatic in the IS is nice, comfortable, and functional, in my opinion it is not the same driving experience as a manual transmission.

Each is a very different driving experience, the wife prefers the auto, I prefer the manual, and in the end it very much comes down to only user preference.

Well, I gonna hafta agree with @Monogram (this time ... ).

My wife's car is a V-6 sedan, with a 6 speed auto and paddle shifters. When I drive it .... I just leave it in "auto". Why? Because I can't shift it any quicker or smarter than "it" can shift ....... and I just don't like those paddley shifter things ....

Reminds me of my friends old Hudson Terraplane, back in the day, with that column-mounted electro-mechanical shifter, called the Electric Hand (a Bendix unit which replaced the floor shift).

But HEY ..... it came in YELLOW .....

Sorry, I digressed ..... again .....

[trekkie]

We have a 2013 Explorer that is automatic. It apparently has a sport mode instead of the L or 3/2/1 selection, wouldn't know, haven't used it

I have driven an automatic now since 2007. My first car was a 1990 Pontiac Sunbird LE, when the Auto transmission was a $2000 option on a $10,000 car

Then I got an automatic Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme LT4

Then back to Manual with an Audi TT Roadster.

Then Automatic CVT with an Audi A4 Cabriolet. (I didn't want the CVT, they screwed up the order and gave me huge price break)

Then Manual with a 2005 Mustang V6 Convertible (PIECE OF SHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIII...)

Then a 2007 Camry Hybrid and a 2011 Camry Hybrid.

I'm ready for my manual again. I think.

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Trust me, if Toyota had allowed the automatic to be re-geared or a shorter final drive installed the automatic would have been the quicker and more engaging version to drive.

Quicker? Probably, except off the line. More engaging? That's a lot more debatable, and entirely up to personal preference. I certainly wouldn't call an identically geared auto "more engaging" than a manual.

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by fistpoint

I seriously doubt that. The only automatics that are faster than manuals are far from your average auto you'd find in any car near this price.

A modern auto with a locking torque converter and an identical number of gears (with identical ratios) to the manual will tend to be faster - you don't need anything exotic for this to be the case (as long as it's a decent auto). The only exception will be that the manual will tend to be faster off the line, especially in a car without a lot of low end torque. In every other circumstance, the auto will be faster.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by chrisl

A modern auto with a locking torque converter and an identical number of gears (with identical ratios) to the manual will tend to be faster - you don't need anything exotic for this to be the case (as long as it's a decent auto). The only exception will be that the manual will tend to be faster off the line, especially in a car without a lot of low end torque. In every other circumstance, the auto will be faster.

Do you have any evidence to support this? Articles or something?

[chrisl]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Do you have any evidence to support this? Articles or something?

Modern autos shift in ~200ms or so (give or take a bit), and they have no slippage at high speed. I doubt very much you can match that. Also, just look at the test results for BMWs latest cars - the ZF 8spd auto is faster in pretty much every case than the manual (though this is also due to the fact that it has more gear ratios available).

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by chrisl

Also, just look at the test results for BMWs latest cars - the ZF 8spd auto is faster in pretty much every case than the manual (though this is also due to the fact that it has more gear ratios available).

Where are these test results? I'm not arguing I can shift faster than an auto (I know I can't) I just want to see something aside from "trust me I'm on the internet".

That 8 speed is impressive but it comes at a cost, nothing came up in my preliminary searches with actual speed comparisons but I'm sure with your confidence you'll turn something up to prove me wrong. Just because it can swap the ratios faster doesn't mean the whole car will be faster.

[RFB]

Every car bike and 4x4 I have ever owned (exept a 1 month corvair in 1965) has been standard.
The lack of control with automatics can kill you with a 4x4 off road.
Automatic transmissions suck !

Then I test drove an FRS auto trans. If there was a standard available to drive I would have bought one.

BUT ! - I fell in love with the paddles
NO REGRETS.

I dd and track. My mods of sprint booster, TRD intake and Magnaflow catback drags dead even with a stock manual (with catbacks) in the 1/4 mile.

The stock FRS is a slow car, if it was a rocket yes I would want standard (to compete with Porsches etc.).

It's a fun car and the paddles are so civilized. Makes daily driving an absolute pleasure.

Been thinking real hard and second guessing since I got the automatic but
when (and if available) I trade to an improved power FRS - It WILL be an auto.




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