^this.

Moto's link is very good. And it is true, the only opinion that matters in the end is your own OP. Try driving another friends manual first to get a feel and test drive both. Learning MT is great but you can have just as much fun in an AT equipped car basically

Its been a while since we've had one of these.

Obligatory late popcorn. :popcorn:

Totally disagree. I have fun just knowing I'm driving a manual 100% of the time.

http://i.imgur.com/dxDbT5Dm.jpg

And everybody else should have fun because they know they are? The guys with autos can't possibly have fun since they have no clutch pedal?

Not everyone is the same. I have an AT and an MT car to choose from. Both fun to drive in different ways. But I find myself going "I don't feel like shifting while driving through town running errands" more than "Damn, I wish I had a clutch right now" and I have only owned MT from when I got my license til I bought my FRS in 2012. That is why a bunch of people on a forum cannot tell OP what choice will be right for him.

Oh, bullshit. You know me better than that.

You said the MT can't be enjoyed in the city or long boring drives. I'm saying I do. I'm saying I'm perfectly in touch with my inner child who gets a giggle out of *oops* on the clutch every once in a while across a painted crosswalk.

I'm saying if OP is MT-curious the AT will always remind him of it. That's all.

Personally, I think everyone should learn to drive MT. It gives you a better sense of how the car operates and how to control it.

Whether you buy a MT or AT 86 is up to you in the end, but do yourself a favour and drive both. No regrets.

I didn't say it can't be enjoyed I said people talk like they are driving it like a race car every second when that is not possible (or at least not reasonable). The giggle that you get when you do get to falls cleanly into my closing statement. I am about the same which is why I can understand why some people would want an auto because they know the opportunities may be rare and the convenience outweighs the fun had in popping the clutch every once in a while.
If I was smart instead of a stubborn old throwback I would have bought an AT because the driving I do leaves little opportunity to truly use the MT to it's advantage.

Wow, so many chimed in on this one.

The manual transmission will be worth more money at trade in time. My local dealer has a leftover 2016 FRS with auto trans...and it just sits there on their lot.

I am age 70. Drive a manual FRS.
Learned to drive a stick shift at age 9. My father showed me what to do (the shift pattern) on a piece of paper...then gave me the keys...to drive the car alone...whilst he watched from a distance. I popped the clutch and stalled the engine on lst try. Second try, gave the engine more gas before popping the clutch.
All good to go after that.

For me, an auto trans would make my driving experience just too boring...nothing to do.

I love my MT, been driving MT on and off for 35 years and have done the bulk of the million or so miles I've done in MT vehicles. I think that the next fun car I get will probably be an AT because they've gotten so good unless it's a classic because the old autos mostly sucked. If I was to get this car again I actually think I'd get the AT.

I'm done with being magnanimous on the subject because I feel it's disingenuous.

You are smart. Don't deny your fun side. There is nothing rational about this car and you bought the manual to peel out plain and simple, not because you're a stubborn old throwback. Just admit it.

Late to the party, but here are my thoughts: this is one of the easier MT cars to learn to drive on, and also very satisfying because the shifter (while not the best in the world) is very good.
MT driving is only as satisfying as the quality of the shifter.
For reference, I learned on a 97 Corolla, and it's a wonder that I didn't just give up in disgust (I learned it to drive the IS300 manual at my summer job dealership).

If you want to learn MT, this is a good choice.

Sent from my SM-G930W8 using Tapatalk

I have owned about 30 cars over the years. Three of them were autos. Two of those were the most "fun" cars I owned. Equating MT with fun does not apply to everybody. There can be something rational about all cars and if somebody choses an AT they probably did so for rational reasons. Yep, I bought a MT because I like MTs but I do not for one second that every other person buying these cars should want a MT. The autos in these are great and can be every bit as engaging as the MT if you want to shift manually.

I have 2 car, 1 AT and 1 MT.
The AT is sitting in parking lot eating dust.
I drive the MT every single day no matter what.

Are they both FRS's? If not then it is hardly a fair statement now is it.

No, they are not:lol:

Not once have I said "everybody" or what was the other thing you *ahem* asked me if I "meant to say?"...
Not going there either. Never have. I'm only giving my own experience and reminding OP of the risk of buyer's remorse, which I think you agree with when you said:

Is it time for thread derailment with boobs yet?

There's a lot to do when driving in the street - like paying attention. I've found that if it's a boring drive, a manual isn't going to make it less boring. If it's an exciting drive, an AT isn't going to make it less exciting.
Whether your experience is boring depends more on your attitude than type of transmission.

This is one of your which is better chocolate or vanilla topics?


Plus to MT
Some spirited driving and more control
Less likely to be stolen/joy ride
Cheaper to replace/fix
Newer twin has slightly more HP than AT
Car is lighter


Minus to MT
Smaller secondary market when you want to sell
AT has better mileage (but I think hyper mileing types here can beat this)
If you suck at it and never practice you'll grind gears/fry clutch=$$$
Bumper to bumper traffic and hills are a drag
Heavy engine breaking will save your brakes and kill the engine

I concur on that one I've owned 6 MT cars in my 14 years of driving. Not gonna debate that manuals are fun and will learn a lot as well, but since I heavily commute to work, taking it on road trips the AT on the car has impressed me.

Pick one and be happy with the decision.

Sure he can...Go test drive an auto, in auto...then drive it in manual & leave the paddles alone. From that simple process, he will learn to CONTROL gas and shifting technique, and whether he wants to push in the clutch a couple thousand times a day...:party0030:

In terms of performance the automatic is significantly slower in particular when getting off the line. With a small displacement engine and low torque, you need to use some clutch slip or an all out clutch dump to get the car off the line quickly. An automatic can't do those things. To make matters worse, the automatic transmission is tuned for fuel economy which makes it even slower.

However, once you do get the car moving, the paddle shifters on the automatic is very fast. As many have said it's not like a normal slushbox automatic or some piece of shit CVT. It has a very good manual shift mode.

And once you get into the corners, you have the same great handling whether your car is MT or AT, so it will still be fast in the corners. And that is the main purpose of this car.

As for what's more fun, I'm pretty sure the automatic can be a lot of fun with the paddle shifters but there are a few things it will never be able to do. You will never get some crazy tire squeal from an aggressive clutch dump. You won't be able to squeal the tires either by nailing a redline upshift. You won't be able to start a drift using a clutch kick. Even parking is more fun because I get to hear my N1 exhaust rumble when I blip the throttle instead of just releasing the brake and letting it move automatically. I especially love it in underground parking lots haha. All these things are a lot of fun and you should really try on a manual RWD car at least once. (Just don't go crazy on public streets of course)

As for traffic jams, I wouldn't worry. This car has a very light clutch. I drive to work in rush hour traffic. It never bothers me. Plus I get to hear my exhaust rumble when I move up just like when I'm parking lol

Maybe just don't get a car. Buy some jogging shoes instead -- they really help you feel involved.

Barefoot is the best you pleb.

Buy whatever you feel comfortable with. Test drive the MT & then the AT. Then decide & report back. Only you can decide what you want. :popcorn:

Neutral drop :popcorn::popcorn::popcorn:

legit

I've owned my 86 in Auto for the past 2 years and it still thrills me every time I go for a drive.
For the record prior, before buying mine I hated automatics with a passion.
I've got the GTS model here in Aus with the Aero Kit, the biggest advantage of the auto are the paddle shifters, I'm always driving in manual mode, the up shifts are almost instant and and the down shifts are perfect.
I also go down to the track for motorkhana (Aus equivalent of auto cross) and drifting events with no issues, in fact the officials are amazed at how well the auto handles, of course mainly due to the chassis of these cars being designed with this in mind.
Of course being Auto you can't clutch drop and spin the wheels or rev at the lights easily. Sometimes I wish I brought the manual (was close to trading too) but held back.
I have driven the manual too, and to be honest I hated it and no, not because I can't drive a manual I learnt in a manual but the whole feel of the transmission is in my opinion 'clunky', this maybe due to been abused by the original owner but if that's the cause the reliability of the manual is poor IMO.
I can almost guarantee that I'd buy a manual for my next car but in the meantime, my current project is perfect and moving along.

The auto is perfectly fine. I had to buy A/T since wifey needs it occasionally, and I've no problem with it. Yes it's slower off the line, at least a second on the quarter mile (mainly due to not being able to start at higher revs) but otherwise the paddles work perfectly well for sporty - and even track - driving.

If you want to be able to lazily drive in traffic with great fuel economy and the occasional spirited run, A/T is a great choice.

Driving the AT going on my third year now. Best thing ever.

Coupled with a 4.556 FD swap (11% faster gearing across all gears) makes the AT really peppy. I only drive in sports mode and mostly just modulate the throttle and let gear breaking slow me down when I need to wash off speed and swap gears via the paddles.

Having said that. Regular drive mode is every shade of teribad. About all its got going for it is fuel economy. Not very involving at all to be honest and the lack of gear breaking makes me sigh and just reach for the sports button.

Without reading all the replies
SPORTS CAR = MANUAL

If you aren't buying this car in a manual, don't buy it. This car was made for manual transmission.

So you think buyers remorse can only happen with AT? MT or AT recommendation is completely personal preference and it is not worth more than 2c how many times ever you repeat it. If you are done repeating your point over and over, I want to thank you.

Actually, that is very situational. The 86 is a very practical/rational car depending on your situation.

For example, in my case I went looking for a sporty, fun to drive, commuter car that got decent (as in much better than my Suburban or Astro) gas mileage. It also needed to be able to stop on the way home and pick up groceries or make a small Sam's/Costco run. I also wanted to have something MomHawk and I could take on a couple's weekend or longer vacation.

The 86 fits that in spades. Very practical.

Go tell that to the people that bought PDK's on the 911's, SLS AMG and Ferrari people, too much youtube trolling eh. :sigh:

But you do earn the badge of President of the Elite Manuals only club ��

Does it look like a Ferrari to you? It's not even dual clutch it's a standard flappy shift auto , also nor is it an AMG anything. It's a little 4 banger sports coupe. It needs and should have manual so troll on that

If a proper dual clutch was an option, I would've gone that route.

don't let peer pressure make you get a manual

those that are saying get only a manual..auto sucks, probably also post of bodybuilding.com

test drive both and decide what would be the most reasonable based on your situation

If it makes you feel better I didn't know how to drive MT until I bought my brz and learned it in that lol. Hella embarrassing, I somehow managed to make it back to base without stalling it until I got to the gate and then stalled four times in a row... needless to say the gate guard remembered me for a while >_<

^this.

Especially true for me since my other car really only has 2 seats and no trunk