DANG, mattyice ...... you looken ta get slapped around ..... :eyebulge:


:D


humfrz

The AT is great if you aren't worried about extracting the utmost performance. It shifts pretty fast, just a little slower off the line & more drivetrain loss.

A friend of mine got the old E46 SMG. First week, “oh it’s so cool, it rev matches and shifts so fast and it’s identical to the MT mechanically”. Second month, “the cool factor wears off. I miss the a MT”. After that he got an STi and enjoyed that. Then got a Evo MR and liked that even more. Then got a GTR and liked that but just like the SMG he missed the manual. So he got another Evo MR. Today he has an F80 M3, manual of course. There is just something about shifting that can’t be replaced with an AT regardless of some of their technical superiority.

I guess if you’ve never driven a manual in a fun car then you’d never know the difference in a Twin with AT. Only the Twins AT isn’t technically superior performance wise. There is a fairly large gap on 0-60. All that BS about busy shifting in that post linked above is just that, BS. Throw any press guy in a car and there will be a learning curve. Take shifting out of the equation and obviously the curve is flattened a little. In the long run these press guys would have gotten used to the gearbox and been on par with the AT press cars. The Twins definitely have close gears (busy) but IMO that makes for more shifting.... more fun. Isn’t fun factor at the top of the list when buying a car in this class?

Just like OP, my intention was to buy an MT but they had only AT when I was in the dealer. My first car was MT and I wanted an MT again. I did the test drive with AT, impressed, and bought it. I have no regrets. Yes it was slower than MT when it was NA due to gear ratios. But supercharging with the AT gears are actually an advantage since there is now more than enough power to drive them. Plus, my top speed is higher than it would be with MT. My 0-60 is around 5 secs. Get the AT and supercharge it!

Or MT and supercharge it. [emoji12]

When you buy the automatic do not forget to get the T shirt.

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I think those of us that are passionate about the left pedal would never be satisfied with anything else. The urge to hoon is real even if it's just a little clutch kick making a left turn on a rainy day.

In fairness, I admit that it's silly. I wonder just what percentage of drivers are incapable of driving around a clover leaf without fantasizing about doing it sideways.

Probably about 95% I would say. On behalf of the other 5% of us, I say their loss.

When I bought my FR-S i test drove the AT but knowing that I would buy the MT. I didn't want to test drive it when my manual skills weren't very solid yet. To be honest I thought the AT as a transmission is fine, but it makes the car feel more sluggish especially starting off and honestly it saps a bit of the car's character. I think if I got the AT I would not have been as happy with the car.

Sure, have it your way
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