Anyone Else Considering an Automatic FR-S?

[Sparkplug]

Originally Posted by iff2mastamatt

I'm in Somerset county, but I can't stand manuals in traffic. I tend to get better mileage on autos too, so I feel my decision has been made.

Even if you're suffering 90 percent of the time.. That 10 percent of the time with an open road makes it MORE than worthwhile. Just please reconsider, for yourself.

Manuals tend to have better resale value, too.

[ryude]

Originally Posted by iff2mastamatt

I'm in Somerset county, but I can't stand manuals in traffic. I tend to get better mileage on autos too, so I feel my decision has been made.

I feel your pain, but the good news is we will be getting an automatic that is pretty damn good. I'm starting to get annoyed by manuals, daily driving every day with a manual just isn't fun.

[madfast]

to those of you who are thinking about getting the auto, dont be discouraged by the internet enthusiast bullies. from all accounts, the AT will be a very capable unit. buy whatever YOU want and not whatever will impress people over the internet. the AT fits me and my life. if it fits yours, then just get it.

[Ikaros]

@madfast
Yeah from all the review out there the auto version sounds pretty ok. Atleast they aren't saying things like "if you are gonna get it in auto, then you should buy a prius"

[tranzformer]

Price premium for auto? $1000 option? Learn to drive manual and save money for mods.

[Ikaros]

Lol, I'm afraid the gearbox will blow break in my attempt to learn to drive manual.

[madfast]

quite honestly, after reading some reviews of the auto, it doesnt sound as sporty as the IS-F. sure it may be based on the IS-F's 8 speed, and some places even say its the exact same tranny in a 6 sp configuration, but im not quite buying it yet. there are comments about how the tranny doesnt always follow your downshift commands and there is a comment about auto upshifts at redline. BOTH of those things are disconcerting... now obviously if the next lower gear would over rev the engine, it shouldnt allow that to happen. but if the next lower gear is just close to redline and the computer still deems it too risky and ignores your downshift, then we have a problem...

the only thing is that the reviews are never clear about what mode they are in Normal or Sport? D or M? my hope obviously is that in Sport Manual mode, the tranny does whatever you want it to do: no auto upshifts, etc.

[ryude]

Originally Posted by madfast

quite honestly, after reading some reviews of the auto, it doesnt sound as sporty as the IS-F. sure it may be based on the IS-F's 8 speed, and some places even say its the exact same tranny in a 6 sp configuration, but im not quite buying it yet. there are comments about how the tranny doesnt always follow your downshift commands and there is a comment about auto upshifts at redline. BOTH of those things are disconcerting... now obviously if the next lower gear would over rev the engine, it shouldnt allow that to happen. but if the next lower gear is just close to redline and the computer still deems it too risky and ignores your downshift, then we have a problem...

the only thing is that the reviews are never clear about what mode they are in Normal or Sport? D or M? my hope obviously is that in Sport Manual mode, the tranny does whatever you want it to do: no auto upshifts, etc.

That's what tunes are for
Check out the mustang forums, a tuned automatic on there is drastically better than a manual. You can change a lot of properties with a tune.

[R_E_L]

Originally Posted by trifenix

I am curious as to why people knock non manual transmissions. "sports cars need to be manual or nothing" Last time i checked F1 and Nascar were race cars and I swear I didn't see them shifting the knob? I guess they are all lacking the "real driving experience and oneness with the car"

I have manual, SMG and automatic vehicles; they are all fun to drive and serve their purpose. I will leave it up to the test drive to see how the auto tranny puts down the power. If it can't deliver power like a manual tranny, then auto is out of the question. I am very curious to see how they can drop in an affordable/strong/responsive tranny in the ft-86. This car will be taken to redline daily and hopefully make my commute enjoyable!

P.S. I still try to teach everyone willing to learn, how to drive stick shift so it won't die!

the F1 argument isn't exactly valid, those cars move at such break neck speeds and are so sensitive to input that the last thing you want to do is take one of your hands off the wheel to shift. this pretty much applies to racing in general.

i don't really knock people on their choices, i understand that for some it just makes more sense to have an auto, granted i usually recommend they go manual when buying a car but if it doesn't make sense for them i understand.

I (that's me speaking for myself alone) don't get the same feeling from an automatic (paddles or not) that i do in a manual, i do as people often say, feel more detached and like i have less control. for me clutching, shifting and heel toeing just makes the driving experience what it is, for other's it's not and that's ok too. it's a big world not everyone is bound to agree on things.

[SL]

Originally Posted by madfast

quite honestly, after reading some reviews of the auto, it doesnt sound as sporty as the IS-F. sure it may be based on the IS-F's 8 speed, and some places even say its the exact same tranny in a 6 sp configuration, but im not quite buying it yet.

any links to the reviews? struggling to find anything of note.. and im concerned if it does auto shift that i may have put my deposit down on the wrong car.. (i thought it wouldnt - as per the IS-F? i thought this was basically a 6 speed IS-F box??).. the occasional limit bounce is ok when ragging the ar*e off a car, but if the damn thing changes gear for me the frankly whats the point in the "sport" paddles? :-/
i just wanted a fast gearchange (when i decide) - and via paddles would have been cool, but if its basically autochanging then whats the point in the paddles (really).

[Liftcontrol]

Automatic;

From the Aublog test drive.......
[Because the BRZ is about handling and does that job so well, we knew we'd be happy in the automatic-equipped version as long as it shifted properly. And ye gods, it did. The Aisin unit is a conventional autobox, reworked by 20 percent to improve its clutches, shift times, gear-holding response and even alterations to its mapping if you're driving uphill or downhill. In both normal and sport modes, it will be happy to stay in the fat of the power band, it will hold gears during cornering and rev-match on the way down. It doesn't always allow downshift multiple gears at once, but there are times when you can hop down two gears instantly depending on engine and car speed].

[madfast]

Originally Posted by ryude

That's what tunes are for
Check out the mustang forums, a tuned automatic on there is drastically better than a manual. You can change a lot of properties with a tune.

yes! but i dont want to count my eggs before they hatch obviously you wouldnt need to change anything if they would have just nailed it from the get go. but who knows. we need an in depth review of the AT features before we make conclusions.

Originally Posted by SL

any links to the reviews? struggling to find anything of note.. and im concerned if it does auto shift that i may have put my deposit down on the wrong car.. (i thought it wouldnt - as per the IS-F? i thought this was basically a 6 speed IS-F box??).. the occasional limit bounce is ok when ragging the ar*e off a car, but if the damn thing changes gear for me the frankly whats the point in the "sport" paddles? :-/
i just wanted a fast gearchange (when i decide) - and via paddles would have been cool, but if its basically autochanging then whats the point in the paddles (really).

the autoblog review mentioned the auto upshift: It has paddle shifters and a manual mode, and if you don't shift at all it will automatically upshift when you're in the overrev. Otherwise, in Sport it will upshift at about 5,500, and you get quicker shifting.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2679

but again, they dont necessarily state what mode they are in. in the first statement, it sounds as if they are talking about Manual mode. then in the second sentence right afterward it sounds as if they are talking about D mode. they keep switching back and forth...

and motor trend mentioned the downshift ignore: But the car won't always give up a downshift upon demand; instead, a beep-beep warning is heard.

but again, they dont mention if this is because the next lower gear would result in an over rev, or if the AT is just playing it safe, too safe.

http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2609

[madfast]

Originally Posted by Liftcontrol

Automatic;

From the Aublog test drive.......
[Because the BRZ is about handling and does that job so well, we knew we'd be happy in the automatic-equipped version as long as it shifted properly. And ye gods, it did. The Aisin unit is a conventional autobox, reworked by 20 percent to improve its clutches, shift times, gear-holding response and even alterations to its mapping if you're driving uphill or downhill. In both normal and sport modes, it will be happy to stay in the fat of the power band, it will hold gears during cornering and rev-match on the way down. It doesn't always allow downshift multiple gears at once, but there are times when you can hop down two gears instantly depending on engine and car speed].

yes, again. what mode? two gears at once? are they talking about D mode, and when they floor it, they expect the AT to kickdown 2 gears? or are they in manual mode and they press the downshift paddle twice and the AT ignores the second downshift? also what would be the revs in each of the next lower gears?

there simply isnt enough info at this point to say one thing or another, except that the transmission isnt perfect. whilst driving, the AT must not have done exactly what they asked of it and so they had something to write about. its not condemnation, but it isnt praise either. at this point it sounds good but not great. imo they focused on shift speed and TC lock up/responsiveness, but not so much on the little things like no auto upshifts. its not a deal beaker for me, because bouncing off the rev limiter isnt something i expect to do intentionally. its just the principle of the matter, that Manual mode should be Manual, even if it entails doing something "dumb" but not damaging to the tranny.

[Liftcontrol]

Originally Posted by madfast

to those of you who are thinking about getting the auto, dont be discouraged by the internet enthusiast bullies. from all accounts, the AT will be a very capable unit. buy whatever YOU want and not whatever will impress people over the internet. the AT fits me and my life. if it fits yours, then just get it.

well said; the car will be a hoot to drive either way