Regrets on Automatic?

[toyotaAlex]

i bought the auto because this is my daily driver and im tired of humping a clutch in traffic. i love the manual shift and it will shift faster than i would ever be able to in a standard tranny. its way easier to control slides and nicer for long trips imo. fuck all you auto haters, they arent the shitty slush boxes of the 80s and 90s anymore. if i want to hump a clutch ill drive my 1985 toyota 4x4 with 80hp.

[Tye300]

I was always an MT guy. My past car builds were a turbo b-series EG sedan with a dual racing clutch, an NA b-series EG hatch, and a fully built type-r b series EK. All were manual and I would always be happy rowing through the gears and racing in those cars, complete with the stiff clutch pedals due to the pressure plates. I went for a hiatus as a car guy for a while, driving fully stock cars for 5 years. (That's what happens when you get married.)
When I bought the 86, I chose between manual and AT. Fully aware of my addiction in modding cars, I went for the AT with the idea that it would deter me from racing and modding it. I started with rims, and coilovers, and thought I would stop there. Boy was I wrong. It snowballed from there and now I'm working on a track build from nowhere. Looking back, a MT would really make my build a lot easier, because I would have just dumped another racing clutch and flywheel in there instead of finding ways to make the AT stronger. But I must say the AT in this car has grown on me, it shifts quick enough, it locks 2nd gear upwards, I installed a 4.55 final gear which helped a lot. I know you guys heard of Manila traffic, and I don't miss humping a clutch through 2-3 hours in traffic. Yeah, I have a bit of regret on the AT, but it has grown on me that I don't notice it anymore and enjoy paddle shifting while driving.

[Turkish]

I still feel the same as I did before, to me in the 86 the transmission is a non issue, both are great and I enjoy driving both. Coming out of the car with a grin from ear to ear is what this car is about and both deliver that, for me at least.

[Touge_ninja]

plus when you beat someone with the AT it makes them feel even more like shit, knowing they got beat by A. a scion and B. an AT....talk about insult to injury.

[mike_ekim1024]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Somebody on this site is planning on fitting a shorter final drive ratio to an automatic car, which would be cheaper and as effective, though the speedo drive would also need adjusting.

A few people already have, and no, you don't need to adjust the speedo.

[Tye300]

Originally Posted by mike_ekim1024

A few people already have, and no, you don't need to adjust the speedo.

Yup. I did and didn't adjust anything.

[Suberman]

Originally Posted by mike_ekim1024

A few people already have, and no, you don't need to adjust the speedo.

Must be a wheel speed based sender.

Has anyone who has done this to his or her automatic without other mods confirmed the acceleration runs now compare to those with the manual?

[Tye300]

Originally Posted by Suberman

Must be a wheel speed based sender.

Has anyone who has done this to his or her automatic without other mods confirmed the acceleration runs now compare to those with the manual?

I had a lot of manual fr-s/brz owners drive my car and they said it is comparable to the MT. I'm planning to get a 4.88 FD to try out soon.

[congee]

I have an automatic BRZ. Was leaning towards a manual at first but I've never driven manual before and Didn't know anyone who could drive manual. Also, didn't want to risk damaging a new car.

Sometimes I regret getting automatic because of how easy(boring) it is but then I drive my daily commute to work and my mind changes. Stop and go traffic for about 30-45 minutes depending on how good the day is. Also, when its time to fill up and I don't regret.

[nyfries]

Originally Posted by congee

I have an automatic BRZ. Was leaning towards a manual at first but I've never driven manual before and Didn't know anyone who could drive manual. Also, didn't want to risk damaging a new car.



Sometimes I regret getting automatic because of how easy(boring) it is but then I drive my daily commute to work and my mind changes. Stop and go traffic for about 30-45 minutes depending on how good the day is. Also, when its time to fill up and I don't regret.

Modern transmission can easily withstand newbie learning manual. Most people "get it" after a few days of daily driving and can be quite smooth after a month.

[mike_ekim1024]

Originally Posted by Tye300

I had a lot of manual fr-s/brz owners drive my car and they said it is comparable to the MT. I'm planning to get a 4.88 FD to try out soon.

Wait, you have a supercharger now... isn't that kinda nuts?

[Tye300]

Originally Posted by mike_ekim1024

Wait, you have a supercharger now... isn't that kinda nuts?

Haha yes. But I had the FD a long time before the supercharger. And yes, it would be nuts if I didn't tell! Haha! Wish I'd thought of that before...

[FRSBRZGT86FAN]

Time for new friends

[FRSBRZGT86FAN]

Originally Posted by mike_ekim1024

There are a few good threads about this. It mostly boiled down to:

Driving in lots of traffic
Other people need to drive it
Gets better gas mileage

Or person has never driven stick. There was a compromise for me, based on other people and mpg. But since it shifts so quickly and rev matches, I'm pretty happy with it. The gearing is makes it accelerate slower from a start, but I've read 5 - 60mph there isn't a huge difference. But since I do autocross, I did buy (but not install yet) a 4.56 final drive, which should make it accelerate more like the manual.

Do a search and you'll find lot of comments on the subject, mostly positive.

So true, I also heard ditching the spare tire and tool kit also helps the 0-60 time of the A/T equal that of the manual with other simple work, like flywheel and racing pulleys