That poses a whole different problem. Do you remove the roof as well?

I know for a fact that a C4 footwell has more room than a Lamborghini Countach.

Damn size 18, I could take a bath in that.

 

That's my worry, I also have arthritis in my left knee, no doubt from pushing in a clutch pedal for so many years, especially one's in trucks. But also from climbing stairs for so many years.

 

I bought an automatic after driving several manuals and not liking the shifter/clutch/overall vehicle interaction at all. I love driving manual trans equipped cars, and own a manaul equipped BMW euro 635CSi. Shifting is a dream on that. Plus I plan to drive this car quite a bit when the weather improves and manuals just aren't much fun in rush hour traffic on the Washington, DC beltway, no matter how well they shift.

 

My personal experience has been that age and knee surgery DEFINITELY can make a difference in your choice. I love a stick but...no more for me.

 

3rd vette..first auto, very happy with it. older vettes didn't have the luxury of hydraulic clutches, and a built vette with a heavy duty clutch in traffic made my left leg an inch bigger in dia. by the time I got to work.

Mr. Mojo, got to disagree with you on an auto breaks easier than a manual...just miss a few power shifts in a manual...been there done that, and don't forget the syncros...besides the fact an auto can be shifted the same as a manual....without having to clutch it.

Beside the auto leaves me more time to enjoy all else about the ride.

 

Don't forget that it also gives you a free hand to wave. :

 

I for one would want my primary vette to be a 6spd. To me it's part of what makes a sports car a sports car.

However, in defense of the auto crowd. You can make an auto car very quick with some mods and be a better straight line racer.

Also, people who have back problems or leg problems may be limited in their ability to use a manual, or it could impact their enjoyment in the car.

My 2cents is to each their own. I don't consider myself superior just b/c I drive a manual versus the guy oncoming waving at me with an Auto . Whatever floats your boat is my opinion. If auto is your best choice, then it's YOUR best choice. To me, I like to shift, even if I'm slower lol When I say this, I mean it. I've ridden in some autos that were built and made me feel like an inferior shifter and make me lust at some point to build an auto car for strip/sleeper street action . If you haven't ridden in a built auto/stalled car, it's an experience. I called my friends S/C'd mustang with a built C4 trans(hey get the irony here lol) the Millineum Falcon. Thing was like warp speed as everything was balanced, thing would just hit, $hit, and get, NO Kidding! Well until he kept taco'ing motors in it, but that was his own stupid fault and another story of noob tuning horrors lol.

Anyway, long story longer!!! Get what you want, and enjoy the hell out of it. They are great cars either way . I'd like to have at least 50-100 of each hahahhahahahahahah! Yes I'm crazy!!!!

 

I think that's the answer. I can drive a stick. I like to drive a stick, but an auto is almost as much fun, and much more flexible. So, I'm looking for an auto.

 

I made a bet with myself that the OP had a 6-speed, and guess what?

 

Don't believe everyting you see on "TV"...
I chalenge anyone with a bone stock 4+3 to run in the mid 13s, even with the better 3.07 gears.

I knew I was going to bracket race in the Corvette Challenge (where races are won/lost by 100ths or even 1,000s of a second) so passed up a 4-3 35th Anna for my A4 Vette. I've already won several races because "I spun off the line" or "I missed 2nd gear"...

As mentioned, an A4 can be shifted manually, just sans clutch. While cruzin the local twisties, a lightly modded stick C5 tried to pass me but, since I had manually dropped into 2nd gear just before he "launched" it was a dead heat...

That said, it would be fun to also have a nice 6-speed for cruzin around. In fact for my next Vette I'd like a nice '89 6-speed vert...

 

Generally this issue seems to bring out many emotions on both sides. I have a friend with a '89 coupe /stick who wouldn't have it any other way. He has an automatic on his daily driver. My daily driver is an Acura RSX type S with a 6 speed. I could have went either way when I was looking for a Corvette, but the fact that anyone can drive an auto compared to fewer who drive a stick swung me toward the auto. I have had my wife and kids and a few others take the vette out for a spin and if it was a manual none of them would have taken it out. Sure I miss a few of those times when I would like to run through the gears or dump the clutch and just burn gobs of rubber, but that is tempered with a lot of times that I just enjoy a liesurely cruise. For me it's not a critical difference, In general traffic and typical driving the auto is convienient. This by and large comprises the majority of my driving.
My auto still is a vette, has great handling and still "does it" for me no matter if it's a auto or manual. And for what it's worth I have found my friends manual a bit notchy when compared to my really smooth and precise six speed in the Acura.

 

I was in the opportunity zone to get a nice C-4. I could not find a 6 spd and one of maybe 4 or 5 automatic Z-07's made in 1991 came along so I bought it.

 

I'm 56 years old. I have driven manuals in everything from my first car - a '68 VW, to my present Nissan pick-up. Manual transmissions hold no fascination for me.
Durability. My '91 coupe with the 700R4 has given me ZERO transmission problems. I put M1 synthetic fluid in as well as a trans oil cooler at around 89,000 miles. (I bought the car with 79000 miles on it). I have driven this wonderful car on several trips to Missouri when the temps were warm - to say the least. The car / transmission never missed a beat. I have been caught in downpours of rain so torrential I actually had to find an off-ramp that exited to higher ground due to the amount of water on the highway. No Problems with the car. Would a stick have performed as well? Perhaps. But I'll never know because my next 'vette will be an auto as well.
Finally, do I care what transmissions are in other people's corvettes? Not in the least. Buy what you like. Enjoy what you buy. Allow others to do the same without being criticized from fellow board members.
Glen

 

Well the problem with later autos is that they're only geared to 2.59. My '85 auto came with 3.07 from the factory and is just as quick in my opinion. However, if I buy another one it will be a manual.

I agree that the cost of repair is pretty high for the manual, which also had some influence on my decision.

 

Mine's a manual and I while I agree that it's pretty demoralizing in NVA traffic, the six-speed makes up for it on the back roads.

And, sorry for my ignorance, but I never quite understood where the sport was in drag racing an automatic.

Regards,
Hal

 

My 95 came with the 3.07 as an option. If I remember correctly from the window sticker it was only a couple hundred more.

 

A shift kit, programming, and higher stall TC make an auto a whole different car.

 

I think the original post was just trying to stir up some controversy. This was covered a few weeks back and seems to pop up regularly and usually ends ugly. Why does anyone give a damn what someone elses chooses to drive? I've had both and enjoy both, but my current car had everything I was looking for and I wasn't about to let it get away just because it was an automatic. I'd love to have, and probably will have before I'm dust, a ZR1, GS or an LT4-all manual trannies but until then I'll "suffer" along with my sissy automatic.

 

I know this was tounge in cheek, but IMHO, that's an uncool statement.

I've known women drivers that are awesome, and guys who can't shift. The V8 Corvette engine is an equalizer between the sexes.

FWIW, I only drive stickshifts and would not consider an automatic 'Vette, but hey, we're all brothers (and sisters) right?

Bill

 

Odds on are that my first Vette will be an automatic simply because theyre easier to find and cost less. I also cant imagine a manual on the highway near me which backs up everyday My own opinion is like others, it doesnt matter if you have and auto or manual as long as you enjoy the heck out of your car.