Automatic VS Manual
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
From: Rome Italy
Hey mosquiton_001 --
It is apparent from all the conflicting info you will need to buy one of each.
You will then have no regrets, ever, and when one breaks down you still have the other to cruise around in.
Seriously, I have a stick, and love it. I have driven only sticks for many years, and had never driven a Vette until a couple years ago, at least in part because I did not want an automatic and I had believed Vette manuals were brutal. But, it was easy to use; far less "agricultural" than I expected.
Everything I've read and heard suggests there is no noticeable performance difference because the V-8 torque matches so well with the automatic. So for your purposes I am sure the auto will do well. If you don't like it, I bet you can sell it and find a nice stick, even in Italy!
Have fun with your search and good luck!
It is apparent from all the conflicting info you will need to buy one of each.
You will then have no regrets, ever, and when one breaks down you still have the other to cruise around in.
Seriously, I have a stick, and love it. I have driven only sticks for many years, and had never driven a Vette until a couple years ago, at least in part because I did not want an automatic and I had believed Vette manuals were brutal. But, it was easy to use; far less "agricultural" than I expected.
Everything I've read and heard suggests there is no noticeable performance difference because the V-8 torque matches so well with the automatic. So for your purposes I am sure the auto will do well. If you don't like it, I bet you can sell it and find a nice stick, even in Italy!
Have fun with your search and good luck!
Yeah... considering that here the automatic cars are even a little cheaper than manuals i'll buy the automatic..... if i will ever feel i miss a stick (but i don't think it will happen) i can swap to a manual 6 speed later....
Race Director
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 10,749
Likes: 41
For "pure" fun factor, you cannot beat a manual tranny corvette. I have driven my share of automatic corvettes. I don't find them as exciting to drive. For a pure 1/4 mile car, Go for an automatic car.
However saying that. I drive my car probably 99.9% of the time on the street. This is why I bought a manual transmission car. IMO, A sports car should have a manual transmission.
Guys that have automatic's will try to justify how good there automatic's are etc........But in the back of there mind, Most wish they had a manual tranny car. But if your in your 50's or 60's, I understand why you want the computer to switch gears.
However saying that. I drive my car probably 99.9% of the time on the street. This is why I bought a manual transmission car. IMO, A sports car should have a manual transmission.
Guys that have automatic's will try to justify how good there automatic's are etc........But in the back of there mind, Most wish they had a manual tranny car. But if your in your 50's or 60's, I understand why you want the computer to switch gears.
Last edited by 88BlackZ-51; Apr 6, 2007 at 09:14 AM.
Race Director
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 10,749
Likes: 41
the stock L98/LT1 is not powerful, its got some power yes but its not all out there like you might be thinking.
get the stick. there's no overkill at all about it.
and trust me, if this is even a thought now, it will bug you immensely later. please don't end up so many that buy the auto and wish they had a manual. we hear it all the time.
with alot of those roads over there in your neck of the woods, an auto if anything will be "underkill".
get the stick. there's no overkill at all about it.
and trust me, if this is even a thought now, it will bug you immensely later. please don't end up so many that buy the auto and wish they had a manual. we hear it all the time.
with alot of those roads over there in your neck of the woods, an auto if anything will be "underkill".
Pro
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 641
Likes: 16
From: O'Fallon MO
I remember when the first cars started getting automatics. My aunt had a fastback Olds with Hydramatic and it was an oddity when most cars had 3 on the floor or on the tree. I have a boatload of hours behind stick shifts and sticks, see Avtar. I taught my oldest grandson how to drive a stick and when he took his test for his drivers license, the examiner said he'd never seen a teenager drive a stick that well.
All I saying is that developing the skills to use you sports car for what it can really do in performance driving is pretty intensive and if you have stick or an auto, its going to be hard to predict who is quicker around the course. Ever notice the ratchet sequencial boxes or the paddle shifters in the real racers. When I finally blow the stuffing out of my D36, I'll probally get me a D44 and if I can manage to save up a few Social Security checks MAYBE I'll get a stick to put behind my 383. In the meantime I'll try not to spin out. I have had a lot of sports cars and the "sports" isn't there because of the transmission, its the whole package.
Last edited by hardlight; Apr 6, 2007 at 07:52 PM.
