I STAND BY MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE. DIFFERING OPINIONS IS WHY CORVETTE HAS 2 TRANS CHOICES. TO EACH HIS OWN.

 

I like my auto and I never miss a shift!

 

I have a GMID, but I'm ordering an '06.

I guess I'll just have to go to a dealer w/ both, pretend that I'm a serious buyer, then demand that I drive both. I know that they'll want to run a credit check, even though I'm going to use my CU. I don't want any unnecessary inquiries on my report.

 

Driving a manual is like owning a convertible, either you love it or you don't. My last car was a convertible with a 6 spd manual. My current car is a coupe with an automatic. I'm much happier with my current car than with my last. I found that for the sort of usage I had for the car, I didn't get much top down time, and I was spending too much time rowing the manual in traffic. On those few perfect days when I had the top down and was cutting the twisties out in a rural area, the convertible 6 spd was really fun. But day to day, the auto coupe is a much more enjoyable car for me to drive.

It has often been said that everyone should own a convertible at least once in their lives, if for no other reason than to learn why they don't want to own a convertible. Same with a manual transmission. You ultimately have to make the decision whether the "fun factor" of either outweighs the disadvantages associated with living with those choices day to day. For me it doesn't. For you? Only you can make that decision.

 

KERBECK will let u test drive

 

Beware:

Not sure how good the C6 auto tranny is in terms of shift points, shift firmness or lack thereof, converter lockup points, etc. But I have two other 2004 cars with auto trannys (a Ford and Toyota), and in my opinion, both transmissions are calibrated TERRIBLY! They always shift at the "wrong" time, usually too early. Shifts are generally too slippy. True "slush boxes". You NEVER feel like you are really "connected" to the engine. It's gotten to the point where I cannot drive either of these cars without being totally annoyed at how they shift. It's a damn shame. I cannot enjoy these cars.

On the other hand, when my wife drives either of these cars, she is not bothered the way I am. Point is, these auto trannies are fine for the average person just going from point A to point B. But they are HORRIBLE for a car enthusiast.

I will SURELY be getting a manual when I buy my new C6, that is not even a consideration. I will no longer trust an auto tranny in any new car based on my experiences with these other two new cars.

However, perhaps the C6 auto tranny is set up really well...??? If you are a driving enthusiast, I'd strongly recommend that you take the auto C6 for a long test drive before you consider buying one, make sure that you will be happy with the way it shifts. Otherwise, just get a manual. You really cannot go wrong with the manual... unless of course you spend 99% of your time sitting in traffic.

My Mustang GT auto... got the auto only so the wife could drive it... but what a huge mistake! This car would actually be good if it weren't for the auto tranny. The auto tranny completely RUINS the car. Biggest disappointed I ever experienced. Slush city, upshifting WAY too early all the time, etc. So now I must drive the thing with my hand on the shifter, constantly trying to keep it in a "correct" gear, but the torque converter lock-up does whatever it wants anyway with no way of controlling it. What a waste of an otherwise really nice peppy great-handling car.

I'd swap out the auto in the GT for a manual if I could, but just not worth it... I'll buy a C6 manual instead to correct my mistake and give the GT to the wife as her full time grocery-getter... because with that auto tranny, the car isn't good for anything but getting groceries anyway.

I learned my lesson... no more autos!!! My wife is just going to have to learn how to drive a stick in the future, period. Older autos I've had were not so bad... but the new ones are bad! These days an auto tranny can really "ruin" a car. Beware.

 

Not true! A short drive north on the San Diego Freeway will bring you to the dealership where I bought mine. Not only did they have a demo which they were more than happy to let me drive, but they had several of the "used by GM employees" C6s that other customers were test driving as well.

Just drive north on the San Diego Freeway until you see the C6 sitting on a turntable way up in the air on your left.

 

Get the automatic if you want trouble-free motoring.

 

I think the question is whether you will like driving a manual in the long term. Even if you like it OK on a short test drive, you may get tired of shifting gears after a few weeks. Perhaps you should test drive an automatic and see if you feel like anything is missing.

The car I test drove was an automatic. It seemed to me that this particular automatic was well-programmed in that the shifts seemed to take place about when I thought they should. That having been said, I've driven mostly manuals before, because I like shifting gears. For me, driving a sports car without shifting gears just didn't feel right. For that reason, I bought the MN6. I really didn't seriously consider the automatic.

Let's face it, though. Most people in the US do not like shifting gears. Each year, fewer vehicles are sold with manual transmissions. Two-thirds of Corvettes are ordered with automatics.

My guess is that you'd be happier with the automatic. Of course, if you get the automatic and you are the type of person that second-guesses himself constantly, you may find yourself wondering if you are missing something every time you get into the car...

Good luck, and let us know what you decide.

 

Thanks lehew, I'll be waiting for results on the A6. The buttons don't mean much, I want to see how it performs. Anyone know what the best advertised 0-60 time on the A4? I think the best on the M6 was 4.1.