Driving a manual in bumper to bumper traffic is a bitch...after the first hour..

I do it as I rarely travel in areas with heavy traffic daily...but all kidding aside...one of the reasons I wanted a DCT transmission is that it truly offers the best of both worlds.

I'm sorry that GM decided against DCT but I'll wait a few years and hopefully GM will do a planetary gearbox that is so close to a DCT...in driver feel that I'll buy that..

After a test drive of course and if not...I'll break down and buy a M7...

I really would prefer a MCT or DCT or a torque convertor automatic that truly mimics the entire driving experience of driving a manual with the exception of having to step on the clutch...

I get caught travelling into manhattan every week or so in 3 hour bumper to bumper..

By the time I get to my destination...I have to work very hard to put a smile back on my face...Without stepping on and off the clutch pedal a thousand times...I'd be a happier guy even with three hours of traffic...

As daily driver in that grind they call a commute...no question the updated automatics have to be a better choice...

 

All of this is making me remember one of many cars (over 100) from my past and because it was so much fun and unique (DOT Orange 1982 VW Karmin Gia, with auto stick shift). It had no clutch pedal, you just moved the selector to the next gear.

I was selling Porsche's at the time and it came in on the used car lot. I bought it for $3400 and wholesaled it 2 months later to another lot for same. He kept it for 3 months w/o selling it and I offered to buy it back. He agreed if he didn't sell it over the weekend. By Monday it was one of three cars stolen over the weekend and no one ever saw it again :-( .

 

Three hours of traffic? I don't see how anyone could be happy, clutch pedal or not. I think I would just get out and walk.

As long as traffic isn't moving at such a slow pace where I have to slip the clutch, I like have a manual in traffic. It gives something to play with, rather than being absolutely bored out of my mind.

Michael

 

I enjoy shifting a car and working the clutch. Most of the time in traffic at less than 5 mph, I just feather the shifter into neutral without using the clutch when I slow down-gives me something to do in traffic. I am 65 and will enjoy shifting until I physically cannot.

 

Goldwing at 80
Automatic at 80

Until then Ninja and manual transmission in a sports car.

 

 

Had the 6 speed manual in my C5, then the 7 speed SMG in my BMW M5.

The SMG was really cool and I loved how hard it would shift at wot from 1-2, 2-3 and even 3-4. Also loved the fact that I could "double tap" either paddle to go up or down 2 gears instantly.

Another cool feature was that in "auto mode" at the most aggressive setting, when cruising on the Interstate at any speed, mashing the pedal would result in the transmission instantly selecting the lowest possible gear that would keep the engine below its 8,250 rpm redline. No way I would have been able to do that in the C5 with that kind of consistency.

I have driven the new 8 speed BMW automatics (535), and while very nice and balanced, they are also very boring I think, but perfect for a dd or family car. I think I would miss the mechanical connection between the engine and wheels with an A6 C7.

If/when I get a C7, I was going to pick the 7-speed, but after reading this thread, I'm not so sure. Will probably wait until next year and see what transmission choices will be available for the Z07 or whatever it will be called.

If the rumored 8 speed auto next year is like the BMW one, I'm not sure I'd want it, but I'll reserve judgement until I see what is actually coming and the feedback from reviewers, etc.

 

DCT pretty much put SMG out of production..

It could be the heavy and large DCT could be put on the trailer by the coming wave of torque convertor transmission advancements ....

I'm surprised myself yet the latest ZF 8 speed is making a lot of moves in that direction that is surprising...

I like manuals and the new rev match is kind of cool...

Sort of wish the launch control was more effective in the manual though....or at the very least consistent with acceleration times..

The recent showing by a few Internet journalist shows how bad acceleration times can be without driver skill for a manual launch..

 

Anyone who endures 3 hours of traffic daily has more than transmission issues. That simply is not living, YUK!

 

I think this is the first time I have agreed with you.

 

Couldn't agree more. I turned down a very good job in Falls Church, VA because I wasn't willing spend that much time with my fellow commuters on the DC Beltway.

 

If I still lived near NY city I probably buy an automatic. As much as I would love to have a stick C-7 it just isn't worth the PITA of shifting in traffic on the L.I.E. where I now live in SC traffic jams are rare.

 

Brilliant minds will always find common ground!