Big Lebowski

After enjoying a C5, several C6's and a 2014 Stingray Coupe I found myself looking for a Stingray Convertible. Why? I really missed the convertible top and I was taking my coupe top off and on multiple times a day.

My suspicions were correct, and there were more than a few Stingray Convertibles that were "dumped" when the Z06 came out. Well, I found a 2015 Stingray convertible near by that was a dead ringer for one of my favorite C6's and absolutely fell in love with it...except it was an A8 transmission instead of my preferred manual transmission. With only 1,100 miles on it and a huge depreciated hit on the asking price I had a real debate on my hands. Compromise my transmission preference or make the move to a the new A8 transmission?

My 2015 Daytona Sunset Orange:


My 2008 Atomic Orange Vert during museum delivery:


Other than the usual haggling, my main reservation was the 2015 was an A8 transmission rather than the Manual 7-Speed I had come to love. After pouring over the forum, I never found a real "impression" based review. I found several that quoted specs and several more that debated preference from either camp with strong references to the clutch being the "man pedal" etc., but no real impression review of the A8 by a manual driver. So here goes...

CONS: Of the A8 Transmission
6 Out of my last 7 sports cars have been manuals. I love them. I'm comfortable in them as a daily driver, in traffic, whatever. I enjoy the connection to the vehicle and nothing beats banging through the gears in this beautiful machine. My 2014 Stingray was a delight to drive and shift through the gears of the M7 transmission.
Its NOT a Manual: The A8 can NOT replace that. Period. Nothing can, and anyone that tells you, "Yeah, but the A8 has paddle shift!"...I say, "paddle shift smaddle shift". Its not the same. If you must have a manual, then get a manual. If you feel it insults your manhood if you don't have a clutch pedal to push, than get a manual.

Phantom Clutch: This is hardly worth mentioning, but this is all I've got to throw in the CON column. I keep stabbing for a clutch that isn't there. Lol. Its weird and awkward, but I do it a few times each ride...I know in time that will fade, but its there. For now.

Harder to Say NO: Conveniently, my wife does not like to drive stick. She can, but unless I've had a few too many cocktails, she won't drive it and won't ask to borrow it. That will change.

PROS: Of the A8 Transmission
I'm going to break these down in order of importance as I see them:

Acceleration: Let me just say this thing screams in first gear. I'm not going to quote them, but I know I have read that the A8 was documented as being faster off the line than a manual, and I will give a solid Seat of Your Pants AYHMEN to that! This is scary fast off the line, which pretty much ended the debate for me.

Smooth Shift Timing: 1 of my 7 previous cars was an A6 2006 C6. It sucked. I dumped that car in 6 months. I felt like I was always waiting for it to shift, and as a manual driver that was infuriating. That baggage was my biggest fear with the A8. Not the case. The shifts are smooth and nicely timed. Very little lag and most of all the shift points are not robotic (i.e. shift to X gear at X RPM) More on that below.

Non Existent Shift points: Bottom line, I forget this car is even shifting. It is just the open air, the road, my copilot and me. None of the frustrating lag from the C6 A6..this just goes away.

Intuitive Shifting: As I said above, the shift points are intuitive to load. If you are cruising on a Sunday drive it shifts smooth and maybe a tad early, but not bad. When you are on it, it seems to know exactly how long to leave it in a lower gear...maybe even longer than I would with a manual. It just seems to make sense, based on how you are driving it and the situation. It does not feel robotic, but very intuitive and comfortable.

Everybody's doing it: I'm not going to say this is a valid reason for doing anything, but it is a noticeable trend. The Italian boys are embracing it as are the Porsche's. Point is, an Auto transmission is no longer the dirty word it once was by driving enthusiasts.

Remote start I live in the Chicago area, and our Summers get hot and I have already enjoyed the remote start and OnStar app for remote start to begin cooling the cabin down. The remote convertible "top down" function of the FOB is also nice, but I assume that is available on the Manual as well.

Paddle Shift It is not a manual, but the paddle shift is fun. It doesn't replace a stick feeling, but it does give you some play time. With the "Manual" mode you have complete control. In "Drive" or "D" you can still paddle shift if you chose to down shift. It will allow you to slap down a few gears into a turn and if you stop paddle shifting, it will resume to "D" after 10 seconds.

Fuel Economy: Ok, I didn't get this to save fuel, but the A8 does seem more aggressive about cylinder deactivation which translates to better fuel economy...which leaves me with more beer money! Before you roll your eyes at the Cylinder deactivation, it is seamless. I do not even notice when it is in 4 cylinders, and when you stomp on the gas it kicks in immediately without the slightest lag. It is very nicely executed. We'll see over the long haul if there is any sizable difference.

Resale: Again, small detail but I did have trouble getting a fair trade on my M7 2014. And I'm no push over to negotiate with. They flat out told me they would have gone a few grand higher on an Auto because the market is larger. I know here on the forum, that is debatable, but for John Q public it is the norm.

So there you have it. If you are on the fence, try and find a used A8 (2015 and up) to drive, and see how you like it. I think most Auto drivers will stay Auto drivers and most Manual drivers will stay with a manual. But, if you are on the fence, I hope the thoughts help. I know they would have made my leap of faith a little easier. Obviously, I did take the plunge...and so far I could not be happier!

Cheers!

dvilin

Good personal review, in my case I test drove both and did not think twice when going with the manual.

Walt White Coupe

Dude,

I had already decided to go from manual to the automatic on the C7. You just reinforced my decision. Thanks for your time.

Big Lebowski

Totally get it. My impressions of the A8 only settled in after deciding the compromise was worth it. If I'd had identical cars at the same or similar price, I would have likely stuck with the manual transmission.

Big Lebowski

Glad to hear it.

Len44

I must add that this review is Spot-On with my own personal experience in a 2015 Vert.

Well Done!

probono

In an upshift situation, while using the paddles, say from 2nd to 3rd, how much lag time is there before full engagement?

Ken

Karlba

none by the time your brain registers you hit the paddle, u r in the gear, it really is that good, if my choice had been between A6 and m7. I would be driving a M7, I had a choice of buying used M7 or new A8 , decided the A8 was good enough to get new.

jcp911s

Personally, I like a manual in a sports car, as I am old school.

However, I purchased a 2016 with A8 as my wife wants to drive the car. Mostly, I hate Autos, but I have to say after only 2 days with the car, the A8 is a very responsive and capable trans... shifts are quick and smooth.

IMHO, the M7/A8 isn't about "good or bad", but "driving style"... the A8 is very sporty, but requires a different driving style.

I have 4 other cars with manuals, so when the spirit moves me, I can always go out and shift for myself.

GTB/ZR-1

Fantastic review--thank you... I can't believe I'm stating this--but I think the Z06 I'm looking to upgrade to will have 2 pedals... Hell must be freezing over lol

2HD's2vettes

I think the resale point is very valid. Having just sold my 2006 Vert. 2LT with the A6, on Ebay 24 hours ago, I looked at several cars on Ebay that I felt were comparable. The Manual cars just did not garner much attention. You throw in the wife factor, often the potential buyers age (in my case 67 years old and before you blow me up on age and ability to drive a manual - I am simply talking about on average numbers) When you look at the amount of "watchers" there was no contest. I ended up with 155 watchers, and the car sold for 37,200.00 I was very happy with the outcome. I watched this whole process very carefully, no way a manual (not saying it's right or wrong) would have brought that kind of money. Bottom line is todays autos are nothing like the past, that's shown in the performance numbers. The paddle shifting gives the auto another nice twist, although as the OP correctly states it's not a "manual" Let's face it, traffic, and delays just keeps getting worse, and will continue to do so. Out in the country roads, or if I was the only car driving, I'll take the manual everyday. But that is a pipe dream and with the wife, I would have to buy two C7's - and that's really pushing the budget. The age demographic on Vettes does play a factor on the appeal with auto trans.

GMuffley

Very helpful post.

jrainlay

Good review. We ordered our '15 coupe with the A8, mainly so my wife would feel more comfortable driving it. I agree with all your points, both pro and con, but in the final analysis I wish we had spec'd the car with a manual instead. All the more so because, even with the automatic, my wife rarely drives the darn thing. That said, the car is still a joy to own and drive. And if I lift my foot between shifts in manual mode, I can even get the car to sound like a true manual!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/C7-Co...2645030?ref=hl

Big Lebowski

I think it's very quick. Could it be faster? Possibly...but not by much considering a flick of the finger is instaneous. I would say the engagement time is less than the time to push in the clutch and push from 2nd to 3rd on a manual. Again, my comparison also goes back to the A6 which felt like an eternity...not the case here.

Big Lebowski

Totally agree!

dmhines

Nice review. I too am a manual guy that went with Auto C7 because of a great deal.

Joy c7

We went from a 2013 427 Vert M6 to a 2015 A8 no regreats.

jcp911s

Basically, manuals are going the way of the drum brake....

Like it or not, computerized transmissions and electric steering are the new age... oh, and Blue-Tooth connectivity.

Big Lebowski

Wait what? These don't have drum breaks?

Chets LS3

Good review. And nice car. I ordered a manual.

I test drove an a8...ran like a scalded ape when in drive. I was just super disappointed in the delay of shifts on the paddles.