Why did you go auto vs manual?
05-18-2017, 02:27 AM
#43
2nd Gear
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2017 vert 2LT A8. You must anticipate your shifts with the paddles. Simple... shift early... problem solved. Other than that, love the new car and the A8. Everyday car not a lot of traffic but love the auto shift in sport mode. When it shifts you know it, like bang, then pulling you back in the seat. Thrill a minute! I'm 50 so I wanted to get the faster A8 (faster is still faster). All new vettes are awesome, use will determine shifting choice unless you're uber young and want to be cool buying new tires. This car does it all except snow! Love it! Go American made baby!
05-18-2017, 08:38 AM
#45
Drifting
Member Since: Aug 2009
Location: South Fla
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St. Jude Donor '10, '17-'18-'19
This is my first Vette with an auto. Figured I would give it a try since everyone one is saying how much faster the A8 is and the technology has come along a lot in the past five years. Also the auto in my AMG is FANTASTIC!
Also sitting in South Florida traffic can be brutal at times with a stick... in all honesty I miss the stick in the Vette, the A8 so far has been great and I have no complaints, its not as good as the one in my AMG but it works extremely well.
Also sitting in South Florida traffic can be brutal at times with a stick... in all honesty I miss the stick in the Vette, the A8 so far has been great and I have no complaints, its not as good as the one in my AMG but it works extremely well.
05-18-2017, 02:14 PM
#46
Racer
Oops, looks like Desmophile (who I intended to quote) was quoting something else you said, and when I quoted him to respond, it filled you in as the poster. I edited the post in question to reflect that
05-18-2017, 04:34 PM
#47
Intermediate
Have a 14 M7 with 550whp. Almost at the point of selling it as it's the worst shifting car I've owned.
It drives great as a daily driver and is a lot of fun but as soon as I start to push it the 2-3 shift almost never works. Before everyone tells me it's because I don't know what I'm doing I race a manual a couple times a month with SCCA. Going to start digging into it as it either needs to improve or it's being replaced with an auto.
In my opinion they screwed up when then went to the M7. The 6 speed is perfect, that extra gate really screws things up. The move to the M7 was purely a marketing move. It's a royal PITA when downshifting from 7th to 6th or if you want to skip gears ie. 1 to 3 to 5 or 2 to 4 to 6 as the extra gate makes it more difficult.
Test drive one on the freeway and drop from 7th to 6th like your going to pass a couple of times. You'll see real quick what that extra gate/gear does. Shifting from 4th to 5th or 7th to 5th can be a challenge at times as well.
If you're not going to track it I wouldn't even consider the M7. The auto is quicker and more convenient to drive.
It drives great as a daily driver and is a lot of fun but as soon as I start to push it the 2-3 shift almost never works. Before everyone tells me it's because I don't know what I'm doing I race a manual a couple times a month with SCCA. Going to start digging into it as it either needs to improve or it's being replaced with an auto.
In my opinion they screwed up when then went to the M7. The 6 speed is perfect, that extra gate really screws things up. The move to the M7 was purely a marketing move. It's a royal PITA when downshifting from 7th to 6th or if you want to skip gears ie. 1 to 3 to 5 or 2 to 4 to 6 as the extra gate makes it more difficult.
Test drive one on the freeway and drop from 7th to 6th like your going to pass a couple of times. You'll see real quick what that extra gate/gear does. Shifting from 4th to 5th or 7th to 5th can be a challenge at times as well.
If you're not going to track it I wouldn't even consider the M7. The auto is quicker and more convenient to drive.
05-18-2017, 06:17 PM
#48
Advanced
And I chose the A8 because I'm under 50.
If you want the fastest Vette, get the fastest Vette: The LT4-A8. There is no other.
If you feel like the kind of guy who likes to move cockpit levers for things like changing transmission ratio, fuel-air mixture, timing lead, and so on, then pull on your leather cap and goggles and order the slower M7.
Just be ready to explain to all passengers why it gurgles like a coffee can of rocks at slow speeds.
I traded my manual against this automatic, and I have a non-GM DCT as well (and still two Tremecs in the garage), so I speak from experience. Each has their place.
Others will say the opposite. And that's because, despite how many of these threads get created, there is no right answer. Only a right answer for you, and that's up to you.
Peer pressure will push you to the M7 if you listen hard enough and if you're susceptible to that sort of thing.
If you want the fastest Vette, get the fastest Vette: The LT4-A8. There is no other.
If you feel like the kind of guy who likes to move cockpit levers for things like changing transmission ratio, fuel-air mixture, timing lead, and so on, then pull on your leather cap and goggles and order the slower M7.
Just be ready to explain to all passengers why it gurgles like a coffee can of rocks at slow speeds.
I traded my manual against this automatic, and I have a non-GM DCT as well (and still two Tremecs in the garage), so I speak from experience. Each has their place.
Others will say the opposite. And that's because, despite how many of these threads get created, there is no right answer. Only a right answer for you, and that's up to you.
Peer pressure will push you to the M7 if you listen hard enough and if you're susceptible to that sort of thing.
I picked the auto because I'm younger than 30. The 7 speed manual is one of the best I've ever owned, but you really have to justify being .5 second slower through the 1/4 mile than your auto counterpart. For me, the most racing I'll do is stop light to stop light or an occasional friday night test and tune, so when I do those things, I want to have the fastest vehicular package possible and that involves me removing my left foot and right hand from the equation.
Last edited by harmRSP; 05-18-2017 at 06:18 PM.
05-19-2017, 01:42 PM
#49
Burning Brakes
I went auto on my C7 because i drove/raced manual cars for 20 years and just simply found no more fun in it. Last year I sold my Nitrous'd/cammed C6 Z06 for a C7 because I wanted something newer and smoother.
Everyone talks about how crappy the 6 speed autos are but I'll tell you, this car has given me Zero issues. I just installed long tubes and cai (waiting on tune). This is one of the funnest cars I have ever driven. Another reason I went auto was for bracket racing at the track and because it leaves the manual cars (of equal power) sitting still at the start line......
Everyone talks about how crappy the 6 speed autos are but I'll tell you, this car has given me Zero issues. I just installed long tubes and cai (waiting on tune). This is one of the funnest cars I have ever driven. Another reason I went auto was for bracket racing at the track and because it leaves the manual cars (of equal power) sitting still at the start line......
05-20-2017, 10:24 AM
#50
Race Director
Member Since: Jul 2007
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I went auto on my C7 because i drove/raced manual cars for 20 years and just simply found no more fun in it. Last year I sold my Nitrous'd/cammed C6 Z06 for a C7 because I wanted something newer and smoother.
Everyone talks about how crappy the 6 speed autos are but I'll tell you, this car has given me Zero issues. I just installed long tubes and cai (waiting on tune). This is one of the funnest cars I have ever driven. Another reason I went auto was for bracket racing at the track and because it leaves the manual cars (of equal power) sitting still at the start line......
Everyone talks about how crappy the 6 speed autos are but I'll tell you, this car has given me Zero issues. I just installed long tubes and cai (waiting on tune). This is one of the funnest cars I have ever driven. Another reason I went auto was for bracket racing at the track and because it leaves the manual cars (of equal power) sitting still at the start line......
05-20-2017, 05:23 PM
#51
Instructor
Faster and traffic is so bad with poor driving habits that it just made sense. Have driven manuals and still have them for many years in world class sports cars so tried this for a change. Would also have the PDK in the new 911 Turbo S. It cannot be beat.
05-20-2017, 09:25 PM
#52
Burning Brakes
In auto vs. manual threads like these, the reality is there are few dedicated HPDE guys, and nearly everyone else that talks about a manual on the track is a poser. Most of the pro-manual comments are me-too! me-too! peer pressure.
Truth be told, most of late baby boomers started out with auto trans sports cars because the most available hand-me-down or used cars had autos. My '67, & '69 Firebird and '78 T/A were autos, as most of my friends street machines were autos.
Only much later on did I have manuals, and it was because of peer pressure. "Yes" I drank the Kool-Aid.
This time, I said F* to the peer pressure and went back to an auto, and man, am I ever glad I did! I remember now the fun we had as young men with auto trans; driving with both feet, brake & throttle, concentrating on driving hard without getting all wrapped up in mechanics of shifting.
The A8 is a tour de force. It's always right were it needs to be when I need it to be there. If I want to interrupt the process, such as to engine brake, the paddles are always there. Otherwise, the A8 knows it's job, and does it well. I let it do it's thing while I drive the car!
Truth be told, most of late baby boomers started out with auto trans sports cars because the most available hand-me-down or used cars had autos. My '67, & '69 Firebird and '78 T/A were autos, as most of my friends street machines were autos.
Only much later on did I have manuals, and it was because of peer pressure. "Yes" I drank the Kool-Aid.
This time, I said F* to the peer pressure and went back to an auto, and man, am I ever glad I did! I remember now the fun we had as young men with auto trans; driving with both feet, brake & throttle, concentrating on driving hard without getting all wrapped up in mechanics of shifting.
The A8 is a tour de force. It's always right were it needs to be when I need it to be there. If I want to interrupt the process, such as to engine brake, the paddles are always there. Otherwise, the A8 knows it's job, and does it well. I let it do it's thing while I drive the car!
Last edited by fnbrowning; 05-20-2017 at 09:27 PM.
05-21-2017, 05:48 PM
#53
Drifting
I choose a manual for my fourth Corvette for one reason. To drive a sports car the way they were meant to be. An automatic in a Corvette is like banging with a condom, your almost there but not quite.
05-22-2017, 03:37 PM
#54
05-22-2017, 04:40 PM
#55
Race Director
In auto vs. manual threads like these, the reality is there are few dedicated HPDE guys, and nearly everyone else that talks about a manual on the track is a poser. Most of the pro-manual comments are me-too! me-too! peer pressure.
Truth be told, most of late baby boomers started out with auto trans sports cars because the most available hand-me-down or used cars had autos. My '67, & '69 Firebird and '78 T/A were autos, as most of my friends street machines were autos.
Only much later on did I have manuals, and it was because of peer pressure. "Yes" I drank the Kool-Aid.
This time, I said F* to the peer pressure and went back to an auto, and man, am I ever glad I did! I remember now the fun we had as young men with auto trans; driving with both feet, brake & throttle, concentrating on driving hard without getting all wrapped up in mechanics of shifting.
The A8 is a tour de force. It's always right were it needs to be when I need it to be there. If I want to interrupt the process, such as to engine brake, the paddles are always there. Otherwise, the A8 knows it's job, and does it well. I let it do it's thing while I drive the car!
Truth be told, most of late baby boomers started out with auto trans sports cars because the most available hand-me-down or used cars had autos. My '67, & '69 Firebird and '78 T/A were autos, as most of my friends street machines were autos.
Only much later on did I have manuals, and it was because of peer pressure. "Yes" I drank the Kool-Aid.
This time, I said F* to the peer pressure and went back to an auto, and man, am I ever glad I did! I remember now the fun we had as young men with auto trans; driving with both feet, brake & throttle, concentrating on driving hard without getting all wrapped up in mechanics of shifting.
The A8 is a tour de force. It's always right were it needs to be when I need it to be there. If I want to interrupt the process, such as to engine brake, the paddles are always there. Otherwise, the A8 knows it's job, and does it well. I let it do it's thing while I drive the car!
05-22-2017, 11:32 PM
#56
Race Director
Member Since: Jul 2007
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As a side note, I spent some time driving the new Raptor (a few days) and the A10 is much better, I imagine it would be in the ZL1, too. It has the ability to skip gears which means it does not constantly shift up and down like the A8. Much better part throttle feel and more choices for the computers to choose from. Didn't notice any hesitations, etc.
05-23-2017, 08:33 AM
#57
Melting Slicks
I don't think the A6 is really any slower and the time slips on here probably reflect that. It's just different. A planetary auto is gonna have some gear overlap as it switches to the next gear. The A6 shifts slower, but that doesn't necessarily mean it spends more time off throttle. I also think the A8, while it shifts faster, has a tad more aggressive torque management between gears. This is what makes it "pop" more than the A6, and more like an M7 no lift speed shifting. The LT1 has a torque curve that's quite flat, so you're gonna get significant diminishing returns with more gears. It just doesn't need 8 gears.
As for the original question, I went M7 primarily because it was $1800 less. I'm a lifer manual driver, so it seemed like a no brainer. On a track I have no problem keeping up with you A8 guys, so bring your brochures to remind me that my car is slower.
As for the original question, I went M7 primarily because it was $1800 less. I'm a lifer manual driver, so it seemed like a no brainer. On a track I have no problem keeping up with you A8 guys, so bring your brochures to remind me that my car is slower.
05-24-2017, 08:32 PM
#58
Melting Slicks
i am old school and getting older. as far as i am concerned, corvettes need to have 3 pedals, my 17 gs with 3 pedals is fantastic, no longer give a crap about being "fastest", just need that connection that only 3 pedals and a gear shift can deliver.
have owned auto vettes, and not driven a8, someday may own another auto, just not this time around. heck, still think i am 16 running through the gears in my hot rod chevelle .........
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have owned auto vettes, and not driven a8, someday may own another auto, just not this time around. heck, still think i am 16 running through the gears in my hot rod chevelle .........
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jabeasley1 (05-27-2017)
06-05-2017, 12:53 AM
#59
Burning Brakes
06-05-2017, 09:17 AM
#60
Melting Slicks
I wouldn't feel bad for having the A6 at all. Those that have driven both cannot say that the A8 is significantly better unless they're rationalizing their A8 purchase. Plus, you're not gonna have to replace TCs every 10k miles. I don't think I'd even wanna own an A8 at this point. Way too risky once they're out of warranty unless you're confident you can swap in a fresh TC in your garage every couple years. If you feel it doesn't shift fast enough, get a TCM tune. It can shift faster.