M7 or A8?
 

I'm going to be ordering a 2019 Z06 soon and I've decided on all the major options with one exception. Do I go for the M7, or the A8? The A8 shudder is a big thing in the Camaro world (I currently own a 2018 SS1LE with a fantastic 6-speed), but apparently it has been resolved by flushing the tranny fluid and using a new blend. Has the Z06 A8 been subject to the shudder? Historically, I wouldn't even consider an auto in a car like the Z06, but the A8's are just as fast, if not faster than the M7's.

A8 guys, how good of a job did Tadge and team do with the shift calibrations? In manual mode, how quick are the shifts? Do you regret buying an A8 when you could have had the M7?

M7 guys, I can only hope that the Z's manual is as good as my 1LE's. If you had it to do over again, would you stick with the M7, or would you opt for the A8?

FWIW, I do intend to do some local track days and the One Lap of America, but it will be spending 98.6% of it's life on the street.

Twiget - go take a thorough test drive in both an a8 and m7. Then make your decision after that. The a8’s Are Quarter mile queens. Their 60 foot time is where they get most of the advantage.

I wouldn’t let the shudder scare you away from the a8.

I test drove both and picked the m7.

I would love to take them both for a test drive, but unfortunately the closest Z06 is ~250 miles away (it's a A8). One of the local dealers has 3 GS's on the lot, all A8's. Once I told them I was going to order a Z06, they lost all interest in letting me take the GS for a spin. :shrug:

As I said in the original post, I'm normally a 3-pedal kind of guy. The only reason I'm even considering the A8 is because of the lap times I'm seeing from A8 equipped cars.

I hate to be grumpy with my response to your question, but there is no clear winner to this question. Drive both and decide as has already been suggested. No one can answer your question.....this one goes with the "which color is faster" question. It's simply called...personal preference.

If you are asking for opinions...id suggest the manual ...especially with the c8 being dct only...

the last front engine corvette , one with 650 hp with the last manual transmission would be my choice.

the A8 is great but the last M7 would get my vote.

unless you are slogging through traffic of course.

manuals are a dying breed. Should you ever decide to sell resale on the manual would be in greater demand.

of course both great choices yet since you asked for opinions...l am just offering one for the manual...

btw the rev matching feature is pretty slick...

i d choose the manual.

only you can decide whats best for you

If 98.7 percent of your driving is on the street — what is so compelling about lap times?

Yup, that is exactly what I'm doing asking for peoples opinions. Since I am unable to take either a M7 or an A8 car for a spin, I thought I'd ask a question.

I'm gong to read between the lines a bit and guess that you're not a huge fan of autos, Jerri. :thumbs:

My 1LE has the rev matching, it makes me look like a rock star. No more flubbing the heal-toe downshifts with my size 13's!

Lets face it, no one needs a car like the Z06. It's about going fast, having fun and bragging about who's got the biggest umm... engine...

Even though it will mostly live on the street, I'm interested in lap times because they are a concrete metric I can point at and say, "this is how fast my car is." Am I a good enough driver to make it go that fast? That's a debate for another time. :willy:

I didn't realize asking for peoples opinion would be so contentious.

P.S. It was actually 98.6% :D

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the A8 doesn't have the shudder issue on 19s anymore right?

OP - my understanding is sticking a Range AFM disabler on it is all you'd want to consider for a 19 A8.

I enjoy paddle shifting mine even though the response is a bit slow. Honestly, though, my biggest complaint is that Chevy didn't include some way to enable performance shift mode indefinitely. That's when the A8 is the most fun.

OP, in your situation you really need to decide what’s more important to you, quarter mile runs (and how often you do that) vs pleasure of stick shifting on daily basis. For me it was an easy decision and got Z06 M7 (sold SS A8).

Well said. And honestly, quarter mile runs are important to me too (even if it's an informal one at a stop light), but that's why I bought a Z06 and not a slower car. I just enjoy the skill required to get a good launch on a manual. If you are a manual guy, and are considering the auto, but are having doubts, you should probably get the manual. I'm not just saying that because I'm a manual fanboy (I am one), but because of the doubt. If your feelings were the other way around, I'd say get the auto. It's like my dad always said "when in doubt, there IS no doubt"

Depends on a lot of things, you going to drive it daily, you want to go to the drag strip often, an automatic maybe better option. My Corvette's are not daily drivers, and I do not go to the drag strip, because I am old, so all 13 of my Corvette's have been manuals, I am sure at some point they will stop offering manuals, but until then it's a stick for me. :)

Get the M7. On my first C7 I was planning on doing a manual. Although I decieded at last minute to give the A8 a try. It was ok and enjoyable on some levels, shifts are watered down for paddle shifting due to the slush box. Then came all the shuddering issues, even with the range plugged in since new. Could tell it was screwing up without being in v4. Had that fixed a couple times, problem returned. Found a deal on a new Z with a M7 and sent the old one off with a good riddance.

THe manual rev matching feature is pretty slick...but actually I think the gm designed automatics are pretty impressive especially from an all out performance mode....theynare the faster quicker examples on the drag strip and most road courses by a few clicks if that is important..

All kidding aside and jmo the no manual option rumored on the soon to be released c8 will kind of make the manual transmission rev matching featured m7 650 hp c7 z06 quite an iconic sports car to own for many years...

if your going back and forth on which transmission .and asking for opinions ..i believe the future rarity of the manual transmission in the final 650 hp front engine iconic c7 z06 would be a fun way to go...

thinking of how your shifting the gears of that front engine rear wheel drive beast on an early sunday morning carving up the mountains as no one else is around...is what I would envision...

that would be my opinion on what to chose...


good luck deciding...

OP - think about what kind of driving you will be doing, and your answer will become clear to you. Do you find yourself in heavy traffic with a lot of starts and stops, edging along or are you generally in an open road environment? Do you have a lot of terrain changes necessitating up-shifts and down-shifts, or is your area more open road comprised of less extreme elevation changes and turn radii?

Do you like to be a part of your driving experience and enjoy the thought of shifting for yourself, or do you prefer having the car do that for you, selecting the most efficient/appropriate gear based on developed algorithms for load demand, engine torque management, and expected rate of change --- and your only input is pressure on the accelerator?

Sounds like you prefer manuals so I'd get the m7 if I were you. I've had mine 4 years and no regrets. If you only take it to the track on occasion then the a8 would work fine as well. It's not up to hard track days though. The m7 is depending on where you live.

I've been a manual transmission guy a good portion of my 70+ years. When I ordered my '16 Z06 I decided to go with the A8. Quite frankly, I got tired of shifting. I also believe that automatics are the waive of the future. I fell in love with it and have no regrets. I can leave it in drive or shift it manually with the paddles when I want. When I ordered my '19 Z06, I went with the A8 again. As others have said, it's a matter of personal preference. Good luck. :cheers:

My knees have been an issue so I chose to go A8 in my 19 Z06. I found that my 17 GS M7 was not being driven due to around town issues for me. For me the A8 has been a godsend. If you do mostly city driving I feel the A8 would be the best choice but if you do not have much stop/go traffic go with the M7. Either way the C7 is a great car.

It's a tough decision, if you haven't seen it, here's my quick throw down between the two transmissions. I had both M7 and A8. I have only one HPDE track day on the A8 but over half a dozen on my M7.

I currently own a 2019 A8 and at 2500 miles, I haven't noticed any issues in regards to shuddering.

I'm pretty darn happy with my M7. Rev match and downshift is very fun and loud. Shifts are deliberate and hard (if you want) or nice and smooth. I've been in stop and go traffic a lot and I would get the Manual all over again. Plus I hear the shifts in the A8 are kind of mushy.