I was in the market for a manual before I bought my Z. I've always been of the mindset that a sports car should have a manual. You should drive it, not just aim it where you want to go. That being said, I ended up in a 7AT. The car I ended up with had everything else that I wanted (color, options, etc) except the trans.
Driving the auto is obviously different, and even now, a month and a half after I bought it I still ponder whether I made the right decision. I've been using the paddle shifters as opposed to the console shifter. I find you have good control over upshifting; you shift when you are ready, and the car responds immediately. Downshifting is another story. In a manual you downshift and use engine braking a lot. Not with this car. She will downshift on her own, when she deems necessary, and I don't believe there is anyway to bypass this. Downshifting yourself sometimes leads to downshifting 2 gears at a time, and thrashing the car a bit. Downshifting should only be used when you need to hit the power band for acceleration.
In my opinion, if you want to drive it like a sports car, get the manual. If you drive in traffic a lot and are okay with point and drive most of the time, go with the auto.
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'07 C6 6MT Coupe
03 Accord, DD, 400k miles
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