[OFFICIAL] Manual v. Automatic Thread

[awkwardturtle]

I couldn't live with an automatic, personally. That's not a sports car to me. Hell, I actually wish they wouldn't make sports car with automatic options because that's why you see so many 50 year old women driving mustangs.

And no, I don't have any rhyme or reason as to why I think that, it's just something I've always thought. Even if the automatic is faster, more convenient, etc, I could never allow myself an automatic in a sporty car like the Z.

[wstar]

Originally Posted by awkwardturtle

I couldn't live with an automatic, personally. That's not a sports car to me. Hell, I actually wish they wouldn't make sports car with automatic options because that's why you see so many 50 year old women driving mustangs.

And no, I don't have any rhyme or reason as to why I think that, it's just something I've always thought. Even if the automatic is faster, more convenient, etc, I could never allow myself an automatic in a sporty car like the Z.

The Z's automatic is in such a different category from a mustang's there's no point mentioning the two in any comparative analysis. Go test drive one at a dealership and you'll see what we're talking about.

Do you fault F1 drivers for not using a clutch? Do you think the GT-R isn't a sportscar because it doesn't have a clutch? Or let's step back from the clutch... How about "Real men don't rely on power steering and power brakes?". What about ABS and Traction Control, should a Sports Car come with those? Synchro-Rev-Match? I'm sure you turn that off 100% of the time, just like you turn off VDC, right? Why not gut the air conditioning from the car too? It just wastes power.

I can appreciate a purist in a hobby, but if you're trying to be pure to some ideal of "traditional" car racing with all-manual inputs, you have to step back a whole lot further in technology than a 6MT 370Z. Otherwise you're just pussyfooting around with "I'm gonna draw the line at exactly where my car is, but not one inch further".

[cossie1600]

They do have a hand clutch for the 17K rpm start......

AC compressor shuts off under WOT, no need to worry about power loss on full throttle run

Originally Posted by wstar

The Z's automatic is in such a different category from a mustang's there's no point mentioning the two in any comparative analysis. Go test drive one at a dealership and you'll see what we're talking about.

Do you fault F1 drivers for not using a clutch? Do you think the GT-R isn't a sportscar because it doesn't have a clutch? Or let's step back from the clutch... How about "Real men don't rely on power steering and power brakes?". What about ABS and Traction Control, should a Sports Car come with those? Synchro-Rev-Match? I'm sure you turn that off 100% of the time, just like you turn off VDC, right? Why not gut the air conditioning from the car too? It just wastes power.

I can appreciate a purist in a hobby, but if you're trying to be pure to some ideal of "traditional" car racing with all-manual inputs, you have to step back a whole lot further in technology than a 6MT 370Z. Otherwise you're just pussyfooting around with "I'm gonna draw the line at exactly where my car is, but not one inch further".

[wstar]

Originally Posted by cossie1600

They do have a hand clutch for the 17K rpm start......

:P

AC compressor shuts off under WOT, no need to worry about power loss on full throttle run

It's still a bunch of dead weight (compressor, condensor, hoses, refrigerant, fans, ductwork), and even with the compressor kicked off the pulley's dragging on your engine a bit. But my point was more about getting creature comforts in a sportscar; a "pure" sportscar would make no trades in the name of convenience or comfort. None of the cars we drive today are pure sport machines.

[awkwardturtle]

Originally Posted by wstar

The Z's automatic is in such a different category from a mustang's there's no point mentioning the two in any comparative analysis. Go test drive one at a dealership and you'll see what we're talking about.

Do you fault F1 drivers for not using a clutch? Do you think the GT-R isn't a sportscar because it doesn't have a clutch? Or let's step back from the clutch... How about "Real men don't rely on power steering and power brakes?". What about ABS and Traction Control, should a Sports Car come with those? Synchro-Rev-Match? I'm sure you turn that off 100% of the time, just like you turn off VDC, right? Why not gut the air conditioning from the car too? It just wastes power.

I can appreciate a purist in a hobby, but if you're trying to be pure to some ideal of "traditional" car racing with all-manual inputs, you have to step back a whole lot further in technology than a 6MT 370Z. Otherwise you're just pussyfooting around with "I'm gonna draw the line at exactly where my car is, but not one inch further".

I have no doubt that the Z's automatic is great. And I wasn't comparing the quality of the trans. to the mustang. The point of my comparison was that offering an automatic version often drowns out a true sports car into being another vanilla car driven by older women.

That's one thing I always liked about my SI. Yeah, it's slow, has no torque, quality of it sucks, but you know what? I've seen like two older women driving them in my entire life, and they were ripping through the gears! It just annoys me when I see a nice sports car like the Z being driven by an old woman who bought it because it looks pretty.

Like I said, my opinion has no rhyme or reason.. just the way I feel

[Nismo89]

Originally Posted by awkwardturtle

I have no doubt that the Z's automatic is great. And I wasn't comparing the quality of the trans. to the mustang. The point of my comparison was that offering an automatic version often drowns out a true sports car into being another vanilla car driven by older women.

That's one thing I always liked about my SI. Yeah, it's slow, has no torque, quality of it sucks, but you know what? I've seen like two older women driving them in my entire life, and they were ripping through the gears! It just annoys me when I see a nice sports car like the Z being driven by an old woman who bought it because it looks pretty.

Like I said, my opinion has no rhyme or reason.. just the way I feel

i guess the GTR isnt a True sports car then? because it has paddle shifters. the hag across the street can start the engine and put it in gear to go down the street, so i dont want it?. theres a difference between knowing how to put it in gear and actually knowing how to drive the car.

i read somewhere that the Paddle shifters, is the way cars of the future will eventually end up being, i read that that they are trying to phase the traditional manuel out, in for the new Paddle shifters. the idea of having a sports car doesnt hinder because " I saw a granny grunt driving it!" its about pride, its about ownership, its about how YOU feel personally.

one of the "older" people (as you call it lol) and drives with the paddle shifters, is none other than Steve Millen, and i have to say he does know how to drive a sports car. mind you his first EVER car was something like a model T (just to give you a hint as to AGE) that was crashed in a Ditch, pulled it out, did teh work it needed on it and bam.

look. to me a sports car is a sports car. people have what they like or prefer.

[onzedge]

Originally Posted by awkwardturtle

I couldn't live with an automatic, personally. That's not a sports car to me. Hell, I actually wish they wouldn't make sports car with automatic options because that's why you see so many 50 year old women driving mustangs.

And no, I don't have any rhyme or reason as to why I think that, it's just something I've always thought. Even if the automatic is faster, more convenient, etc, I could never allow myself an automatic in a sporty car like the Z.

[6MT]

Call me old fashion... I picked the manual gearbox for the pure enjoyment. IMHO, it's a sports car and should be a manual. Yes the AT is very good, but it never really entered into my mind to choose one. My car is not a daily driver and if it was, it may have influenced me more.

So, I'm happy. Having it parked for almost 6 months of the year just gives me more anticipation to get in and go up through the gears when I do drive her.

[Nismo89]

i wanted the Z ever since i first saw it on the web. a few years back, a flare that grew into a burning flame when i came across the 370z back in jan-feb 2011. and when i test drove one, i was even more hooked. heck when i just sat in it, it just felt right, felt perfect. bought i early april (April 2nd, 2011)..still have the receipt for it =)

people appreciate the Z i think a tad bit more .... because you just dont see very many of them around. Mustangs, Comaro's exc..... are everywhere. when the Z rolls by.... (especially at the local McDonalds high school hangout) heads turn. tons of people come to me in awe of it, because it brings back memories of their old 240's exc..

i love performance. the Z was it...... think of it like this.... i was on the verge of buying a 2011 mustang GT 5.0 mustang. (monday of the next week) and something just kept telling me.... get your Z.... get what you really want!. bought the Z on saturday. called the ford guy up and told him i ended up buying the Z.

[McNasty]

All my friends have their Turbo MT cars (2 speed3's and a WRX) and they all gave me **** about getting the 7AT. I love cars and driving fast and all that **** but at the end of the day I'm still a lazy *** driver....I'm talkin cruise control in residential areas (dont judge me) My Z is my DD and I have like a half hour commute to work on a fake highway with tons of stoplights so I love my AT epecially cause I still smoke my friends in races. All they have left to say afterward is "Its still an automatic" and thats fine by me

[11Thumper]

Originally Posted by McNasty

All my friends have their Turbo MT cars (2 speed3's and a WRX) and they all gave me **** about getting the 7AT. I love cars and driving fast and all that **** but at the end of the day I'm still a lazy *** driver....I'm talkin cruise control in residential areas (dont judge me) My Z is my DD and I have like a half hour commute to work on a fake highway with tons of stoplights so I love my AT epecially cause I still smoke my friends in races. All they have left to say afterward is "Its still an automatic" and thats fine by me

Does cruise even come on at 25mph or below?

[b1adesofcha0s]

I chose the Z over the G because of the price and looks, both of which were better for the Z

[Nismo89]

lol simply put: its a Z. just like all others on this forum. thats what im justifying lol

[UNKNOWN_370]

Originally Posted by Nismo89

lol simply put: its a Z. just like all others on this forum. thats what im justifying lol

what are you 12? Did daddy buy you your Z or something?

Dude do you not read your posts for content? Right now you sound like a borderline troll. I'm not even going to take you to school. It wouldn't make sense ssince the posts on this thread make you sound like a reject from the Scion forums.
If you think the GTR isn't a sports car then you obviously don't know smack about performance vehicles. That's just my opinion though.

[cossie1600]

Did you really compare the Ferrari auto to the 370 auto? Yikes