Wow stop saying the manual is so much better to drive.. the 7AT also has synchro rev match with an additional gear! by saying its so much more fun to drive just goes to show that you think you can read everyone's mind.. what the hell? maybe some people find the smoothness or relaxation of an automatic better.. plus the Z's has one of the best auto's out there and Nissan specifically tuned it to produce as much performance as possible. The G37 7AT runs better times that the manual. Now what?

:icon14: wat?

Nothing to get defensive over, we are all just stating our preference at the OP's request, and why we feel that way. I certainly don't think I can read anyone's mind because I would rather drive an MT sports car.

I respect the enthusiasts either way, and this is nothing to get bent out of shape over.

The wife is the number one reason if I go with a 7AT. The good news is that this AT seem much MUCH improved over the 5AT in the 350Z.

There was a time when getting a true sports car meant you had to get a manual. But with technology these days, and the way the sport has evolved, an AT is an equivalent alternative in my opinion. Look at what Ferrari is doing these days...

It all comes down to whether you want a hot dog or a hamburger.

Also........ consider that just maybe tuners can massage that tame AT street program into something that might very well out perform what anybody but a pro racer could do with the MT. Somebody is probably already working on that chip.

^ Hmmmm. Had not thought about that.... Good point...

My father have an Infiniti G37s Coupe AT (the first Infiniti in Spain), and he will change it to get a 370z.

Before the G37s he had got a 350z MT (in Europe haven´t sold the AT), and he tought that G37 AT will be so much quicker and funny than it really is.

I have a 147 GTA with Selespeed gear box with paddle shifters and it is perfect, but it is not an AT, it is a manual gearbox without clutch pedal as Ferrari F1 gear box.

For first time in Europe Z will arrive with Automatic Transmission, do you know if it will be the same of the Infiniti AT? He wants pleasure at driving and the actual car he has is not a good toy.

Sorry for my bad English :shakes head:

Cheers!

^^^ LOL!

I saw the thread title and was VERY reluctant to open this thread. I've already explained my part hundreds of times about this subject. But somehow I still opened this thread.

This thread = can of worms.

Ever since the no phone laws took place in CA, the roads have FELT safer. I went to Florida for the AVN InterNext convention and let me just say, you don't even REALIZE how good the drivers are now in Cali until you go somewhere where the laws are different. Getting on the freeway at one point, we almost got hit by 3 cars in a row that had drivers that were on their phones not paying ANY attention to the lane they were merging into (our lane). This happened a good 80% of the time we were driving through FL.

Seriously, if you plan to be on your blackberry or fiddling on your phone while you drive, do me a favor and stay out of Los Angeles. We got crappy road conditions, small highways, garbage public transportation, and serious road rage already. That's more than enough for us to have to deal with without adding mindless texting drivers or people with phones glued to their faces.

BTW, it's fun heckling the sh!t out of people that still have their phones glued to the side of their heads while they drive. Believe me, it's like cow-tipping here. Some people are too cheap to get a hands free kit (even though almost ALL phones come with one).

Back on the subject, I prefer manuals because no automatic thinks like I do. 3 speeds are better autos in my opinion because they're so much more simpler. I don't like that Nissan's auto waits a while before up shifting if you've been on the gas, but if it didn't, you may have to wait for it to down shift again if you step on the gas. Personally, I think having 100% full control over everything in the car makes it more of an extension of you. If the AT was a DSC trans, I wouldn't have an issue with it. But it's really just a glorified planetary gear train with a 5 disc torque converter.

Manuals FTMFW!

You can "tune" a transmission? Having an extra gear doesn't really mean it's better if the ratios combined with the diff ratio evens out its performance compared to the manual.

People saying "The manual is better" is just their opinion. Don't get so defensive. And driving a manual doesn't mean that it's going to be any less smooth of a ride than the auto. That's all about driving habits. I've been on car rides in autos where I got nauseous because the driver couldn't do anything smooth.

^ Most things controlled by a computer can be 'otimized'.

By changing certain parts on the valve body, you can get quicker shifts and make it handle more horsepower. an example of a valve body upgrade for the 350Z:
SGP Racing Upgraded Valve Body for the Nissan 350Z / G35
I can't find any hard info on actual shifting speeds but have "heard" they are improved.

Yeah. I know about all that. But in the end, you're not really tuning the trans. Tuning a motor doesn't make the block handle more horsepower.

Changing the springs to stronger stiffer springs in the AT also helps it handle more power. Adding planets to the planet carrier, putting in a bigger ring gear, and putting better clutch packs in ALSO make the trans stronger. But that's not tuning. That's upgrading. Increasing line pressure to the valve body doesn't necessarily increase the transmissions strength, but it does help get quicker shifts. A shift kit will generally do this. A good shift kit will usually come with upgraded springs to handle the increased stress.

Nissan put an innovative feature like synchro-rev match in the manual which has gotten nothing but excellent reviews, and people are considering the auto?
:mad:

It is a very good point, and I have yet to get to test drive the auto still as I am waiting for one to arrive.
Though talking with some co-workers, who know more about cars than I may ever learn (is fine since I do computers), but we got into talking about how "I" will be driving and when. This car will be my daily driver, through about one or more hours of traffic (living in the suburbs sucks sometimes), and the traffic is pretty horrible (I live in Houston). I have gotten many good pluses & minuses from friends who know more about this, and reading the responses here has shown me a few things, of course it all comes down to me and what I want.

Houston! Wow.. traffic sucks there man!! I DEFINATLEY know which I would get in Houston.

While I am still 95% getting the 7AT, if my wife does not mind me getting the MT, I would definately pick that up. That is primarily due to the fact that I plan to work from the home office more this year, or will be traveling. Thus, a 'daily driver' will not really be needed.

Again, either way, you can't go wrong. You are still in a Z!!!

It's not a good point. The point he is making is that because the manual is for him, anybody who would want a auto must be stupid. "People are considering the auto??!!"

I'm sure he hasn't driven one so I'll bet he would be surprised to know that the auto also has downshift synchro-rev matching when using the paddles.

Until somebody puts the two head to head in a real world performance match, nobody here can say for sure whether that auto might just out perform the manual.

In fact in a drag race I'll put my money on the auto. Why would ANYBODY want to use a clutch? :stirthepot:

Because it's not all about speed. For some people, they'd gladly sacrifice a little speed for more fun, and they perceive MTs as being more fun. This whole thread is kinda silly, to give my honest opinion, because the answer to the question 'Which is better? MT or AT?' is entirely contingent on one's criteria for what makes something better, which makes it entirely subjective. If speed in a drag race is what you're after, AT may well be the way to go. If convenience is what you're after, AT is definitely the way to go. But if you enjoy doing your own shifting and enjoyment is what you're after, then MT makes more sense. Point being, the question that this thread poses has no objective answer one way or the other. Everyone should just figure out what his/her priorities are, and then get the one that best matches up with those priorities and be glad that (a) the Z is offered with both AT and MT (unlike the S2000, for ex.), and (b) both transmissions seem to be very good.

Edit: I forgot to add -- we should also be glad that (c) Nissan didn't decided to scrap both AT and MT and replace them with a CVT (like they did with the Maxima).

Amen brother! You said it all!:tiphat:

I second that.

If thats how you feel ( and theres nothing wrong with that)... then why on gods green earth would you pay a premium for a car like this.

Just go buy a Yaris....save thousands of dollars not just on the price but at the pump and do something else with all the money you saved.

I third. And thank god no sports car breed will ever have a CVT if they listen to the owners. A sports car must have a viscous-coupling-less option. Period. We'll cross the bridge into sequential when it happens, but there are still clutches in those.

For me, the manual makes me a (somewhat) safer driver, in a very narrow and qualified way (and I completely understand why most people think I'm wrong for saying it). The manual makes me stay in a more alert and aware part of my attention and situational awareness, which is backed up by numerous human factors studies (the two worst regions of attention/S.A. are over-tasked and severely under-tasked, your reaction time goes way up, you want to be in the middle). Because I'm constantly thinking things like "the car lineup at the next light is pretty long for this time of day, the lights probably going to change, so I should go ahead and heal&toe into 3rd rather than coax til idle" I'm actually aware that I'm driving. To the naysayers, yes i do have to concentrate on the revs, and yes the manual does take my eyes off the road and add something for me to worry about. But if I add the 'fun' I have the manual is worth the cheaper price tag in spades in my opinion. If I know how to drive a manual, and I'm not hauling anything (trucks get more hauling capacity from the auto because of the V.C.), I will always go for the cheaper manual option.

I also grew up in the UK, where autos are the anomaly, and I can remember being 12 and asking my best friends mom why her car didn't have a 'stick.' I was amazed by the explanation of what an auto let you do and she found my 'why would you want to do it that way?' response hysterical. My dad had just finished the Shelby Cobra replica, though. God I loved that car. I'd almost pass on a Z to drive that car.

end nostalgia.

Manual definitely keeps me more focused. I have a tendency to zone out just cruising in an auto. :)

I never cared much for auto's with paddle shifting, rev-match downshift or not.
I'll be honest, I never drove an auto 370Z (or even a 350Z) with paddle shifting, but I've read comments and driven other paddle shifted tc autos and the end result is always the same.
The delay is annoying, and you still get that disconnected feeling from the torque converter. If it has an automatic mode, I'll just let the car shift for me.

I don't drive manuals because they're faster.
The main reason I buy it is for the feeling of being "one with the car" - something that no other transmission can come close to reproducing, be it auto, or CVT or even DSG.
Secondary reasons include cost (usually $1k cheaper), and instant weight reduction (~50 lbs or so).

But nice of you to assume :p

I'll regurgitate what was said in the Winding Road review.
"Do yourself a favor; buy the manual if you're going to buy this car."

7AT: More practical!

6MT: More fun!

Someone who really wants a 6MT makes no excuses. Personally, I don't see why anyone would get an automatic on a sports car like the 370Z.

And not to mention, you save money by going with 6MT. That's just the added bonus :p

wow 7 pages and we all kept it clean sort of. For me I like the ^MT and 7AT but the 7AT won out as the wife drives it from to time. She drives a stick infact it was all she drove until 4 years ago. But she said a luxuary sport car (G37S) should be AT so that6 is what we got. She controls the fun hole so she wins.

In drag racing, they're using manual valve-body autos. True they have no clutch, but they also have only 2-3 speeds. Most high power drag cars use power-glide or TH350 transmissions. Less shifts = less lost time.

Not worth it to me. Even if Auto is faster in the straight line, it's not nearly as fun.

It's true, manuals aren't exactly faster, they just sound it. If I want to pull ahead of suburban-runaround-with-an-inferiority-complex-to-sports-coupes, have to rev like I'm already deaf, and scare said runaround, or piss them off more, it depends.

Great observation! Kinda tired of keeping up with this subject...You get what you like. Doesn't mean anything about you but personal preference IMO.

Nice to dream every day is track day, curvy roads, blue sky & no cops but reality is 90% time in traffic, stop-go so AT has a valid place in the real world. Tried the 7AT and you can have some reasonable fun with it but not get beat to death in traffic- so have fun on the weekends but get to work M-F (to pay for the Z). Have a 7AT in my driveway and NO regrets- love to drive it everyday (except in snow)

my celica was a paddle shift auto......it was fun but i got bored

i told myself my next car is going to be mt for sure
and thats what i got :D
6MT-----i love it!!

Theres no other way to go but 6MT.
:driving:

I always get a kick out of the die hard M/T guys acting like it's a totally different car. I've had sports cars in both A/T and M/T and neither were that different unless I put them on a track.

How many people here are putting theirs on a track regularly? I'm gunna say less than 5%.

It is totally differenct car in regards to car's driving experience, control of the car, and once again, driving the car in any distance and purpose. Even driving the car for less than one mile, it is totally different from Manual vs Automotic. You dont have to take your car to the track to feel the difference.

Having drove one of my friend's automotic/paddle shift 370z only further confirmed my belief that it was so much boring, no excitement due to less control of the car. It was just smash the gas and let the car go, like my grandma's Buick..

And when I drove my Z, it was much more fun and exciting, shifting and downshifting using SynroRev having full control of the car, it just felt right! The way sports car should feel like...

The only reason I understood my friend's purchase of automatic 370z is that, that particular individual was a she......

Some people have different views on performance. As long as the power is there I really dont care if it comes from cramping my shins or with my elbow on the door.

I drove both, the power was still there with the A/T and it felt worlds smoother than the M/T. I like my sports cars to be smooth, I like my muscle cars to be jerky.

I don't know about you but my 370z is butter smooth just like an automatic. But then again, I think that totally depends on the individual's competency to drive manual.

Oh no he didn't... :ohsnap1:

1 thought I have and I'm not bashing anyone, because I don't give a damn if you drive auto or manual. It's what ever you prefer and are use to.

Obviously it takes more skill to drive the manual, but not much more since the synchro rev matching makes it a good amount easier for people to live with as a daily. The clutch in the Z is so soft its unbelievable. Whatever.... Threads like this can go on forever. Im out...

If you get an auto tranny, how will you hold your head high at the gatherings of the true sports car fans? The manual on the 370Z, with the syncro, is the talk of the sport car world.


If you get an auto, you might as well get an infiniti G37 coupe with 4 seats! (the horror!)

just my 2 cents worth....

The Z is a "pure" sports car. Don't mess with that!


--jayhawk
Original owner, 1973 Datsun 240Z
(and second owner of a 1993 300ZX - both are in my garage right now. and both with manual transmissions.)

Well, although I'll never buy an auto, I do disagree with that statement. What is a Ferrari F430 or Lamborghini LP-670? Not a "pure" sports car? They don't have manuals, and yet they're pretty damn fast and sporty to me.

Paddle shifters are a pretty good setup (if the line pressure is raised) for track use and therefore I don't see automatics as a non-sports car.

Also, there are those that either don't like to drive manuals for one reason or another (my friend has a blown-out knee, for example) and would still like to drive a sporty car. And then of course there are those that don't know how to drive a manual. I don't see anything wrong with getting an auto and I don't look down on those that have autos. A car enthusiast is a car enthusiast.