That's a common misconception nowadays. Most, if not all autos are faster than their manual counterparts. Manuals will eventually be phased out in favor of dual clutch setups as the tech gets cheaper.

Same with lambo's, most of the Mercedes AMG line as well. There's more of course there's no point listing them all.

The Ford Fiesta is getting a dual clutch automatic (next year?) so it's definitely getting there as far as affordability goes.

AT is fine, but torque converters suck. some kids are confused that torque converters are equivalent to electronic clutch AT's... which it isn't. it's not about just the shift speed, but how well the throttle and drive train is linked. slush box is very difficult to drive accurately for a MT driver due to the throttle slop. slop = not very sporty.

Another reason the 370Z 7AT is pretty good - full lockup can occur in 2 - 7 in M mode and partial lockup can occur in 2 - 6 in M and D mode.

:iagree::iagree:

If I'm not mistaking, the last time Ferrari had an automatic, torque-converter transmission like those found in the 370Z was the 456 GTA that ceased production seven years ago...
You can't compare a Ferrari transmission with an 370Z's AT

For you 7AT drivers who haven't tried the 6MT and syncro revmatch in the 370Z, I'll point out another thing.

If you're trying to accelerate hard with the SRM, it takes a bit longer if you're still trying to be smooth. The reason why is that when you let off the gas and press the clutch, the revs stay up until the point at which you actually select another gear. So if you want the revs to fall a bit for the next gear to be smooth, you're waiting another second or so for the SRM. Without the SRM, the revs would start falling as soon as you let off the gas and press the clutch.

Auto's may be QUICKER, but they are not usually faster.

The 3-pedal manual is here to stay, in my opinion, because some people like myself just don't get anything from twiddling at little levers with our thumbs. We like to stab the clutch.

The new automatics shift gears much faster than the old Chevy turbo 350's and 400's or 700r4's. The autos can shift fast then a person can move a gear lever. I am not talking about the dual clutch audi's and tech gizmo Ferrari's.

FWIW, I just plugged in some data on Z's listed as bone stock from the 1/4 thread and here's what I found: M (SD) N

MT: 13.67 sec (.07), 103.63 MPH (.40), 11

AT: 13.52 sec (.08), 104.62 MPH (.92), 9

That's leaving out the few clear high outliers for the stock MT's that were in the 14's BTW...

This is, again, also leaving out folks with bolt-on's, different gear sets, etc.

Anyway, close race, but the AT nudges out a bit faster, which is consistent with the findings of car mags.

Soooo... could a MT go faster? Probably -- but not on the average.

Yes, you are correct. ;)

The 7AT's are faster on average because of the quick consistent shifts and the great gear ratios. Their downfall is the low stall speed of the torque converter.

The 6MT's have the advantage at the launch (at the track). At the track, I'm usually launching at 4000 to 4500 RPM, results = 1.8x and 1.9x 60ft times with stock tires.

I have a torque converter on the way 2900 to 3000 rpm stall. Stock converter spins the wheels at 1500 rpm.
it should cut 1.8 ???? 60 ft times.
Z

Thanks to everyone for their input. It does seem that the 7AT is faster overall. Nice to know...

Could someone provide more details into the AT transmission? I thought that it was a dual clutch...

Let the information flow continue...:driving:

It's not a dual clutch. It's a typical slush-box with a torque converter. It's just better than most every other slush-box out there.

Just be advised that if you want to go FI you should get the MT. The 7AT is very limited in how much power it can handle and, as of now, there's not much readily available to help it hold more power. From the factory it is rated to a maximum 298 lb-ft, and recently we had one grenade that was pushing only 350 lb-ft via supercharger.

The 6MTs are rated to 332 lb-ft from the factory but with a clutch/flywheel upgrade they can take a good bit more.