Question on trade back my auto Z to a manual

Jeffblue

good points blade.

In terms of if you should sell the car. if you KNOW for sure you want to sell it, then just go for it right now. your car is still at a high rate of depreciation. so you have a choice, either cut your losses and lose some money and get what you want now, or have essentially wasted your money on a car you aren't enjoying. no tiptronic is going to fill the void for your if what you want is to shift the gears yourself.

You only live once. many people probably used that as justification to get the Z in the first place, its not a practical car, its not cheap either. The SMART thing to do would be keep your car, and suck it up. But, you bought a sports car, for FUN. if you aren't having fun then you are wasting your money. if it costs you some more money to get what you want then go for it. if you want to just save money and not be happy, sell your Z, get something practical. but life is not all about being smart and practical.

Sorry for the rant, but just to clarify, you are 'wasting' money in many peoples eyes just owning this type of car. might as well waste a little more to have it be what you want.

Hi-Step'n370Z

This is really good, intelligent advice. Really sum's the whole thing up.

BUT!

Let me add a quick comment, there will be holes in it, but read it for what it's meant to say.

Before you make any move, drive a stick for a while, preferably a 370Z, like at least a full day of different driving experiences. You may find that the experience is not what you thought it would be.

If you make the trade, it's gonna cost you, so why not spend a few bucks up front and try to rent a stick Z for a day and see how you really feel about the whole thing. It doesn't have to be a 2010, an 09 or even a 350Z would be good enough. Then you could drive it under varied conditions and at least get a fairly good idea of how you really feel about the tranni.

I have the 7 speed AT and I love it. It's my first auto, always stick before, and I don't miss the stick at all. You can shift her over to manual and shift using the tach with a simple, quick snap forward on the stick, so you do have control over how you want your Z to perform at a given time.

And, this car is SO QUICK AND SO FAST that unless you're really used to handling a car like the Z, you would be well advised to be able to put both hands on the wheel, should things get a little hairy, as quickly as possible.

I am NOT advocating speeding, reckless/unsafe driving! But, even the safest driver can find themselves in positions on the road that call for quick thinking, and the ability to do what's needed to avoid trouble.

For example, you're shooting up an on-ramp, and you get to 3rd gear, and you find that you suddenly need to concentrate on merging over between a bunch of cars. With the AT, you just flick the stick back to auto, put both hands on the wheel and take it from there, not having to worry about engine brake or having the engine revving like crazy until you're settled into the lane. That could take what should have been a safe and normal driving maneuver, and turn it into possibly a dangerous one.

Again, if you're really good behind the wheel, (experienced) great, but if you're not, then you could get into trouble with a car like the Z in a flash.

The paddles are good for those twisty turny "mountain roads" drives when keeping both hands on the wheel is a very good idea, and the manual mode is great for just having fun on the mostly straight drives.

So, right now you have the best of both worlds with the Z you already have.

But, I do understand how some just love the stick, and that's great too, just be sure you know absolutely which one you really want to have before you make a move.

I hope you're not letting someone else's opinion sway you, make sure you do what YOU want. don't feel bad about your Z because someone said that an Auto tranni is whimpy. You're paying for the car, not them.

Let us know what you decide.
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Jonathan Vach

thanks so much for ur help....i am going to meet one of my new friend who driveing a manual tomorrow...then i wil make my desicion!

gauchowr

good point there Jeff,

I traded in a 6 month old accord coupe and lost my 6k downpayment and 6 months worth of payments to be in the Z. I wasn't happy in the accord and would be on the370z.com every night looking at people's pics and browsing threads. I said eff it, you only live once! haha. Now when I leave work, I try to avoid leaving the same time as my partners and co workers because they are all about "practicality." I work for an accounting firm, and most people make sensible decisions which they would not think the Z is. This car is a waste in MOST peoples eyes, but do what you want. You only live once, so like Jeff said, if you're gonna do it then do it now. I have no regrets here.

Jeffblue

I did a smilar thing. selling my CVT altima coupe after just under 2 years for my Z. i had paid it off but still, it was basically a nice car, that cost me gas+insurance. but it was no fun to drive

My friend has an audi S8. i asked if he had an auto or manual, he said 'both'. i paused with a weird look on my face and he said 'its got tiptronics.' tip tronics are not a manual transmission. you are clicking a button and telling the ecu to change the gear. that is all. i'm not saying its not fun, i'm just saying it isn't a manual transmission.

everyone here talking about how the car doesn't gear hunt etc if its in MANUAL MODE. why would someone get an auto tranny just to drive it in manual mode all the time if they were able to drive stick?


When people with shitty cars criticize your car for being automatic, i think its perfectly legitimate. They are saying 'Damn! i wish i could get a really nice sports car like that, that must be so fun to drive, probably more fun than my piece of ****.... wait yo got an automatic, nvm thats probably not that fun.' all their saying is if theyh ad 30k+ to spend on a sports car, they'd have got it in a manual. obviously they dont have the money to spend, or they'd have the same car, in a manual.

kannibul

Honestly, I couldn't care less what someone else thinks of what transmission I have. But, I will rub it in their face if they make a comment about it...after I smoke 'em.