Seen the latest Car and Driver comparison?

[RandallNeighbour]

4.1 is indeed impressive.

I just can't imagine owning a Porsche with an automatic in it. Takes the fun out of driving, and frankly, automatics are scary at the track. If it decides to shift at the wrong split second during hard cornering because you're near the redline, you're gonna spin out. Happens all the time at DE events I've been to with guys with tip trannies.

Of course, the PDK may be much better. I've never driven one of those on a track.

[Adam]

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

4.1 is indeed impressive.

I just can't imagine owning a Porsche with an automatic in it. Takes the fun out of driving, and frankly, automatics are scary at the track. If it decides to shift at the wrong split second during hard cornering because you're near the redline, you're gonna spin out. Happens all the time at DE events I've been to with guys with tip trannies.

Of course, the PDK may be much better. I've never driven one of those on a track.

I'd probably get a PDK if it had real paddle shifters. I'm sure it's faster on the track than a manual. The old torque converter slushboxes don't seem to hold a candle to PDK. Even a good driver with a manual is slower than PDK. I would at least like to try it out. Randall I think the PDK will hold the gear in manual mode and bounce off the limiter just like a stick so it gives the driver more control than the old tiptronic.

[CRCGuy]

I just test drove a Boxster s with PDK. Believe me, this is unlike any automanual you've ever experienced. the shifts are so rapid there is no loss of momentum between gear changes (up or down)--and I do mean none. This must explain the surprisingly fast 0-60 times of 4.1sec. If you had ear plugs in you would swear it had a CVT transmission---you really can't feel the gear changes. On down shifting it revmatches so again, no change in momentum. During cornering I had no reason to use manual mode--the tranny picked the right gear always even after a hard braking before turn-in..I don't know how it does it. (you don't want to use the buttons anyway as they are useless while turning the wheel).
The car didn't have Sport Chrono which supposedly does an even better job on Sport mode--I can't see how it could much better. My wife has a MY08 GTI with DSG which I first thought was impressive. PDK makes it feel like an old slushbox. I do love manual trannies for the fun factor, but I was sold on PDK. Since the gear selection and power delivery was perfect, I could have more fun keeping my hands on the wheel and carving up corners. I plan to order one near the end of the year when my dealer gives me his latest allocation status. And I can't wait to hear how it does in autocrossing (which I don't do, but just curious).

The only apprehension I have is the lack history with this tranny. I can just see the forums in 6 months talking about some catostrophic issue with PDK that Porsche is fixing for next model year or whatever. But then, life is short...

[Perfectlap]

Doesn't PDK use the bizzarely anti-intuitive same side forward and back shifting vs the customary left and right side paddle conifg? Jack Villeneuve had that weird one hand set up on his BAR F1 car. Mayne he's on the Porsche slush box development team! LOL

[CRCGuy]

Originally Posted by Perfectlap

Doesn't PDK use the bizzarely anti-intuitive same side forward and back shifting vs the customary left and right side paddle conifg? Jack Villeneuve had that weird one hand set up on his BAR F1 car. Mayne he's on the Porsche slush box development team! LOL

Yes it does. But I think it's a bit subjective and depends on your prior experience--esp if you've never used such a tranny before. At first it was odd. But I got used it and was able to click off shifts without thinking. In fact, I was started using my right thumb to upshift and left index finger to down shift! I think the lack of paddles is more of a problem then the forward up/back down situation because you can only use them while hands are at 10 and 2. Now, in that position, the buttons are incredibly ergonomic as your fingers fit into them perfectly. But I think it's unacceptable not having nice large paddles (a la ferrari) that cover a wide arc. My wifes GTI DSG tranny uses the same forward up/back down for the console shift lever, so I think that made it more natural for me (even tho the GTI steering paddles are right up, left down). Maybe the porsche arrangement is designed to cover both right and left handed people? does a lefty find right up, left down unintuitive? dunno.

Due to the button arrangement, I bet 99% of the time people will just leave it in auto mode until the aftermarket paddle fix is out or porsche fixes it themselves. So if you're unhappy enough that you don't get to use clutch and work the gates, you'll probably be even less so since you won't enjoy clicking your own gears. I hope Porsche has already started the development work on paddles, otherwise we wont see it for a few years. Still I plan to get one and hope there is a Porsche or aftermarket fix. There is already an aftermarket one out for the 911:

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/04/03/all-thumbs-no-problem-gemballa-f1-steering-wheel-for-porsche-9/

My $0.02

[CRCGuy]

forgot to mention, I know one of the service techs at my Porsche dealer. He said last month was record sales month!

I guess people figure they can't make any money anyway these days so you may as well dump it in a porsche. If this is happening at other dealerships it's gonna make price negotiations much harder.

[j.fro]

A while back I drove a C2S with the PDK and sport chrono, and I was amazed. For autocrossing, the PDK would be brilliant. In Sport-Plus mode, it seemed like the tranny/computer wouldn't let the car go under 4000RPM. Under braking, it just popped off the gears, 3-2-1. Under acceleration, it did the same, but at redline...and the shifts were freaking violent. As fast as that car is, and as fast as things come up in AX, the PDK will be the tranny to have: It does what we all wish we could do, perfectly, every time.
As for taking the "fun" out of driving, the car was sooooo fast, I was quite happy to keep both hands on the wheel at all times and stay focused on what was happening ahead of me.