Stick-shifters Unite ...
 

... you have nothing to lose but your clutch!

Below, from Porsche info accompanying the display of the new Turbo at the Geneva auto show. Dateline is Geneva, 2/28/06.

"The 2007 Porsche 911 Turbo, which makes its public debut today at the Geneva Motor Show, combines the latest evolution of variable-geometry turbochargers and automatic transmissions to produce stunning standing-start acceleration figures. Equipped with the newly updated and optional 5-speed Tiptronic S automatic transmission, the all-wheel-drive 911 Turbo will accelerate from a standing start to 60 mph in only 3.4 seconds. This is 0.3 seconds quicker than a 911 Turbo equipped with the standard 6-speed manual transmission."

I meet the future without fear.
I've always driven manual, but the technology is rapidly getting to the point where consumer automatics will be equal/better than manuals. F1 got there some time ago. The new VW GTI is supposed to have a really good unit from Audi, waiting on the local dealer to get one in so I can try it. When the autos are smooth, rev-matching and affordable, why not "shift"?
Pun intended...

Anybody still shooting film cameras? Technology advance is relentless.

Give me a good old fashioned "3 on-the-tree" any day!!!!

Show me an automatic that is quicker and equally fun to drive... only then will I switch.

Hi,

It's always incredble to see the diminishing effect Testosterone has on the Reasoning Ability of the Male Brain.

Set aside, for a minute, the fact that you have to be Jenson Button (on his Best Day) to actually get to 60MPH in 3.7 sec. with a Manual 6-Speed. But say that you actually do, then you'll be exactly 0.53 Car Lengths (7'6") ahead of the Tiptronic Car. Depending upon the Gearing of each Transmission, the Tip S may actually be the faster Car overall.

I find it ironic that there is so much resistance to the new Auto Boxes out there while Porsche added Drive-by-Wire without so much as a Whimper from the Faithfull... so much for the arguments about Direct Driver Input.

The Auto Boxes are getting Better and Faster. And, you do not have to be Jenson Button to do it in 3.4 sec. - EVERY Time! They cost less over time to maintain and allow the Driver to better concentrate on Braking and maintaining one's Line. So, c'mon, Move from the Darkness into the Light... Technology Marches On!...

Happy Motoring!... Jim'99

I'll always have a stick shift in my Porsche. None of my friends nor my wife knows how to drive a stick and thus, they don't ask me to drive my car, which is just fine with me.

That's my reason and I'm sticking with it, right or wrong.

I agree with Jim 100%. Now, if Porsche would just adopt and adapt the DSG (dual clutch manual) gearbox that Audi and VW are using then I would be the first one in line. I thought they were going to do that with the '07 turbo but I guess not.

I find the present Tiptronic pretty unsatisfying to drive. Of course, I have not driven the new one so I would be open to that being much better.

Overall, I like the Box with a manual even if the auto turns out to be quicker. The involvement is fun to me.

On other cars, the auto is actually preferable, as the stick unit itself is no fun at all.

To each his own.

The automanuals are simply not as much fun...

Now if you're asking me which transmission I'd rather have in a race car then the semiautomatics win hands down. They shift quicker, don't blow shifts, are more consistent, and easier to drive.

Interesting read on this subject, the Audi DSG specifically.

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/content/11409729731880944331/index.php

Good article. It's nice to know that Jim and I are not just lone voices, crying in a wilderness of stick shift bigots.
I enjoy driving my '64 MGB with it's 4-speed manual (NON-SYNCHRO 1st gear, even!), and firmly believe it would not be improved with an automatic.
Technology marches on, however, and the modern automobile with it's computer-controlled-everything will eventually swallow the manual transmission without leaving so much as a hiccup.
The author of the article was incorrect in one thing however. F1 cars do have a reverse gear, required by regulation.

who cares about 0-60?
Let's see which is quicker around the N-Ring.

btw, paddles/tips are inventions of satan :mad: that have ruined motorsports. Drivers can now wait until the very last possible second to shift and avoid a trailing driver from challenging his position.
Ditto for carbon braking, drivers can brake much much later leaving less space for a passing move. Those two "advancements" have watered down the talent pool at every level of motorsports. Today's drivers wouldn't las a lap eras gone by and the average age is dropping with the excitement level.

learning to properly brake, shift and steer is an art form in danger of becoming extinct! Merc now makes their stupid cars with cruise control that will auto brake and throttle for you :barf:

Same here. Tiptronic doesn't do it for me--I like automatics, but not for a sports car. I like being fully engaged in the driving experience and none of the automatics-with-manual-buttons have done it for me so far.

My preference for sticks has nothing to do with how fast I can get from zero to sixty. It's all about smooth transitions and being in the proper gear at the proper time. No automatic has shown that it can do that.

I'm waiting for affordable DSGs myself. :cheers:

I must start out by saying:

"I love the BMW SMG tranny in the M3."

You feel the car actually shift gears. The BIGGEST pet peave of the auto-manuals is if your in a gear at 3000RPM and you depress the gas pedal to the floor, it will automatically downshift to kick the RPM's up. In the BMW M3 is does NOT do this because it relies on the driver to shift MANUALLY!

I've test drove the Audi/VW auto DSG and it sucks. It will downshift if you floor it. You might as well have the standard slushbox. Should they (REVO/Neuspeed) come out with a "Track" shift program that will hold the gear and NOT downshift, I'd be in...maybe.

KRZ

Stick shift is the way to go... There is nothing like banging through the gears on an on ramp to the freeway... Can't get that feeling from any auto..and I love to be in control of all aspect of my driving. No trans no computer ME only.....LOL


:cheers:

Even my mom drives a stick shift boxer and she's 60!

I watched a highway race between two M3's on racingflix...one had SMG the other stick. Everytime they shifted the SMG pulled ahead slightly and the stick driver is a friend of mine who knows how to shift a stick. Even so, I like manuals better for the driver involvment that you can't get with an auto.

It used to be that the argument for the manual transmission was performance-oriented, i.e., better acceleration, less power loss, no inappropriate upshifting in corners, etc.
With the advent of newer automatics these criticisms have largely been negated, to the point where in at least some applications performance is superior.
The pro-manual argument has now been reduced to touchy-feely. More driver involvement, a real sports car should have a manual transmission, my mother drives a stick.
The manual transmission will be a relic and an artifact in my lifetime, and I got my Medicare card last week.

Funny that 90% of the world uses manuals while 90% of America uses automatics. I remember walking down the streets in Rome and maybe 1 out of every 20 parked cars was an automatic. I wonder if it's because of fuel economy, repairs, control, or what.

Hey Ron, what's a record player????