Auto vs. Manual

[Nessal]

As a business standpoint, automatic.

[i2disturbedSS]

Originally Posted by CWI

My thoughts were manual in the coupe and automatic in the vert?

I agree.

They can look @ the sports cars they sell or other camaros they sell also and see what sales higher. maybe even look @ a near by compeition and see what they are offering.

but yeah zl1 coupe manual zl1 vert auto

[justindewoody]

Originally Posted by Chevrolet Customer Svc

This is great feedback! What are all of your favorite features of your new Camaro?

Brandon
Chevrolet Customer Service

Dude, you seriously gotta stop asking the same damn question every time you make a post. That's getting old. It sounds soooooo fake. It's not helping your (and GM's) cause.

[ZL1 Spoked]

Go manual. Do not waste 60 grand on an auto, if your excuse is I don't like driving and traffic, the answer is simple, DON'T lol. Get a cheap car with an auto if you are worried about traffic. Just my opinion. No disrespect to the people that chose automatic.

[REVENGE]

Originally Posted by ZL1 Spoked

Go manual. Do not waste 60 grand on an auto, if your excuse is I don't like driving and traffic, the answer is simple, DON'T lol. Get a cheap car with an auto if you are worried about traffic. Just my opinion. No disrespect to the people that chose automatic.

Sometimes I wonder if these manual onlu guys are insecure men or just simply old farts. Anyway most people will opt for the faster automatic.

[Stephen12ZL1]

With an automatic that works this well...why shift gears? I have had plenty of 5/6speed vehicles and I'm over it

[Norm Peterson]

Originally Posted by REVENGE

Sometimes I wonder if these manual onlu guys are insecure men or just simply old farts.

Insecure? Not at all. If anything, those of us manual-only guys who are a little older are more secure in this respect because we've had more time to understand why (hint: it isn't always about ETs and time "lost" to shifting).

If you aren't getting close to retirement age yourself, I hope that you don't have any regrets about never driving a manual transmission car when you do. You won't get to do a [CTRL]-[ALT]-[DEL] do-over of the last 40 years of your life when you get here.

Anyway most people will opt for the faster automatic.

Pardon me, but your preference for that straight line racing stuff is showing.

At least 45 years ago and before it became common knowledge, I could see that automatics were going to become the dominant choice at the dragstrip. Knowing that didn't matter then when it'd have been "advantage-me" to have chosen it. Knowing that over all those years since hasn't and still doesn't [matter] and I still won't choose it.


Edit - I'd bet that many people don't even think past the automatic simply because they haven't been exposed to it on a regular basis before they got their own license. What you grow up with tends to influence your choices because of the familiarity.


Norm

[SlingShot]

I've been driving both standard and auto for over forty years now. I own a SS with a standard and a ZL1 with an auto. I find myself spending and wanting to spend more time with the auto, because it is that damn good and fun compared to the standard trans. But that's just me, but then again when I want to have a lot of fun, I jump in the Sky.

[2001ragtop]

People who are highest qualified to choose Automatic trans:

The ones who have removed the manual trans. by themselves, (with their bare hands) and have replaced clutches, throwout bearings, surfaced the flywheel, replaced pilot bushing.

You have to take apart the shifter, take apart the console inside, drop two different driveshafts. It's just a mess. oh yeah the hydraulic clutch pedal also.

There comes a time where people simply do not want to deal with all that. (or pay someone else to deal with it)

How to avoid that: Just get an automatic.

Don't get me wrong though, I like manuals.

[Norm Peterson]

Been there, done that (always in the driveway, sometimes in the winter). Yes, it does give a more complete basis for having a transmission preference and I guess you'd know after going through it a couple of times just how hardcore you really are.

But you need DIY repair experience with both manual and automatic transmissions before you can really use that as your basis for transmission preference.

R & R'ing an AT under the same DIY working conditions is not any more fun than R & R'ing a clutch - I've done ATs a couple of times, too. ATs are significantly heavier and typically messier to work with due to the fluid lines you must disconnect and drain (and on older cars you may end up hoping that the radiator/heat exchanger/tranny cooler tubes will withstand the wrench effort required). In some cases, there are fussy adjustments that don't have analogous procedures with manual transmissions, and you'll be R&R'ing it again inside of a hundred miles if you ignore this step or screw it up badly enough.


Norm

[gbosh]

Standard transmission vs Auto! Standard in traffic,stalled at the light not enough rpm's or in the wrong gear! Auto does not have that problem. Hey Norm! How did you practise toe/heel shifting on city streets? Bet that was a real grin! With a auto just go around the corner. So What do you do with only the left hand on the steering wheel to avoid the airbag deployment? Keep your left arm out of the path so if the bag deploys your forearm doesn't get stuck in your face or chest. Have driven for 55 years and have never had to take an auto out for rebuild with plenty of the autos having over 200.000 miles on them. Can't say that about 4 speed transmissions though! Rebuilt several four speeds and plenty of clutches though. Left foot on clutch right toe on brake and also right heel on gas pedal with right hand on shifter leaving the left hand for steering,boy that sure does sound like fun!

Now lets talk about over revving the engine.It is not possible to down shift in the auto transmission with the speed too high it won't allow one to do this,not so with a manual transmission though! Sure the computer won't supply any fuel but the engine will still go above red line. Rocking out of mud when your stuck is a real problem with a manual and all the shifting and clutching,auto just go from D to R and problem solved. Go with your shifting but don't stall it out when I'm behind you at the traffic light! OOPS I'm in the wrong gear!

[Norm Peterson]

Driver clumsiness is driver clumsiness and no fault of a manual transmission unless the transmission itself is on its last legs. At some point if anybody is having an unusual amount of difficulty developing the skill to effectively operate a manual transmission, it is their individual decision to either keep working at it or give up and bail out. No hard feelings from me toward anybody deciding either way on that. Hope that adequately answers most of your thoughts.

Heel-toe in city traffic? Even in suburban driving I can't think of any good reason to be doing that in the first place. Even if the pedals were placed to encourage it (in most cars, they aren't). Save it for back country roads and road course track days.


Norm

[Cevin]

Chocolate, Vanilla or Strawberry? Choose what you like - no right or wrong choice, they're all good!

[HelloWorld]

Originally Posted by Cevin

Chocolate, Vanilla or Strawberry? Choose what you like - no right or wrong choice, they're all good!

If you prefer manual, great! If you prefer automatic, also great! I will argue that everyone should try both and then make the decision on what is preferable.

There's no real point in debating past that.