[Ricco]

OK So I have my ZL1 Vert on order with the M6 but I'm seriously considering changing it to an A10 for the following reasons.

Traffic - I live in Houston, no more needs to be said
This car will not spend much of its life, if any, at any kind of track
Traffic - Did I mention that already?
I have another car that will be manual
Traffic... Yes, there is lots of it in this city, not to mention the freaking traffic lights, even when there is no traffic.

Anyway, I am a Manual guy through and through, I'm from England and I grew up on them, I've been driving stick since I could reach the pedals at 8 years old and if I still lived there, this wouldn't even be a consideration for me (if you've ever driven England roads you would know why).. I've also been going on and on about the Rev match feature on the M6 and am so excited to try it.. So naturally, my Camaro should be a M6, right?

Well here come my doubts.. I have a Mustang GT350 that I will be trading in for the ZL1 and as much as I love it, I find my self not raring to go for a drive in it bc of the clutch, and did I mention the traffic and traffic lights here.. Actually I think I hate traffic lights more than the traffic.. Insert rant about roundabouts here .. Sorry, I digress..

Anyway, I daily drive a Subaru BRZ.. Ironically, a lot of my reasoning for picking it was how good the Automatic is.. Don't get me wrong, in automatic mode, it is terrible, but knock it into manual mode and the gearbox is all of a sudden about 90% perfect. Fast paddle shifts, auto blip on the downshift and most importantly, the convertor is almost always locked up (I can mash the throttle in whatever gear I want, at almost any RPM and it stays locked up). The drawbacks to it are, it's impossible to 'peel out', of course having less power than an electric pencil sharpener doesn't help this situation, but I do miss being able to rev it up, dump the clutch from the lights and light the tires. Secondly, even though I consider it to be about 90% perfect, there are a few rare times when, just for a few seconds, the convertor unlocks and allows slippage, which makes it sound like a scooter and grates on my nerves like you wouldn't believe. I also have a BMW X5 Diesel, and my experience with it is similar, I always drive it in manual mode but it is a 2013 so lacks paddle shifters.. Gearbox isn't quite as good as the BRZ off the line, (convertor slips a lot more), but once you get past 20mph, it stays pretty well locked up, like the BRZ.

So that being said, here are my questions about the ZL1 A10.

Given the 650/650 coming from the motor, how much am I going to miss dumping the clutch and 'peeling out'? Is it possible to get decent wheel spin off the line with the ZL1 A10 (and I don't mean using the line lock)? What kind of launch/traction feature can I invoke (or disable) to help?
Running this thing in manual mode, how well does the convertor stay locked up? Can I select the gear I want, mash the throttle at any RPM and feel the full force of the motor or is it going to rev up a few thousand RPM and sit there waiting for the driveline to catch up? (Ala almost every other torque convertor auto I am aware of).
I've done enough research and watched enough videos to know that the shifts are fast and are delivered right when requested by the paddles, so I'm not worried about that but I just simply wouldn't be able to tolerate listening to it 'rev up' because I mashed the throttle.

The last request might be a stretch.. If there is anyone in Northwest Houston (Cypress area but inside 290 & 99) with a ZL1 A10 that would be willing to take me for a ride and show me how it behaves, that would be awesome. I'd be happy to trade for a ride in the Mustang, BRZ or BMW for anyone who might be interested Also have a 2005 STI too if that's what floats your boat!

Thanks to anyone who has made it through my 'mini novel' post, to reiterate, I'm not interested in which tranny is faster, or more capable at the track or 60' times or any of all that, I already have enough info to form my own opinion on those things.. my post count is low on almost every forum I frequent because I do a LOT of reading.

Cheers

[Toons]

I'm in Houston as well, and went with the A10 because when driving my manual corvette in traffic, I found it difficult to drink my coffee, eat my donut, talk on my phone, and shift at the same time! Seriously, this transmission makes the car, it is awesome. You can burn out any time you want by just punching it, and in fact you'll find that you spin the tires quite often unexpectedly, even at 35 mph while downshifting to pass. I was laughing just the other day on my way to work when I broke the tires loose three times in normal Houston traffic just commuting to work......I'll be buying new tires a lot sooner in this car! I don't miss the manual at all, period. Not with the A10.

[KyleL]

Originally Posted by Ricco

Given the 650/650 coming from the motor, how much am I going to miss dumping the clutch and 'peeling out'?

You won't. The computer's torque management system will step in and bog the motor before you can think of any of that nonsense occurring.

[Maddawg]

Originally Posted by Ricco

OK So I have my ZL1 Vert on order with the M6 but I'm seriously considering changing it to an A10 for the following reasons.

Traffic - I live in Houston, no more needs to be said
This car will not spend much of its life, if any, at any kind of track
Traffic - Did I mention that already?
I have another car that will be manual
Traffic... Yes, there is lots of it in this city, not to mention the freaking traffic lights, even when there is no traffic.

Anyway, I am a Manual guy through and through, I'm from England and I grew up on them, I've been driving stick since I could reach the pedals at 8 years old and if I still lived there, this wouldn't even be a consideration for me (if you've ever driven England roads you would know why).. I've also been going on and on about the Rev match feature on the M6 and am so excited to try it.. So naturally, my Camaro should be a M6, right?

Well here come my doubts.. I have a Mustang GT350 that I will be trading in for the ZL1 and as much as I love it, I find my self not raring to go for a drive in it bc of the clutch, and did I mention the traffic and traffic lights here.. Actually I think I hate traffic lights more than the traffic.. Insert rant about roundabouts here .. Sorry, I digress..

Anyway, I daily drive a Subaru BRZ.. Ironically, a lot of my reasoning for picking it was how good the Automatic is.. Don't get me wrong, in automatic mode, it is terrible, but knock it into manual mode and the gearbox is all of a sudden about 90% perfect. Fast paddle shifts, auto blip on the downshift and most importantly, the convertor is almost always locked up (I can mash the throttle in whatever gear I want, at almost any RPM and it stays locked up). The drawbacks to it are, it's impossible to 'peel out', of course having less power than an electric pencil sharpener doesn't help this situation, but I do miss being able to rev it up, dump the clutch from the lights and light the tires. Secondly, even though I consider it to be about 90% perfect, there are a few rare times when, just for a few seconds, the convertor unlocks and allows slippage, which makes it sound like a scooter and grates on my nerves like you wouldn't believe. I also have a BMW X5 Diesel, and my experience with it is similar, I always drive it in manual mode but it is a 2013 so lacks paddle shifters.. Gearbox isn't quite as good as the BRZ off the line, (convertor slips a lot more), but once you get past 20mph, it stays pretty well locked up, like the BRZ.

So that being said, here are my questions about the ZL1 A10.

Given the 650/650 coming from the motor, how much am I going to miss dumping the clutch and 'peeling out'? Is it possible to get decent wheel spin off the line with the ZL1 A10 (and I don't mean using the line lock)? What kind of launch/traction feature can I invoke (or disable) to help?
Running this thing in manual mode, how well does the convertor stay locked up? Can I select the gear I want, mash the throttle at any RPM and feel the full force of the motor or is it going to rev up a few thousand RPM and sit there waiting for the driveline to catch up? (Ala almost every other torque convertor auto I am aware of).
I've done enough research and watched enough videos to know that the shifts are fast and are delivered right when requested by the paddles, so I'm not worried about that but I just simply wouldn't be able to tolerate listening to it 'rev up' because I mashed the throttle.

The last request might be a stretch.. If there is anyone in Northwest Houston (Cypress area but inside 290 & 99) with a ZL1 A10 that would be willing to take me for a ride and show me how it behaves, that would be awesome. I'd be happy to trade for a ride in the Mustang, BRZ or BMW for anyone who might be interested Also have a 2005 STI too if that's what floats your boat!

Thanks to anyone who has made it through my 'mini novel' post, to reiterate, I'm not interested in which tranny is faster, or more capable at the track or 60' times or any of all that, I already have enough info to form my own opinion on those things.. my post count is low on almost every forum I frequent because I do a LOT of reading.

Cheers

hurry up and switch to the A10!!! its unbelievable

[RSFR]

This transmission is a beast. In auto mode you can be in any speed and gear and mash the throttle and it instantly down shifts and starts pulling. It is superior in every single measurable way to the manual. I've driven a Porsche 991 GT3 a few times and I'd put the A10 on par with the PDK. To me, the single most impressive thing about the ZL1 is the A10 transmission. I'm in the San Antonio area if you want to make the drive over to go for a spin.

[FringBirdAloha]

Even though the A10 will never be as durable as a Tremec manual, especially when tracking the car, it’s a fantastic transmission for an auto. I would totally agree with the a10 for Houston traffic and since you said you won’t be tracking it, who cares. Get it! But I do have to say I am glad I live in a semi rural area, as that manual 6 is all I’d ever want.

[Outahand]

I got the A10 due to daily driving in traffic. It is awesome.

Did one track day so far and the computer controlled aggressive downshifting is the real deal. I only accidentally hit a paddle once and switched into manual mode. A quick flip of the shifter to manual and back to auto fixed that right up.

Zero regrets.

[cleoent]

It's the better transmission for every use case. Faster in a straight line and around track. Better gas mileage. Better in traffic.

Only reason to not get it is if you're old fashioned and incapable of embracing technology or cheap.

[Rooster OG]

My daily is a manual and I sold my manual c7 to get into the a10 and have no regrets. I picked my car up four hours from me and got stuck in traffic for an hour on my way home, I was really happy I had the a10, I think you will be too dealing with traffic.

The best thing I can say about going automatic with this car is it doesn't take away any of the fun from driving it, the car is a blast!

[17CamaroZL1]

To answer the OP, none of the worries you mentioned are a problem with the A10. If you're in manual mode, it feels just like a manual car does when you nail the gas, no matter what gear you're in. If you're in too high of a gear for your speed, it will sound and feel sluggish until you get the revs up, just like a manual. If you're in a low gear, especially 1st or 2nd, you'll break the tires loose and may need to counter steer, and may even want to bang the next gear. There is no sign of the engine revving without acceleration. It acts like the converter stays locked until you're at a stop.

As fun as manual mode can be, the true marvel of this transmission, is full auto. Even after driving this thing for over 4000 miles, it still amazes me how this trans performs. Cruising along at 60, if you stomp on it, it darn near instantly drops from 10th to 3rd gear and pins you back! That just doesn't seem possible, but it does it. If someone happens to pull up beside you wanting to make a pull while you're cruising, you can quickly blip the peddle to the floor, and the trans will instantly go into performance shift mode, dropping you to the perfect gear to accelerate hard from. At that point you can pull the shifter over into manual mode to make sure it doesn't go back into normal mode if you don't take off within 7 seconds. As soon as you take off, you can push the shifter back to the auto position if you want it to make perfect shifts for you or leave it in manual and use the lightning fast paddles.

The way the trans downshifts, the sounds that come from the exhaust during downshifts, and especially the 1-2 and 2-3 upshifts, is just music to the ears. The rev match/throttle blip when downshifting manually into the lower gears are awesome as well.

Originally Posted by FringBirdAloha

Even though the A10 will never be as durable as a Tremec manual, especially when tracking the car, it’s a fantastic transmission for an auto. I would totally agree with the a10 for Houston traffic and since you said you won’t be tracking it, who cares. Get it! But I do have to say I am glad I live in a semi rural area, as that manual 6 is all I’d ever want.

Not sure that I agree with that statement. Tracking it or not. Autos these days are pretty bulletproof and Chevy has put a lot of R&D into this A10 to keep it cool and going strong, even lapping a road course.

[FASTNUF]

Originally Posted by Rooster OG

My daily is a manual and I sold my manual c7 to get into the a10 and have no regrets. I picked my car up four hours from me and got stuck in traffic for an hour on my way home, I was really happy I had the a10, I think you will be too dealing with traffic.

The best thing I can say about going automatic with this car is it doesn't take away any of the fun from driving it, the car is a blast!

I also had a 2016 C7 (Z06 M7) and running around in Houston traffic was horrible, traded it for my 2017 ZL1 Vert A10 that I found up in Grapevine Tx. Driving home back through Ft Worth rush hour, glad I had the A10! Thing was god sent running through bumper to bumper traffic for over an hour!

Originally Posted by 17CamaroZL1

To answer the OP, none of the worries you mentioned are a problem with the A10. If you're in manual mode, it feels just like a manual car does when you nail the gas, no matter what gear you're in. If you're in too high of a gear for your speed, it will sound and feel sluggish until you get the revs up, just like a manual. If you're in a low gear, especially 1st or 2nd, you'll break the tires loose and may need to counter steer, and may even want to bang the next gear. There is no sign of the engine revving without acceleration. It acts like the converter stays locked until you're at a stop.

As fun as manual mode can be, the true marvel of this transmission, is full auto. Even after driving this thing for over 4000 miles, it still amazes me how this trans performs. Cruising along at 60, if you stomp on it, it darn near instantly drops from 10th to 3rd gear and pins you back! That just doesn't seem possible, but it does it. If someone happens to pull up beside you wanting to make a pull while you're cruising, you can quickly blip the peddle to the floor, and the trans will instantly go into performance shift mode, dropping you to the perfect gear to accelerate hard from. At that point you can pull the shifter over into manual mode to make sure it doesn't go back into normal mode if you don't take off within 7 seconds. As soon as you take off, you can push the shifter back to the auto position if you want it to make perfect shifts for you or leave it in manual and use the lightning fast paddles.

The way the trans downshifts, the sounds that come from the exhaust during downshifts, and especially the 1-2 and 2-3 upshifts, is just music to the ears. The rev match/throttle blip when downshifting manually into the lower gears are awesome as well.



Not sure that I agree with that statement. Tracking it or not. Autos these days are pretty bulletproof and Chevy has put a lot of R&D into this A10 to keep it cool and going strong, even lapping a road course.

Spot on! You nailed it!

[BMWM.D.]

I have to admit that I'm slightly disappointed with the A10 at this point, but I think that's because I'm in the break-in period and taking it easy. I'm hoping that will change as soon as I'm able to really let it rip through the gears. Trying to be good until I hit at least the 500 mile oil change mark.

I've gotta say though, this transmission is pretty impressive with how quickly it reintroduces power on upshifts. Should be a lot of fun once I can drive it like I want to.

[Artos]

Originally Posted by BMWM.D.

I have to admit that I'm slightly disappointed with the A10 at this point, but I think that's because I'm in the break-in period and taking it easy. I'm hoping that will change as soon as I'm able to really let it rip through the gears. Trying to be good until I hit at least the 500 mile oil change mark.

I've gotta say though, this transmission is pretty impressive with how quickly it reintroduces power on upshifts. Should be a lot of fun once I can drive it like I want to.

LOL...try waiting to the suggested 1500mi break in before opening her up. She's a whole other beast!!

[JB'sZL1]

Originally Posted by BMWM.D.

I have to admit that I'm slightly disappointed with the A10 at this point, but I think that's because I'm in the break-in period and taking it easy.

Originally Posted by Artos

LOL...try waiting to the suggested 1500mi break in before opening her up. She's a whole other beast!!

Hah. Yes. Patience is a virtue. One does not want to break it during the break in period.