AT or MT what do you like better

AT or MT what do you like better
What is your guys opinions. Do you like a Automative or a Manual. What do you guys think is better for stuff like Drag racing, spinning out, doing donuts, and what funner. What do you guys think.

When i saw this i thought you were talking about all terrain or mud terrain tires, in that case i'd go with all terrains.

but for trannies i'd definately have to say manual in most cases. its just a lot funner and you get better performance and gas mileage. the only cars i wouldn't get a manual in are suv's/trucks or luxury cars. anything else demands a manual.

Neither I soend most of my time drivng a Tiptronic car

Originally posted by snowboarder
When i saw this i thought you were talking about all terrain or mud terrain tires, in that case i'd go with all terrains.

but for trannies i'd definately have to say manual in most cases. its just a lot funner and you get better performance and gas mileage. the only cars i wouldn't get a manual in are suv's/trucks or luxury cars. anything else demands a manual.

True... Yeah i'm an lazy old fart , i don't even write my own opinions :finger:

i like auto for its ease of use on long hauls through city enviroments & such.

but definately manual is for me.
Im willing to put up with the work just for the thrill and performance aspects of it

manual for racing and spinnin out and stuff for sure,automatic for old farts who cant shift or want to go slow ( mustangs for example)

WOW, Another strikingly immature post by DarkLightVR4
:flipa:

I love driving manual but an auto is good for slugging it out in city traffic during the daily bump and grind. Auto is also good for highway crusing as it teams up nicely with cruise control.

But for a real driving experience and to learn how a car really feels you can't go passed a manual.

Bangin gears, and proud of it!

for cars with speed id want Manual but for just regular cars, like honda, toyota and other cars with not a lot of speed id pick automatic

i love the stick... but it's nice to get a break and drive an auto now and again

manual cars rule... your just not getting the point of owning an automobile when its an auto... i mean, autos are like dodgem cars, theres absolutely no skill involved whatsoever

I prefer automatic, I'm a lazy ass. All the cars that I have owned and still own were automatics. Except my '73 Celica which I swapped in a 5 speed manual.

This is shocking.....but I can't drive auto's.........Only manuals......:eek:

Originally posted by Moss1O6GTi
This is shocking.....but I can't drive auto's.........Only manuals......:eek:


How cant you drive auto's... well im gonna go with manual cuz its funner more work but funner u always have suttin to do b-sides bump ur music.

WHATS WITH THE PEOPLE DISSING TRUCKS AND TOYOTAS????

I have a standard truck and it is the best. Why do trucks have to be autos? I think autos are for lazy ass people and luxery cars. And the TOYOTAS Ando_Rules HAVE TONS OF SPEED.. i got one word for ya SUPRA and id love to see you race my neighbors tundra...he'd woop yo ass so fast youd be like :confused: wtf just happened :finger:

Originally posted by SilverLotus340R
WHATS WITH THE PEOPLE DISSING TRUCKS AND TOYOTAS????

I have a standard truck and it is the best. Why do trucks have to be autos? I think autos are for lazy ass people and luxery cars. And the TOYOTAS Ando_Rules HAVE TONS OF SPEED.. i got one word for ya SUPRA and id love to see you race my neighbors tundra...he'd woop yo ass so fast youd be like :confused: wtf just happened :finger:

Besides the Celica and Supra I don't feel there is an advantage to having a manual in the other Toyota cars, though I prefer them in cars because they are more fun to drive. The reason trucks should be automatic is because that no matter what if you take two identical trucks besides one having a manual and one having an automatic the automatic will out pull the manual every time. Automatics are by far better for towing and hauling stuff. If you don't use it for those things then I guess a manual would be just fine, but why the hell own a truck and not use it like one? Oh, and I'll take on your friend anytime, unless he has modded his engine something terrible I, and most others in here will hand him his ass.

I insist on driving cars with manual transmissions. :)

Manual because it's funner and coooooler to drive a 6-speed:D But strictly AUTOMATICS if I'm going to the track and really want to win. Outlaunches and outshifts the manual every day of the week. Really can't be beaten by a traditional non-race tranny/gearbox.

99% of the people saying a manual is "funner" and "cooler" are wannabe racers and teens (or close to it), who don't have a lot of experience in a wide variety of street and race cars. Iv'e been slalom racing for a couple decades, and many of the cars I've driven on teh track (and won with) have had performance built automatics. Especially the cars ith torquey V8s.

Fun? Maybe a little more fun, but here's the breakdown when going down a twisty road at speeds that won't get you arested:

Steer, brake, accellerate, steer some more. Unless it's REALLY tight, you don't even have to shift. So it's no different driving down that road with an automatic. If you're going really quickly, the difference is a bit greater, but not much: when you want to shift to keep the car in it's powerband, you need to push in a third pedal, too. But...

You can have fun on go karts that have no shifters. If that third pedal is the only thing that makes driving fun, bolt a shifter and a clutch pedal to your chair at home and STAY home. You'll get all the fun, without any of the associated costs. TO me, most of the fun is in teh speed and lateral G forces, that moving the third pedal has no part of.

To put it bluntly, it is NOT necessary for any "real" driving experience. If you think so, you're self limiting, inexperienced, and narrowminded, simply becasue the whole REASON for rowing through the gearbox does not exist on the street! And that's keeping a litle, peaky engine in it's optimum powerband, so as not to get caught out of the powerband when exiting a corner on a race track.

If you're not on a track, then YOU don't have a need to shift for yourself in anything but the most underpowered, small engine car. Oh, what's that? You want to? Fine. So do I (most of my cars have been manuals). But that doesn't mean that you need to use THAT "want" to denigrate performance cars with automatics. Nor should it blind you to the fact that what you want is absolutely unnecessary, even to drive fast or have fun. And it CERTAINLY doesn't put you in more control of a street car, or even an occasional race car. If you think so, you're just fooling yourself.

The reason traditional sports cars had manual transmissions goes to three main items:

First, it took many decades before working automatic transmissions became commonplace.

Second, early automatic transmissions robbed power badly, which isn't good on a small engine car, and were heavy, and not very reliable. None of them are good things for a sports car.

Third, small engine sports cars (which most of them were) have a very narrow powerband. In order to be in the right part of the powerband, a lot of gears were necessary. And every track was differnet, so that you had to match the available powerband to the car and to the track, so teh ability to change gearsets easily was, and stil is, very important. Not very easy to do in an automatic, but not necessary in a performance street car with a big engine.

Not a single reason sports cars had manuals was because of it being more "fun."

A perfomance tuned automatic shifts firm and fast (faster than you can shift a manual trans car) but it shifts too firm for a production street car, so all street automatics are tuned a bit soft, for the general buyer. But, just like you can do a lot of things to your engine to make mor epower and have better throttle response, you can do the same to many automatic transmissions, and end up with a trans that shifts faster than a manual, shifts exactly when you want it to, up or down, and yet can stil shift automatically for those times when you are stuck in traffic, and fun can't be had no matter WHAT you're driving...

my current car is a 4speed datsun 720 4x4 1 ton ute i love manuals especialy in Trucks. i have driven a few auto trucks and it takes all the fun out of goin 4x4ing in an auto.:flipa:

God gave me 2 arms for a reason one for stick one for wheel :silly2: I tend to get bored with autos cause you just drive. Slosh boxes :flipa:.I dont hate them too much though lol great for bracket racing and road he.... err nm:devil:

MT -- gotta go MT -- there is, and maybe it's just an illusion, more control over the car.

plus it can really "lunge" in first --- as in, i'm stuck in an intersection and here comes a big truck about to whack me and i need to just lunge out of the way.

cs

Manual, like my GTO. Hurst 4-speed. Or, of course, 6-speeds for most of today's cars.

Hey Supercar i got a hurst 4 spd too! does that mean my car is as cool as your GTO :hehe: nice ride!

Manual is so much funnier and I'd rather have one in a sports car any day of the week. I've owned all manuals until the car I have now. But if you wanna run consistent times at the track everytime... can't beat the auto. But I'd still rather own a manual lol

Manual Transmission. It's fun and adds more performance. Maybe 10 hp too!:D

Manual, so very much better =·)

Here in argentina in a workshop i ve been working one American Man came in saying something happened with the transmission of his car (Ford Ka). In this country is very dificult to find an automatic transmission car, all of them are manual anda in the USA all cars are automatic, so he came here thinking he would find an Automatic car, he whent 100km on the 1st Gear, till the motor burned out, he had no idea ir was not manual
i have no idea how he couldn´t realice the sound said to him tha something was wrong

but well. jojojo

OK so now that I ditched the Semi-auto all 3 viechles in my garage are manuals- myu daily driver a 6-speed. I just enjoy manuals more- they are a pain in the ass in heavy traffic though :(

Depend on the area you live .. If lots of autobahn stick shift is the best choice but if you live in the busy area and jam almost all the time have to be compromise with auto ... :)

Originally posted by Polygon


Besides the Celica and Supra I don't feel there is an advantage to having a manual in the other Toyota cars, though I prefer them in cars because they are more fun to drive. The reason trucks should be automatic is because that no matter what if you take two identical trucks besides one having a manual and one having an automatic the automatic will out pull the manual every time. Automatics are by far better for towing and hauling stuff. If you don't use it for those things then I guess a manual would be just fine, but why the hell own a truck and not use it like one? Oh, and I'll take on your friend anytime, unless he has modded his engine something terrible I, and most others in here will hand him his ass.
Why do people still think that you should only own a truck if you are going to use it. I love trucks. I like the way they look and all the aftermarket things that can be done. I don't use my truck as a truck I drive it b/c thats what I like and it's great to customize. I have a '99 Chevy Silverado, it's lowered 3" in the front and 4" in the rear and I have 20's all the way around. This is not my truck but this is what people who have trucks can do to them if they chose to go the custom route:

Personally, I'd go with manual trans, in the 360 it's fun (crashing first gear always surprises first timers) and the unusual layout of the gears is fun to work through.
But for automatic? If it were a DAF, I'd drive it!
The cool thing about the DAF was that you could floor it up to maximum velocity, then lift off the gas and it'd go even faster! Easily the coolest automatic trans car ever! And it was really good on ice too, there was no differential, but rather TWO transmissions (one for each wheel) :D

Originally posted by 2strokebloke
Personally, I'd go with manual trans, in the 360 it's fun (crashing first gear always surprises first timers) and the unusual layout of the gears is fun to work through.
But for automatic? If it were a DAF, I'd drive it!
The cool thing about the DAF was that you could floor it up to maximum velocity, then lift off the gas and it'd go even faster! Easily the coolest automatic trans car ever! And it was really good on ice too, there was no differential, but rather TWO transmissions (one for each wheel) :D

:D :D :D ... the way u tell it is funny .. :D

at for city use, travel, etc, etc,etc
ma: muscle cars, old exotic cars ( like from 60's-90's )

Whatever car I am driving, I prefer stick. Since my childhood, my parents have always opted for stick. I drive an average Corolla and it is a stick.My GF wonders how I can tell when it is time to down or upshift with all the bass in the car. I guess its something that comes with experience :cool:

Originally posted by honderian
Whatever car I am driving, I prefer stick. Since my childhood, my parents have always opted for stick. I drive an average Corolla and it is a stick.My GF wonders how I can tell when it is time to down or upshift with all the bass in the car. I guess its something that comes with experience :cool:

What does bass have to do with when you need to shift?

He can't hear the engine.

Originally posted by 2strokebloke
He can't hear the engine.

You dont need to hear it, you have a tach, and you should be able to feel when you need to shift...

Originally posted by TexasF355F1

Why do people still think that you should only own a truck if you are going to use it. I love trucks. I like the way they look and all the aftermarket things that can be done. I don't use my truck as a truck I drive it b/c thats what I like and it's great to customize. I have a '99 Chevy Silverado, it's lowered 3" in the front and 4" in the rear and I have 20's all the way around. This is not my truck but this is what people who have trucks can do to them if they chose to go the custom route:

Because, that is my opinion and it isn't going to change. By doing that to a truck you have completely ruined any usefulness that it once had. It is ugly, and you are trying to make it something that it can never be. Also you are driving a vehicle that you don't use it how it was built to be used; therefore you don't need it, not to mention that it is a gas hog. It just irks me to see people wasting fuel.

To be back on topic, I read all of Chris V's long winded post and I must say that it kind of pissed me off. You come in here giving us all a lecture as if you are some sort of seasoned racer that knows it all. Well, let me tell you that they use manuals in a lot of forms of racing like Indy, F1, NHRA, NASCAR, and many other forms. No matter how you cut it, the automatic has to work off the engine robbing power. Any experienced person driving an identical car, one with a manual and one with an automatic, will do better with the manual. Then again it does depend on the gearing ratios as well. The only times I can say that the automatic was better was in the early days of drag racing when the manuals didn't have the best syncros. Back then I would have gone with the automatic any day of the week.

These days I prefer a manual in my car, no question. Better performance and much more fun to drive; besides it doesn’t take any skill to drive an automatic. In my trucks or SUVs I prefer to have an automatic for better pulling.

Originally posted by dayna240sx


You dont need to hear it, you have a tach, and you should be able to feel when you need to shift...

None of my cars have a tach, and all of them have manual trannies, tachs are pansies.:D

depends on the senario, drag racing at the track automatics tend to launch better, shift quicker and be more consistent when setup right.
but on a road course a manual transmission allows you to have the car right in its sweet spot by selecting the gears urself

I prefer Tiptronic/Manumatic/AutoStick. Although, properly setup, contrary to what most people believe, Automatic (or some similar form, thereof) IS better for drag racing. I have a 1997 BMW Z3 2.8 right now, and it's a manumatic. When I just want to cruise, or even if I want to race, I can still use the Automatic, because it's programmed to be very sporty; but, if I'm in one of those weird moods, and want to use a Manual, I can just press a button and switch over to it. It may not be a true Manual, with a clutch etc., but you still get the shifting action... more or less, lol. :2cents:

driving isnt driving w/o a true manual trans.

Manuals can't be beat for any type of road course because you can hold the engine in the correct gear. But for normal straight line street racing, autos are as good as manuals if not better. Not all drivers can hit every shift perfectly.... :smokin:

Manual. Much more fun to me to be able to have some input in how the car is going to drive.

I've got both a manual and an auto.
They both have their pros and cons.
I don't know how to choose one over the other.
But now it seems like more and more people prefer automatics more stick. Even for the sports cars such as Porsche (except GT2), Ferrari 456 whereas they are all offered with automatic gearbox.
For the sports sedans such as AMG, Audi RS6, Jaguar R-Series are all offered with automatics only.
More and more performance cars are offered with automatics, because that is what the demand ask for. (People these days are just too lazy to shift.)

By merely stating that by using an Automatic in a sports car you are a lazy individual, would be largely unfair to a vast amount of people. Take my father, for instance. Back in 2000 he got a Corvette Convertible with a 6-Speed. He had the car until 2002, when he traded it in to get me the Firebird that I have. He had it for a whole 2 years, and you know how many miles were on it? Three-thousand miles, on the dot. I used to just think that it was because he just didn't go driving very often. Recently, while talking to him about different cars, I found out the truth. The real reason he didn't drive the car very often is because it was a Manual. It just got to the point for him where it was so greatly inconveniencing to drive the car around, to go anywhere with, that he simply chose not to drive it at all. For some people, and probably most, it's not that they're lazy - it's that they just do not want to be inconvenienced by something such as a Manual transmission. Especially here in Souther California where, during certain parts of the day, the traffic can be horrendous. Although, I do think that it's great what they're doing with the new technology in these Automatic transmissions. F1 paddle-shift technology, BMW's SMG technology, etc. It's all really wonderful. It's all basically leading up to the next-generation's sports car and/or sporty car's transmission of choice. Now, I'm not dissing Manual transmission's at all. I'm merely stating the other side of the argument. Well, for at least some/most of the people that use Automatic's. The rest? Well, I can't really vouch for them. Maybe they ARE too lazy. :icon16:

By merely stating that by using an Automatic in a sports car you are a lazy individual, would be largely unfair to a vast amount of people. Take my father, for instance. Back in 2000 he got a Corvette Convertible with a 6-Speed. He had the car until 2002, when he traded it in to get me the Firebird that I have. He had it for a whole 2 years, and you know how many miles were on it? Three-thousand miles, on the dot. I used to just think that it was because he just didn't go driving very often. Recently, while talking to him about different cars, I found out the truth. The real reason he didn't drive the car very often is because it was a Manual. It just got to the point for him where it was so greatly inconveniencing to drive the car around, to go anywhere with, that he simply chose not to drive it at all. For some people, and probably most, it's not that they're lazy - it's that they just do not want to be inconvenienced by something such as a Manual transmission. Especially here in Souther California where, during certain parts of the day, the traffic can be horrendous. Although, I do think that it's great what they're doing with the new technology in these Automatic transmissions. F1 paddle-shift technology, BMW's SMG technology, etc. It's all really wonderful. It's all basically leading up to the next-generation's sports car and/or sporty car's transmission of choice. Now, I'm not dissing Manual transmission's at all. I'm merely stating the other side of the argument. Well, for at least some/most of the people that use Automatic's. The rest? Well, I can't really vouch for them. Maybe they ARE too lazy. :icon16:

I think I used the wrong word.
What I was trying to explain was simply that people just don't want to or just tired of changing the gears themselves.
And your example is clearly one of the reasons why.
It is just too much trouble to drive stick shift in big traffics.
So people rather have an automatic which makes the life much easier.
Its not that people got "tired" of shifting, buit it is actually too much trouble and too complicated.

manual's a must for everthing. Like the cars with the slap shift and auto, so u can be lazy sometimes.

Don't matter for me, I like em both, but I'm glad my truck is AT, don't really ever race in it or anything, I use it as a daily driver, haul stuff every now and than, I really like my truck, although it's a bit inconvenient, (horrible mileage), but I knew what I was getitng into when I got my Dakota R/T.


One thing I don't understand, a previous poster said for towing, an AT is better, but than why do pretty much all Semi trucks, buses, and and anything with more than 2 axles, have generally a MT? I thought it was because AT genally lose more tourque, can anyone clarify this?

:nono: reviving threads that are 2 1/2 years old.

(But new people + old thread = new thread?)

MT for me, although it IS nice to have a break with an auto once and awhile.

God gave me 2 arms for a reason one for stick one for wheel :silly2: I tend to get bored with autos cause you just drive. Slosh boxes :flipa:.I dont hate them too much though lol great for bracket racing and road he.... err nm:devil:
When the automatic-equipped Mopars were faster than the manual transmission Mopars (and other cars) at the Winternationals in the early '60s, that kind of invalided the old term of "slushbox!"

Can't beat the 727, that's for sure.

For street driving a MT is much more comfortable to me because when you let up on the accelerator the vehicle actually slows down requiring less (sometimes no) braking. For drag racing I prefer auto. It's much more consistent and not as violent to your drive train. And yes auto's do use more hp just to turn them. But as you would expect not all auto's are equal in their power consumption. I remember reading a test where the Powerglide ate less hp than a 350 TH. Makes sense to me, less stuff to turn.

Got a MT and an AT...Doesn't really matter, but depends on mood, or if I'm feeling well or not...
Also depends on weather...

I'd hate automatic less if it didn't have that damn idle speed. I have shitty cars, a MT Ford Aspire and an AT Geo Metro, and I by far prefer the Ford... the Geo seriously will drive out from underneath you if you're not careful. Its fuel economy is terrible too... max i got was 30, average 23-25... my ford got 40mpg this last fillup. Why hasn't someone made AT cars that'll idle without still driving? I realize pushing into neutral is an option, but that can be a pain in the ass, as it slows down differently than if the engine is just at idle and its vacuum pressure is slowing the car down.

*shrugs* I personally prefer manual as I like shifting, if gives me more of a feeling of being in connection with the car. With auto's, I feel more detached.

Strange thing though is, our family's minivan (1986 Ford Aerostar) is a fully loaded model (XLT - Cloth interior, 5 speaker stereo, digital dash, overhead trip computer, power everything, cruise...yadda yadda) came with a Manual. A blatant 5 speed stick shifter attached to the 3.0L V6. Makes for an interesting vehicle.

Auto for track, and long drives in traffic.

Stick for having fun on the street.

My Trans Am is a 6-speed, and I love it. If it saw more track time though, I would swap it to an automatic.

i like manual there a lot funner to drive but feel an auto is better for racing just one less thing to worry about and for some auto transmisons you can get a full manual valve body so you still have to shift but dont have to worry about a clutch its a bit of a win win situation

I've never driven a manual. So I have to go with Auto by default.