Poll - Do You Prefer A Manual or Tiptronic ?

[rfo1]

I have an 01 C4Cab with tiptronic. I think my next 911 might be a manual. Which do you prefer ?

[32wildbilly]

Easy...manual all the way. Makes driving any car more fun for me. I HAD to buy the Rav4 with an automatic because there wasn't a choice, but if there had been a choice...Of course I'm an old guy who grew up with manual transmissions.

I have an 01 C4Cab with tiptronic. I think my next 911 might be a manual. Which do you prefer ?

[02TX996Cab]

Manual, definitely. If an "automatic transmission" is required/desired, then PDK not Tiptronic.

I have a GT4 in large part because, at the time, the GT3 was only offered with a PDK and I'm a 100% MT guy. Like Billy, I learned on a manual and every car I've driven regularly over the last 40+ years has had one (everything from "three on the tree" to the 6-speed manuals in my two P-cars). For me, shifting is an integral part of a pleasurable driving experience.

Note that I don't commute long distances, or daily -- if I did then I can certainly see why an "automatic" transmission could be attractive.

[theprf]

All of my cars have manuals except.. I have a 996 Turbo with a 6-speed and a 996 Turbo with a Tip, which happens to be the first auto car I have ever owned in about 1,000,000 miles of driving.
So it seems I would prefer a manual.

However, I have to say that the Tip Turbo doesn't give much away to the manual version. For example, to shift one typically eases off the gas, clutches in, shifts, clutches out while applying gas. This takes a little time and lets the turbos unspool. The proper way to shift a manual trans turbo car is to leave the gas wide open while clutching and shifting but that's hard on the car, and I suggest that you do this to someone else's turbo car. With the Tip Turbo it feathers the gas slightly (it's throttle by wire) and shifts in about 0.2 seconds, never letting the turbos unspool. Pretty neat!
I do rather wish it were a manual, though I have to say that the price was right.

[Einsteiger]

This poll might be subject to a little confirmation bias, but I actually picked a tiptronic 911 due to some medical issues with my left leg/ankle/foot at the time. I wondered about my own ability to adequately manipulate a clutch. Naturally, they were able to fix the bulging disc in my back that was causing the issue, but now that I'm used to it, I rather like some of the features of the tiptronic.

Mine is a 1999 version, which is either in or out of manual mode; no switching gears with the buttons while in Drive mode, as you can do with subsequent year cars. I use manual almost exclusively, due to the factory programming that has the car start off in 2nd gear, lugging the motor and putting you one step closer to a Flat Six Innovations bore-score rebuild.

The nice thing about a tiptronic is that you cannot over-rev the motor, as most stick-shift-racer-boys have done at least once....that they'll admit too. The DMR tells all.

That said, this feature also makes the '99 worthless for autocross. You get a hair close to redline and it shifts with or without you - not realizing that you are cone-hopping at the time.

If I was starting over, who knows? This car will likely be my first, best and last 911. The biggest advantage of a manual trans is resale. That's what everyone is looking for.

[Hatchetf15]

Poor Einsteiger only puts up with his Tip ‘cuz every time he goes out, he looks at that car and congratulates himself for having such a gorgeous 911.

[gnat]

Slushbox vs manual = manual

Dual clutch vs manual = Dual clutch

Even though the old autos have come a long way, they leave a lot to be desired when you want to get precise with your shift.

Transmissions like the PDK, however, are better than any non pro driver (and better than many of them too).

[32wildbilly]

Yeah I've read about the efficiencies of the PDK and they use "similar" transmissions on professional race cars. So the reason must be they are better for that application. I get the quicker more accurate shifts. I still enjoy the manual transmission for street use. Don't ever plan to put this car on the track and so much fun to be able to use the gear that gives the most smiles to me. "Rowing" the gears is a pleasing experience for me.

Slushbox vs manual = manual

Dual clutch vs manual = Dual clutch

Even though the old autos have come a long way, they leave a lot to be desired when you want to get precise with your shift.

Transmissions like the PDK, however, are better than any non pro driver (and better than many of them too).

[5chn3ll]

As a connoisseur of cheap 90's sports cars...I can definitively state that...it depends.

In a car like a 996 with a longish power curve, the stick is a lot of fun; with Fister mufflers and an IPD plenum, the stick is A LOT of fun. In my Corvette with its 3.73 D44 rear end (yeah, that's Jeep gear) and a <6K RPM redline, I would be CONSTANTLY shifting 1-2-3, and I would be burning through clutches. The auto isn't bullet-proof; I have blown out the downshift solenoids/gates for 3-2 and 2-1, but...it still launches after 25 years with nothing other than a couple of fluid changes.

My office is 7 miles from home. If I had a commute of any kind, I'd pick up a 986 or a 996 cab with a Tip for highway miling. There is no such thing as an enjoyable stop-and-go commute in a standard...

[32wildbilly]

Ah...one of the many advantages of being retired.

My office is 7 miles from home. If I had a commute of any kind, I'd pick up a 986 or a 996 cab with a Tip for highway miling. There is no such thing as an enjoyable stop-and-go commute in a standard...