Hi,

 

I am considering buying a zx tt at the end of the year when as I have decided to get rid of my company car (ford mundaneo, nuff said ..) I have read that the auto is preferable as they eat manual boxes. Is this true? I would prefer a manual to an auto. Any comments?

 

Hi Glenn

 

I have just asked the same question as i am looking at a manual at present, i beleive that it does not make any difference.

Any more thoughts or comments please advise.

 

Tim,

 

Thanks for the reply. From my experience I fell more 'in control' when driving a manual. Holding on before up shifts, rapid down shifts more overtaking etc. There are comments in earlier topics about the auto box changing gear while going round corners. With nearly 300bhp under the bonnet and a damp road that sounds like brown trousers to me! Any other comments gratefully recived. Looking in Auto trader etc there seems to be mainly auto around, although I have seen a few manuals also.

 

Glenn

 

The Prefered Choice of Box in Japan seems to be the Auto Variety,

 

It is of course down to personal choice come the end of the day.

 

Altho Manual Gearboxes are more reliable on the Z and Rebuilds (unless Catastrophic) are reasonably priced. Early 300zx models have week auto boxes and can fail meaning costly repairs. Also the are proan to over heat. A Upgraded Oil Cooler for the tranny helps but if you plan on going to high HP a after market Tranny will soon be on the list.

On the other Hand For A Manual box you have to buy a clutch once in a while that can be costly once you go high hp.

 

Really it comes down to personaly choice.

 

Me - Manual all the way baby :o))

 

Z ya

 

Nico91TT

 

 

 

I also asked about manual/auto transmission recently (popular subject!) and got some great feedback ("Variations on a theme" thread) but lemme now turn this in a slightly different direction:

 

How much, then, do the different transmission types affect performance, and to a lesser extent mpg..?

 

I've always assumed that you can achieve faster acceleration from a manual - though I suppose it takes some pretty spot-on shifts. But I read a report from an old US magazine that said that the auto was actually faster from 60-100. Are there any comparative figures floating around?

 

As for mpg, it seems logical that a 5-speed manual would be more fuel-efficient (or more powerful) than the 4-speed auto, but I haven't seen anything that says one way or the other. I don't really know anything about auto boxes (who'd have guessed ;)), can they change gear ratios to best utilise engine power?

 

Raz

 

Think about it, 2 turbo's singing away and then you push the clutch in?!?!?!?

 

Auto delivers one smooth wall of power.

 

Also you can smoke your pipe and tap the ashes out on the mirror as you equally smoke the Manual stirrers!

 

Ha :-) Simon Pass 300ZXtt Auto (You know it makes sense!) (Pipe optional!)

 

Having driven both, and been in both (both Stock, Stage 3, and stage holy shit) it's 6 of one half dozen of the other.

 

A friend bought his Auto TTZ 3 years ago (actually I convinced him to buy it) and I bought my manual TTZ 3months later. We both had stock cars and brought them up to stage 3. I've always been quicker than him at the dragstrip and we've been in each others cars quite a bit. His auto has got the legs on mine up till about 100kph or so then I start to say good bye. At the drag strip when we've both run against each other - stock I was 0.5sec faster, stg 3 .6 sec faster. The last time we were down at the strip he dicked me off the line, but 2/3 way down the strip I caught and passed him. Now with launch control I really wanna go back and see what the difference is !!! (I was wheelspinning in 2nd ... thats how crap our local strip is)

 

From a pure maintenance aspect the autos are definitely more expensive. A clutch costs nothing compared to an auto rebuild and '90 cars if they haven't had an auto rebuild then they'll be needing one!

 

From a driving aspect... hmmm... the power delivery is "different", you can see why auto's get the nickname "slush boxes", as the power is somewhat muddied... whereas in the manuals it's very direct. I would definitely prefer the auto when prowling the city streets (aka going to work and back) - especially if you get those oppurtunity knocks type races, like a 993 turbo that had a go last weekend, as with the manual you have to set yourself up for it, wheres the auto is squirt and go - plus you have more initial go. But on the country roads manual hands down.

 

Now I was lucky enough to be thrown the keys of my mates T28 equipped auto with NOS to take it down and run it at the dragstrip and holy hasus christ is it quick! This also gave me a good hour and a half of real world driving and I HATED the auto flicking between gears on the motorway.. at about 120kph I think it kept jumping between gears which really sucked, but i guess you get used to it... but when my mates stage 5 manual lined up alongside me the squirt and go mentality really helps..

 

If i was going to do it all again, then the pecking order would most probably be:

 

For upgraded turbos

Manual w Racelogic Launch Control (as that far outweighs ANYTHING)

Auto

Manual

 

For stock

Manual w Racelogic

Manual

Auto

 

 

Rowan