Before I make any final decisions about getting a manual Z I was just wondering if there are really any differences between the two. Is there any difference in the cost or regularity of maintainance? Is one more reliable than the other? I would prefer to have a manual as YOU can drive the car rather than the car driving you but there is so much more choice if you want a manual. Any help or comments appreciated.

Oops!! I meant more choice if you want an auto!

before a full scale war erupts, do a bit of a search on the forums and youll find plenty of mass debates about auto vs manual.

its a choice only you can make.

Manual - slightly more power, faster 0-60, easier to race from lights ? Disadvantage is they suffer more from the high engine power of a 300 TT.

 

Auto - good condition boxes are better than most people think who have never driven an automatic. Faster 0-100 (different gearing and fast changes). Luxury feel. Safer ?

 

Utopian car has semi-automatic for 'greatest control', like F1 cars, so neither has a monopoly on being theoretically better.

 

Whatever floats your boat ! I love automatics.

The last time I drove an auto willingly, it was because I just dropped a ZX-10 on top of my left knee. At speed. In the dry. Outside BMW UK HQ (prat).

 

So my knee didn't work and I had to borrow an auto.

 

I swore then I would never let a machine tell me when to change gear. This was in a Granada (yuk).

 

OTOH given the choice between a manual Ford of any kind and an auto 300zx....

 

No choice really, wheel on the auto Z.

 

Manual v auto is really a sterile debate. All things being equal, Z autos are (possibly) the cleverest and most fun-to-drive autos on the planet.

 

Me, I have always enjoyed changing gear so I prefer manuals.

 

What do you enjoy? Buy one of those then...

 

Cheers - Gio

So how long 'till this thread reaches 100 posts and gets locked??? I love these

 

Manuals are best but are also rarest - one option would be to buy a good auto model and convert it - they can be converted for less than the cost of an auto rebuild

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

Half my battle was finding a manual in good nick!!

I had a look over one manual, and stumped up my £100 to get the AA out.. his opinion was the box was shot, or about to go.. wasn't healthy at all. I heard horror stories about manual gearbox failure, and to be honest they didn't put me off.. it's how you look after it. Regular oil changes and plenty of going easy on it.

 

I opted for an auto in the end, still lust for a manual but the car I found in the best condition was an auto.

 

Depends how you drive as well?

I have seen a Z in mint condition but it was an auto. When I get my Z I want to make quite a few mods to its performance (aiming for about 500bhp). Does anyone know what it would roughly cost to change an auto to a manual and could a standard box cope with the extra power? I'm not a 'boy racer' but do like to occasionally put my foot down and really drive the car!

Originally posted by brittonc:

I have seen a Z in mint condition but it was an auto. When I get my Z I want to make quite a few mods to its performance (aiming for about 500bhp). Does anyone know what it would roughly cost to change an auto to a manual and could a standard box cope with the extra power? I'm not a 'boy racer' but do like to occasionally put my foot down and really drive the car!

 

Manual box can handle easily 500Hp so does the Auto.

 

As for the price for converting Auto --> Manual that will be about 700-1000 quid just for the parts.

 

The rest is up to the mechanic.

 

A 500Hp (at the wheels) Auto TT will get you easily low 11's high 10's in 1/4 mile (with good tyres and good wheather of course). But is very rear to see 500Hp Autos and also need more mods than a Manual to go up to 500Hp.

 

But like you said you are not a racing boy, therefore skip the paragraph above.

 

A 500Hp Manual......well....Just that...A HIGHWAY KILLER MACHINE

 

But both boxes (AUTO and MANUAL) can handle the power well enough.

 

 

so, what do you need to take a stock auto TT up to 500hp?

 

What parts involved etc?

NitroPow,

 

You mentioned that auto's need more mods to get the higher bhp. What are these and why are they necessary? I would be well chuffed with 11 sec 1/4 mile. It woul be nice to be able to participate in some of the events that go on. I know it's all a matter of how much cash you have as to what power you can get, but for sensible money what bhp am I likely to get out of a Z auto?

Originally posted by brittonc:

NitroPow,

 

You mentioned that auto's need more mods to get the higher bhp. What are these and why are they necessary? I would be well chuffed with 11 sec 1/4 mile. It woul be nice to be able to participate in some of the events that go on. I know it's all a matter of how much cash you have as to what power you can get, but for sensible money what bhp am I likely to get out of a Z auto?

 

What I meant is that with same mods, Autos have less Hp than Manual.

 

Mine is an Auto and I am currenty Stage III.

Thats is

Blitz Sus Induction Kit = 180

B&B Trfilo = Cost me a fortune 1500

But you can get a very good exhaust system for half or less the money.

JWT ECU = 600

Level-10 Torqe Converter = 900 (Highly Reccomended for any Auto)

At about 3000 quid you get up to 330-350Hp at the wheels (350-380 at the crank) and a damn fast Z.

 

Same mods with Manual get you up to 340-370 (370-400Hp at the crank) at the wheels. *** Someone with Manual can back me up on this. ***

 

Therefore with 3000 quid you have a much faster Z with much more power.

 

 

 

 

20 hp out of 400 is not that much !!

 

5% . Not "much more power". Driver error/technique could easily make more difference than the 5% in power.

 

The auto would beat the manual 0-100mph neway !!

Does anyone know anything about that tiptronic conversion kit mentioned a few months ago.

 

Can't remember the details but I think it was about £1500. (Eeek!)

 

 

 

Timmy Turbo is having it installed I think.

I test drove an auto but bought a manual. Just coz I like changing gear, no other reason.

 

Besides there's nothing quite like slamming into the rev limiter when you're halfway past a MG ZS and err not getting past.

 

I chose manual because I like to have control over everything, no other reason, plus ive always driven manuals and have no desire for an auto. Its a personal choice sometimes it sure would be nice to have an auto whilst sitting in traffic

 

Mike

If you like to drive really efficiently and dynamically and are a very good driver, then until tiptronic/semi-automatics become more widespread, a manual is for you.

 

What I suspect is that most people don't change gear in manuals at the optimum time most of the time. In this case, an automatic would be better, but because many people have this fixed and 'control freak' kind of mentality which would ultimately mean driving a car with no power steering/ABS/HiCAS etc.,they refuse to drive automatics, thinking them 'lazy' or for crap drivers.

 

Another point is that automatic gear changes can often be significantly faster than a manual change - especially if you have an uprated sports auto box.

 

Another point is that any auto 300 driver knows that you can control gear chnages a lot with just your foot - how fast and hard you hit the pedal affects when the gears shift and whether they go up or down. In my opinion, the 300 suits an auto box more than a lot of cars because it is a GT Tourer with many comfort features/accessories - not a boy racer's car to be thrashed to fook. I also like the car to do the work - you don't lose total control with an auto, it's more a matter of delegation ?!

deleted

 

[This message has been edited by marczxt (edited 20-08-2002).]

I drive my car like a sports car therefore I wouldn't want anything less then a manual.

I can't have a car changing gear whilst turning a corner at speed or rounding a bend.

So if you want to drive ur zed like a tourer buy an auto, if you want to drive it like a sports car buy a manual

And thus it starts...

 

I feel this thread has some mileage in it (as someone once observed when talking about Brian Tindle v Bimbo83!)

Originally posted by Nelson MainFella:

....... 'control freak' kind of mentality which would ultimately mean driving a car with no power steering/ABS/HiCAS etc.,they refuse to drive automatics, thinking them 'lazy' or for crap drivers....

 

Hmm I don't remember the Power steering on my car turning round corners for me.... or for that matter when did my brakes last start braking for a corner all by themselves.....

 

Tiptronic system??? Mail me - z32@btinternet.com

 

CheerZ,

 

Andy

Some 'purists' would claim power steering reduces the driver 'feel' of the cars contact with the road.

 

Many people claim ABS is a waste of money; that doing it manually gives you better control.

 

Purists often see these 'driver aids' as inferior to good driving skills.

 

HiCAS is maybe a bad example, as no driver can really duplicate what that does.

 

Timmy's having the steering wheel gear change system installed I think. You tell the autobox when to change, so closer to the utopian gear changes of an F1 car ?

Having a semi-automatic would give me the best of both worlds. If anyone has any info on where I could get this done, please get in touch!

I agree (mostly!) with Mainfella.

 

There are certain things that the car really should do for you - I don't want a manual choke, manual ignition advance (well - not often), manual etc etc . . . . . these are all things that the car should be able to do better.

 

In an ideal world the drivers only input to the drive-train should be the throttle and the output should be a linear amount of torque. Everything else should be up to the ECU to sort out.

 

Back to the real world - and you'll notice that the auto has a controllable 4th gear (OD) and the selector gate also allows you to slip down to 2nd safely. I find that enough for most sideways driving.

 

If I had a pokey little revvy engine maybe I'd agree with the manual boys.

In stock form, like for like, Manuals are more powerful and faster!Once you begin to tune them, then it's down to the type of mods you make.No two cars will be quite the same...especially when considering age and mechanical condition of different cars.

It's down to personal preference..but I prefer manual 2 seater to a 2+2 auto. (especially if the auto is in the SLOWER red paint finish! )