Nice car! It's too bad you can't buy one with a manual tranny.

why would he want his car to be slower?

More fun to drive to for many people.

Booooya! Good burn. There's a reason Ferrari don't make manuals any more.

It's got paddle shifters which I use all the time.

After 30 years of driving 10 tonne trucks, Utes and cars I'm done using a clutch pedal.

rd

I can see that...not a fan of the paddles myself but I imagine a lot of people love'em.
EDIT: Of course if I had a Ferrari I'd accept them

IMO a manual is still fun, especially in my anemic Legacy. I'd still prefer MT in a S2000 , Miata type car but luxury/GT like a M3 probably just as well with paddle shifters.

I love MTs but hate clutches...they cost too much

It used to be that manuals had better performance and (done properly) better fuel economy.

That time has passed on both counts. Paddles are fun. Best time I ever had in a car was driving a 458 around a track using the paddles....amazing.

My scat pack Charger does not even have the option for a manual (but comes with paddles)....I'm totally fine with that.

Yeah, I bet driving that thing with a MT would have sucked.

It would have made my own personal experience worse. I know how to drive a manual but don't do it on a regular basis. With modern 8 speeds and paddles I don't (personally) see the need to ever own a manual ever again.

I like the mechanical feel of a manual. Just pushing buttons does nothing for me.

Funny. Slower by .1 of a second 0-60? Yeah, I'm sure he would miss that huge disparity in speed driving on the NZ roads.

As stated by TheLaw, the reason someone might want his car "to be slower" is to make it more fun and involving to drive, and requiring more driver skill.

I couldn't agree more! If I had gone forward with the purchase of the BMW M3, I definitely would have gone with the DCT. With my STi? Even if an automatic was an option, I never would have even considered it in that car.

It depends on the car! See above. I can't imagine having something like a Miata or STi with an automatic tranny. When you get near 400hp, then the 8 speed DCT's make perfect sense.

The upcoming Camaro will have a 10 speed auto tranny!

Now we have confirmation that a Jeep Wrangler pickup truck is coming. Spy photo:

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I thought this as well, but they are turning to be pretty fun in the Durango I got. Since you can't get a manual, and there is no shifter per se, this is, I suppose, the next best thing. Timed right, you can get the exhaust to bark pretty good, thus scaring the ricer in the Civic next to you. That is fun.

Chris

Upcoming Camaro ZL1 will have 640hp and available 10 speed automatic. I wonder what the price will be? Won't be cheap. I'd probably rather have a Corvette Stingray even though it won't have nearly the same hp.

http://www.chevrolet.com/camaro-zl1.html

You can also get it with a 6 speed manual. That thing is going to be pricey. I would also take a Stingray over the ZL1 (since the ZL1 really doesn't have a usable back seat anyway). Buddy of mine has a convertible ZL1 (2014 ?) with 580hp. Cool car, but I need a usable back seat (for now).

That car is a perfect example of one where I would definitely go with the automatic over the manual. 640hp?! Yeah, a 10 speed auto tranny with paddle shifters would keep me plenty busy and engaged. That much hp with a manual would be challenging to drive in terms of getting all the performance out of the motor. The manual does have auto rev matching for down shifts though.

It's estimated to start around 60k base. Not horrible considering what it packs. Wonder what the actual OTD price will be with the "must have" add-ons?

remember when the vipers 500/500 number was monster... now a simple camaro will have 640/640? crazy times..

And paddle shifters aren't all that unless we have dual clutches behind them

I'd say it's a lot like A manual plunger verses auto plunger/button, but i don;t want to bring a pinargument into a car thread.

Advancements in technology means that a computer is better at shifting a car than the stig. That's great in a way, but it's also the end of a mechanism that I very much enjoy. Now there are fewer factors that focus on driver ability in racing. You can focus almost exclusively on racing line and throttle brake input. Nailing a perfect heel/toe downshift to get into position to pull out of a corner is something that's given.

I really like having one manual car. My commute means that I will be in stop and go traffic on a highway at least a couple of days a week. That means in the morning when I'm choosing my vehicle, sometimes the auto wins out.

Electric cars are becoming a pretty obvious choice these days. The instant power means that they're able to beat cars that cost twice as much. Similar to the advancements in transmissions, that's both exciting and worrisome. At some point it seems that the only reason to have a manual car that uses gas will be nostalgia.

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On another note.. I love the Wrangler Unlimited, and have thought about getting one for years as a sort of "around town" vehicle. The highway ride with appropriate tires would probably wear on me after a short time. I have never once thought "this should be a truck", though..

My hellcat is a manual, and wouldnt want it any other way! So much fun tearing through the gears.

Absolutely! Anything less than a DCT in an automatic tranny is a non-starter.

Please don't get a Jeep Wrangler for use as a "around town" vehicle. That's the very definition of "poser."

Please don't misinterpret. I would use it as it was designed (as much as I'm able in my area), but it would also serve as a nice vehicle to drive around the area I live. I live a few blocks from a lake, so getting to some fishing spots or places to hang out would be well within its capabilities. I don't intend to keep it exclusively on paved roads with stickers all over it telling people they don't understand.

Ok, thanks for the clarification.

I think you are both underestimating the ZF "TorqueFlite" 8 speed transmission which is capable of 160ms shifts. Not to mention the 14% fuel economy gain over a modern 5 speed.

Adding a "pinargument" many would add "Fun"

Gonna try and hold out for one of the new mid engine vettes or maybe a supercharged Jaguar F Pace. I'm all over the place right now.

http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/a29781/mid-engine-corvette-2018-rumors/

Wonder if it'll fit a pin inside?

The new F-Pace is pretty cool.....I'm about 99.8% certain it won't fit a pin.

Saw this article today, and it goes to exactly what I was talking about earlier in this thread in terms of not getting the full enjoyment out of an expensive sports car with lots of capability and speed when on the streets. These cars belong on the track. Article discusses a modified Lotus Elise with 305hp. That's the same hp as my STi.....but it weight 1500 pounds less!

http://www.6speedonline.com/articles/drive-lotus-elise-streets/

You got big bucks? Because I've heard that the mid engine Vette is being designed to compete with the Ford GT, and will be priced accordingly (but not in Ford GT territory). Most people believe it will be priced at a minimum of $150k. And if it does come out, you can be sure that they will sell for above sticker price for a good while.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that transmission is not a dual clutch. Shifts are slow and ....slushy.

My buddy had an Elise and let me drive it...jesus that thing is fun, but it's really really tiny.

Yep, ridiculously small. But that's what makes them so fun to drive! Loved my Lotus Exige S, but that was purely a weekend car.

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Money isn't an issue and I'm talking like 4-5yrs from now. I never buy 1st gens... when it comes to cars. Give them time to shake the bugs out and become more readily available.

Purely speculative for now, but I've read by 2020 it's expected the C7 will be phased out and that all future models, even the base Corvette, will shift to the mid-engine platform. Time will tell.

I hope it happens. I have owned 3 mid-engine cars, and there is just no beating them for handling. The Porsche Cayman can handle better than the 911.

The last 2 mid engined american made cars didn't fair so well. One blew up when it was hit from the rear and the other spent the latter half of its life as a fake ferrari

I'd let Ferrari and Lambo stick to the mid engine builds. (Or Porsche depending on the model).

lol

It probably goes without saying, but none of the mid engine cars that I've owned were American made.

Ford GT was last American mid engine car.

Covair was rear engine and didn't blow up that was the front engine Pinto.
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I believe others are referring to the Pontiac Fiero.....

Yep, that's the one!

My dad owned a Corvair when I was a kid. Car was a piece of crap. I remember sitting at a stop light with the top down and my dad sees smoke and flames bellowing out of the back. He starts yelling "get out of the car kids, the car is on fire!"

Good times!

Cars today are nice, my wife had a POS Ford Escort 93 and while it was a POS it ran for 20+ years we sold it to our neighbors after 10 years and they drove it another 10 although not a heavy load of miles, but they put very little money into upkeep and expenses. I recall my first car a 77 Nova that was a real POS by comparison.

I'm driving a beater car 07 Legacy wagon and while it's not much to look at, it's a quite capable nice all around economy car that while I could get a nicer car don't feel like I need to just because it's in its second stage of life.

This is what I was referring to. They caught fire either on their own or when hit

Tried to talk my wife into a Tesla, but she was INSISTENT on another Chrysler minivan. *shrug* what can you do. I mean the Chrysler IS a great deal right now -- since the Town and Country is being discontinued, they're selling them for peanuts. but sighhhhh. The upside is, being there re-ignited my desire for a hellcat. I told the salesman if he can find a plum crazy one with the two-tone interior ... We'll talk. Very very nearly pulled the trigger back in January, but decided it was too close to my current ride (a plum crazy SRT8 from 2010). I'll continue to think about it. Model S would probably be the alternative.

I believe it. My first car was a '67 Corvair. I never had flames, but every once in awhile I would smell gas. The gas line would vibrate loose and drip on the engine block. I didn't know about Locktite then and sold it 6 months later. I still want another one though, but in convertible form like your dads.

Were you able to get her in a Model X? Come to think about it how do people test Tesla's before buying if they don't have a dealer network?

All Tesla Stores offer test drives. You should schedule one in advance on their website. Or, Tesla schedules test drive "events" in areas that don't have "stores".

Are they selling Hellcats at sticker price yet?

I checked local inventory about a week ago, and there appears to be a ton of Hellcats in stock at dealer lots here in SoCal.