roast

iTrader: (2)

homophobe!!!

Z_freak

iTrader: (1)

I drive in Dallas rush hour everyday in my 6mt and i love it....people say alot about driving in traffic with a manual, but your in traffic, how much "driving" are you doing, i rarely get out of 2nd gear, so whats the big diff. between an auto and a manual unless you are drinking coffee and eating a bagel, and if you are doing that you need to get a G35 sedan....in the long run an mt would bring a better driving experience, of course IMHO....

NewJerZ

iTrader: (1)

Outstanding Billy!

dbasal

I could not drive stick when I purchased this car, but you just have to get in and learn. If you understand the basics, you will have few problems. Just give it enough gas as they used to say so many moons ago back in driver's ed. I suppose it depends on where you live, but you can always practice at 1am. Unless you do something unbelievabely stupid 4th-1st, then you won't do any serious damage.

initial_z33

my last car was an automatic 3000GT that I had for 7 years, and it was nothing but regrets because it was automatic. I bought a 6MT 350Z and I learned how to drive stick on it--it really only took me a weekend to learn and I was driving it to work. In my case, once you buy the stick shift car, you are forced to learn, no turning back, and you will eventually learn and you will love it...now I actually prefer the stick shift to auto easily!

fusionchicken

IMO it's all about the overall control the driver has over the car. sure the auto may shift as fast as the manaul in a straightline acceleration, but on the track when corner comes, heel-toe is impossible with the auto, and for ME, that's what a manual's all about....being able to manipulate the clutch yourself in any way u see fit.

u're right though, its all dependent on what the OP's looking for in the Z. if u're performance inclined: MT ftw. if u just like the Z for its looks and straightline power, maybe an AT will suit ur needs better...good luck.

thrill350z

iTrader: (1)

if your looking to buy a sports car i doubt you see alot of traffic or drive in the city alot. i would def say to get the 6mt, makes it more enjoyable to drive IMO

dutchboy350Z

iTrader: (5)

I had a rental Z Automatic ... very dissapointing. It boggles my mind that there are so many people on this site have never driven manual, then go out buy an above average sports car with a 6MT. What kinda cars did you guys have before? I learned to drive stick right when I got my license and that was 12 years ago. There's no way in hell I would get a Z as my first stick car. You should really be learning on a non-short throw like most Z owners have.

Spoiled Z

iTrader: (30)

I finally bought me a Z last July 28th and I never actually driven an MT!! I had to drive an hour to get home. I was terrified to leave the dealership cuz I know I was gonna make a fool out of myself. But I made it home. I used to ride a motorcycle but at first it wasn't the same. That night I took it to an empty parking lot and omg I stalled so much. The next day my friends came over and once again we went to an empty parking lot. I watched him shift and all that stuff. We were there for an 1 1/2 hours and omg just like that I learned. I pretended that I was riding my bike. I know how to rev match, downshift, starting from an uphill and all other basic things. That first night I really thought that I made a big mistake that I should have gotten an auto. But thank goodness I got me a M/T. Traffic is really no big deal. That is just a lame excuse to get auto. M/T all the way. I'm a female and no man should drive an auto!

Swiffer

iTrader: (8)

No, but threads like these are.

e7h3rn37

i learned to drive in a 300zx with a mt. after a few months i switched over to and at spyder eclipse (long story, dont ask). Now i have my Z and everyone tells me "you should've got a mt, they are faster and also are more fun." Well to each his own but as far as im conserned they arent that fun, at least no more than driving an at. I dont see any difference in "funess" while driving a mt or an at. As far as performance goes, they're the same unless you just wanna burn out easier, in which case your retarded because good tires arent cheap

Jimmybevis

I have an '03 Auto, wouldn't trade it for the world. I keep it in manual mode and still have a ball. I downshift at every stop light and sign.

I have tried the auto mode and the auto/stick mode at the drag stip and find the times almost identical. I normally drag in auto mode as that way I dont pop the rev limiter, no room for mistakes in auto.

Bottom line: My next sport car will also be a auto/w manual mode.

Jim

zipgun

+1,000,000

Aggro_Al

Unless, you were doing a brake torque launch, why would you need to do a heel-toe manuever with the AT? The Z 5AT has a torque converter that can slip and synchronize. There is no need to rev-match by doing a heel-toe because it's not necessary. On the flipside, let's see a MT rev-match out of a turn without doing a heel-toe. You're comparing apples and oranges. In the case of the MT, it's required to properly manuever a turn in a performance situation. In the case of the AT, the torque converter made the manuever obsolete. If being a hero means a smooth, clutchless, grindless shift, I guess I'm a hero every time because I don't use a clutch or grind a gear and all my shifts are smooth.

I've driven both MTs and ATs. The AT in the Z was the first AT I've ever driven where I felt I could get just as good or better performance than a MT. After driving both versions of the Z I didn't feel that I was giving up any fun or control by going with the AT over the MT. I almost didn't even consider the AT until the dealer got me to try it.

Z fighter

i've never drivin a stick b4 getting my Z ...as i was getting the Z , auto or 6speed. my friend was with me..he basically told me that i better get a stick.. soo much fun doing tricks that a auto cant do, the girls love sticks.. so i got a 6speed and i love it.. cant beat it

Devil Z

iTrader: (6)

I learned on the Z.

Heh, I've barely slept in 3 days working 13+ hour shifts at my restaurant.

I stalled the car in MY DRIVEWAY (hey, it's a really annoying curb going up hills lol).

I am half dead . . . need . . . . sleep . . . .

But yeah, Z is a great car to learn. Just be aware of the annoying "mid-point" on the clutch . . . . when I was a newbie I always confuses that with the actual grabbing point on the clutch.

Peace

Aggro_Al

Yup, in the MT you can miss a shift, grind a gear, stall the car and overrev the engine which is sure to get the attention of many girls (and guys for that matter) but not in an admiring way. Damn, I miss those tricks. J/K

BTW what tricks can you do on the MT that can't be done on the AT except for a Neutral rev while in motion?

Suvlaki

Can't you just slip it in N and rev the engine while in motion? Works the same...

...and so the A/T vs. M/T war continues...

Aggro_Al

Yes, you could but, you also run a high chance of neutral dropping the tranny at a high rpm when you shift back.

lowtempo

you can neutral rev in motion. I do it all the time. The RPM drops pretty fast when you rev and release on neutral and bring it back to D. You end up at at a higher gear when you place it from D back to Manual, but then you can just downshift with a little blip of the throttle to may it engage a little faster that the auto rev.

I rarely mess up and I can concentrate on taking my lines on tight curves and turns..... I have ran well with manual evos, STIs, FD RX7, RX8s, Audi S4s Turbo Mr2s.... they couldnt believe I was driving a AT.... I lead togue type runs with these guys.. and we all had a blast.

The 5at is no joke, that is, if you learn how to drive it... btw i have taken a performace drive school at thunder hill racetrack and there we learn getting good lines is everything on the the track and there is a reason why F1 type cars run sequential type tranny and the 5at operates the same way.

BTW: trick are for kids.... its all about who get to the finish line first.