I use to drive only manual trannies until I started having physical problems that caused pain in my muscles when driving on long trips. The Nissan auto is the best one that I have driven when you use the manual shift mode. I know the 6 speed is faster with the right driver . The 5 speed auto is good choice for me (personal preference only) compared to the auto that my Altima 3.5 SE had. When I used the manual gate on it I would get a thud shifting from 1st to 2nd. The 350Z in the manual gate shifts without any problems like I had in the Altima.


Touring chrome silver with auto

 

pretend there are 10 used Zs in the parking lot. From that 10, 1 is an automatic. Do you think any dealership would be stupid enough to give that automatic away for cheaper then the manual when they know that there is alot of people out there that would want an auto. Its not like the auts are not selling. I've been to 5 dealerships in southern cali and only one had an auto which i bought.

 

Ok, lets try to simplify this a little.

There are fewer automatics because demand is lower.

Lower demand is the key phrase there.

Why would demand magically go up in the used market?

Scarcity alone does not raise prices. Prices must be driven by demand.

 

I have a question about the 5 speed auto....do you have total control of all the gears when you're in the manual mode? The reason I ask this is because I have 3.2CL TypeS right now, and we don't have control over 1st gear, it shifts automatically into 2nd gear when in manual mode.

Thanks!

 

If your not an experienced driver in a manual then the auto will be faster for you. When you do get up to speed on the shifting it will still be pretty close.

Get the one that is more fun and comfortable for you to drive. It's all about enjoying the ride. For me the manual is much more fun to drive. You must chose wisely.

 

my wife and I bought the Z for her to drive around. she cant drive a manual. i wanted the stick, but after testing one out i decided that the Z is NOT the car for her to learn on!

i am very pleased with the auto though. its so easy to cruise around, its zippy fast, and the manual mode is tons of fun for me when i get the car in the twisties.

auto is a good choice. imo the tiptronic-style system is much better than the others i have driven- bmw in particular. much more positive shifts.

indulf

edit: my wife drives in atlanta traffic every day. the auto is worth its weight in gold in that environment!!

 

glendale nissan here in south california had about 14z and only one automatic black z. That was the only car they asked marked up on. That is why i have this impression. I talked my way out of the markup but it took hours. I bought my car a month ago by the way.

 

*mark up

 

At first I couldn't decide on which one due to breaking my left leg and the fact that I am going to eventually have the rod taken out, I was really wanting to get the manual but after test driving the auto I feel I will be happy with that. If not I can always trade in for a manual when my leg is completely healed.

 

True words of wisdom. This belongs in the 350Z FAQ.