The human factor is really the difference in what the OP is describing. Autos do what autos do 98% of the time. No two experienced people driving a manual will ever obtain that percentage. You miss the right gear, let the clutch in or out too slow etc while the auto will be consistant.

Do a spec check on todays most modern performance cars and also in racing like Formula 1 cars and you'll find that automatics are quicker than all but the most experience manual shifting driver.

 

 

You obviously are blind yourself if you didn't read what I just said haha. I said manuals are quicker Surf, if a car expert knows how to drive it. I swear that's one reason I don't ever talk about this, cause all I stated is that MINIs specs were wrong just how they state the N18 has 181hp but dyno numbers show 184hp so like I said the auto is faster to 60mph then the 7.1 seconds stated. Thank you for letting me remind you, once again.

 

Wow – this thread has taken a weird turn.

I used to race a C/MP quarter mile car back in the late sixties/early seventies that was a stick shift. I had to be spot on, right amount of RPM's before I dumped the clutch, right amount of gas to avoid over-spinning the tires, and making the shifts at the exact right moment without missing a gear - every time to do well with any one of these being off and I got a loss.

I remember a guy that I used to run against in the bracket races that ran an auto trans, I thought why would anybody want an auto? Well this guy ran almost identical times every time as he'd let the auto do all the work.

In the hands of a good driver a stick should be quicker to 0-60, but in the real world of mom and pop street drivers an auto could be an advantage.

 

You sir are exactly correct, no argument there.

 

I understand what s being said, and I know F1 cars have double clutch autos which are faster(not Aisin) . I am still waiting for a logical reason or answer to why MINI would publish the manual time faster....And the horsepower claims are underrated for a reason(gov't regs). I believe the 184hp is a Euro spec..Thanks foryour explanations everyone

 

When I was a stupid college kid, I raced another stupid college kid from a traffic light to the speed limit. He was driving a ~2000 Pontiac Firebird V8 with a stick shift, and I was driving an '86 Mercury Grand Marquis. He missed his 1-2 shift and my old, heavy, underpowered lopo 5.0 V8 beat him to 50mph (it wasn't much good after 50mph anyway ).



Kids: don't do stupid things. But if you do, remember them and tell other kids not to do them.

 

What are the respective gear ratios in the Manual and the Automatic? Might find your answer there.

 

one factor in the auto vs manual debate has not been mentioned yet, longevity

i have a 1997 gmc sonoma, until i got my cms all4 in march 2012, the sonoma was my daily driver from dec of 1996 until last march, it has 288,000 miles and i just replaced the original clutch, due to the throwout bearing beginning to fail, the clutch was only 1/2 worn, but i replaced it anyway cause i was there

about 50k miles of the total has been with a 5000 pound trailer and about 10k miles with a 10,000 pound trailer, and yes, i have a class III/IV load distributing hitch

the transmission is original, the only service it has had is 50k mile oil changes

i do not think an automatic would have lasted that long given my towing abuse, the truck is "rated" to tow 4,500 pounds

and my last point, a replacement manual transmission is $495 + install and a rebuilt auto is about $1600 + install

scott

 

OKAY!!!...All this Talk about Paddle Shifting vs the Manual Tranny..all well and good..My 2 Questions are....My '14 R58 has Paddles and I have Yet to Learn (previous 'Stick' Girl)..I presume "The Book" will Teach Me What I need to Know About Paddle Shifting??....Will I 'Save' on Gas Consumption using Paddles ONLY vs Jus' the Auto Mode??....Thanks ALL!!!

 

Pretty simple really. When you pull the paddle towards you, it will upshift, push it away from you it'll downshift. The readout in the tach will tell you what gear you're in. It's not going to save you any gas, just gives you more control on when the AT shifts.

And yep, the owner manual has good info in there.

 

THANKS AZdsrt for the Helpful Info!!!

 

lol... The thread from the dead.