I am on my second r56s( manual ). My daughter had an Audi A3 with the DSG tranny. I really enjoyed it and it was so easy to time downshifts entering corners.
This is heresy to all you "manual" folks, but, I think that my next Mini will be one of these modern autos.

 

The Audi/VW DSG has a reputation as being exceptionally good for what it is I would be cautious as to whether or not the BMW system will be as good.

 

I understand where you are coming from. But, I think that these new automatics are really good. I have to admit that I am a" dyed in the wool" manual guy, but, in terms of performance, the argument for manual trannies is getting weaker year by year.

 

For track or race conditions on high end cars the autos can't be beat but for my driving style on the street a clutch pedal is what I need. New autos are still terrible for some makes such as the fr-s hated that thing in auto. Just adopt a wait and see attitude with the MINI. It's unadvisable to buy the first year f56 anyway especially with the track record they have as the first year of a new model being the worst.

 

Luckily for me, my '12 r56s manual will be with me through 2018. But by that time, manuals will be totally obsolete. But, in the meantime, I will totally, enjoy my manual R56s.

 

The DSG is basically a manual transmission with a clutch that is automatically worked for you. (Actually, it's even two manual transmissions in one housing, but that's getting into more detail than we need.)

The R56 auto is a traditional torque-converter auto. Do we know which style the F56 auto is going to have? BMW have done the "manual with an automatic clutch" before, and the reviews were generally positive. Though I haven't heard anything about their setup in quite a few years now, so it may not have been that great...

 

I think that it will will be a traditional auto, but with eight speeds, like the A4. I had an 09 A4 auto. As boring as the car was, the tranny shifted much faster than I could shift my manual, especially downshifting. Just like trail braking, with autos you can shift gears mid-corner, up or down.

 

I might be interested if a MINI came along with a decent dual clutch auto. I have absolutely no interest in anything with a torque converter.

 

Back at home, we have 4 different automatic cars, each with a different system: an Audi Multitronic (chain-driven CVT), Fiat 500 (robotised clutch), VW Beetle DCT and my MINI R56 with torque converter.

The worst system is by far the FIAT. It simply frustrates you, cuttting the power to change gear whenever it feels like and so on... And it is slow, I feel I can change gear faster than that.

The Multitronic is the fastest (even in 8sp simulation mode) and you know there is a constant flow of power. Really awesome for fast driving. When cruising on the highway, it is the only car I know that does so at around 1200rpm. But it has a problem: it lags when starting from a stop. The problem is not the CVT itself, but the clutch that disengages/engages when stopping/starting. I think the high-powered DCTs have the same problem, as the clutch mechanism is the same.

The DCT on the VW is plainly a very good system. It doesn't lag from stop like the Audi (probably due to the dry-clutch plates vs. wet) and changes gears fast. It is so good, that I don't see the reason using the paddle shifters.

And now the MINI... Well it is the most predictable in behaviour. It doesn't have any problems when starting/stopping, but it is not as brisk as the other 2 systems. Sport mode changes this, but then the car becomes too aggressive for city driving.

The better balanced system is the DCT. But I guess, if they could fix the clutch engagement issues on the Multitronic, that would be my choice. I know a lot of you are against CVTs, but bear in mind the Audi is the only one with a steel-chain vs. rubber band. This makes a huge difference.

 

I always like the idea of a CVT, it seemed like it would be possible to always be in exactly the right gear. I got to drive Lancia's version once (around 1992 in a car slightly smaller than a MINI), that was supposed to be the metal chain version with an electronic clutch. The clutch at least satisfied my need for the engine to be connected to the wheels.

It seemed to work quite well as autos go. It didn't feel fast, but I think that was main a matter of perception, I'm used to judging acceleration by a rising engine note, that would keep the engine speed constant while accelerating. It sounded like you weren't going anywhere. It also seemed to want to keep the engine at the torque peak, but for maximum acceleration you need to keep it at the power peak.

 

Where is "home"? I was pretty sure that the 500 that we get in the US (or at least the ones that East Coast rental places provide) have a torque-converter auto, not a robotised clutch. But I know that Fiat offers options elsewhere that they do not offer here.

 

As long as its not garbage like the CVT in my R50 I'd welcome it. Though I can't stand that feeling of having one long gear.

In reality, I think any form of auto will take the fun out of any car...aside from exotics I would assume.

Imagine yourself driving an auto in traffic....yawn.
Now in a manual....at least it keeps you active/busy.
There should be more manuals on the road, then idiots won't be distracted with their texting or applying of make-up, even shaving! I've seen it and still can't believe it.

But at the end of the day Mini will kill off the manual in the line. They made that loud and clear when they offered the JCW in auto.

 

I am from Cyprus so I am talking about the european versions of the cars. I dont think you get the multitronic Audi A5 either. But with the CVT, it is a matter of programming. The A5 for example does rev up and down on accelaration/deceleration. It also allows engine braking, which not all CVTs do. But in 8-speed mode it drives very much like the DCT just faster and smoother.

 

agree with this. Driving a stick definitely requires your full concentration vs auto which is why I think my kids will learn on my mini.

 

I love both auto and manual, but don't hate on a person who purchases their car for multiple reasons if they don't get a manual. That's why they offer it, some love auto, others hate it. And vice versa for manuals.

In the end, I believe MINI and many other types of companies will just every car standard automatic and manuals will be an option. But the manuals will stay forever, unless DSG were in every auto(I wish) haha.

 

I got an auto in my CMS All4 b/c of Injury to my left leg. It made driving easy for work, but I still enjoy a manual in my '13 STi. I don't drive it much do to chronic pain, but its something I feel a performance car needs until a better alternative comes around. My All4 is now replaced with a Lexus ISF to match my wife's car White ISF. The auto in there doesn't bother me.

I'm seeing international owners on here. So I've a question. I went to Australia a year ago and I went to a track with friends. There was a kind fellow there with a Holden? It looked like the last GTO. In it, he replaced the trans with a Hollinger gear box. He never clutched while driving, but he shifted essentially pulling back on the shifter in no particular H/X Pattern and it would spring harshly forward. It was so load I couldn't make out what was said to greatly. Was it a manual? It did not screech like a race gear box (dog box)

Was it a manual?
Can it be easily driven on the street? Non race driven?
Any help would be nice.
Thanks

 

I'm not hating on anyone. If you purchased the auto then by all means congrats, it's what suits the individuals needs. I'm just saying the roads could potentially be safer if we all drove manuals. Just because it requires full attention as suppose to having the auto, were its far easier to get distracted. I can see manuals not becoming available in the future...not the near future but forsure in the future. Business decisions are made based on $, and if they are making a tranny that's not selling as much as the autos then what's left? Continue to make them out of the goodness of their heart to the 10%, possibly even smaller then that. Hahahaha Never in a million years.

DCT will be standard at some point. I can see that. It'll be the average joe transmission and something will be out that's better and that's available for the current super cars of the time.

Example, look at how far TV's have come. Flat panel TV's are practically the standard now. Remember when they were the coolest thing any of us had seen lol.

 

That sounds like a sequential shifter. Those can be had for autos or manuals; in race cars they usually are manuals. A clutch can be used with a sequential shifter, or the gearbox can be a "dog box" that allows clutchless shifting.

Dog boxes won't crunch on shifts while the car is moving if you shift them competently. They will crunch when the car is stopped. But they sure are fun...

 

Thanks Slave to Felines!

The first car I bought myself was a stick, I had never driven one before as nobody in my family had anything but trucks 1500 series being the smallest. Dad had numerous Corvettes but I was never allowed to drive them to learn, I probably only rode in them once or twice each. I graduated in 2004 and in my graduating class, only 1 person had a stick, it was a old restored Chevy truck, well, it wasn't a stick but a column shifter.

I'll teach my kid, if we have one to drive stick once he/she gets old enough. I taught my wife and mom. Its something I feel all should know how to do at least for emergency situations.

Long live the stick, even if it becomes a "special order" only sort of deal.

 

I drove a Lancer Ralliart last year with the DCT, I thought it was pretty nice. Shifts were very quick.

 

Having just got back from 2 weeks back home in England where everybody drives a manual, I can say that it doesn't make a damn bit of difference. Idiots are idiots no matter what transmission they drive, if anything the manual is even more of a distraction because they have to change gear while texting or applying make-up.

 

This. This. A hundred times, this.

The problem isn't automatics: it's BAD automatics. And right now, that's what MINI offers.

Sent from my Galaxy S3 using NAMotoring

 

Interesting opinions, and they are only that.

I have owned several cars, and all of the others (including my last two MINIs) were manuals. They were a blast to drive. My current MINI is a 2012 Countryman with an auto. It is no less fun to drive than the manuals, and is still very much a MINI.

Commuting 30 miles each way in heavy, stop-and-go traffic with a manual gets old very fast. Not to mention the clutch wear that happens as a result of constantly shifting in heavy traffic. Also, three years ago, I had a broken foot and was in a cast for 5 months. I couldn't put weight on the foot, and so driving my MINI was out. I was 40 at the time, but my mother was nice enough to agree to swap cars with me (she had a 3 series with an auto). It was a life saver. If not for her car, I would have had to have rented a car with an auto for 5 months (while still making payments on my MINI). Plus, my wife does not enjoy driving a manual, so having an auto allows her to drive my car when she needs to.

 

My hesitation for the DCTs is the added maintenance. I believe for the VW the requirement is a 40k miles service and that is a price tag of $400 at the dealer.

I am going to be skeptical for the first year or two if BMW puts one in a MINI. I remember talking to a SA who was at BMW that some of the auto M5s needed clutches in their trannys as soon as 20k miles.

 

If MINI were to release a DCT for the S or JCW, and I wanted a auto MINI, I'd be an early adopter. Seriously, why wait for a couple of years? How many years have we had problems with the death rattle and fuel pumps? LOL. I had both issues in my '07 and '09 MINIS, but they were fixed and kept me on the street motoring

I have a manual in my R59 now, but do enjoy the DCT in my '12 135. It's quite fun, puts the power down and is blazingly fast, esp in sport mode.

There are however some things I don't like with the BMW DCT and/or worry about. The DCT In my 1er goes into park if I'm backing out and have the door open. WTF!?!? Also, what if I wanted to do an ebrake maneuver, could I put the bmw dct into neutral while in motion and apply the ebrake? I've never tried it for fear the DCT computer doing something catastrophic. And it'll be a sad day when the ebrake handle is replaced with a switch.