Paddle Shifting VS Manual Shifting!
 

I need help guys, the story is moving back to the states in Feb
Moms getting a new CX-9 and at the same time im looking to get a used RX8 from the same lot to get a good bargaining price on the car and walk out with my first car seeing we are buying both cars from the same place.

My question is, What do you think is better? Paddle Shifters or Manual Shifting?
They are basically the SAME thing but you cant double clutch obviously on Paddle Shifters. Is there any down sides to paddle shifters besides that? Or are they basically the same.

I don't care if the car i get is Manual, but seeing ive never driven manual im worried it might be to much for me to compinsate with the fact im moving back from Australia with all my driving experience with driving on left hand side. But seeing im very car savy, im not worried about learning manual as much as i could.


Thoughts? Suggestions?
Whats better? Paddle Shifting or Manual Shifting

P.s- will only have the car for 4 years, so im not looking to do SOO much work to the car besides adding on Universal Parts
ANd i love to go fast as well, will there be much of a difference between Paddle and Manual Shift??

Go w/ the manual transmission.
Others will agree on this too.
You're limited on rpms in an AT(6,500?) forgot. w/ the MT you get to go up to 9000rpms!
blahblahblah
just search. theres been a million threads on this already. including mine when i was a n00b :lol:

stop watching the fast and the furious.
seriously though, search, or you will get flamed...
if you were really "very car savy", you should already know the answer to this question.
auto 8s are just traditional slush boxes with paddles... there is a huge difference, not only between the auto and the manual, but between the two auto trannys.

universal parts? lol
and was it really necessary to underline that you like to go fast... makes you sound like you're 15 or something

This also is HP difference between auto and manual. Manual being more HP.

Take care,

Brian

Ill spoon feed it:

Manual:

238 bhp
0-60 5.8-6.5 seconds
1/4 mile- 14.5
Redline- 8500 RPMS
Pros- better power, ability to launch, higher redline of 9500 rpms

AUTO
0-60 7-8 seconds
Power- 212bhp
1/4 miles- high 15's-16's
Redlind- 7500 rpms
Pros- easier to drive, same great handling.

Cons- INABILITY TO LAUNCH which makes the car seem 'slow' especially when looking at raw numbers, lower redline which cuts power a bit.

Both auto and manual have the same great handling as long as the AT has the sport suspension and brakes and 18" rims. The MT is a far better performer in straight line performance than the AT.

Hope this helped, it was the simplist explaination I could think of :)

Paddle shifting is effectively just manually holding the automatic transmission in a particular gear. I've never understood the appeal.

Get a manual, unless you're daily in allot of bumper to bumper traffic.

the 8 is not a hard car to learn how to drive a stick on

the Rx-8 "paddle shifter" is not a formula 1 style gearbox. It's an auto with shifters on the steering wheel. It's kind of cool in a way, but it's not a true "paddle shifter" car.

Buy the manual unless you know what you're getting into with the ATX.
But honestly test drive both.

There are limited performance options for both. Buuuut large gain upgrades (turbo or s/c tuning) with the manual are less limited and less costly then with the auto.

If you'd still rather have an 8 without a clutch, then if you want the best performance your best bet is to get a 2006 or newer ATX.

Actually to extend that post a bit further. If you have your heart set on purchasing an auto 8 then you should maybe only test drive auto 8's and no manuals. lol...

MT!!!! ALL THE WAY!!!! so much FUN + the SHORT SHIFTER... OMFG!!!! its the best...

As others have said, there is no reason not to get a manual transmission, unless you physically cannot use the MT. From my experience in an Audi with DSG (The double-clutched automatic), Paddle Shifting isn't anywhere close to the same thing.

Basically the same in that they transmit power from the engine to the wheels by using rotating gears. Beyond that, they're completely different beasts.

This car was meant to be driven with a manual transmission. Unless you have a physical handicap preventing you from operating a clutch, or a mental handicap preventing you from moving your hands and feet at the same time, get the manual. Yes, it has a learning curve, but for that week you spend stalling the car, you will gain a lifetime of appreciation for what an MT can do for you.

Did you know that with an Automatic transmission your engine isn't physically connected to your drivetrain? Thats why you can sit in gear at a stop light and the engine won't stall.
Theres a device called a torque converter which uses what is basically a propeller to slosh transmission fluid around to spin another propeller attached to your transmission. These devices are evil. Avoid them.

[QUOTE=Socket7;2724275]
Theres a device called a torque converter which uses what is basically a propeller to slosh transmission fluid around to spin another propeller attached to your transmission. These devices are evil. Avoid them.[QUOTE]

This.

If you have the choice and ability go with the MT. Reasons are clearly covered in this thread already.

:lol: something tells me that is where he learnt all his "car savy"

Rx8's in AT is pointless.

lol he prob thinks you have to shift ever 5 seconds now

One of the things I never understood about that movie, why do they keep shifting, I mean they are going like 40 and already on the 10th gear.

Anybody who thinks they are car savy and doesn't know how to drive a manual is misinformed, deluded or both.

As far as the auto RX8, I know there are people who are very happy with the AT RX8 and even a few forced induction folks out there... that being said, the car is somewhat underpowered even in the MT version. The AT version is just sad. Limited redline, crappy transmission, and even less horsepower is terrible.

"ANd i love to go fast as" ...yeaaaah.

Because according to the first two movies, every time you shift you get a huge burst of power like a kick from behind. Who wouldn't want to keep shifting?? The only thing that even comes close to that kind of acceleration is NOS!

this thread is making me laugh

GO MANUAL! This is one of the easiest manual cars to drive, so learning won't be a problem. You will only be disappointed after a while if you buy automatic. Manuals have more power, more fun, and are faster all around because you can control where the car is in the RPM range. You will be faster because you will be able to keep the car in its power band.

Oh, and automatic is for Nancies! :)

The Manual is definatly extremely easy to learn.

Before my 8 I only drove 1 other manual truck for about 15 minutes, that was a 2005? Nissan Frontier. The RX8 Took me about 3 hours to get decent with it, since the day I bought it I went out driving for awhile hehe. But really it took about 3 hours then I did fine, for about a month an a half afterwards I had a few hiccups with the manual driving but nothing too bad. I've had it about 4 months now and i'm loving every minute of it.

Manual FTW

:rofl:

This is what happens when used sports cars are plenty in the dealer lots and can be had for cheap. :(

FIXED TIMES.....

hers a vid.....with a comparo
stupid kids but u get the point

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNjOG5fRSd0

BEST AUTO 0-60 I COULD FIND

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKqqL3qdORc

AND HERES ME....WITH A CRAPPY SHIFT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqpvGvyKC0c

Did I Say That I Frekin Hate Auto 8's........i Think That They Sholdve Never Been Made......
Thats Why They Never Made An Auto S2000
No Torque + Auto = Stupid Slow

car savvy my a**
guys btw
he cant test drive the MT rx8
because he cant drive the MT
so with that option gone
dont start with an rx8 MT either
ur gonna stall it to hell and flood it
my 2 bits

I think it would've been neat if they would have offered the "auto" as an actual semi-manual. For me though, I love my car, I knew what I was getting into fully, and didn't care. But I'm only 20, and I have a slightly different mindset. I suppose I'll have an insanely fast car when I can afford to. But it won't be a n/a rx-8 either way (when it comes to speed lol). I wouldn't mind building a multiturbo'd 20b or 26b in the future. I wouldn't mind dropping it in an 8 either. Hopefully that will be an obtainable goal before not too long.

Do you mean you've never owned a manual?
Or you've never been behind the wheel of a manual?

If it is the latter..........you are not an informed buyer.
This is a major purchase.
Get yourself informed.
Drive a stick.

If it is the former.;..........NVM

haha lmao everytime they shift it looks like they hit the power band on a 1000 lb/ft car

:bsflag: stock you can go between 7,500 and 8,000. with proper tuning, you can do 9,000 and above.

That was 9 seconds if you watch the timer
Crappy shift or not, that was a great launch. You hit 60 in sub 6 seconds.

dude yea I totally don't want my times to represent the auto rx-8 until they're at least half decent. :lol: :uhh:

they might be slightly more exciting when I have AP and a 8.5k redline

Theyll never be exciting bc you cant launch unless you neutral drop it. Unless you boost it to relieve the low rpm 'rotary lag'.

Remember, MTs arent so much faster than ATs because of a power difference, 20 horsepower doesnt affect THAT much. But with an MT you can launch properly for fast times.

:lol: ahaha I'm mostly joking about the exciting part =P

I do plan to turbo my 8 when it's financially viable for me (1-2 years is realistic). If I can get 200-260whp out of maybe 5-6psi boost for a realiable DD tune, I'd be really happy. I dunno if it's possible (to get those numbers reliably), but I've read more about it then most that ask silly questions about it on here.

More then likely though, within 1-2 years when I'm financially viable to put 8-9 grand into it (to do it right), I'll already have my 8 fully paid off and I'll probably just get an 09 MT and turbo that. Time will only tell. One thing is for sure though...I don't think I can't own a rotary =D

Theres a member here with a Greddy boosed AT and its at 185whp and 242 wtq.

Although thats a helluva of torque which is awesome, bear in mind a STOCK MT has 180-185whp.

Worst part of having the AT is getting ignant flames by others on here for driving auto...but plain and simple if you drive in constant traffic it is very nice, plus if your not planning on doing any kind of racing there is no pro of the mt...sure it has more HP but then you factor the 8's have so inconsistant dyno numbers that you may may lose your +20hp curve. This is not a fast car at all so make sure you know this going in. It handles great, the rpms are smooth, thats all you get with a NA rotary. I've ran with MT 8's and trust me they do not leave AT's like that video that was posted, unless I have some freak 6spd AT. Also the reason the MT have a bit more power is cause I believe their peak HP is beyond the AT's redline so if you get tuned to remove rev limit then you may be able to get closer to their number-the loss with AT tranny compared to MT. You can have just as much fun in an auto as the MT. But it all depends on the driver and their situation/setting. Just buy an 8, you won't regret it....unless your motor blows up :)

The one in the vid was a 4AT . Your 6AT would most likely 1/2 the difference ....

I agree that a normal AT vs MT the difference is not nearly as great as that video.

I know this from personal experience as well, and the guy I raced in the MT 8 definitely knew how to shift his launch was sex. He may be from this forum he was 04-05 sunlight silver with washington plates.

it's really just the launch that kills the AT's numbers...but hey maybe one day we will get a 16yr old to dump it and see what happens hahaha

Theres not a whole lot of 'ignant' things said here. The dude asked an opinion and hes getting opinions as well as facts. An MT, as Ive stated twice, is not faster becuase of the 20 horsepower.

If you were to take an MT and an AT and have them both race from a 20 mph start the MT would CRAWL away after the first shift of the AT. It would not be a slaying. 20 horsepower is NOT much.

However, if you were to race an MT and an AT from a start, the MT would CRUSH an AT. Reason being is you can feather the clutch and launch with an MT which you cannot do in an AT no matter how many bolt ons you put, unless you choose to do a neutral drop which isnt worth it.

Thats why MT's are faster than AT's, theres nothing ignorant about anything stated here, its all factual.

20 hp is a lot when you add losses of a slush box to it . Check the dyno threads and you'll see it's more than 20hp at the wheels ....

It does too cause we raced down a slope which lead to a nice down-grade hill. There was a 2-3 car gap from the launch, and I didn't get any closer then that until my second pulled past 5.5k rpm's.

so maybe we should be praising the car for doing so well with what it's limited with. :lol:

I mean
3200 pound curb weight
120-130 dyno whp (at sea level)
4 speed slushbox

The fact that I've raced a 96' integra r type with the increased redline, intake, exhaust, 5 speed manual and he only smoked me off the line. We pulled next to each other til 90+ when I passed him. I think that's pretty remarkable considering the integra is similiar weight, higher horsepower and torque and MTX. Not to mention my car was full of people. Btw this wasn't on the streets and it was a friend of mine so it was for real (disclaimer). This same guy has a 2005 WRX that runs in the 12's (like 5-10k in mods) and he respects the hell out of my car.

he was probably an AT as well :lol:

sorry - just winding you up ......