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10 Speed Auto or 6 Speed Manual, what say you?

W.O.T. Stang

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When I first started looking at the 2019 Mustang I went to the local dealer to test drive 5.0 ten speed auto and a 5.0 six speed manual. Having owned an 87 GT 5 speed, I fully expected I'd like the manual more. Well, I walked away shocked knowing with absolute certainty that I'd be getting the 10 speed. It's an engineering masterpiece. When driven hard its unbelievable how the it feels as though you're perpetually in the power band. I liked the 6 speed but I can't afford two GT's so the automatic was the obvious choice.

In short, the 10 speed is a rush I want again and again and again.

.
Every vehicle I owned for the last 21 years was always a manual. I was totally against any automatic (the only place I want my torque converted to is the ground). No “auto-tragic slush box” in my driveway.

My 88,95,01,07, and 11 mustangs were all manual.

So as you can see I was very stubborn about ever giving up a manual. I was the purist. The “driver connection” crowd. That all changed the day I test drove a 2019 California special with the 10 speed.

Before that I heard the whisper rumors of what they were capable of, but still didn’t believe it and wrote it off as “just another boring automatic”

Needless to say, all it took was 20 minutes of my time and the chance to play with the paddle shifters and driving modes. I was hooked. I couldn’t believe I was driving an automatic!

the way it delivers its power and shifts is truly beyond imagination. It feels as if your right foot is connected to your right hand (without your left foot).

If you want to putt around down - throw it in normal mode and it acts mostly like any other automatic. If this was the way the transmission was in it’s final form, I’d have stuck with a manual. Especially without being able to shift manually.

Oh, but that all changes once you experience the drive modes.

As anyone who has driven one will tell you, you still have to go out and experience it. Locking it in gear - you’d swear you were driving a manual without a clutch the way it acts.

The brutality of track mode when driven aggressively will put a smile on anyone’s face. The downshifts on braking to keep it in the powerband, and the lightning fast gear changes in drag mode that will snap your neck on every full throttle up shift still make me smile in disbelief every time.

the versatility of it is also amazing. Want to cruise like a grandma. Use normal mode and it’ll loaf around on the 2-2.5k stall and give you good miles per gallons while being amazingly comfortable. Want some more. Throw the shifter into sport and enjoy the crisper shifts. Or better yet take control of your own shifts by tapping a paddle shifter.

As intertwined as all engine systems are these days, the 10r80 fits right into that role. And its close gear ratios work in perfect synchronicity with the high revving nature of gen 3 coyote.

I can see why it consistently runs 1/2 a second faster than its manual counterpart. Especially with the revised gear ratios of the newer my-82. And to me, does not lose the fun in driving without a manual. The only thing I occasionally miss is the physical act of shifting. Letting off the gas, to put in the clutch to change your gear and get back on the gas. There is a satisfying feeling in the motion that you just don’t get with the automatic (no matter how aggressively you push those paddles or right foot, it just can’t simulate the aggressiveness of slamming your own gear.)

Outside of that, I don’t regret the switch from a manual to an automatic (this automatic only!) a bit. It’s been a pleasure every mile of the way. I think most of us that have made the switch can agree with what I’ve said. Either way, you can’t lose. You get outstanding performance and one hell of a car no matter what transmission sits under your right hand.
 

ice445

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Every vehicle I owned for the last 21 years was always a manual. I was totally against any automatic (the only place I want my torque converted to is the ground). No “auto-tragic slush box” in my driveway.

My 88,95,01,07, and 11 mustangs were all manual.

So as you can see I was very stubborn about ever giving up a manual. I was the purist. The “driver connection” crowd. That all changed the day I test drove a 2019 California special with the 10 speed.

Before that I heard the whisper rumors of what they were capable of, but still didn’t believe it and wrote it off as “just another boring automatic”

Needless to say, all it took was 20 minutes of my time and the chance to play with the paddle shifters and driving modes. I was hooked. I couldn’t believe I was driving an automatic!

the way it delivers its power and shifts is truly beyond imagination. It feels as if your right foot is connected to your right hand (without your left foot).

If you want to putt around down - throw it in normal mode and it acts mostly like any other automatic. If this was the way the transmission was in it’s final form, I’d have stuck with a manual. Especially without being able to shift manually.

Oh, but that all changes once you experience the drive modes.

As anyone who has driven one will tell you, you still have to go out and experience it. Locking it in gear - you’d swear you were driving a manual without a clutch the way it acts.

The brutality of track mode when driven aggressively will put a smile on anyone’s face. The downshifts on braking to keep it in the powerband, and the lightning fast gear changes in drag mode that will snap your neck on every full throttle up shift still make me smile in disbelief every time.

the versatility of it is also amazing. Want to cruise like a grandma. Use normal mode and it’ll loaf around on the 2-2.5k stall and give you good miles per gallons while being amazingly comfortable. Want some more. Throw the shifter into sport and enjoy the crisper shifts. Or better yet take control of your own shifts by tapping a paddle shifter.

As intertwined as all engine systems are these days, the 10r80 fits right into that role. And its close gear ratios work in perfect synchronicity with the high revving nature of gen 3 coyote.

I can see why it consistently runs 1/2 a second faster than its manual counterpart. Especially with the revised gear ratios of the newer my-82. And to me, does not lose the fun in driving without a manual. The only thing I occasionally miss is the physical act of shifting. Letting off the gas, to put in the clutch to change your gear and get back on the gas. There is a satisfying feeling in the motion that you just don’t get with the automatic (no matter how aggressively you push those paddles or right foot, it just can’t simulate the aggressiveness of slamming your own gear.)

Outside of that, I don’t regret the switch from a manual to an automatic (this automatic only!) a bit. It’s been a pleasure every mile of the way. I think most of us that have made the switch can agree with what I’ve said. Either way, you can’t lose. You get outstanding performance and one hell of a car no matter what transmission sits under your right hand.
Sold review, explains what's so good about the A10. But what I highlighted in bold is what I just can't get past. No matter how good an automatic is, it doesn't replace slamming the clutch in and slamming that lever into the next gate. If I didn't already come from an automatic performance car, I would have gotten the A10, no question. But I'm glad I already had that experience beforehand and knew I would miss that too much. I daily drive an automatic, so I need my fun car to check ALL the boxes.

But I agree, you literally can't go wrong with either choice. This discussion comes up on this board and every other car discussion board in history, including every facebook group, pretty much once a month at the least. Stick jerkers versus D for drivers. And the consensus is always that somehow everyone is wrong. I love it. This discussion will never truly die until the manual itself does, which is coming very soon.
 

ice445

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Even if/when manual transmissions go away, people will still argue about how much better driving was with them. Same with anything: the future is scary, change is bad, and I want things to be the way they were before. That's really what every manual evangelist wants, to go back to when automatics were inferior by every metric.
Yep, pretty much. And the only thing they can hold over an auto driver's head now is "driving skill" or "driving experience". And they're salty about it. The funny thing is that for me, even though I prefer manual overall, some days I HATE it. My brain just doesn't understand how to jerk the stick and work the clutch at the same time. Or I get butthurt over a bad shift, start, or some traffic. Auto never has those issues. If I had to drive only one car, it wouldn't be a manual for that reason alone.

But, just like a hot girlfriend who's bipolar, you keep coming back for more.
 

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It's the golden rule " The one with the gold gets to make the rule"

That equates to your money your call, period.

What I call fun others call a hassle. That might equate to a lack of coordination. Having to think beyond stepping on the gas to move. Instead of a natural skill, that can adjust on the fly without thinking..

Wax on wax off, brake on brake off
 

Trap

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I gotta go with the 6 speed stick side, the reaon for buying one is the driving experience and fun factor. If I strictly want to 1/4 mile i would pick the auto, but I am all stick for now
 

Norm Peterson

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At least when you go on the WRX forums and extoll the virtues and zen experience of the manual transmission, you won't get any argument.
With over 80% MT fitment in the WRX - well above the MT take rate for any of the domestic ponycars - discussions of MT vs AT (of any type) hardly ever come up.


Mik - Subaru seems to have gone CVT for all of their automatics. Even the 3.6L Legacy, which had been an A5 holdout for a few years after dropping the M6. CVTs are even lower on my transmission preference list than conventional automatics.


Norm
 
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Norm Peterson

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Balr14 said:
At least when you go on the WRX forums and extoll the virtues and zen experience of the Fart Can, you won't get any argument.

Fixed it for you:)
If you're a dyed-in-the-wool Subie fanboi, probably not.

But there's been plenty of opposition to putting the "traditional Subie rumble" back into the 2015-up WRX, directed particularly against an unequal-length header designed specifically for that purpose. Some of that push-back was mine - the H4 rumble (H4 rattle in original VW Beetle-speak) is one exhaust sound I never did like and I'm really glad that I don't have to drive to avoid it.


Norm
 

Qcman17

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Balr14 said:
At least when you go on the WRX forums and extoll the virtues and zen experience of the Fart Can, you won't get any argument.


If you're a dyed-in-the-wool Subie fanboi, probably not.

But there's been plenty of opposition to putting the "traditional Subie rumble" back into the 2015-up WRX, directed particularly against an unequal-length header designed specifically for that purpose. Some of that push-back was mine - the H4 rumble (H4 rattle in original VW Beetle-speak) is one exhaust sound I never did like and I'm really glad that I don't have to drive to avoid it.


Norm
Hi Norm,

I was just having a bit of fun with that crack...... We've all experienced them with the sideways ballcaps at stop lights. Funny my old neighbour bought a 2017 WRX in a manual. He traded in his 2009 Mustang GT manual for it. The Mustang was still a nice car too. That WRX was gone in no time. I never understood how he could go from his sweet sounding 3 valve to that car.

I know very little about Subies but he showed me the exhaust setup on it. Basically one header or manifold to the back and split & then to 4 tips or something like that. No wonder it lacked any sound. It was a nice car but it was just to sedate looking for my tastes.

O/T- I drove manuals for many years & I just lost the fever for them. These new autos do so much more than the older ones. My only complaint with the 10 speed is shift quality can be harsh or jerky at times but as far as it knowing what gear to be in it seems really good at that.
 

Norm Peterson

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Every time he posts on a Manual vs Auto thread I just hear "Hey kids, get off my lawn!"
Every time I stumble across a Manual vs Auto thread I can count on the pro-AT side trying to convince me that the performance improvement is worth what I'd be giving up (and what it would take for me to adapt to it) to get it.

For me, the gains simply aren't worth the costs.


Norm
 
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Norm Peterson

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Hi Norm,

I was just having a bit of fun with that crack...... We've all experienced them with the sideways ballcaps at stop lights. Funny my old neighbour bought a 2017 WRX in a manual. He traded in his 2009 Mustang GT manual for it. The Mustang was still a nice car too. That WRX was gone in no time. I never understood how he could go from his sweet sounding 3 valve to that car.

O/T- I drove manuals for many years & I just lost the fever for them.
No offense taken, and I wouldn't have ever traded my '08 GT in to get our WRX even if they offered me a stupid amount of money for it.

It's strictly in the spirit of this thread that we did end up with a WRX - we've insisted on getting a MT even in our "family sedans" for nearly 50 years and that still hasn't changed. It's just the way we expect our cars to work.


These new autos do so much more than the older ones. My only complaint with the 10 speed is shift quality can be harsh or jerky at times but as far as it knowing what gear to be in it seems really good at that.
I'm not convinced about any automatic always knowing what gear I might want it to be in. Not as long as there is any connection between throttle position and the transmission module's shift logic under any operational mode, and if those things are not kept separate, I'm never going to be happy with it.


Norm
 

Norm Peterson

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Same with anything: the future is scary, change is bad, and I want things to be the way they were before.
Point taken . . . but 'change' should be defined in terms of individual assessments regarding specific changes. Not as the "you gotta go with the 'new' just because it's new" whispers that I keep hearing in the background to a number of topics.


That's really what every manual evangelist wants, to go back to when automatics were inferior by every metric.
No, not all of us. Doesn't matter to me how many metrics an AT might be superior to a MT by, as long as the AT has any automated gear selection capability.


Norm
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