View Poll Results: Paddle Shifters for our old friend?
NO!!! Why would we ever have paddle shifters. All we need are powerglides, solid axles, and no A/C.
164
34.97%
GM's current paddle system should be in the new Maro, my Gay Uncle Maurice also believes this
53
11.30%
What is better than a Maro with an A4? A Maro with an A6/Ferrari-esque paddle shifter system.
252
53.73%
Voters: 469. You may not vote on this poll
Paddle Shifters in the new Camaro?
03-21-2007, 07:55 AM
#61
Originally Posted by TurboZ28
I don't care, just please stop calling it a camaro. Makes me think of leukemia.
After considerable thought and a bottle of sangria,GM should just put an A4 out of a 1 ton truck in the new camaro. Maybe everyone with more than 250 rwhp could finally quit tearing up autos!!! While theyre at it, cut down the damn 1 ton truck rear axle and put that 14 bolt SOB in!!
03-21-2007, 10:55 AM
#62
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I'd like to see GM offer the dual clutch sequential shift technology that is the leading edge in transmission technology and costs less to produce than a standard automatic torque convertor transmission...
Problem is GM is too heavily invested in traditional torque convertor technology so it'll be years before we see it.
Like I said its less expensive than a traditional automatic 6 speed to produce ....offers better performance and fuel economy too..
but it will be years before GM catches up to the competitions new wave of transmission technology (about to occur)
Luckily with the high hp and tq of the GM V8 it doesn't really matter that much...yet with the dual clutch sequential shift technology it would be unbeatable...
Problem is GM is too heavily invested in traditional torque convertor technology so it'll be years before we see it.
Like I said its less expensive than a traditional automatic 6 speed to produce ....offers better performance and fuel economy too..
but it will be years before GM catches up to the competitions new wave of transmission technology (about to occur)
Luckily with the high hp and tq of the GM V8 it doesn't really matter that much...yet with the dual clutch sequential shift technology it would be unbeatable...
04-15-2007, 08:54 AM
#64
I don't know. It just doesn't seem right. When I'm driving my car, I love leaving my hand on that shifter handle. It just seems comfortable to me. A paddle shifter would be cool, but if I wanted that I would buy a European car like a Porsche instead of a Camaro / Firebird.
07-01-2007, 09:39 PM
#67
The intergration of too much tech into the Camaro goes against what the orginal point was: The poor mans' sports car. Provide excellent value yet leave the platform open enough to make one hell of a drag racing rig.
Unless GM is taking the Camaro in a new direction then I am seeing most of these inovations as impeading the true image of the Camaro. I hope the following never see their way into the Camaro: onstar, irs, heated seats, dvd nav, dampers for ac clutch engagement
those stupid turn sigs on ur mirrors.....its not a luxury car and the new platform already has enough garbage to rip off!!!
If GM wants to put luxury in their cars they need to either put it in the GTO or make a new vehicle. Revive the Chevelle?
Unless GM is taking the Camaro in a new direction then I am seeing most of these inovations as impeading the true image of the Camaro. I hope the following never see their way into the Camaro: onstar, irs, heated seats, dvd nav, dampers for ac clutch engagement
those stupid turn sigs on ur mirrors.....its not a luxury car and the new platform already has enough garbage to rip off!!!If GM wants to put luxury in their cars they need to either put it in the GTO or make a new vehicle. Revive the Chevelle?
07-02-2007, 05:39 PM
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Kind of off-topic, but the guys over at Chrysler are gearing up a factory with Getrag to produce Dual-Clutch auto-shifting manual transmissions to go in their front and rear wheel drive cars and trucks. Maybe GM will make an unabashed copy of this tranny, or, heaven forbid, make an improved version. Just a thought.
07-17-2007, 06:53 AM
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Originally Posted by WECIV
I was refering to the shifters in the position Ferrari's are in...on the wheels and plenty big to grab ahold of.
W
W
07-17-2007, 09:08 AM
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Don't most car enthusiast complain about the flappy paddle system in Ferrari, Lambo, and Maserati?
If Ferrari can't make a paddle shifter that half of all people like, imagine how this might end up bad for GM
If Ferrari can't make a paddle shifter that half of all people like, imagine how this might end up bad for GM
08-12-2007, 01:27 AM
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Originally Posted by hc8719
Don't most car enthusiast complain about the flappy paddle system in Ferrari, Lambo, and Maserati?
If Ferrari can't make a paddle shifter that half of all people like, imagine how this might end up bad for GM
If Ferrari can't make a paddle shifter that half of all people like, imagine how this might end up bad for GM
08-12-2007, 11:18 AM
#74
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Wow! Where to begin? First off, the line between auto and manual is, and will continue to get very blurry in the future. It's a real shame to compare a 6L80E to a Turbo 350. Everything we know and hate about "slushbox" automatics goes right out the window. Gone. Poof! See ya. Tuned properly, all but the most stubborn, stone age, hemi crash box 
manual transmission fans will be impressed. The heart of the system is the computer--not the paddle shifter. The shifter is just an electronic input device like the keyboard or mouse in front of you. What we are really comparing is two things:
1) Yesterday's fluid flow circuitry auto transmissons. vs today's digital circuitry auto transmissions. Like comparing carburetors to fuel injection.
2) Torque Converter vs. Clutch
Here we go:
Paddle Shifter: All paddle shifters are just fancy looking electric switches. They're simple and very reliable. They have more in common with your car's power window switches than your floor shifter. Complexity and confusion comes when we discuss what the paddle shifter is plugged into. In the case of the 6L80E, the paddle shifter is connected to a computer that runs line-pressure and shift solenoids. Tap a paddle. A signal is sent to the computer. The computer decides IF and how hard to shift. The computer then hits the electric shift solenoids. There is no slush. No vacuum, no springs or counterweights, no doo-hickeys or cables. Since the system works entirely off zippy little electrons, shifts can occur very quickly. There is no power interrupt, no mechanical friction, no detents--just electricity. If the shifts are slow (soft), it is only because the manufacturer programmed them to be slow. Drive a new +/- Dodge Magnum and each shift takes a hour and a half to complete. It sucks. But it doesn't need to be that way. Most new manumatics are set up soft. I guess manufacturers are afraid to scare the average driver with quick, hard shifts.
It doesn't need to be that way, though. The vette A6 is tuned pretty well, but it too is tuned on the soft side. It gives the technology a bad rap. We rent a car. Hit the little plus or minus sign and go Yuck! As hot rodders, we can figure out how to tune the shifts for quick response--faster than any manual and without power interruption. A 2007 Porsche Tiptronic Turbo is faster than its manual equipped counterpart.
Why not just leave it in automatic? The computer is smarter than me? No it's not. They are indeed smart and the 6L80E is smarter than most. But the computer does not have eyeballs, ears, or driving experience. The computer--especially the one in your A4--can get confused by wheelspin, sudden lifting off the throttle, etc. The computer thinks you're going 60mph when you are really doing 20mph. What does it do? Upshift. Lift off the throttle to compensate for wheelspin and what does the computer do? Upshift. Most importantly, the computer does not know or care what YOU want to do. That's where manual mode comes in. "I want 3rd gear now!" or "I want you to hold 2nd gear!"
Tq Converter vs Clutch--coupling device
Paddle Shifters and computers cloud the discussion. With the paddle shifter (it's just a switch) and computer (kick's *** but not as perfect as you
) out of the way, the real argument comes down to the coupling device. This is where the traditional manual reigns supreme for it's ability to deliver 100% coupling efficiency across the entire rpm range. Simply put, traditional manuals provide less slippage. Parasitic loss is another discussion. Let's talk slippage. For 40-50 years, torque converters have a long standing reputation for achieving only about 85% coupling efficiency.
But that too has changed in the last decade. Modern converters can approach 90%-plus coupling efficency on their own. Add a good beefy, lock up clutch (they don't call em clutches fer nuthin) and you achieve 100% coupling efficiency--just like a manual's clutch. Add computer control to that lock up clutch and you can very closely emulate the function of a manual transmission's coupling device. And you get the converter's convenience at idle and off idle. A little slippage before stall speed provides comfort.
A converter can never duplicate a true clutch's "direct drive" function or sensation. But it can come close. Closer than most would care to believe.
Shift Time Shift time is a funny thing. It takes plenty of time to push in the clutch, move a shift lever and release a clutch. No one complains. But when it comes to paddle shifters, people expect shift time to be absolute zero--all the time. We have Formula One to blame for that.
Bangin' Gears A manumatic will never deliver the aggressive, visceral sensation of yanking back and forth on a stick and tap dancing on pedals. To the contrary, the manumatic's all electronic system is almost too easy and too smooth. It's intuitive. The manumatic's ease and smoothness might make you faster and even save your ***. It frees you up to concentrate on that thing in front of you called the road. Gas, brake, steering, tap. It provides one less thing to screw up. No missed shifts. No distractions. If that interests you, then go for the A6 and find some other way to yank back and forth on a shaft. The internet is chock full of options.
I hope that helps open people's minds a little. If you want to just scream "Auto's Suck/Manuals Rule!", I can't help you, Beavis. I'm done here. But I'll be glad to answer any intelligent, semi-open minded questions. I do it all day long. I never expect to change anyone's mind--just educate them a little. I've sold hundreds of paddle shifters for A4's (for years now). There are hundreds of happy enthusiasts out there running hot rod manumatics. If anyone is ever unhappy, I simply help them TUNE their systems for their cars. If people put half as much thought into their trans tunes ans they did engine tunes, there'd be a lot less blown up A4's in the world. Manumatic technology is fast, safe, and fun. Anyone who doesn't believe me can come drive my paddle shifted A4 Camaro. The experience might not make you sell your manual, but you WILL enjoy yourself. I recently started selling computers and more importantly: high efficency, heavy duty lock up converters to complete the picture. I can strap you in, blind-fold you and tell you that you are driving in a car with a sequential manual. The technology just plain works. And what we, as hot rodders, have available today does not even come close to the capabilities of Porsche Tiptronic or GM's 6L80E with PAS and PAL and paddle shift. Someday, we'll be able to adapt that stuff.
Today's automatics have very little in common with yesterday's slushboxes. And eventually, neither system auto or manual will exist in new cars. We will all be driving computer controlled dual clutch manuals. No converter. No clutch pedal. The line between manual and auto will be completely erased.
Thanks for reading.
/Steevo
manual transmission fans will be impressed. The heart of the system is the computer--not the paddle shifter. The shifter is just an electronic input device like the keyboard or mouse in front of you. What we are really comparing is two things: 1) Yesterday's fluid flow circuitry auto transmissons. vs today's digital circuitry auto transmissions. Like comparing carburetors to fuel injection.
2) Torque Converter vs. Clutch
Here we go:
Paddle Shifter: All paddle shifters are just fancy looking electric switches. They're simple and very reliable. They have more in common with your car's power window switches than your floor shifter. Complexity and confusion comes when we discuss what the paddle shifter is plugged into. In the case of the 6L80E, the paddle shifter is connected to a computer that runs line-pressure and shift solenoids. Tap a paddle. A signal is sent to the computer. The computer decides IF and how hard to shift. The computer then hits the electric shift solenoids. There is no slush. No vacuum, no springs or counterweights, no doo-hickeys or cables. Since the system works entirely off zippy little electrons, shifts can occur very quickly. There is no power interrupt, no mechanical friction, no detents--just electricity. If the shifts are slow (soft), it is only because the manufacturer programmed them to be slow. Drive a new +/- Dodge Magnum and each shift takes a hour and a half to complete. It sucks. But it doesn't need to be that way. Most new manumatics are set up soft. I guess manufacturers are afraid to scare the average driver with quick, hard shifts.
It doesn't need to be that way, though. The vette A6 is tuned pretty well, but it too is tuned on the soft side. It gives the technology a bad rap. We rent a car. Hit the little plus or minus sign and go Yuck! As hot rodders, we can figure out how to tune the shifts for quick response--faster than any manual and without power interruption. A 2007 Porsche Tiptronic Turbo is faster than its manual equipped counterpart.
Why not just leave it in automatic? The computer is smarter than me? No it's not. They are indeed smart and the 6L80E is smarter than most. But the computer does not have eyeballs, ears, or driving experience. The computer--especially the one in your A4--can get confused by wheelspin, sudden lifting off the throttle, etc. The computer thinks you're going 60mph when you are really doing 20mph. What does it do? Upshift. Lift off the throttle to compensate for wheelspin and what does the computer do? Upshift. Most importantly, the computer does not know or care what YOU want to do. That's where manual mode comes in. "I want 3rd gear now!" or "I want you to hold 2nd gear!"
Tq Converter vs Clutch--coupling device
Paddle Shifters and computers cloud the discussion. With the paddle shifter (it's just a switch) and computer (kick's *** but not as perfect as you
) out of the way, the real argument comes down to the coupling device. This is where the traditional manual reigns supreme for it's ability to deliver 100% coupling efficiency across the entire rpm range. Simply put, traditional manuals provide less slippage. Parasitic loss is another discussion. Let's talk slippage. For 40-50 years, torque converters have a long standing reputation for achieving only about 85% coupling efficiency. But that too has changed in the last decade. Modern converters can approach 90%-plus coupling efficency on their own. Add a good beefy, lock up clutch (they don't call em clutches fer nuthin) and you achieve 100% coupling efficiency--just like a manual's clutch. Add computer control to that lock up clutch and you can very closely emulate the function of a manual transmission's coupling device. And you get the converter's convenience at idle and off idle. A little slippage before stall speed provides comfort.
A converter can never duplicate a true clutch's "direct drive" function or sensation. But it can come close. Closer than most would care to believe.
Shift Time Shift time is a funny thing. It takes plenty of time to push in the clutch, move a shift lever and release a clutch. No one complains. But when it comes to paddle shifters, people expect shift time to be absolute zero--all the time. We have Formula One to blame for that.
Bangin' Gears A manumatic will never deliver the aggressive, visceral sensation of yanking back and forth on a stick and tap dancing on pedals. To the contrary, the manumatic's all electronic system is almost too easy and too smooth. It's intuitive. The manumatic's ease and smoothness might make you faster and even save your ***. It frees you up to concentrate on that thing in front of you called the road. Gas, brake, steering, tap. It provides one less thing to screw up. No missed shifts. No distractions. If that interests you, then go for the A6 and find some other way to yank back and forth on a shaft. The internet is chock full of options.
I hope that helps open people's minds a little. If you want to just scream "Auto's Suck/Manuals Rule!", I can't help you, Beavis. I'm done here. But I'll be glad to answer any intelligent, semi-open minded questions. I do it all day long. I never expect to change anyone's mind--just educate them a little. I've sold hundreds of paddle shifters for A4's (for years now). There are hundreds of happy enthusiasts out there running hot rod manumatics. If anyone is ever unhappy, I simply help them TUNE their systems for their cars. If people put half as much thought into their trans tunes ans they did engine tunes, there'd be a lot less blown up A4's in the world. Manumatic technology is fast, safe, and fun. Anyone who doesn't believe me can come drive my paddle shifted A4 Camaro. The experience might not make you sell your manual, but you WILL enjoy yourself. I recently started selling computers and more importantly: high efficency, heavy duty lock up converters to complete the picture. I can strap you in, blind-fold you and tell you that you are driving in a car with a sequential manual. The technology just plain works. And what we, as hot rodders, have available today does not even come close to the capabilities of Porsche Tiptronic or GM's 6L80E with PAS and PAL and paddle shift. Someday, we'll be able to adapt that stuff.
Today's automatics have very little in common with yesterday's slushboxes. And eventually, neither system auto or manual will exist in new cars. We will all be driving computer controlled dual clutch manuals. No converter. No clutch pedal. The line between manual and auto will be completely erased.
Thanks for reading.
/Steevo
08-28-2007, 11:03 PM
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Originally Posted by chiefbadass
why even get an auto????
i'd rather bang through the gears the ol fashion way
i'd rather bang through the gears the ol fashion way
09-01-2007, 03:05 AM
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Just give me a Hurst dual gate shifter,and when I put it in the secondary or performance gate default the engine control modual to power mode = Max timing - faster auto shifting - more aggressive throttle response. Paddles are for the Vett, keep tha Camaro simple and inexspensive and they will come !
09-13-2007, 11:07 PM
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Originally Posted by streetfytr68
Wow! Where to begin? First off, the line between auto and manual is, and will continue to get very blurry in the future. It's a real shame to compare a 6L80E to a Turbo 350. Everything we know and hate about "slushbox" automatics goes right out the window. Gone. Poof! See ya. Tuned properly, all but the most stubborn, stone age, hemi crash box manual transmission fans will be impressed. The heart of the system is the computer--not the paddle shifter. The shifter is just an electronic input device like the keyboard or mouse in front of you. What we are really comparing is two things:
1) Yesterday's fluid flow circuitry auto transmissons. vs today's digital circuitry auto transmissions. Like comparing carburetors to fuel injection.
2) Torque Converter vs. Clutch
Here we go:
Paddle Shifter: All paddle shifters are just fancy looking electric switches. They're simple and very reliable. They have more in common with your car's power window switches than your floor shifter. Complexity and confusion comes when we discuss what the paddle shifter is plugged into. In the case of the 6L80E, the paddle shifter is connected to a computer that runs line-pressure and shift solenoids. Tap a paddle. A signal is sent to the computer. The computer decides IF and how hard to shift. The computer then hits the electric shift solenoids. There is no slush. No vacuum, no springs or counterweights, no doo-hickeys or cables. Since the system works entirely off zippy little electrons, shifts can occur very quickly. There is no power interrupt, no mechanical friction, no detents--just electricity. If the shifts are slow (soft), it is only because the manufacturer programmed them to be slow. Drive a new +/- Dodge Magnum and each shift takes a hour and a half to complete. It sucks. But it doesn't need to be that way. Most new manumatics are set up soft. I guess manufacturers are afraid to scare the average driver with quick, hard shifts.
It doesn't need to be that way, though. The vette A6 is tuned pretty well, but it too is tuned on the soft side. It gives the technology a bad rap. We rent a car. Hit the little plus or minus sign and go Yuck! As hot rodders, we can figure out how to tune the shifts for quick response--faster than any manual and without power interruption. A 2007 Porsche Tiptronic Turbo is faster than its manual equipped counterpart.
Why not just leave it in automatic? The computer is smarter than me? No it's not. They are indeed smart and the 6L80E is smarter than most. But the computer does not have eyeballs, ears, or driving experience. The computer--especially the one in your A4--can get confused by wheelspin, sudden lifting off the throttle, etc. The computer thinks you're going 60mph when you are really doing 20mph. What does it do? Upshift. Lift off the throttle to compensate for wheelspin and what does the computer do? Upshift. Most importantly, the computer does not know or care what YOU want to do. That's where manual mode comes in. "I want 3rd gear now!" or "I want you to hold 2nd gear!"
Tq Converter vs Clutch--coupling device
Paddle Shifters and computers cloud the discussion. With the paddle shifter (it's just a switch) and computer (kick's *** but not as perfect as you ) out of the way, the real argument comes down to the coupling device. This is where the traditional manual reigns supreme for it's ability to deliver 100% coupling efficiency across the entire rpm range. Simply put, traditional manuals provide less slippage. Parasitic loss is another discussion. Let's talk slippage. For 40-50 years, torque converters have a long standing reputation for achieving only about 85% coupling efficiency.
But that too has changed in the last decade. Modern converters can approach 90%-plus coupling efficency on their own. Add a good beefy, lock up clutch (they don't call em clutches fer nuthin) and you achieve 100% coupling efficiency--just like a manual's clutch. Add computer control to that lock up clutch and you can very closely emulate the function of a manual transmission's coupling device. And you get the converter's convenience at idle and off idle. A little slippage before stall speed provides comfort.
A converter can never duplicate a true clutch's "direct drive" function or sensation. But it can come close. Closer than most would care to believe.
Shift Time Shift time is a funny thing. It takes plenty of time to push in the clutch, move a shift lever and release a clutch. No one complains. But when it comes to paddle shifters, people expect shift time to be absolute zero--all the time. We have Formula One to blame for that.
Bangin' Gears A manumatic will never deliver the aggressive, visceral sensation of yanking back and forth on a stick and tap dancing on pedals. To the contrary, the manumatic's all electronic system is almost too easy and too smooth. It's intuitive. The manumatic's ease and smoothness might make you faster and even save your ***. It frees you up to concentrate on that thing in front of you called the road. Gas, brake, steering, tap. It provides one less thing to screw up. No missed shifts. No distractions. If that interests you, then go for the A6 and find some other way to yank back and forth on a shaft. The internet is chock full of options.
I hope that helps open people's minds a little. If you want to just scream "Auto's Suck/Manuals Rule!", I can't help you, Beavis. I'm done here. But I'll be glad to answer any intelligent, semi-open minded questions. I do it all day long. I never expect to change anyone's mind--just educate them a little. I've sold hundreds of paddle shifters for A4's (for years now). There are hundreds of happy enthusiasts out there running hot rod manumatics. If anyone is ever unhappy, I simply help them TUNE their systems for their cars. If people put half as much thought into their trans tunes ans they did engine tunes, there'd be a lot less blown up A4's in the world. Manumatic technology is fast, safe, and fun. Anyone who doesn't believe me can come drive my paddle shifted A4 Camaro. The experience might not make you sell your manual, but you WILL enjoy yourself. I recently started selling computers and more importantly: high efficency, heavy duty lock up converters to complete the picture. I can strap you in, blind-fold you and tell you that you are driving in a car with a sequential manual. The technology just plain works. And what we, as hot rodders, have available today does not even come close to the capabilities of Porsche Tiptronic or GM's 6L80E with PAS and PAL and paddle shift. Someday, we'll be able to adapt that stuff.
Today's automatics have very little in common with yesterday's slushboxes. And eventually, neither system auto or manual will exist in new cars. We will all be driving computer controlled dual clutch manuals. No converter. No clutch pedal. The line between manual and auto will be completely erased.
Thanks for reading.
/Steevo
manual transmission fans will be impressed. The heart of the system is the computer--not the paddle shifter. The shifter is just an electronic input device like the keyboard or mouse in front of you. What we are really comparing is two things: 1) Yesterday's fluid flow circuitry auto transmissons. vs today's digital circuitry auto transmissions. Like comparing carburetors to fuel injection.
2) Torque Converter vs. Clutch
Here we go:
Paddle Shifter: All paddle shifters are just fancy looking electric switches. They're simple and very reliable. They have more in common with your car's power window switches than your floor shifter. Complexity and confusion comes when we discuss what the paddle shifter is plugged into. In the case of the 6L80E, the paddle shifter is connected to a computer that runs line-pressure and shift solenoids. Tap a paddle. A signal is sent to the computer. The computer decides IF and how hard to shift. The computer then hits the electric shift solenoids. There is no slush. No vacuum, no springs or counterweights, no doo-hickeys or cables. Since the system works entirely off zippy little electrons, shifts can occur very quickly. There is no power interrupt, no mechanical friction, no detents--just electricity. If the shifts are slow (soft), it is only because the manufacturer programmed them to be slow. Drive a new +/- Dodge Magnum and each shift takes a hour and a half to complete. It sucks. But it doesn't need to be that way. Most new manumatics are set up soft. I guess manufacturers are afraid to scare the average driver with quick, hard shifts.
It doesn't need to be that way, though. The vette A6 is tuned pretty well, but it too is tuned on the soft side. It gives the technology a bad rap. We rent a car. Hit the little plus or minus sign and go Yuck! As hot rodders, we can figure out how to tune the shifts for quick response--faster than any manual and without power interruption. A 2007 Porsche Tiptronic Turbo is faster than its manual equipped counterpart.
Why not just leave it in automatic? The computer is smarter than me? No it's not. They are indeed smart and the 6L80E is smarter than most. But the computer does not have eyeballs, ears, or driving experience. The computer--especially the one in your A4--can get confused by wheelspin, sudden lifting off the throttle, etc. The computer thinks you're going 60mph when you are really doing 20mph. What does it do? Upshift. Lift off the throttle to compensate for wheelspin and what does the computer do? Upshift. Most importantly, the computer does not know or care what YOU want to do. That's where manual mode comes in. "I want 3rd gear now!" or "I want you to hold 2nd gear!"
Tq Converter vs Clutch--coupling device
Paddle Shifters and computers cloud the discussion. With the paddle shifter (it's just a switch) and computer (kick's *** but not as perfect as you
) out of the way, the real argument comes down to the coupling device. This is where the traditional manual reigns supreme for it's ability to deliver 100% coupling efficiency across the entire rpm range. Simply put, traditional manuals provide less slippage. Parasitic loss is another discussion. Let's talk slippage. For 40-50 years, torque converters have a long standing reputation for achieving only about 85% coupling efficiency. But that too has changed in the last decade. Modern converters can approach 90%-plus coupling efficency on their own. Add a good beefy, lock up clutch (they don't call em clutches fer nuthin) and you achieve 100% coupling efficiency--just like a manual's clutch. Add computer control to that lock up clutch and you can very closely emulate the function of a manual transmission's coupling device. And you get the converter's convenience at idle and off idle. A little slippage before stall speed provides comfort.
A converter can never duplicate a true clutch's "direct drive" function or sensation. But it can come close. Closer than most would care to believe.
Shift Time Shift time is a funny thing. It takes plenty of time to push in the clutch, move a shift lever and release a clutch. No one complains. But when it comes to paddle shifters, people expect shift time to be absolute zero--all the time. We have Formula One to blame for that.
Bangin' Gears A manumatic will never deliver the aggressive, visceral sensation of yanking back and forth on a stick and tap dancing on pedals. To the contrary, the manumatic's all electronic system is almost too easy and too smooth. It's intuitive. The manumatic's ease and smoothness might make you faster and even save your ***. It frees you up to concentrate on that thing in front of you called the road. Gas, brake, steering, tap. It provides one less thing to screw up. No missed shifts. No distractions. If that interests you, then go for the A6 and find some other way to yank back and forth on a shaft. The internet is chock full of options.
I hope that helps open people's minds a little. If you want to just scream "Auto's Suck/Manuals Rule!", I can't help you, Beavis. I'm done here. But I'll be glad to answer any intelligent, semi-open minded questions. I do it all day long. I never expect to change anyone's mind--just educate them a little. I've sold hundreds of paddle shifters for A4's (for years now). There are hundreds of happy enthusiasts out there running hot rod manumatics. If anyone is ever unhappy, I simply help them TUNE their systems for their cars. If people put half as much thought into their trans tunes ans they did engine tunes, there'd be a lot less blown up A4's in the world. Manumatic technology is fast, safe, and fun. Anyone who doesn't believe me can come drive my paddle shifted A4 Camaro. The experience might not make you sell your manual, but you WILL enjoy yourself. I recently started selling computers and more importantly: high efficency, heavy duty lock up converters to complete the picture. I can strap you in, blind-fold you and tell you that you are driving in a car with a sequential manual. The technology just plain works. And what we, as hot rodders, have available today does not even come close to the capabilities of Porsche Tiptronic or GM's 6L80E with PAS and PAL and paddle shift. Someday, we'll be able to adapt that stuff.
Today's automatics have very little in common with yesterday's slushboxes. And eventually, neither system auto or manual will exist in new cars. We will all be driving computer controlled dual clutch manuals. No converter. No clutch pedal. The line between manual and auto will be completely erased.
Thanks for reading.
/Steevo
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Wow, nice read.
Just have GM build a solid unit and I don't care where the shift paddles are placed or if it has them at all.
BT