Automatic or Manual - Which is faster?

headers · 14th July 2008, 18:04

Hi folks,

Just wanted your opinion on whether an automatic is faster than a manual transmission w.r.t 0-60, 0-100, 1/4 mile etc.

Are automatics with over 2.0 litre engines are faster than their manual counterparts especially if they have 5 speed gearbox and a sports option that lets them hold the engine rpm longer?

The only disadvantage of the automatic transmissions is their FE.

Or does it all depend on the car, the segment it is aimed at, etc etc.

Thanks

nitrous · 14th July 2008, 18:31

Conventionally, manuals are faster.
The newer DSG gearboxes in the VWs and the twin clutch technologies are faster than manual. about 0.6 seconds to change gears.

I would anyday prefer manual with paddle shifters.

Akshay1234 · 14th July 2008, 18:41

well it depends from car to car. it cars like say a civic the manual would be faster but in a car with a dsg like nitrous pointed out the auto would be quicker as in the case of the bmw m3.

abhinav.gupta88 · 14th July 2008, 19:12

The laura automatic (DSG) is faster than the manual one by 0.3 Seconds ( a 0-100 Speed)

VJ_MAVRICK · 14th July 2008, 19:17

I somehow like Manual shifts as compared to the automatic transmission and in my personal opinion i feel in Manual transmission there is better control (My experience and opinion and others might differ) having driven both the variants.

theMAG · 14th July 2008, 19:21

It depends on the application/car. An F1 car's gear shifts happen much faster than a passenger car's auto gear shifts, for instance.

rahuldeodhar · 14th July 2008, 19:37

Hey,

For most cars in India - its manual all the way - But automatics are catching up - Its not a question of speed - the machine can do it faster than us - but changing gears is question of judgment and computer processors CPUs in newer automobiles are getting better and better inputs- it wont be long when automatics will take over.

The key question is however - which transmission would you prefer - and for my (semi -city) kind of driving - I would prefer manual any day. I have no problem changing gears upteen times! but then thats me!

RD

headers · 14th July 2008, 19:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by theMAG

It depends on the application/car. An F1 car's gear shifts happen much faster than a passenger car's auto gear shifts, for instance.

Well, thats what i think too. Infact the F1 autos only prompted me to start this thread!

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhinav.gupta88

The laura automatic (DSG) is faster than the manual one by 0.3 Seconds ( a 0-100 Speed)

Quote:

Originally Posted by nitrous

Conventionally, manuals are faster.
The newer DSG gearboxes in the VWs and the twin clutch technologies are faster than manual. about 0.6 seconds to change gears.

I would anyday prefer manual with paddle shifters.

I would prefer manual for the track and autos for my daily drive

Quote:

Originally Posted by akshay1234

well it depends from car to car. it cars like say a civic the manual would be faster but in a car with a dsg like nitrous pointed out the auto would be quicker as in the case of the bmw m3.

supremeBaleno · 14th July 2008, 20:46

I believe a manual would be faster vis-a-vis an auto, everything else remaining the same.

headers · 14th July 2008, 20:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

I believe a manual would be faster vis-a-vis an auto, everything else remaining the same.

No SB, there are some autos that are faster than their manual counterparts. Thats why i started this thread. Also auto shifting is more consistent than manual shifts and thats why F1 uses auto shifts too.

I too believed like you did that manuals are faster until one day when i ..

vasudeva · 14th July 2008, 20:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

I believe a manual would be faster vis-a-vis an auto, everything else remaining the same.

That is theoretically

I have found that in an AT, the time taken to change gears is eliminated. Also, driver response time may be more in a manual (evaluaating the situation and then changing gears). Perhaps a 0-100 kmph time would be lower in a manual, but say a quick acceleration from 20/30 kmph would be faster in an AT. My own opinion only.

aaggoswami · 14th July 2008, 21:11

Generally Manual cars are faster.

However the new generation DSG ( also available in Laura ) and dual clutch gearboxes prove to be faster than manual.

In any case, manual is the best transmissio to have as we have far more control on the vehicle.

Sankar · 14th July 2008, 21:38

If we are talking about Automated Manual Transmission and Manual Transmission then the former would be much faster. Cars without viscous coupling and not CVT would fall under this category.

If it's between Automatic Transmission (with Torque Converter) and Manual Transmission then the latter generally would be much faster. Cars with viscous coupling (Torque Converter) would fall under this category.

So where would CVTs fit?

I voted for Manual Transmissions.

snaronikar · 14th July 2008, 21:43

Manual gears tends to give that sudden thrust when you shift to lower gear while you need sudden acceleration whereas auto does give the thrust but less compared to manual tranmission. I would prefer manual in highways and AT inside city.

sudev · 14th July 2008, 21:44

My $0.02 worth...
Having kept both manual and AT Esteem for over 1.5lac kms each and brought within days of each other...Manual was faster on pickups but surprisingly AT ended up with higher top speed. Go figure.
Manual Esteem gives almost same top speed on 4th and 5th. I think it is power and gearing that has the last say instead of engine redlining.
Could be different for other cars.

View Poll Results: Are automatics faster than manual counterparts
Yes, Automatics are faster	6	9.38%
No way, Its manual transmission all along	31	48.44%
Cant' say, it depends on the vehicle	27	42.19%
Voters: 64. You may not vote on this poll

14th July 2008, 18:04	#1
headers Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Greater Chennai Posts: 4,667 Thanked: 559 Times	Automatic or Manual - Which is faster? Hi folks, Just wanted your opinion on whether an automatic is faster than a manual transmission w.r.t 0-60, 0-100, 1/4 mile etc. Are automatics with over 2.0 litre engines are faster than their manual counterparts especially if they have 5 speed gearbox and a sports option that lets them hold the engine rpm longer? The only disadvantage of the automatic transmissions is their FE. Or does it all depend on the car, the segment it is aimed at, etc etc. Thanks Last edited by headers : 14th July 2008 at 18:20.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 18:31	#2
nitrous Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2004 Location: UAE/Lon/Madras Posts: 6,965 Thanked: 325 Times View My Garage	Conventionally, manuals are faster. The newer DSG gearboxes in the VWs and the twin clutch technologies are faster than manual. about 0.6 seconds to change gears. I would anyday prefer manual with paddle shifters.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 18:41	#3
Akshay1234 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Mumbai Posts: 10,265 Thanked: 12,317 Times	well it depends from car to car. it cars like say a civic the manual would be faster but in a car with a dsg like nitrous pointed out the auto would be quicker as in the case of the bmw m3.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 19:12	#4
abhinav.gupta88 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Delhi , India Posts: 4,092 Thanked: 325 Times View My Garage	The laura automatic (DSG) is faster than the manual one by 0.3 Seconds ( a 0-100 Speed)
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 19:17	#5
VJ_MAVRICK Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Sydney Posts: 1,239 Thanked: 34 Times View My Garage	I somehow like Manual shifts as compared to the automatic transmission and in my personal opinion i feel in Manual transmission there is better control (My experience and opinion and others might differ) having driven both the variants.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 19:21	#6
theMAG Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Avon, CT Posts: 7,217 Thanked: 1,807 Times View My Garage	It depends on the application/car. An F1 car's gear shifts happen much faster than a passenger car's auto gear shifts, for instance.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 19:37	#7
rahuldeodhar BHPian Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 86 Thanked: Once	Mostly Manuals - automatics catching up though Hey, For most cars in India - its manual all the way - But automatics are catching up - Its not a question of speed - the machine can do it faster than us - but changing gears is question of judgment and computer processors CPUs in newer automobiles are getting better and better inputs- it wont be long when automatics will take over. The key question is however - which transmission would you prefer - and for my (semi -city) kind of driving - I would prefer manual any day. I have no problem changing gears upteen times! but then thats me! RD
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 20:46	#9
supremeBaleno Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Chennai / Kochi Posts: 5,546 Thanked: 2,698 Times View My Garage	I believe a manual would be faster vis-a-vis an auto, everything else remaining the same.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 21:11	#12
aaggoswami Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2007 Location: Vadodara Posts: 4,982 Thanked: 2,931 Times	Generally Manual cars are faster. However the new generation DSG ( also available in Laura ) and dual clutch gearboxes prove to be faster than manual. In any case, manual is the best transmissio to have as we have far more control on the vehicle.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 21:38	#13
Sankar Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2005 Location: Location Posts: 5,766 Thanked: 9,054 Times	If we are talking about Automated Manual Transmission and Manual Transmission then the former would be much faster. Cars without viscous coupling and not CVT would fall under this category. If it's between Automatic Transmission (with Torque Converter) and Manual Transmission then the latter generally would be much faster. Cars with viscous coupling (Torque Converter) would fall under this category. So where would CVTs fit? I voted for Manual Transmissions. Last edited by Sankar : 14th July 2008 at 21:40.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 21:43	#14
snaronikar Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Bengaluru Posts: 2,845 Thanked: 29 Times View My Garage	Manual gears tends to give that sudden thrust when you shift to lower gear while you need sudden acceleration whereas auto does give the thrust but less compared to manual tranmission. I would prefer manual in highways and AT inside city.
	() Thanks

14th July 2008, 21:44	#15
sudev Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Gurgaon Posts: 3,838 Thanked: 3,179 Times	My $0.02 worth... Having kept both manual and AT Esteem for over 1.5lac kms each and brought within days of each other...Manual was faster on pickups but surprisingly AT ended up with higher top speed. Go figure. Manual Esteem gives almost same top speed on 4th and 5th. I think it is power and gearing that has the last say instead of engine redlining. Could be different for other cars.
	() Thanks