1. No real sports car has an automatic transmission.

2. Manual is just more fun to drive.

3. Corvette is better known for road racing than drag racing. Road race cars do not have automatic transmissions.

As someone else said, if I didn't want to shift I would drive a Buick. lol

^exactly what he said. I had my auto ws6 for drag racing but going straight and not being able to hit gears KILLED me. I wanted to hit gears while flying through a turn. It's all preference though I guess.

I prefer manual over auto, but your blanket insinuation that no real sports car has an auto means that Ferrari and Lamborghini don't make sports cars anymore.

Since the Vette was bought to replace my wife's Z28 6 speed daily driver she made it clear that if she was going to be driving a Vette as a daily driver it better be a six speed too!

And , at the end of the day, how many "younger" drivers can even drive a manual tranny?

Really no right or wrong answer. Traffic jams, auto. Fun car, 6 speed. Z06 only one choice in stock form.

:iagree:

In my younger days I was responsible for lots of guys switching from manual to auto after one ride with me. I would row the manual gears so fast most were embarrassed to ever race a manual ever again.

That being said my Vert is an auto for the reasons the clown posted above.
Plus it sure is nice having my quads and calves on both legs the same diameter and not walking with a limp. :D

FYI, once you manual guys leave the line, if your right foot ever leaves the floor, you lose!

Ive had both... i had a 6 speed in a Z06 first and i have an auto coupe now, i always prefer a manual tranny but i got a deal on my current auto i couldnt pass up and honestly i like it more than i thought i would. A manual is definitely better for racing and more aggressive driving but the auto is nice to just cruise and enjoy. I drive a big truck all day thats a manual and the vette is my daily so its nice to get off work and throw it in drive, relax and cruise home with the targa off.

I learned how to drive a manual on my MN6 C5!

I drove from north of Indianapolis to St. louis in the fiance's scion and picked up my C5 Torch Red Vert from a "sophisticated" gentleman shall I say :hide:. I asked him to take me for a test drive before making the deal :D then got in and backed out of his drive. You should have seen his face handing the keys over to a 25 year old at the time after explaining to him the reason I asked HIM to take ME for a test drive was because I had never owned a manual before!!! :rofl: Made it home from St. Louis and only killed it once in Downtown St. Louis. :thumbs:

I had previously a 02 Mustang GT that was perfect except it was an Automatic. I LOVED the car, but regretted it not being a 5-speed every time I drove it. I told myself If I got another fun car I would only get it in manual. I test drove a couple C5 autos before deciding I wouldn't let myself fall in the same scenario as before. Once the newness and "Cool factor" of driving a Corvette would wear off, I think I would have been EXTREMELY dissapointed if I had settled for an AUTO. As the vette isn't my daily driver, I get sooooo excited to slip in the driver's seat and grab that gear shift....... It MAKES the car!!!! There is something down deep inside of you that just feels right when making a gear change and feel the pressure of the clutch on your left foot and clink as the gear shifter slides into the next gear :rock: Someone said it best earlier. People with Autos keep saying WHY the auto is better, but people with 6-speeds keep saying HOW MUCH FUN they are!!!!!

Shift on my friends, and remember If it's a Corvette, It's cool in my book!

Tyler

.5 out of 6...your percentage sucks clown dude. :D

Not many! It's a good excuse to keep buddies from wanting to test out my car :thumbs: Out of my school of almost 2000, there's probably only a couple dozen that can actually drive stick. It's rather sad really; it's an awesome experience and way more fun to drive than my old A4 Camaro, even though the comp cam can be a huge headache sometimes:rock:

I have 4 Sons, 2 of driving age and own cars they bought themselves, both drive manuals quite well.

I daily drove a H/C/I Stage 3 clutch 5 speed 1995 Mustang Cobra for awhile. So needless to say, My left leg is shredded with muscle. Any other manual car i drive now feels like a feather.

Manual>Auto every day of the week for me in a sports car. Im surprised there are so many Auto C5s out there. Its a damn sports car not a eco box.

:iagree:

I always wondered about people who bought Vetts with automatics. I thought they just wanted the car for the image and not the actual driving experience. Auto's are boring to me, just push the pedal on the right side, nothing much else to do.

On a side note, afew years ago I had a doctor tell me there was a good possibility that he was going to have to amputate my left leg at the upper thigh. The 1st thing I asked him was "How am I going to drive my car or motorcycle" That was the 1st thing that came into my mind. He looked at me kinda strange, and said I had more important things to worry about. I didn't think so, I WAS worrying about the the important things, SHIFTING!

OH..I didn't loose the leg, so no worries there now.

I should have said the majority of younger folks. My four " kiddoes" are split with two driving manuals and two autos. True story; my brother who is 5 years junior to me ( he's old too) married at 22 and shortly after, about two years, he traded his car in for a stick version. His wife had no choice but to learn how to drive manual!

I'm 25. Both my vette and bmw daily driver are 6spds. :smash: My last two cars were as well. Wouldn't have it any other way.

I will admit that I know a lot of people who do not.

I'll beat the dead horse...lol. It's all up to the owner/buyer. Mine is auto and I have no complaints. Plenty of get up and go for me, can still burnout with the best of them. Nothing wrong with a 6 spd either. I just happened upon a great deal on an a4 so I went with it.

How hard was it to learn on the C5 ? I'm in the same boat, I don't know how to drive a stick shift but when I find the vette im looking for I want it to be a manual. I don't know anyone with a manual car to learn on so I would most likely have to learn on the vette :hide:

I would say as far as manuals go that the corvette isn't terribly hard. You have to manhandle it more than a bmw or some of the Japanese cars but nothing extreme. Definitely leave the traction control on. Learn in an open space. I could foresee the biggest problem being putting too much pressure on the gas pedal and burning out/spinning the tires.