Manual or auto?
Discussion
Afternoon.
As a complete and utter Aston newbie, I wondered if there's any preference and/or issues with either auto or manual 'boxes.
Looking at possibly buying a car for both myself and Mrs JS and a lightly used V8V has been mentioned.
She likes the DCT in her M3, and I don't mind either flavours.
Have tried the Evora 400 (jury's out on that one as far as she's concerned, and a new one is the price of a fairly new V8V) and I've tried the F-Type 400 Sport yesterday (it's ok, quite liked it and again, similar price)
Whatever we get will travel around the 8k per year mark.
All tentative, and neither of us have sat in, let alone driven, a Vantage.
Oh, and she's quite small (5'2) and struggles with lots of cars seats not going high enough...
Cheers 🙂
As a complete and utter Aston newbie, I wondered if there's any preference and/or issues with either auto or manual 'boxes.
Looking at possibly buying a car for both myself and Mrs JS and a lightly used V8V has been mentioned.
She likes the DCT in her M3, and I don't mind either flavours.
Have tried the Evora 400 (jury's out on that one as far as she's concerned, and a new one is the price of a fairly new V8V) and I've tried the F-Type 400 Sport yesterday (it's ok, quite liked it and again, similar price)
Whatever we get will travel around the 8k per year mark.
All tentative, and neither of us have sat in, let alone driven, a Vantage.
Oh, and she's quite small (5'2) and struggles with lots of cars seats not going high enough...
Cheers 🙂
The manual and 'Sportshift' gearboxes are the same, with the Sportshift having an electronic gear selection system.
There have now been (I think) three versions of the Sportshift system, with gradual improvements,
The general comments about it on here do vary, so Marmite is the word.
When driving quickly the Sportshift is complimented for the quick gearchange.
Maneuvering, or stop start traffic driving is the area for criticism.
Also Auto mode is not thought well of.
The manual gearbox is liked by most users.
1st to 2nd can be 'notchy', but only when starting from cold.
The clutch pedal is heavier than an everyday car.
The advice here is always to drive both, then you can decide.
Only way to decide is for both of you drive a manual and Sportshift back to back. You'll soon decide.
Sportshift II is much better than I. III is only available in the V12S (I think), which I have and it's better again than II.
Manual gear shift is fine, not the best out there, but perfectly good. One thing though, for shorter drivers, is that the stick is set well back due to the front/mid engine mounting. Too far back for me and I'm 5' 8".
I'm a big fan of Sportshift and really enjoy it. I never, ever use it in D though because it's s
te.
Sportshift II is much better than I. III is only available in the V12S (I think), which I have and it's better again than II.
Manual gear shift is fine, not the best out there, but perfectly good. One thing though, for shorter drivers, is that the stick is set well back due to the front/mid engine mounting. Too far back for me and I'm 5' 8".
I'm a big fan of Sportshift and really enjoy it. I never, ever use it in D though because it's s
te. Phil74891 said:
Only way to decide is for both of you drive a manual and Sportshift back to back. You'll soon decide.
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Jon39 said:
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The advice here is always to drive both, then you can decide.
The guys above are giving great advice.The advice here is always to drive both, then you can decide.
Then just buy a manual
Edited to add - my OH is 5'4". She loved driving the Aston. I doubt yours will have an issue - the seat has a lot of movement and I think was designed around short arses generally
Bought one 6 weeks ago, very personal I think, however I prefer to change gear manually with a gear stick! By roughly looking at the stats about a third are manuals and I feel will be a bit more re-saleable in the future IMO. But by far I feel it's important you try out the options first. PS I didn't bother- manual for me!
Funnily enough since I've had a Vantage I've found clutch in my 997 heavy on first push down!
I would say Aston gear shift needs more of a shove than the Porsche which is a much more of a lighter snick snick experience. Clutch uptake point and throttle balance more difficult on Aston too and steering heavier.
Best test drive a couple. .
I would say Aston gear shift needs more of a shove than the Porsche which is a much more of a lighter snick snick experience. Clutch uptake point and throttle balance more difficult on Aston too and steering heavier.
Best test drive a couple. .
The crux of the issue here is that SS is neither an automatic or a manual, its a semi-automated manual.
Those people who misunderstand that and want an automatic generally seem to hate it (I think most journalists fall into this trap too).
Those who understand that it isn't either and appreciate it for what it is, seem to love it.
By the title of your post I assume you too may be mistakenly thinking SS is an automatic, in which case the manual may meet your expectations better.
Those people who misunderstand that and want an automatic generally seem to hate it (I think most journalists fall into this trap too).
Those who understand that it isn't either and appreciate it for what it is, seem to love it.
By the title of your post I assume you too may be mistakenly thinking SS is an automatic, in which case the manual may meet your expectations better.
JesusSaves said:
Yes, I was expecting it to be a straightforward auto a la PDK/ DCT etc.
I can't quite get my head around the concept of it being an automated manual.
Just sounds strange.
It's essentially the same system as the F1 box in Ferraris until the DCT of F12 and 458 (so think F430, 599, etc), Gallardo, Aventador (not the Huracan), Lexus LFA and I'm sure a few others I'm forgettingI can't quite get my head around the concept of it being an automated manual.
Just sounds strange.
It is an acquired taste, that personally I like, but is more comparable from the driver's seat to a manual than a DCT or auto IMO. It's certainly a box you have to think about and the 'D' (drive) button is there more for occasional back up in stop start traffic than a conventional drive option in a DCT. Or put another way, it's sh*t ! I'm not alone in thinking the drive button shouldn't be there at all
JesusSaves said:
I can't quite get my head around the concept of it being an automated manual.
Just sounds strange.
Just sounds strange.
Think manual gearbox, remove the gear lever and replace with a computer.
Driver pulls a steering wheel paddle, and if the computer agrees that it is the right moment, the gearchange will occur.
I don't think the computer does any throttle blipping, so Sportshift drivers on here refer to throttle control improving smoothness.
I just love the manual, but perhaps I am old fashioned.
However, I do accept that if the GTE Vantage had a manual gearbox, lap times would be worse.
AdamV12V said:
The crux of the issue here is that SS is neither an automatic or a manual, its a semi-automated manual.
Those people who misunderstand that and want an automatic generally seem to hate it (I think most journalists fall into this trap too).
Those who understand that it isn't either and appreciate it for what it is, seem to love it.
By the title of your post I assume you too may be mistakenly thinking SS is an automatic, in which case the manual may meet your expectations better.
+1 on that! I came from a manual 4.3 V8V to a SSII V8VS. It took a little get used to, but once I'd cracked the technique (feathering the throttle on upshifts etc), I really love it. After my experience, I would serious consider the SSIII V12VS over a manual. Those people who misunderstand that and want an automatic generally seem to hate it (I think most journalists fall into this trap too).
Those who understand that it isn't either and appreciate it for what it is, seem to love it.
By the title of your post I assume you too may be mistakenly thinking SS is an automatic, in which case the manual may meet your expectations better.
In normal driving, it's not as quick to change as a DCT, but then there is a significant weight saving as you might imagine.
Oh & don't touch the D Button, it's the Devil's work!!!!
Clearly each to his/her own of course
Edited by HBradley on Tuesday 16th May 15:57
jonby said:
It's essentially the same system as the F1 box in Ferraris until the DCT of F12 and 458 (so think F430, 599, etc), Gallardo, Aventador (not the Huracan), Lexus LFA and I'm sure a few others I'm forgetting
BMW SMG system is perhaps the most commonly seem semi automated manual. Even though it was only seen on M Cars I'd hazard a guess they sold more cars than Aston, Ferrari, Lambo and Lexus combined.Like SS, BMW developed 3 revisions, each improving on the prior version. SMG was fitted to the E36 M3, then SMG2 was fitted to the E46 M3 and finally SMG3 fitted to E60/E61 M5 models.
Thereafter BMW swapped over the DCT system on M cars which, like PDK is dual clutch automatic. Faster and smoother for sure, but just a horrible automatic in disguise IMHO.
I owned 2 E46 M3's both of which had SMG2 and I loved it, I've test driven Aston's with SSII and SSIII and felt is was very close to the SMG2 system, but in between I had mistakenly bought a 911 with PDK, thinking it would be like SMG2 but better. It wasn't and the car was sold within 3 months again, and I'm still smarting from that mistake several years later, hence I never took the plunge again with anything other than a true manual. That said I know if push came to shove that I would probably really love SSIII if I bought one. Still, I'm more than 100% happy with the 7spd dogleg manual - best of the best IMHO!
As the OP seems to be looking at a younger V8 Vantage:
Two weeks ago I test drove a manual 2007 V8 Vantage (80.000 km). Indeed the gearbox could hardly be handled until it got warm after a long while (possibly hadn´t got the recommended transaxle oil change). Clutch very heavy but was working perfectly fine.
But what really annoyed me was that even after 15 min. of driving, shifting from first into second gear still caused a "scraping" noise and feel.
As I have set my eyes on a brand new V8 Vantage S Manual 17MY: Can I (and the OP) hope that the manual gearboxes of cars of younger MY´s work smoother and without "scraping" noises? Comments from owners of younger V8 Vantages appreciated!
Two weeks ago I test drove a manual 2007 V8 Vantage (80.000 km). Indeed the gearbox could hardly be handled until it got warm after a long while (possibly hadn´t got the recommended transaxle oil change). Clutch very heavy but was working perfectly fine.
But what really annoyed me was that even after 15 min. of driving, shifting from first into second gear still caused a "scraping" noise and feel.
As I have set my eyes on a brand new V8 Vantage S Manual 17MY: Can I (and the OP) hope that the manual gearboxes of cars of younger MY´s work smoother and without "scraping" noises? Comments from owners of younger V8 Vantages appreciated!
Emilio Largo said:
Two weeks ago I test drove a manual 2007 V8 Vantage (80.000 km). Indeed the gearbox could hardly be handled until it got warm after a long while (possibly
hadn´t got the recommended transaxle oil change). Clutch very heavy but was working perfectly fine.
But what really annoyed me was that even after 15 min. of driving, shifting from first into second gear still caused a "scraping" noise and feel.
As I have set my eyes on a brand new V8 Vantage S Manual 17MY: Can I (and the OP) hope that the manual gearboxes of cars of younger MY´s work smoother and without "scraping" noises? Comments from owners of younger V8 Vantages appreciated!
hadn´t got the recommended transaxle oil change). Clutch very heavy but was working perfectly fine.
But what really annoyed me was that even after 15 min. of driving, shifting from first into second gear still caused a "scraping" noise and feel.
As I have set my eyes on a brand new V8 Vantage S Manual 17MY: Can I (and the OP) hope that the manual gearboxes of cars of younger MY´s work smoother and without "scraping" noises? Comments from owners of younger V8 Vantages appreciated!
I only have experience of the 4.7 model, but from your description I assume there must be something wrong with the car that you drove.
Model year 2009. From a cold start you can feel slight resistance with the initial gearchange from 1st to 2nd, but after that it feels perfectly normal. My only problem sometimes with the gearchange is a lack of concentration. eg going from 5th to 2nd when wanting 5th to 4th.
Suggest you drive another car, and hopefully you should experience smooth gear changes.
Edited by Dewi 1 on Tuesday 16th May 23:16
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