OT : cars...

Ah, right. Comics.

 

TBF, the only experience I have of buying cars Stateside, is advising
my Sister when she was looking at buying a Saab/BMW/Volvo. She settled
on the Volvo c70, but I'd put that firmly in the mid-range saloon
bracket. IIRC she was quoted the c900 for the "stick-shift" option.

 

I guess it depends on whether you want a mode of transport or a 4-wheel toy.

 

Pedalbin says...

My company car is a tool, to me it is merely a device that gets me from
bike shop to bike shop and carries helmet samples. I very rarely drive
it outside of work. With the amount of business miles I do, I expect it
to be comfortable, quiet and easy to drive, hence I like autos. The only
other things I can be bothered about are a decent CD player/stereo, air-
con and a proper handsfree kit for the phone that turns the stereo off
when it's in use. My Golf is missing the air-con, but apart from that
I'm happy with it.

 

shirley not, if you put an auto box into it...

 

Pedalbin says...

My old 626GT 2.5 V6 Auto was quite a sporty drive, when the box was in
sport mode.

 

Um.. don't most of the higher end sport/luxury cars now all come with auto
boxes?

BMW, Aston etc...

So auto box in shitty little car - yes.

 

Bear says...

Not a Jaguar E-Type of any variety with an auto box then?

I used to hate driving those with autos, and unfortunately a lot of
British people bought US auto cars and restored them over here with RHD
conversions. I sometimes had to drive the cars to our trimmer's
workshops in Milton Keynes and the autos were fucking horrible, it took
all the fun out of driving them.

 

dwb says...

Not really sporty in the same way as an MX5 or Elise is, are they? More
GT cars imo.

 

More
GT cars imo.

In any case they're semi-auto boxes on the Vanquish, new M5 etc, i.e.
hydraulically acitvated manual gearboxes.
OP should sod it and get an Elise.

TimP

 

Really? I drove a 400bhp Jag XKR with auto box in "sports mode", and
I thought it was shit.

When you take your foot off the gas, how is an auto box meant to tell
the difference between a) I'm approaching a corner and I want maximum
engine braking in 3rd gear and b) I've finished accelerating and I'd
now like to change into top and cruise along?

 

Right then, so we agree that auto boxes can't cope with 'sporty'
driving. Thanks.

 

You keep disagreeing with me...

...but then you agree with me.

So which is it?

 

In
but never get a Selespeed Alfa.

People seem to confuse the minor pause an auto box can take to kickdown as
meaning autos are a lot slower. They're not. By the time you've decided to
change down, pressed the clutch, moved the lever and released the clutch
pedal, most decent autos will have done the job and buggered off.

Agreed, but some autos are brilliant. The 540i BMW autobox is one example of
brilliance. The Mondeo auto is an example of how not to do it.


--
Pete M

Mercedes 260E Auto
Ford Capri (ressurection starts soon)
COSOC #5
Scouse Git extraordinaire. Liverpool, Great Britain

 

Champ says...

My Mazda had a hold button, which when depressed would lock the gearbox
in whatever gear it was in and allow you to redline it before changing
up.

 

Our BMW box gets that decision right 90% of the time. It can pick up from
your throttle use, speed, braking etc what type of driving mood you are in
and adapts accordingly. Over time, the computer programs itself to your
style.

This does have its downsides when two people regularly use the car, but
theres an easy trick to reset the adaptive gearbox.

 

So you have to use left-foot braking? I'm not Stig Blomqvist you
know.

 

My old Saab 96 was like that. Quite simply it was throttle off then
change gear.

Changing down was a bit tricky, and you still had to remember to press
the clutch when you came to a stand.

Oh, the car in front at traffic lights japes that could be had.

 

You get used to it (I have been driving autos for about the last 5
years). You get used to hitting the loud pedal earlier in the corner so
that when the power does kick in it is at approximately the right
place.

The thing that is really awkward is the kick - as the power comes on it
comes on suddenly - which on a damp/greasy road can have interesting
consequences..

The best auto box I had was on a Rover 820 2.7 (Honda engine & auto
box) - it had a good sport mode and seemed to adapt itself to my
driving style. It's just a shame that the rest of the car was so crap..

Phil

 

And progressively destroys your auto box..

Phil