your opinion on buy an auto for cheap and convert in to 6speed getrag later

[supraGZaerotop]

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bang on

imo the only real time it becomes beneficial to convert a TT Auto to 6spd is when you are wanting a manual aerotop

[TheTurtleshead]

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bang on

 

Or you've bought a car with the combination of low mileage and a rare colour... It just has the unfortunate birth defect of being an automatic!

[Ric]

i need further info on gearbox swapping.... anybody know where can i start looking further?

 

Pay the membership fee, this forum will be helpful and you can access things you need.

[mpobor]

Pay the membership fee, this forum will be helpful and you can access things you need.

 

indeed i will .... this forum is priceless

[jagman]

The mighty auto, out performs the lesser manual , it's an oddity that the manual cars cost more , but fools and money are easy parted .

Faster shift times , fewer shifts , and torque multiplication are just a few of the benefits .

Auto vs manual has been debated for years on here , a simple 2 mile twisty hill climb event - manual vs auto would end all the debate - won't happen of course as the lesser manuals would lose ! - much crying and wringing of hands , clutch slip , wrong tyre pressures, etc etc

NA auto is the exception , they don't have enough torque to multiply , the autobox ain't that good ! How popular will this post be - lol

[j_jza80]

it's an oddity that the manual cars cost more ,

 

It's the same with almost all sporty cars.

[Gaz6002]

it's an oddity that the manual cars cost more

 

It isn't. There were far more auto's built.

 

By the way, the automatic might be quicker in a straight line, but not through corners if you can drive the manual properly. It's also not as rewarding to drive.

[Hitbox Junkie]

Ive asked a garage on the cost of a auto to manual conversion as id like a aero manual and if you have all the parts needed it will be around £1000 in labour. Does this seem a fair price or does it seem to cheap or too steap?

Edited November 12, 2014 by Hitbox Junkie (see edit history)

[jagman]

It's the same with almost all sporty cars.

 

Got a quick nibble there - if 1 car can shift in 100 milliseconds and another in 500 milliseconds , one can flat shift at full throttle and keep the turbo spooling ,also maintaining momentum as it's under power for longer it's not a sport - it's shooting fish in a barrel .

New list prices- autos usually cost more - it's a perception of "sports" and driving ability once cars are used that is in demand.

[TheTurtleshead]

Ive asked a garage on the cost of a auto to manual conversion as id like a aero manual and if you have all the parts needed it will be around £1000 in labour. Does this seem a fair price or does it seem to cheap or too steap?

 

More like £500 I'd say!

[jagman]

It isn't. There were far more auto's built.

 

By the way, the automatic might be quicker in a straight line, but not through corners if you can drive the manual properly. It's also not as rewarding to drive.

 

There's the rub "if you can drive a manual properly" , entry speed is more critical with the auto and you have to get all over the brakes sometimes as you don't have the engine braking , however over time with the auto you can get this nailed and coming out of the corner you are straight into the power band and flat shifting - the reward is the guy behind can't keep pace .

Too many think having a manual car means you will easy outpace an auto through the twisties , you need skills if the guy in the auto has only a reasonable ability , he ain't never gonna miss a shift and makes fewer shifts .

The auto is still an enjoyable challenge round the twisties and a formidable weapon with 500 bhp+ and good brakes - being easy to drive isn't a sin - lol

[Gaz6002]

being easy to drive isn't a sin - lol

 

Indeed - but it isn't "faster" over a hillclimb course either, as you rightly say, and it also isn't what most enthusiasts are looking for

[Shane]

Or you've bought a car with the combination of low mileage and a rare colour... It just has the unfortunate birth defect of being an automatic!

 

Steady James, you are in danger of sounding like an old adversary of yours.

[jagman]

Indeed - but it isn't "faster" over a hillclimb course either, as you rightly say, and it also isn't what most enthusiasts are looking for

 

I suspect it is : you are always going up hill , the engine is always on load - torque is king and being in the torque band at all times is crucial - one wrong gear selection and you lose - super fast gear changes are needed , either a sequential or auto would probably spank a manual .

Auto owners are still enthusiasts , they also drive enthusiastically , you can spin an auto with ease , just put in a boot full off a round a bout , and see what happens .

A 6k auto with 6k spent on suspension and tuning and brakes is always a better car than a 12k manual with nothing spent , if the auto box was a slow old clunky thing then yeah - but it's not , it's lightning fast and a joy to use and puts lots of other manual cars to shame in the performance stakes with few handling modifications it's awesome

[j_jza80]

if the auto box was a slow old clunky thing then yeah - but it's not , it's lightning fast and a joy to use

 

I would hardly say lightning fast Even the Tiptronic cars do have some delay between shifts, though I would say that they do change a bit faster than the older auto, though it may just be a healthier box than my last one.

[jagman]

I would hardly say lightning fast Even the Tiptronic cars do have some delay between shifts, though I would say that they do change a bit faster than the older auto, though it may just be a healthier box than my last one.

 

You can shim the auto , up line pressure (hybrid) , alter electronic control all to speed shift up - I'm looking for sub 80 millisec shifts , now tell me how you speed up the manual shift .? Wear ladies tights or fast shoes? - ha ha

[Gaz6002]

You can shim the auto , up line pressure (hybrid) , alter electronic control all to speed shift up - I'm looking for sub 80 millisec shifts , now tell me how you speed up the manual shift .? Wear ladies tights or fast shoes? - ha ha

 

Now tell me how you're going to match revs effectively on down-shifts so you're in the right part of the torque band on corner exit? But then I suppose you did say it's easy to spin an auto...

[Benjy]

Am I the only one that downshifts the autobox?? I guarantee I can change gear quicker using the manual side of the autobox than anyone in a conventional manual. The trick is anticipating at which RPM to move the stick so that it changes gear at exactly the right time. However, my autobox shifts incredibly fast, and John Bailey's built autobox is absolutely insane!!

 

Also, having driven plenty of auto and tiptronic "supercars", I'd rather have the Supra autobox. The F355/Maserati Cambiocorsa being one example of a tiptronic box that i could outshift in a manual. I was astounded how bad it is.

 

And Jagman's right, unless you stay on the loud pedal and left foot brake everywhere, there is no way a manual will be quicker up hill. Do an uphill drag race in evenly matched cars, 1 manual, 1 auto. The second you let off the throttle to change gear, gravity will slow you down.

[Gaz6002]

Am I the only one that downshifts the autobox?? I guarantee I can change gear quicker using the manual side of the autobox than anyone in a conventional manual.

 

You can't maintain the stability through braking and then the transition onto power with the sort of auto in the Supra anywhere near as well as you can with a manual.

 

Modern twin-clutch auto's usually have a throttle-blipping function which gets around this.

[Benjy]

Any reasonable driver should still be on the loud pedal just after entering a bend. Smooth is fast. As soon as you're off the brakes, you should be applying some power to carry through the bends anyway. Auto or manual.

[Guest Nicholas]

buy a manual, I had an auto once for a month then sold it on and went back to a manual, I hate to say it and I'm sure the Auto fans will respond in anger but IMO it was a very boring drive.

[TheTurtleshead]

buy a manual, I had an auto once for a month then sold it on and went back to a manual, I hate to say it and I'm sure the Auto fans will respond in anger but IMO it was a very boring drive.

 

I had a tiptronic for about a month... It was a lovely car, excellent on the motor-way and rapid.. but it just lacked something that a manual car gives you. So I sold it!

[David P]

Hybridised T.T. auto with Suprastick and flappy-paddles, good for 600 ftlb, cheap as chips in Supra money and the most fun to drive.

 

[Al Massey]

Why do people say it devalues the car?

 

It clearly doesn't looking at prices of converted cars

[gordy.r]

As someone who driven many manual, auto, tiptronic and twin clutch cars, I'm going to agree with the auto boys here, several tiptronic systems I've used in the past you could brew a coffee in between gear changes, unlike a modern DSG or S-Tronic box that is lightning quick and gives you gear you want 95% of the time.

The joy of the auto Supra (non vvti) is the ease of use and the beauty of manual mode.

Only 3 gears and your sitting at 120mph... How many gear changes would that take in manual 6 speed with all those letting off the throttles for changes etc...?

Plus when pushing it hard I've found the box also engine brakes for you on down shifts and once you've mastered where your revs will be at certain speeds and how your car reacts and how you can control it it really is a simple piece of kit to drive.

(Just don't throw it in to Neutral at xxx leptons looking for 4th gear like I may have accidentally done once...)

I'm not saying an auto box is better than a manual or vice versa, it really is each to their own, I'm just saying don't discount it as a drivers car or a valid option,

If you've got the ability (balls) or time to learn an auto can be thrown around a track just as quick as a manual car of the same spec.

Some people will never convert to an auto as they see it as the lesser gear box choice, I don't envy them when I'm stuck in a 2 hour traffic jam on the M6 constantly clutching in and out every few seconds in start stop traffic