Help with 2002 Toyota RAV4

Ultimately, I would enjoy F1 paddle shifters the most.. Or a continuously variable transmission (in the cars of the future)..



but a stick shifter does the trick. I really don't like automatics though.
 
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<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by SLPCar Luvr [/i]
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what cars have those? other than some 120K car I've never seen such a thing.....:confused: [/b]</blockquote>
Most cars in the entry-level luxury market now have it. In fact, I heard it's less troublesome and even cheaper to engineer than the traditional transmission without the F1/tiptronic.

As for the original question, I am able to tolerate driving my Honda Civic only because it's a manual, has sport suspension, and is pretty peppy after some other mods that were done to it. As for the tiptronic shifter in my bimmer, it can be useful and fun at times, but it sure doesn't replace the real thing. Manual over auto anyday for me.
 
Great question CJ!! Personally, I think it depends on the situtaion, circumstances etc. Ex. say you need to share a car and the other person won't or can't drive a stick then auto is the obvious choice. Then I believe it depends on the vehicle, some only give you one choice. I would say that in a roadster (Boxster, Z3, etc.) most would want a manual. On the other end of the spectrum you might need a Ford F-350 for work that more than one person is going to drive, so an auto better fits the bill, especially if you're plowing. With all this aside, I would prefer sticks over autos for most applications/situations in an ideal world. ;)
 
It all depends what type of car I am to have, for a regular sedan, id get automatic, if i had a sports car, Manual. Note: Automatic is better for turbo: its ongoing as for Manual, it cuts off when switching gears
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by Polishpat [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>It all depends what type of car I am to have, for a regular sedan, id get automatic, if i had a sports car, Manual. Note: Automatic is better for turbo: its ongoing as for Manual, it cuts off when switching gears [/b]</blockquote>Auto is better for a turbo in a drag race, perhaps, but it really bites to have a slushbox downshift on you just as you're powering out of a corner. The lurch can seriously unbalance the vehicle if you're near the limits of adhesion.

I still can't stand anything with a torque converter . . . if it's "auto" at all, I want it to be a computer-controlled clutch. Of course, most cars with a "manu-matic" are priced waaaayyy out of my reach, so I'll hafta keep rowing my own.

Tort
 
A modern electronic controlled Automatic gearbox will not downshift on you in the middle of a curve. That is old technology. Automatic gears are so advance today that F1 Constructors use fully electronic automatic gear boxes in Formula 1. The future is here in terms of transmissions and manual transmission, like drum brakes, will be a thing of the past. Shifting is a fun exercise ( VW, Rx7, TR6, MGB, Jeep J10 truck, BMW 320i all had in the past) but not longer necessary for sport and speed.
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

Automatic gears are so advance today that F1 Constructors use fully electronic automatic gear boxes in Formula 1.</blockquote>

Formula 1 gearboxes have automatic gear changes, but are completely different from automatics we know and see everyday.
They have no torque converters, but electronicaly controlled clutches, very similar to automatic modes in BMW's SMGII or Ferrari's F1, but much quicker.
 
So true F1Crazy but the point was that automatic transmissions or gear changing is faster and more precisely performed by a computer. With the newer electronic servos in today's torque converter automatic transmissions can be altered electronically in term of pressure (gear engagements) allows these transmission to be perfectly streetable and down right outrageous when needed by the push of a button.

As I mentioned before it is fun to change gears to enhance the joy of driving on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in the country. :D
 
I came from an automatic saturn to a stick shift Camaro SS and I like standard alot more. I don't mind the traffic or the stop and go in the city, it's a little trade off when your friend is trying to eat something and you dump the clutch and the food is one with his face :p or when you want to launch. I don't know, it's just more fun, that's why I got a sports car.
 
Joed you are correct at 19 y.o. When I lived in Boston at that age manual was the way to go. More sporty. But at 48 y.o automatic is my cup of tea. I am as fast if not faster off the line than 95% of manual trans and with over 300 hp and plenty of low end torque sustaining acceleration is no problem. I have owned many manuals in my younger days ( VW,TR6, Rx7, BMW, Acura and several trucks).These were small displacement engined cars in which manual trans aided them in better performance. Nevertheless, with the traffic situation these days the joy of cruising has been almost completely demolished, working a clutch is added displeasure to me. I would like to revisit this question with you in 20 years and see if your view has changed.
 
blkZ28Conv said:
I would like to revisit this question with you in 20 years and see if your view has changed.
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haha I plan to get a second car, something easy to drive, not so fast and it will be an automatic.



I've always heard to take the standard when the car can use the manual tranny to squeeze a few more ounces of power but if your going to go with a car as fast as our Camaros then just spend more time holding on then shifting.
 
In a car, even a big sedan, I would prefer a stick. But on a full size truck, no way, unless I was doing really heavy duty 4 wheeling. However, I haven't driven one of the tipronic cars yet.



Having said all this though, I am not a parent, so I don't have to worry about having either of my hands available to break up fights in the family-mobile, or stop someone from hangingout of a window.:D
 
blkZ28Conv said:
I would like to revisit this question with you in 20 years and see if your view has changed.
Click to expand...

Yeah, why is this? My dad gave up @ 32!! :eek: I've been real spoiled myself, current and last car are autos. Everytime I drive a stick now I realize why people say that they are a PITA.
 
Id rather a 2hp manual car than a 500hp auto car. I hate automatic transmissions with a passion. Even the shift levers in autos look uglier than their manual counterparts lolol!



-Tom
 
gotta be manual for me, gives me a sense a control over an auto box. but haveing said that i would go for auto when in london traffic, its a nightmare!
 
Currently I enjoy driving too much for most of the automatics on the market. I think the electronic controled clutch like the BMW SMGII or Ferrari F1 are great and I could easily live with one of those for any car, but the normal auto or the torque converter manual/auto's are annoying. The normal auto transmissions are so geared towards fuel economy that it is annoying for anytype of fun driving. It never fails that when I want to "squirt" through traffic or a corner in the wife's BMW it has to downshift. However, in my fun car, I just keep the gear so that I am sitting right in the heart of the power band (I never shift before 4000k rpm) and just punch and go. Nothing is more fun that to cruise at 3500k in second and just punch and go. BTW age wise I am 35. I don't see an automatic transmission in my primary driver anytime soon.
 
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