Manual vs auto?

[jastulewis]

Hi fellas,

Starting to look seriously at purchasing an NSX - boyhood dream!

Can somebody please answer the question: manual vs auto? What are the pros and cons? How much driving pleasure is sacrificed with the auto? etc, etc.

Any advice would be gratefully received.

Cheers

Jason

[simonprelude]

It depends what you want the car for.
Auto's 0-60 time is terrible.

[AR]

An auto NSX will be like Angelina Jolie with no boobs.

[Silver Surfer]

An auto NSX will be like Angelina Jolie with no boobs.

And no lips!

SS

[markdas]

Yep.....

I went through this when I bought a Mitsubishi GTO and if you had the time to look on that forum there is still so much bitter rivalry about auto vs manual and actually even more so about twin turbo or NA!!!

As the guys say, auto is not for performance and in my opinion this is a performance car!

BUT....its a real preference, I bet if you really are not bothered about extracting every inch of bhp out of the engine, it would be a nice relaxed auto sports car too.....just not my cup of earl grey!

x

[Sudesh]

Hi and welcome! I would say it depends on what your looking and if possible try and get a drive in both, also remember that later autos had the F-Matic steering shift.

[W2NSX]

Hi Jason - You should drive both and then ask yourself what you want to use the car for, if it's a daily driver in lots of traffic, then an auto may be for you, if you want to really enjoy the power of the vtec and a really slick gearbox then manual it has to be. Even with the F - matic box, the auto is still not what an NSX is really all about. Good luck with your search

[TheSebringOne]

Best is to try both & weigh up what exactly you want from the car & the budget you have. Good luck in your search! :) If you want to enjoy the NSX in its purest & quickest form, it has to be a manual.

[jastulewis]

This is the sort of response I expected!! It is only now with the invention of dual clutch autos that the difference is narrowing.

I'm going to give myself a year to look for the right manual, preferably in red with the black roof.

Is milage on these cars much of an issue? I have owned many Hondas in the past (that have been utterly reliable - my current 06 Civic excluded!), but am aware that clutches and tyres need regular replacement on the NSX. Any views on this would be gratefully received.

I'm off to the Nurbergring in early Nov, and hopefully with an NSX next year to go Porche baiting!!

Thanks

Jason

[NoelWatson]

This is the sort of response I expected!! It is only now with the invention of dual clutch autos that the difference is narrowing.

I'm going to give myself a year to look for the right manual, preferably in red with the black roof.

Is milage on these cars much of an issue? I have owned many Hondas in the past (that have been utterly reliable - my current 06 Civic excluded!), but am aware that clutches and tyres need regular replacement on the NSX. Any views on this would be gratefully received.

I'm off to the Nurbergring in early Nov, and hopefully with an NSX next year to go Porche baiting!!

Thanks

Jason

"but am aware that clutches and tyres need regular replacement on the NSX."

Tyres depend on toe in at the rear IIRC. My rears have lasted 10000 miles so far. Clutches should be good for 50k miles

[jastulewis]

Another point for clarification on performance:

Parkers and the tech data on Autotrader quote 0-60 time of 7.5 seconds for manual 3.0ltr, while Autocar did a road test some time back and quote 5.6 seconds.... Who is nearer the mark?

Thanks

Jason

[NoelWatson]

Another point for clarification on performance:

Parkers and the tech data on Autotrader quote 0-60 time of 7.5 seconds for manual 3.0ltr, while Autocar did a road test some time back and quote 5.6 seconds.... Who is nearer the mark?

Thanks

Jason

The latter. 7.5 seconds sounds more like the auto

[jaytip]

The latter. 7.5 seconds sounds more like the auto
It is.......

[TheSebringOne]

Think its around 6 or early 6s for a man 3.0 ?
A 3.2 is bewteen 5 & 5.7, most car test states its about 5 :)

[markdas]

But in reality the 0-60 time is good chat over a pint type conversation....my dads bigger than your dad....if we all spent time proving our 0-60 driving ability, there would be a huge increase in clutch replacements, rear tyre trashing and gearbox breakages......the 0-60 bravado is one of the most unrealistic tests for a non race car in my opinion.....

[Auto Spirit]

I have a 92 auto and I love it - I don't really feel i've lost too much of the 'feel the power with a manual' as the auto still gives great performance

[666NA1]

Yup I have an auto as well and I have driven a manual prior to making the decision to buy the auto...in my case i took the auto as it was in better condition...if I had a choice of a manual I would have opted for that one instead...

Cons for the manual are next to zero except for some who say that the power steering is not available...I mean this is not a major issue unless yr stuck in the jam every single day in yr NSX..to most if not all it is a wkd car....parking however gets you pretty big biceps after a while in a manual...;)

I would say go for the manual if u want the responsiveness in the box furthermore downshifting is a heck easier in manual form...LOL...

[Andy]

Hi all

I have an auto also and I love it.

For most of us the choice is dictated by how much we want to spend. You decide your budget and buy the best NSX you can afford. In my case the choice was between a low mileage mint auto or a higher mileage and less mint manual. Since for me the condition of the car is more important than the incremental performance I chose the auto. On the occasions I have been in the company of other NSXs I have had no difficulty in keeping up!

Andy

[AR]

The Auto box is not as strong as the manual. That will limit any performance upgrades unless you find someone to beef it up.

As for the power steering, IMHO it detracts from the feel of the car and it is just something else to break up.

Would I be as happy with an auto NSX? No I could not unless I needed one for biomechanical reasons.

I have no problem with auto cars, but the NSX just does not have enough torque to pull it off.

Cheers,

AR

[TheQuietOne]

Was at Honda a couple of days ago, and they said they had a customer with a Midnight Purple Auto who hadn't had the gearbox serviced properly and it blew up. the final bill he paid was.....£10K!!! :eek:

[AR]

Was at Honda a couple of days ago, and they said they had a customer with a Midnight Purple Auto who hadn't had the gearbox serviced properly and it blew up. the final bill he paid was.....£10K!!! :eek:

That is just mad. At that point getting a 6 speed box would have made a lot more sense.

Cheers,

Ary