Automatic or Manual Transmissons. I know how you all hate autos but..

[Viper GTS]

teckmaster...

You're full of crap. A Neon doing 65 mph in first gear? Hell, a VIPER doesn't even do 65 in first.

Moron.

Viper GTS

 

[atom]

Cmon guys give the guy a break, he has a Neon after all.

Of all cars, a Neon desperately needs a manual. I mean good God, Neon's have a THREE SPEED AUTO. How many cars offer 3 speed auto's anymore?

 

[Windogg]

Atom, you forgot the Chevy (ex-Geo Metro). For a princely $595 you can upgrade the 5 speed manual to a 3 speed auto. Turn on the A/C and you've got riding mowers beating you off the line. No tach so you have to listen carefully to eeek every last drop of power out of those 79 horses.

Windogg

 

[Viper GTS]

A 3-speed auto? Maybe it does do 65 in first, then... 65 in first, 75 in second, & 80 in third if you really push it?

Actually, I shouldn't be so harsh on a Neon... Friend of mine in college got a ticket doing 114 in a 70 zone in a stock last-gen Neon. Spent 24 hours in jail over it, too.



Viper GTS

 

[teckmaster]

On the track I did 65mph in first, about 77mph in second, and didn't really get into third to know what it would do. I do know that they put a governer on them so they will only hit 118

 

[teckmaster]

My 1/4 mile times were 18.2 at 78mph. I did three runs and they were all the same, give or take a couple hundredths. Another guy that was there also running an automatic 2000 Neon was running 18.6's. I'm running a totally stock car. no mods as of yet

 

[Angrymarshmello]

A 12 mph differential between first and second? Right...

What RPMs did your 65mph-in-first-car hit?

 

[teckmaster]

don't know the rpm's. I don't have a tach in this car. I've had 3 automatic cars and this is the first one without a tach

 

[Descartes]

I've got a stick in my '01 BMW 325Ci, and wouldn't have it any other way. BMW has the option of a 'steptronic' which gives you a 'sport mode', but, imo, it isn't even close to a good compromise. If I were to buy an Accord, I would get an automatic, no doubt. But, since I bought a car so I could _drive_ it, I wanted the stick.

I love the bimmer. I don't think there's a better (affordable) car made. There are certainly many other cars that could pacify my bimmer straight off the line, but I didn't buy it to race those who feel they need to try and compensate for lack of something (I say this, because it happens quite often at stop lights).

So, if you're buying a car to get from a->b, get an auto. If you bought a car because you want to _drive_ it, get a stick.

 

[StageLeft]

Don't bother putting mods onto a neon with an auto...

 

[Tommy2000GT]

How would all of you stick drivers feel when a smiliar car as yours beats you but has an auto? At corral.net, there is this guy with a 99 Mustang GT auto that runs faster than 99/00 GTs sticks with similar mods(intake, exhaust, pullies, etc....). His auto GT has smiliar mods as stick GTs the same years(99 and 00 are practically the same) but his auto tranny is fixed up with a high stall torque convertor, shift kit, and cooler. He ran 13.0s while the best stick drivers at corral were only able to run 13.3-13.5s.

The same thing goes for 98-01 LS1 Z28 Camaro automatics too. With just a high stall torque covertor and nothing else, they run mid to high 12's while the 6speeds can only run low 13's. If you don't believe me, go to www.ls1.com and ask the people there.

Autos may be a bit boring but they're faster than sticks when fixed up. IF you install a shift kit in an auto, you can manually shift it all you want and it won't break.

 

[The Stigenator]

techmaster,

My mom has a neon (dodge). It might be a 1998 but it sure cant hit 65 in first. Its an automatic and I cringe to drive it. The 3 gears are hell for acceleration. There is no way it can do 65 in first without you smashing your pistons thru your heads. The Neon output's maximum at 5600 RPM. Redlines at 6200 RPM. Which in first gear would mean no more than 45 before your heads would burst.

Put it this way my dinky little 93 HP toyota tercel manual does 0-60 faster than my moms 2.0L DOHC 140HP 3Speed Auto. I have taken my mom's car on long drives and for it to hit higher speeds it takes quite a while. Climbing hills.. oh I wont go there. The amount of pedal to the metal I got to put in for a decent hill at 65 MPH is quite a lot.

My toyota does 22-25 Mph at max on first gear and I can feel the engine crying for the shift. I red line at 7000 RPM and output max hp at 5500 RPM.

So technically your bull sh*tting out of your mind. I will pay you 100 dollars if you can prove to me that you actually did 65 in first by putting the auto lever at "1" and taking it to 65. Proof - someone responsible enough to verify results for me (independent person unknown to both of us).

 

[Dan2]

<< I have an automatic 2000 Dodge Neon and I don't know any cars with a similar engine that are stick that can be me. If I romp and stay on the gas I can hit 65mph in first gear. it drops into second and I'm outta there. I did some drag racing with it and I would still be in second gear at the end of the quarter. >>



The reason you're finishing in 2nd gear is because your car doesn't have enough power to bring up the MPH higher by the end of the 1/4 mile. That, and automatics have taller gears. If the driver of a stick is even moderately experienced, the difference between an auto and stick in a race is very noticeable. The auto holds onto the gears longer while the stick can be forced to stay in the power band (the good RPMs!) by shifting. Not only that, but automatic transmissions are usually a good 100-200 lbs heavier than 5-speeds, and if you figure out how to launch a stick on the street, you can get an incredible launch. With an auto it's basically just &quot;gas and go&quot; unless you've got the stall set.

FWIW, I had a 1991 Eclipse GSX auto, and with about $1000 in mods I ran a 14.5. The crappy tranny blew (the autos on those cars sucked), and I switched to a 5 speed and ran a 13.7. Not too shabby for a 4-banger.

 

[Dan2]

Oh and I just wanted to add... some people think sports cars or always faster as sticks, but that isn't true either. Most of the fastest domestic street cars that race at the track run automatics, from what I've seen... whereas the fastest imports run 5 speeds.

I just provided my example with a GSX because it seems w/ smaller cars and less power, a 5 speed is the key to getting good acceleration. I think this is probably because these cars are designed with economy in mind rather than major power... ANYWAY, when most cars gets into the 12s or quicker, it seems that guys switch to a Tremac or (uhh, can't remember the name -- turbo 700R auto? ) -- that tranny that was used on Z/28s and other F-bodies in the late 80s/early 90s.

This is just what I've seen, speaking as a guy who's raced cars for the last 5 years

 

[Viperoni]

My 1986 Pontiac Parisienne's tranny is getting lazy on me...gota get it a shift kit.
BTW: I like auto for the city stuff, but for the open road, there's nothing like a manual.
My advice: Get the automatic V6
The power should make up the shift speed difference, if it doesn't, get a shift it + higher stall torque covertor

 

[vi edit]

If I want the car to drive me, I'll go with an auto.

If I want to drive the car, I'll take a stick.

Drivers wanted

 

[Viperoni]

I knew you wanted auto the whole time VI

 

[Soybomb]

Now Skoorb, don't be too cruel, there is a turbo kit from Hahn that rocks the casbah I cant imagine any less than a 14 second ride though! heheh

 

[3615buck]

The Lamborghini Diablo reaches 68 mph in 1st gear, 112 in 2nd...
I wanna drive one !

 

[YayYay]

I have a prelude which is manual. Sometimes I wish I have gotten it automatic during traffic but when you have a bad day and its open road Its sort of theraputic for me. I have no idea why im not a car enthusiast or anything. If you live in a area where traffic is not too bad I would get manual you might regret it at first but later on you will enjoy it. Nothing like punching the crap out of a car to relieve stress you can do the same with auto too but its not the same. Am I the only that feels like this?

 

[LAUST]

I just put my new tranny

 

[lupin]

car threads can be very long sometimes.

 

[teckmaster]

Talking about the Hahn turbo kit for neons, there is a guy who races for Hahn and just with the turbo kit he was pulling down 13's. Now he
has a bunch of performance mods installed and at a drag strip over the summer he broke into the 10 second bracket.


If you are only able to get your mom's 98' dohc neon up to 45mph then you should really learn how to drive.

 

[teckmaster]

Talking about the Hahn turbo kit for neons, there is a guy who races for Hahn and just with the turbo kit he was pulling down 13's. Now he
has a bunch of performance mods installed and at a drag strip over the summer he broke into the 10 second bracket.


If you are only able to get your mom's 98' dohc neon up to 45mph then you should really learn how to drive.

 

[teckmaster]

Talking about the Hahn turbo kit for neons, there is a guy who races for Hahn and just with the turbo kit he was pulling down 13's. Now he
has a bunch of performance mods installed and at a drag strip over the summer he broke into the 10 second bracket.


If you are only able to get your mom's 98' dohc neon up to 45mph then you should really learn how to drive.