6 Things You Can Do In a Manual That You Can't Do In a Automatic

So we all know the Dual Clutch Transmissions shift lightning fast, but quickshifting with a manual transmission not only sounds more aggressive than an auto, but it also feels amazing. The g -force in between shifts in a manual is much more noticeable than in a automatic. Then there is powershifting, which is much more risky but sounds crazy when done correctly. Like the driver in the video explains, powershifting will only give you an advantage when shifting from 1st to 2nd, other than that quickshifting will be good enough.

Now MOST autos won’t allow you to bounce off the rev limiter, some semi-autos might allow it, but the majority will force you to go into the next gear. With manual you can keep bouncing of the rev limiter for as long as you wish. Now some might say “Why would you want to bounce off the rev limiter, it only damages your engine and slows you down”. Well if you look at powerful FWD cars or 1300bhp Supras, then bouncing off the rev limiter is actually necessary to achieve maximum acceleration. The reason for this is wheelspin. It may seem like they are just riding on the rev limiter like an idiot, but in reality they are still picking up speed because the wheel speed and engine speed is not the same at that point, so they keep it on the rev limiter until they have matched the wheel speed and engine speed, then they would shift to the next gear to remain in the power band.

Ever tried drifting with a automatic car? Not very easy, yea? Manual transmission and drifting go together like Honda and VTEC. People assume a non-vtec Honda is slow as cr*p and people assume automatic cars won’t drift. Both is pretty true in all honesty, even though I love Hondas. Either way, popping/dumping/kicking the clutch to initiate a drift makes life for less powerful RWD cars much easier. When talking about a 370Z or a RX7, they usually have enough power to drift without the need of clutch kicking, but getting the Hachiroku or Miata to go sideways, a little clutch work is necessary. On a dry road at least.

If you’ve watched the video, you can see how much control a clutch gives you when launching a car quickly. This is especially noticeable on fwd cars which tend to wheelspin a lot when just dumping the clutch … NEVER dump the clutch when you have high grip tires. I usually launch by setting up my rpm at around 2500 and then applying half throttle while smoothly letting out the clutch and as soon as the clutch is out I give full throttle. I still get a little wheelspin, but without that wheelspin my engine would just bog down. When you think of an automatic, the only control it gives you, is throttle control …

I can already hear the Automatic guys screaming “Manual can never shift smoother than an Auto”. That is true up until a certain point. We must keep in mind that a manual car gives you full control, which means … practice makes perfect. Now a lot of us, pretty much all of us CTizens enjoy ‘enthusiastic driving’. However, every car guy enjoy a slow cruise every once in awhile and at that time we want to shift without the car making uncomfortable movements. Shifting smoothly with a manual transmission is a skill that needs to be learned and once you’ve got it, it is surprisingly satisfying when you can’t notice any change in motion between shifts, knowing that you are responsible for that perfect shift. So yes, automatics, manual can shift as smooth as you guys, it just requires a skilled driver.

The term rev matching is normally associated with downshifting, however for some guys, like myself, rev matching on upshifts is not necessary, but when you have a rather loud exhaust, it sounds pretty awesome! I know that some semi-autos rev match automaticly on downshifts, but they can’t rev match on upshifts. Rev Matching on upshifts can also help to make shifts smoother when shifting slow, in order to get the rpm to the spot where it will be when you let the clutch out. When it comes to enthusiastic driving though, if you are not trying to get maximum acceleration, but just looking for a thrill then blipping the throttle on upshifts can be really entertaining. Automatics will remain idling into eternity. (Not talking about DCT, which sound a bit better than traditional autos)

It was not my intention to talk badly about Automatics, because they are indeed newer technology than manual cars and when talking about the Dual Clutch Transmissions, manual can never compete from a performance standpoint. When it comes to entertainment though, manual transmissions will be hard to beat, as the control they offer to the driver, creates a uniqueness between every car and the way that car can be driven. Hope you guys enjoyed the post! Feel free to share your opinions in the comment section.