NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
09-16-2011, 04:07 PM
#16
Registered User
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Mtn. Home, AR
Posts: 67
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
the tap shift is not like a ferrari...if it were, thats a different story. but a car like this should be standard shift. and i also believe it shouldnt come in a vert. it takes away from the idea nd the concept of the car. and most people that buy automatics do it because they either dont like shifting, dont know how to, or are just lazy. there are some people that buy it for the eas of driving, but i do not concider chevys "tap shift" to be a sporty option for the zl1. but thats how they plan on selling these cars. and it needs to be there to help sell to those random lazy people. not to mention majority of the people that buy these cars, will sit it in their garage and take it to car shows on sunday.
and actually, yes! there is some vehicle knowledge you can only get from a manual.....its called how to use a clutch!
unless your in professional racing like indy,or certain road racing classes with paddle shifters...milli second shifting paddle shifters. all the other cars are manual.theres alot of people out there that dont klnow how to drive stick. so i understand the need for an auto to sell these cars.....it just defeats the purpose.
and actually, yes! there is some vehicle knowledge you can only get from a manual.....its called how to use a clutch!
unless your in professional racing like indy,or certain road racing classes with paddle shifters...milli second shifting paddle shifters. all the other cars are manual.theres alot of people out there that dont klnow how to drive stick. so i understand the need for an auto to sell these cars.....it just defeats the purpose.And what is your idea of what the 'purpose' of this car is again? I have an automatic. Is the paddle shift a dual-clutch Ferrari transmission, no. Is it still fun, let you hold your gear and control RPMs, and tap on the steering wheel? Yes.
09-16-2011, 04:10 PM
#17
Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Detroit, MI
Posts: 1,071
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
wow...thats kinda sad. so the people who will be buying this ultra high performance race car, probably wont even know how to handle it or drive it...... basically they just have enough money to buy it and want to buy it to say its the baddest camaro made..... makes me sick....
I for one am glad GM is putting an automatic in this car, I think it would of been a waste to not offer it since there is already one for them to use.
I'd also like to add that dual clutch doesn't mean it's the fastest shifting. Look at the new Lamborghini Aventador, it uses a single clutch system and it's faster than most dual clutch systems.
Last edited by King Moose SS; 09-16-2011 at 04:13 PM.
09-16-2011, 04:32 PM
#19
Registered User
Join Date: Nov 1998
Location: Knoxville, TN
Posts: 3,252
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
I am personally not in the market for a ZL1, and wouldn't buy an automatic if I was. HOWEVER....given that it is a blown motor, and thus will likely make big power very easily...modified cars with the A6 should be quite quick at the drag strip. It's much easier to launch an Auto correctly than a manual - and with a good converter, they will launch VERY hard. An auto also takes much of the driver's input out of the equation, so more drivers will go quite a bit quicker than they otherwise would.
Big headache for all but the most skilled GT500 pilots....
Big headache for all but the most skilled GT500 pilots....
09-16-2011, 04:36 PM
#20
Registered User
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: ohio
Posts: 4,482
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
cars like this shouldnt be auto. the zr1 only comes manual. vipers only come manual. bmw m3 only comes manual. yes your ss auto may be fun, but this is as close to a race car from the factory that the camaro has....explain why the zr1 isnt auto? and all the other cars that are high performance except exotics, mainly come in manual....
09-16-2011, 05:29 PM
#22
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: CNY
Posts: 2,224
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
Agree with everything 2010 5thgen has said.
As a fellow CZ28 member posted years ago (can't remember who);
"there are those that drive, all the rest drive automatics"
As a fellow CZ28 member posted years ago (can't remember who);
"there are those that drive, all the rest drive automatics"
09-16-2011, 05:50 PM
#23
Registered User
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Mtn. Home, AR
Posts: 67
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
cars like this shouldnt be auto. the zr1 only comes manual. vipers only come manual. bmw m3 only comes manual. yes your ss auto may be fun, but this is as close to a race car from the factory that the camaro has....explain why the zr1 isnt auto? and all the other cars that are high performance except exotics, mainly come in manual....
I cannot explain why the ZR1, nor whatever car to which you refer, is only offered in a standard. I would think that they might sell more of those if they did automatics, too. They are very low production vehicles. Maybe it was not economical to develop a second transmission to put in the car for the low numbers. When you watch a ZR1 accelerate at full throttle, you can clearly see where the shifts take place. You can see that because the acceleration hesitates for a brief moment during the shift. I don't care how fast you can shift. In fact, the faster you accelerate, the more noticable the shift point.
09-16-2011, 08:36 PM
#24
Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Rixeyville, VA
Posts: 676
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
Seriously, you (and I) might prefer a manual over an auto, but to limit others to this choice makes utterly no sense. As well, you may prefer a coupe, but, as it was written...
Gentlemen prefer blondes...
...or brunettes.
Choice is what it's all about.
09-17-2011, 10:47 AM
#26
Registered User
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Oakland, California
Posts: 9,710
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
I can certainly drive a stick. My 67 blue coupe has a tremec 5-speed and up until I bought my 95 Z/28 all but one of my previous cars had been manually shifted.
My logic is this... I plan to drive my next Camaro. While I live in the burbs, I work in the city (Oakland) and my commute is bumper to bumper. I also live in a hilly area... hills the size that most people in the midwest would consider mountains. In fact the hill to get up my street is in excess of a 30% slope, and there's a signal halfway up the hill. I'm also getting older (46 on Sunday) and don't necessarily want to get a workout driving my car from point A to point B.
Am I getting soft in my old age? Hell yeah! But I'm also smart. As much as I like banging gears manually, the Engineer in me always is there to remind me that a computer can shift a hell of a lot quicker and smoother than any human can.
My logic is this... I plan to drive my next Camaro. While I live in the burbs, I work in the city (Oakland) and my commute is bumper to bumper. I also live in a hilly area... hills the size that most people in the midwest would consider mountains. In fact the hill to get up my street is in excess of a 30% slope, and there's a signal halfway up the hill. I'm also getting older (46 on Sunday) and don't necessarily want to get a workout driving my car from point A to point B.
Am I getting soft in my old age? Hell yeah! But I'm also smart. As much as I like banging gears manually, the Engineer in me always is there to remind me that a computer can shift a hell of a lot quicker and smoother than any human can.
09-17-2011, 04:06 PM
#27
Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: East Lansing, MI
Posts: 168
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
When I heard the announcement in Oshawa that they were planning the automatic transmission i was disappointed.
Lets take an extra ordinary car, and make it ordinary.
We've put in the transmission option that takes the driver out of the equation, and more importantly made it like every other car out there. Get in, press the pedal and it goes.
I understand not everyone can drive a stick. But I don't think everyone should drive the ZL1. Getting an automatic is really concerning. The unexperienced teenage driver, or the car thief can just grab the keys, press the pedal and go.
Now granted a car thief probably knows how to drive stick, but having this car in auto might kill a few teenagers.
I read a statistic that only 15% of the population can drive manual. Having manual only will keep the sales figures down. So this was just a business decision by GM, nothing more and nothing less.
Lets take an extra ordinary car, and make it ordinary.
We've put in the transmission option that takes the driver out of the equation, and more importantly made it like every other car out there. Get in, press the pedal and it goes.
I understand not everyone can drive a stick. But I don't think everyone should drive the ZL1. Getting an automatic is really concerning. The unexperienced teenage driver, or the car thief can just grab the keys, press the pedal and go.
Now granted a car thief probably knows how to drive stick, but having this car in auto might kill a few teenagers.
I read a statistic that only 15% of the population can drive manual. Having manual only will keep the sales figures down. So this was just a business decision by GM, nothing more and nothing less.
09-17-2011, 06:37 PM
#28
Registered User
Join Date: Jan 2000
Location: Miami, FL, US
Posts: 1,512
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
QFT... at the end of the day is about business and selling more Camaro's is a good thing for all of us... means a better future....
if i ever do end up getting ZL1 you better believe I am getting M6. It's because i like the feel of connection to the car. Automatics now a day are so fast that i could probably get better time in the 1/4 mile with a6 than me driving a m6.
09-17-2011, 07:42 PM
#29
Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: CNY
Posts: 2,224
Re: NEWS: Chevy expects over half of all Camaro ZL1 models to be automatic
I've never disputed that a human cannot shift as fast as an A/T. As a matter of fact, I used to say that way back in the late '80s when I first got into racing and people looked at me like I was crazy.
If I was building a strip only race car, of course it would be a slushbox.
BUT, you cannot do double clutch downshifts, rev matched downshifts, or heel-and-toe shifting in an auto.
And that's where the pleasure of driving a stick is. Being able to pick the gear you want, when you want it. It's about control and the ART & SKILL of driving.
If I'm driving spiritedly down a quiet curvy, country road or on a road course, I want a stick. An automatic sucks all the life out of a drive like that.
If I was building a strip only race car, of course it would be a slushbox.
BUT, you cannot do double clutch downshifts, rev matched downshifts, or heel-and-toe shifting in an auto.
And that's where the pleasure of driving a stick is. Being able to pick the gear you want, when you want it. It's about control and the ART & SKILL of driving.
If I'm driving spiritedly down a quiet curvy, country road or on a road course, I want a stick. An automatic sucks all the life out of a drive like that.