Automatic versus manual transmission

[Nick Cannella]

I am curious how most of you are approaching the transmissions in the cars, manual vs automatic. Which choice would yield better Q times and race laps? I would be interested to hear about your preference and why.

 

[Nuschel01]

Manual all the time

 

[ASH32]

You have no chance using auto against manual unless the manual driver is really, really bad.

 

[Veinz]

manual is faster and better, no contest.

 

[Stotty]

Personally, I use manual, but you don't need to use it to be fast - I know of at least one super fast driver who uses auto.

Having said that, some cars with odd gearing or power/torque curves would definitely be better with manual.

 

[ststav01]

manual gives you better control over the car - of course if you know how to drive it optimally

 

[Pedinhuh]

Manual, I feel completely detached from the car if I'm driving a automatic.

Another reason why I avoid driving EVs this game and non-shifter karts in GT5

 

[Nuschel01]

Another reason why I avoid driving [...] karts in this game.

The Shifter Kart is manual

 

[Pedinhuh]

The Shifter Kart is manual

Yeah, somehow I got it mixed up with the Kart in GT5...I'm fixing it

 

[TonyJZX]

That new Audi VGT electric car... you know how dumb it looks when you come to a corner and the dashboard just flashes "D" - that just about sums it up.

I dont see any point to driving automatic cars in this game, or any game really.

 

[Miths]

Always manual when I use a wheel. The last couple of years also manual when I use a controller in racing games that allows me to map something that suits my fingers (throttle/brake on right stick, gears on L2/R2 or L1/R1).

I don't even care so much about being faster with manual but more that I'm having a bit more fun than with automatic.

 

[warp9engage]

For the best control, nothing beats manual. That being said, I find the automatic gearbox in GTS to be quite good, compared to other games. It doesn't shift early and the downshift behavior before corners is pretty similar to some fast players I see online. Because it's always restricted to certain car behaviors, it's never going to be perfect, like a manual, but I find it does its job decently.

 

[Crazy Taylor]

Manual offers better control when it comes to changing gears. I still find it a pain to use gears so people like me (you know some people in the average bracket), use auto still.

 

[MatskiMonk]

That new Audi VGT electric car... you know how dumb it looks when you come to a corner and the dashboard just flashes "D" - that just about sums it up.

I dont see any point to driving automatic cars in this game, or any game really.

It's just easier... by that I don't mean that operating a manual gearbox is a difficult task in itself, but getting comfortable with the button-mapping can take time. For GT1-GT5 I was AT all the time, I got a T500 for GT6 and without even thinking went to MT... shifting gears is second nature to most motorists, but it doesn't translate that well to a DS4 IMHO.

 

[Nick Cannella]

Manual offers better control when it comes to changing gears. I still find it a pain to use gears so people like me (you know some people in the average bracket), use auto still.

All great feedback so far. I too am average to below average but started using MT yesterday. I noticed I was able to set a faster lap time in the Daily A race using MT vs AT. Yeah, it will take some getting used to but that’s the way I am going to proceed moving forward.

 

[apexpredator100]

I use automatic transmission and made it to DR A/S with it. I gave manual many tries before, but never stuck with it because my lap times didn't improve much using it.

 

[Vegard]

Using manual gives you options.

*The option to use a higher gear in corners where traction is an issue.
*The option to short shift for fuel saving purposes.

I'm not sure about GT Sport, because I'm fairly new to the game and haven't really tried that many cars yet, but on earlier iterations of GT there were many cars that had the redline, and thus the auto upshift point, well beyond what was optimal for maximum acceleration. The Suzuki Cappuccino was one. Another was the Alpine VGT road version in GT6. In that car, using AT would actually prevent you from ever using full power, except in 1st gear, because peak power was developed something like 2500 rpm before the redline.

 

[Mr616]

I am curious how most of you are approaching the transmissions in the cars, manual vs automatic. Which choice would yield better Q times and race laps? I would be interested to hear about your preference and why.

When I used to use Auto, I still knew what gear I should be in for corners and almost kinda used my brakes to dictate what the auto transmission would change to. I was quick with auto but manual does give you more control.

Manual won't be quicker if you don't like it. I only changed to manual in GTS and finally got a wheel so manual was then a no brainer.

 

[trustjab]

Wish I had money for a wheel to use Manual. Use the ds4 but auto, can't move my fingers around to shift properly. So much going on for me it's too much of a chore. I do fine using auto but I know I lose out especially in cases where shifting early could prevent wheelspin or provide a better drive out of corners like the chicanes at Kyoto driving park.

 

[RisingStar]

Once you get the hang of using MT, you'll never want to go back to using AT.

 

[Sarkazmo]

Manual only, manual always. The manual transmission equals potential superior control of the vehicle. I say "potential" because you have to learn to use the manual. If you drive exactly the same with MT as you did with AT you're unlikely to see much change. With the manual you need to be more aggressive. Downshifting through the gears at the right time when hard braking to shorten your braking distance, learning when to hold a gear instead of up or downshifting, holding or downshifting to cause the car to rotate (extremely useful when driving FWD cars,) upshifting early to preserve fuel or tires or to maintain control in limited traction situations. Driving "manual" is so much more than just shifting when the light flashes.

Sark

 

[BallPtPenTheif]

Manual.

I can't imagine driving without being able to downshift for more torque to save myself.

 

[Jump_Ace]

Not Fun vs. Fun Transmission


Jerome

 

[Sloppy Shades]

Manual always, even if my shifting isn't always the best (too late or too early). You have the feeling of always being in control (ABS/TC excepted).
The only exception being if driving a boring slowish road car in an endurance race. The AUTO will almost always give you better mpg as its smoother and
tends to stay in higher gear. This small advantage is counteracted by the real chance that you may fall asleep during the race. This HAS happened to me...

 

[Rinsky]

Manual transmission will yield faster laps most of the time but the automatic transmission is no slouch in GTS. All Depends on the car your racing. There are quite a few road cars where you can be every bit as fast in auto as manual. I race in auto all the time.

 

[TonyJZX]

The way GT teaches you to drive it to be in the correct gear before you hit the corner. I mean its obvious given you cant turn off the 'preferred gear indicator'.

And so it becomes real damn hard to play auto because you then have to brake to the right speed and then turn. In a manual, whatever speed you take a corner is relatively unimportant.

I also think we have 10-20 yrs plus expereince with manual driving on the controller so I dont believe thats an issue.

 

[Sharpie]

Using manual gives you options.

*The option to use a higher gear in corners where traction is an issue.
*The option to short shift for fuel saving purposes.

I'm not sure about GT Sport, because I'm fairly new to the game and haven't really tried that many cars yet, but on earlier iterations of GT there were many cars that had the redline, and thus the auto upshift point, well beyond what was optimal for maximum acceleration. The Suzuki Cappuccino was one. Another was the Alpine VGT road version in GT6. In that car, using AT would actually prevent you from ever using full power, except in 1st gear, because peak power was developed something like 2500 rpm before the redline.

Plymouth cuda was another car with low power curve .

 

[ScottPuss20]

As a pad user, manual gears are extremely tedious when you're already wrestling the brake and steering with the same hand. I've used auto gears for as long as I can remember. Purely because it's easier.

 

[Blacki2k2]

Manual shifting. One important point for me, is to shift up in tricky corners to get a better grip as in an lower gear. Downshifting before corners is much better manual. And the most important point to use manual shifting is in races with fuel consumption. I made last week a nice experiment with a friend on Dragon Trail. Setup was:

16 Rounds
GR.2
BoP On
No Tuning
Tires hard
Fuel: 10x
Tire: 7x
Car: GT-R

For this high tire and fuel consumption we want to know, if it is a one stop or two stop the better choice (in preperation for a race of him). We are booth stable drivers and had mostly times of 1.29.3xx - 12.9.6xx per lap (depends on tires). We did that race as 1 vs 1 race, he did two pits, i did one. You must know that if you use every gear to the best rpm before shifting, you can do round about 5-6 laps and then pit. We started the race and he was in front of me, he uses all the performance of the car. My strategy was short shifting always before the half of the rpm bar, but stay on fuel map 1 for the whole race (max performance in 6. gear!). He did low 1.29. times, and i did high 1.29 times per lap (difference with short shifting is like 0.5 - 0.7 secs). He pitted in round 6 and 12, i was able to pass him when he pitted first time and get a good difference here. I pitted after round 8 and he was before me again now. He pitted in round 12 and i was in front again up to the end of the race. No one made a mistake and i had a lead of 12 seconds.

Now, if you use automatic, you have to pit two times and loose a lot of time. In this races you can win with the right strategy, but for fuel control you need the manual gearbox.

 

[inri]

manual is faster in every aspect, you can save fuel with short shift, be in the right gear all the time etc. but AT isn't slow either