Sorry for hijacking your thread Victor.
I also used to think vehicles equipped with an auto were a joke. Do 'I' think they are less challenging? A little. Less fun? If the car makes a ridiculous ammount of power, I don't care if it is a 2-speed or a 6-speed. It's going to be a wild ride!
Fitting I tell this story in this thread.. The first time a friend of mine 'borrowed' her fathers automatic Lingenfelter C4 and gave me a ride, I was convinced manual transmission cars lacked something. 6 Years later, I'm still convinced for the most part.
On the street/drag strip I personally would go with an auto any day and every day. On a road course/highway it would be a manual. However, I don't race on the highway and there are no road courses here. I also cannot stand the fear/worry of missing a shift, and the outcome of when I do miss a shift. If you drag race with a manual you will miss sooner or later. The outcome could be as minor as loosing a race, or as major as popping your motor. Years of that pressure has me seriously thinking twice about installing another manual into my street-drag car.
Back on topic: The price of ZR-1's has dropped in the last couple years. wow! It's weird to see a car that you grew up admiring, but knowing you would almost never be able to afford one, suddenly become affordable..
