Automatic or manual?

Manual or Automatic?

  • Manual

    Votes: 81 50.3%

  • Automatic

    Votes: 80 49.7%
  • Total voters
    161
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My DD danger ranger has a 5 speed in it. Pretty fun on back roads and on low traffic roads. It was alright no matter what situation for about my first year, but now once I get into heavy traffic it gets old fast. Been daily driving it for about 4 years now.
 
Real street cars have three pedals! When I get older I might have an auto and if I have a race car it will definitely be an auto...but for now... I ain't givin' up that third pedal. My daily driver '14 Camaro has a 6 speed with a Hurst short throw and my Dart has an A230 three speed (A833 in the future) with a pistol grip. I think having a Hurst shifter adds to the cool factor of any street car and banging through the gears with the pistol grip is just awesome.
 
It really comes down to how much fun do you wonna have in your car , you always hear an auto is more consistant and easier on parts and so on . but most of us are part time racers and go the track to have fun , if you wonna really have have fun driving and racing your car the manual is the way to go . Theres nothing more fun then dumping your clutch at the track and shifting throught the gears ,,,,, its a sound and experience that no auto trans can provide . I know big stall auto convertors cause huge wheel stands but are in no way streetable . With a stick you decide what the stall is not a convertor . Sticks are just to much fun to pass up and if your good at driving one they last a long time
 
If you plan on lots of driving I'd say auto , 4 speed gets real old in TRAFFIC been there done that .
 
You are either a manual or an auto guy. I for one, am a 4 speed guy.
It sounds like you want the manual, so go for it, and you'll never regret it.......
If you stayed with an auto, would you always wonder what it would be like with the 4 speed?
Then there's your answer right there.
That's why i built my car with the 4 speed, and i'll never regret it because it's what i wanted.
And it looks cool too!
 
It's your car, but I voted auto, if it's gonna be a handful anyway, why add to the work. I daily drive a stick and always enjoy them, but for my dart I like an auto. It will be quicker at the track with an auto too... Remover that new (nice) stall converters are very driver friendly and only "flash" when you mash the gas.... Much nicer launch than a clutch...
 
joeboy said:
It's your car, but I voted auto, if it's gonna be a handful anyway, why add to the work. I daily drive a stick and always enjoy them, but for my dart I like an auto. It will be quicker at the track with an auto too... Remover that new (nice) stall converters are very driver friendly and only "flash" when you mash the gas.... Much nicer launch than a clutch...
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Yep my 9.5" dynamic is great on the street and it flashes at 4,400rpm! I can launch hard with my drag radials over and over again. Some of my buddy's with 4 speeds idea of a hi rpm launch is 2,500 to 3k LOL and none of them want to run drag radials for fear of breakage. So my little SB walks all over them. I did have a 4 speed 383 RR and to be honest between that and my well built auto I would say it's a toss up.
 
I'm facing the same conundrum with my '68 Barracuda. I've been thinking this over in my head for months.

Yes, there's a definite cool factor with the manual. It looks good, it feels good, and it's a low-level, built in anti-theft system since a lot of the younger crowd have no idea how to drive one. All that good stuff quickly evaporates if you find yourself in a traffic jam that lasts an hour or two, especially with a heavy clutch. You didn't mention if you use your Charger as a DD, or if it is more of a weekend car.

Personally, with your engine, I would stick with the auto. While I agree that the 4-speed might be more fun around town and all that jazz, I think the slushbox will be a lot easier to drive in day-to-day conditions.

Just my two pennies.
 
Another thing to consider is if you engine does have a true 550 hp in a very heavy car like yours, the standard 4 speed stuff will not cut it in the long run especially if you want to run at the track a few times with slicks or dot DR. I would want a blow proof bell housing, a high end clutch, stronger drive shaft with big joints, do you have a Dana? The 8.75 will at least need axles to last a little while. Plus your closer to needing the 18 spline the 23 will not live forever if your actually going to drive it like the 550HP engine was built for.
 
I like my tf2 shift kit.
With the ratchet shifter I can shift manually if needed or leave it in drive for lazy cruising.

I still want a 4 speed though hahahah
 
Always partial to four gears. If it gets a little tiring just get your girlfriend to work the shifter for ya.
 
Dustert73 said:
My DD danger ranger has a 5 speed in it. Pretty fun on back roads and on low traffic roads. It was alright no matter what situation for about my first year, but now once I get into heavy traffic it gets old fast. Been daily driving it for about 4 years now.
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Danger Ranger? You mean Ford Ranger? I had a 2003 Ranger with a 3.0L that I put over 200,000 miles on (never rebuilt). Many of those miles was in Los Angeles traffic. It was 5 speed with 4.56 gears and a Detroit Locker. It was mildly built for the desert off-road. I sold it like a month ago.

Did I ever get tired of the manual transmission? NEVER!! I miss that truck so bad. I'm driving a CVT automatic vehicle now and I have an utter distaste for not being able to control what gear I'm in.

magnumdart said:
Always partial to four gears. If it gets a little tiring just get your girlfriend to work the shifter for ya.
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But what if she grabs the wrong stick and tries to speed shift? OUCH!!!


Anyway....my vote is for manual transmission because it's more fun to drive.
 
The only way I would consider switching to a stick would be if it was a modern 5 spd swap.
 
Great question for your first post ! Welcome to the forum. Learn anything yet ?
 
Here's my 2C: In Aug 1970 I was torn between a Plum Crazy 340 TF and a nice green w/blk vinyl roof 340 'cuda stick (at Fred F. Cain in Wilmington, MA, owner of the first Funny Car in New England, The Hurricane). If it was the other way around, I would have bought the 'Cuda with a TF trans. To me, back then, the TF was the best automatic around, and the 4-spd mopars were not as slick as the other brands unless you tore them down and removed every other tooth on the synchros. Don't get me wrong, sticks are fun, like my 5 speed Saab Viggen (for sale), but I'd go with the TF. In fact, I just did (again) 45 years later.
View attachment IMG_0620.jpg View attachment IMG_0614.jpg
 
JoesEdge said:
Danger Ranger? You mean Ford Ranger? I had a 2003 Ranger with a 3.0L that I put over 200,000 miles on (never rebuilt). Many of those miles was in Los Angeles traffic. It was 5 speed with 4.56 gears and a Detroit Locker. It was mildly built for the desert off-road. I sold it like a month ago.

Did I ever get tired of the manual transmission? NEVER!! I miss that truck so bad. I'm driving a CVT automatic vehicle now and I have an utter distaste for not being able to control what gear I'm in.



But what if she grabs the wrong stick and tries to speed shift? OUCH!!!


Anyway....my vote is for manual transmission because it's more fun to drive.
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No, I meant danger ranger.
 
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8yiuvuqJw0"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8yiuvuqJw0[/ame]
 
If I wasn't bracket racing I'd swap to three pedals in a heartbeat. Jamming gears in an old school muscle car is paradise.
 
Tozz said:
I have 74 Charger with a 383 60 over pushing about 550 hp. I have a 727 3 speed with a manual valve body. Should I keep the automatic or switch to a manual? I do plan on running it so the setup I have now is ideal but I enjoy driving stick and I think a muscle car like that should be manual. Another thing is if it's manual it's going to be really hard to keep traction considering the amount of power in a rw drive car. Give your opinion on which I should choose and the reason for it
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I really don't think it would be worth it considering you said the setup you have now is pretty ideal. The only difference in performance will be more power to the ground but no way your shifts will be as fast as a manual VB 727 so it's a tradeoff only worth it for the fun factor. I say save your money and get an a-body car with an SB and 4-speed it will be much better overall due to the lighter weight and smaller size. It would cost a couple grand to do the swap anyway it's far from a quick n' dirty deal.
 
If you have an automatic which shifts the way it should they are just as much fun as a std. Going down main street on 1st gear with an auto is kind of fun specially with second near by.
 
I voted manual despite the DD troubles, having a manual trans in an old mopar or any old car is cool af
 
leblanc said:
If you have an automatic which shifts the way it should they are just as much fun as a std. Going down main street on 1st gear with an auto is kind of fun specially with second near by.
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I used to love shocking people by pulling my 727 down to first when they thought it was already in first. With 4.10s it was pretty easy lol.
 
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