Hello, I am serioulsy thinking about getting either a G35 coupe or Acura Type CL type S. If I go with either car, I most likely will get the supercharger kit which is Comptec for the Acura, and a Vortec or Stillen for the Infiniti.

What is the advantage/disadvantage or both transmission types? I notice that many 10 second cars use automatics. Is it a mistake to buy this car in the 5AT?

TIA

 

It is the worst mistake you could ever make to purchase a CL Type S in automatic. The auto tranny is so bad some members at acura-cl.com have had their transmission replaced every 5000 miles like a oil change almost.

I know because I have the same transmission in my 6th Gen Accord Coupe V6. The AV6 has less power to strain the transmission but ive already had it replaced twice. it only has 104,000 miles on it. first replacement was at 21,000. second was around 60 or 70. then i added a tranny cooler and a filter so its held up for now. It's my daily driver.

if you go with the CL-S get the 6-speed or don't bother

the G35 is inherently superior to the CL-S in every way though
The CL-S is a heavy FF(Front engine, forward wheel drive car)

The G35 is a balanced Front Midship-Rear Wheel drive car.. much better. and the auto on the G35 is strong.. built to withstand close to 500 or so horses.
can't say the same for the crap *** honda transmission.

 

I did here those same bad things about the Acura CL auto. Can the 5AT G35/350 Z even be setup with the vortec supercharger or turbochargers? It doesn't seem that the transmission is in the way. If not, what kind of modifications do I need to do with it?

 

Yeah,my buddy blew two trany's and his motor with the Comptec on his CL type S.
Yes the Vortec does work but is lacking TQ
The trany is behind the motor unlike those crapy front wheel drive cars that have theirs on the side.So,no there are no fitting/space issues.
Do your homework,there are tons of FI options.Just remember you will wear out your motor dramatically and an engine build will be your next concern.
I know I caught the HP/TQ bug,be careful.

 

I've been looking for Cl type S, 6MT and not seen any listed or available. What about the Lexus IS300? I noticed a 350Z base can be had for 26 grand (which is about 8 grand less than the base G35). Also, how good are the 5 speed automatics on these cars (with manual mode)? I remember driving a prelude with one of these and was not impressed. Does it still use a slushbox? How good is the 6MT on this car?

 

The automatics on ours are actually pretty good
with a valvebody and TC upgrade they are good for 500 - 600+ easily.
the shifts become more responsive and smooth after a valve body + Torque converter upgrade.

our trannies are pretty strong stock actually
actually I believe they are built to take 400 - 500hp to begin with.

As for the 350z.. its the same engine/tranny as ours automatic wise.
CL-S 6mt's may be difficult to find because they weren't bad at all much better than the POS autos.

as for the IS300 if you can pick one up for cheap.. swap in a Twin Turbo Supra engine and go nuts. Not as good looking as our cars but put in that TT Supra engine, and its a freaking awesome handler.

 

Take it from the CL-S owner who is a member of Acura-CL.com. The auto is really weak. Knock on wood, my tranny has never failed me, even though I have 75k on the car. If you want a CL-S get a 6mt. And if you really want a 10 sec car I would look at other cars.

 

I don't think our autos are THAT strong. Q45Tech said that our planetaries are made of aluminum to save weight, making them a weaker than steel ones. The trans is also only good up to 330 lb-ft of torque (or there abouts) without any mods. Since the tranny is bolted straight to the drive shaft, that 330 lb-ft of torque is crank torque, not rwtq. (duh.) So if you are pounding out 350 rwtq with a turbo setup, your crank torque would be much higher. ~430 or so? At peak that sounds to me like it is well beyond the built in "safe limit" that our trannys are supposed to handle.

If I was going to beef up my tranny, here is what I'd do:
Valvebody upgrade: smoother shifts which reduces the "hit" that the tranny takes if you have tons of power and it is trying to shift
Different TC: not quite sure, but I think it'll also smooth out the power coming from the engine to the tranny, making the impulses less destructive.
Cryotreat the entire thing: it'll make the entire system stronger. . .read about it. :-)
Lastly, if I really had the $, I'd custom build all of the gearing in the transmission itself outa titanium. ;-)

-drew

 

the main reason i joined up on this site was to get some feed back on the auto tranny... and i know this thread is a little old, but with the tc and the valvebody upgrades would it be too premature to think the auto tranny would hold up to a supercharger then? or maybe a low psi twin kit? i know that the is300 and the honda autos aren't any good past 250 horse.... i have a rsx-s right now and i was looking into a g35 auto for my next car... i would like to get one closer to the end of the year. with the talk of 400 horse capable auto it really makes me want this car. does anyone have anymore feed back on this?

 

I've doubted the maximum 500 hp claim on the auto transmission, but I've read and heard from multiple sources that this is the case. The is-300 has the same 2jz engine as the na supra did, so if the transmission is also similar, then it should be pretty strong. Someone did make a supra tt drag car with auto and he got it like to almost 1000 hp. I am not sure if the G35 will be much faster than the rsx-x. In fact, I'd probally just keep that and get that GReddy turbo kit for that car instead. G35 is a very nice luxury car but it is heavy, and really not the best/value for speed and performance. The Dodge neon srt-4 is only 21k nicley equipped and can do 13.8 1/4 miles stock!!! Plus it is very little money that boost rate can be raised and the hp and 1/4 are greatly improved. The G35 can't even do that, and even when it is forced inducted, they get about 13.5 1/4s. If you really want a new car, then the base nissan 350 track is around 28k and Road & Track was able to drive the stock 6MT to 13.7 1/4 which is impressive. Than again the evo and sti do around 13.4.

 

I have a G35 auto with a vortech s/c and I can tell you that you will need atleast a valve body upgrade or a torque converter upgrade. I experiencing horrible shifts after a few passes in the 1/4 mile. The valve body upgrade got me in the the sub 13s.

 

well personally im not wanting to go horribly fast... my rsx-s has exhaust thats it and its quick enought for me... its a mid 14 i think... i want to get the hell rid of this thing do to all the problems im having. i have major tranny problems... all the rsx type-s' have gear problems... i have had acura work on it once already and i still pop out of gear and have grinds occasionally... its rediculous. i have owned this used car for almost a year. i have had that tranny bulletin upgrade, a new power steering pump, exhaust gasket, power steering belt, and a few other little things. my clutch master cylinder seems to be close to giving out... every once in a while my clutch with "pop" did some research found it the part causing trouble. and god knows what else will break down on this car. so im looking for a few things now. i want 4 seats, 2 doors, a lil get up, a smooth ride, and something i can upgrade if i feel the need. if the auto can handle another 50 horse or so thats prolly what i will do (with the few internal upgrades).

g35-forever- i feel you on the greddy kit for my car its just too much riding on that bad transmission and a new one wont fix my problem either... i have read many stories of people getting a new tranny and it still poping out and grinding. so im not even going to spend the cash for the downfall.

gspot35- personally a 13 would be perfect for me... i mean it can even be a high one lol im used to a low 14 so that would be wonderful... im not into street racing and all that... just want a lil get up when i need a lil speed action.

thanks everyone!

 

Gspot 35, I thought the Vortec S/C will only work on Auto if you use it in the 'Manual' mode, is that true?

 

So you are also having tranny issues with an RSX? My friend bought a 2002 RSX 5MT when new, and he is having problems. He can't shift a rev a certain speed without hearing a grinding noise. I didn't think you would have problems with the type-s due to the reinforced gearbox.

I still think the Neon srt-4 is a good buy (20k), even though it is a dodge, it has a better basic powertrain warrenty than most foreign cars: 7 years or 70,000 miles. Plus people I've talked to haven't had problem with the tranny or engine. The 2006 eclipse is looking good, it is a four seat 2 door car, with a brand new design (looks more like the 2nd gen eclipse with a body kit-think that green one in fast and the furious) and a powerplant that has even larger displacement than the g35; a huge 3.8 liter V6. I think it was something like 265 hp/270 torque. You can get either a 5 speed auto with sportshift, or a 6 speed manual. I am hoping it will be around 24 k area. It is a front engine/front wheel design, and no word if they are going to offer an AWD model GSX. FWD isn't necessarily a bad thing, it gives good traction in the rain and snow, but no good for drifting and the sport feel. Car will handle differently at 300 hp+ range. But being FWD, it would make it cheaper than a mustang gt and a whole lot cheaper than a G or a G35 with Nav. It seems you can't get a new nicely equipped g35/z350 for less than 40k out the door.
I probally get afford a brand new g35/350 but could of a srt4 or 06 eclipse. The neon is getting a new design next year and don't know exaclty when the new srt4 will come out.

 

Yes and no. If you have an ECU reflash from Technosquare to raise your redline the car will shift in Auto mode, at around 7500rpm. If the ecu is stock, then it will bang the rev limiter. I've been to two dyno's that show a much lower rpm than the car is running at on the top end. At 8000rpm in the car, it was approx 6800rpm on the dyno and Split Second piggyback.