I'm in the same boat as Virus. ie. Live in DC area, have driven manuals all my life, test drove the AT with paddle shifters (ie. G35s AT), and loved it - found the shifts in most cases quicker than I could shift myself. Ended up with a G35x because of the weather here in DC, but retrofitted the paddle shifters for $200 since all the AT G's are pre-wired for them. I haven't looked back. With this kind of speed, and the AT working well, I find it a lot of fun to shift with the paddles, and I really don't miss having to depress the clutch every 30 secs in DC traffic.

Regards,
Tamir

 

I don't wish to steal this thread so I apologize in advance but I have a question for you paddle shifter guys.
t1328 (and others) - I have a 07G35x and was considering adding the paddle shifters. Do you find that there is a noticeable difference in the shift response time of the transmission between using the paddles compared to the shifter manual mode?
To the OP, this is my first AT in over 20 years and I love it. Maybe it's because I drive in the city a lot now or perhaps because I'm getting a little older - or both. It took a few weeks to retrain my left foot to stay put and keep my right hand of the shifter.
In daily driving it doesn't matter if it's a 5AT or 6MT. It think it boils down to personal preferences, daily driving conditions, driving skills and what ever other uses you may have for the car.
If your wife is nervous about driving a manual and she will be driving what ever you purchase then you should likely go with an AT, unnnlesssss, deep down you don’t really want her to drive it anyway. I cringe a little when my minivan driving wife, god love her, takes my G out to run errands. She has only driven it 3 times since September.
Good luck!

 

I live and work in the DC area as well. What is it with you guys and the inability to drive a manual tranny in traffic? It's simple, keep a reasonable distance between you and the car in front of you, leave the car in 2nd and creep along like everyone else. No need to depress the clutch every 30 seconds . I have a 6mt and wouldn't have it any other way, traffic or not.

 

The paddle shifters give exactly the same command to the gearbox that the shifter does, but I find that using the paddle shifters allows me to shift at times when I otherwise couldn't because I'm steering/turning at the time, and I love the access/speed that they give me to the shifters.

Regards,
Tamir

 

Yeah, I do try to coast in 2nd as much as possible, but I still found it became a pain. Look, I did drive a manual in DC traffic for 11 years, and now I'm 1 year into driving an AT, so it's not that I can't but I do prefer the AT now.

Cheers
Tamir

 

+1 Exactly. On shift response BTW, downshifts happen quickly (there's something like a half-second delay, that you just adjust for), and you can downshift multiple gears.

On upshifts, the G won't let you upshift multiple gears in quick succession. No real reason you would want to anyway, but there's a couple-second pause.

 

i really prefer the 6at in the is350 to the 5spd in the g.

i didn't have to worry about it since i bought the stick /no gay pun intended, but knock ya'selves out

 

when i drive in AT, i miss MT all the time.

when i drive in MT, i miss AT only some of the time.

 

if its makes any differences to you, u can chirp/ spin tires in the 5at also, but this is a big opinion question, u have to choose which is right for you!

 

What's to understand? We grew up and became adults. When I was in my 20's I have no problem driving a stick. Didn't both me in the least. Now in my 30's with children, I find I need that free hand to smack the kids in the backseat

 

I wish we could have had a 6AT tranny as an option. I think it was more of a sales point to sell 6MT's and just make the hype opposed to a 5AT. I bet a lot more people would have got the AT and it would eliminate the 3rd gear pull from the manual. Actually given the same gear ratios as a 6MT the 6AT would have pulled on a manual, unless you are a MASTER shifter!

 

I've driven mostly MTs, but mostly in small engine cars I wanted to keep the revs up in the power band. I had the same experience any many have posted here, I went to the dealer to buy a 6MT and drove away in a 5AT. It's got plenty of power and shifts fast enough to give the power I want when I need it. I'm not real thrilled with the paddles, mostly because I haven't used them enough to get used to them. I actually prefer to shift with the stick if I'm in manual mode.

The nice thing is it gives me the sensation of owning two cars. I'f I'm driving clients around, or board members, I can leave it in D and drive it like a Maxima. But after work, I put it in DS for the drive home and have a blast. If I'm just driving around in town, I find myself switching back and forth for acceleration/deceleration. I put it in DS to accelerate to the speed I want then shift back to D, then shift back to DS to decelerate using the engine and trans. DS takes too long to upshift once I hit my cruising speed.

 

+1,000,000,000,000,000 to infiniti

 

like i said earlier, get a real sports car if you want a manual. GTR = no question about it being manual.

if you want a grown-folk car, get a AUTOMATIC sedan.

 

Despite my issues with the manual, I totally still prefer it. Plus, in today's world, it's so rare to see a classy sedan with manual so there's a sort of shock factor and uniqueness to it.

No regrets here. My g/f's brother has the same car with auto and I prefer the manual. I get better mileage, it was cheaper, it sounds different (weird huh)?

You just can't beat a real double-clutch downshift. Finally, there's enough torque in this vehicle to drive at real low RPMs which will yield better mileage and possibly smoother shifting (depending on how you shift it).