Automatic Vs. Manuel
 

I have been looking the right 996 for some time now and have only considered a manual. It has always been my opinion that it’s not a real sports car unless you shift your own gears. Yesterday I went a local dealer that had a nice 03 with low mileage with one drawback it has the tiptronic transmission. I decided to take it for a test drive. To my surprise it was still fun to drive. I wish I hated more. So now I am conflicted. Is there any mechanical reason to go with one over the other? I sure there are many opinions for or against the tiptronic. I afraid there will not be an easy answer to my dilemma.

Tips are fun, and don't have to worry about slave/clutch issues. I went with a tip because my driving style isn't hardcore and I don't track. Shifting gets old.

A Tip offers some advantages over a manual. The engine is better insulated from sloppy clutch action and shifting action by the driver.

My problem with my Turbo and its manual transmission is even though the transmission shifts very well the pause between gears dilutes the experience some, the acceleration experience some. Because of the Turbo engine's output and the fact it is a manual and subject to a human the transmission has to be heavy and heavier means slower shifting.

It is up to the individual of course but it reads like you are half way to a Tip which if this is what you want should be all that matters.

I am just surprised that I didn't hate the Tip.

Got a tip turbo, and I can't shift anywhere close to the mapping the tiptronic does. Buy a tip it's a great exp!

I think at the very least I will have more options in my search for the right 996 for me.

I've never driven a Tip Turbo or any other Porsche sports car equipped with a Tip but I had a new Porsche Cayenne diesel loaner for around 2 weeks a few weeks back and it was equipped with a Tip.

I liked the vehicle and on my work commute -- 30 miles sometimes in traffic -- the Tip was a very nice transmission. To keep the battery charged in the 996 Turbo I'd drive it every so often and the amount of shifting I had to do really was highiighted by the absence of shifting when driving the Cayenne/Tip.

Even encountered a few case where the Cayenne's hill holding feature kicked in. Nice.

I can't say for sure but my thinking is my next Porsche sports car will be an automatic -- a PDK "automatic" -- provided a test drive I intend to get doesn't turn up any reason to change my mind and cause me to get a manual transmission model instead.

Are you driving a stick now? If not, try driving a stick car for more than 10 minutes in an area that has a lot of stop signs and then decide whether you still like shifting.

Real men use three pedals!
However, after having two left knee surgeries in 2015, I almost concided that age may change my mind.
In addition, if you ever do an autocross, PDK cars are impossible to compete with.

Sam, if the thrill and connection of a manual doesn't easily outweigh the convenience of an automatic, then you probably should get the Tip.


I've driven a 997.2 GTS with PDK and 400hp (100hp more than my '01 C4) and was bored. Frankly, I was disappointed and would've preferred a manual Miata!


Drove a manual 991S with the same 400hp and absolutely loved it!! Something about holding the RPMs at whatever level I feel like, in the gear that I deem appropriate for the driving situation, is extremely satisfying. Not to mention the joy of a perfectly timed rev-matched downshift. To me, that level of involvement and sensation of control have an indomitable visceral appeal that defines the sports car experience.


BTW, my C4 has been a daily driver in the LA area for almost 11 years...so I must be a nut!

You didn't mention whether you changed gears manually while driving the Tip, which makes it more fun. In any case, buy what you like. My commute almost always involves quite a bit of stop and go traffic. Having a Tip makes that more tolerable. If I lived somewhere more rural or I could afford a second Porsche, I would get a manual.

You can even track a Tip.

Stick only for me...then again, it's a weekend fun car, not a daily.

996 TT's in manual will be more desired as the years continue to pass is my guess.

Who's Manuel? ;)

6spd manual all the way. Weekend driver so I don't mind using both feet! Freedom of choice, but do they still offer Manual on the 991's?

I tried a 993 tip out of curiosity and was bored to death. My first 996 was a stick and it was great except in stop and go traffic, which Los Angeles has lots of. I tried a tip in a 2006 997 S and I loved the tip and the engine but hated the rest of the S package. Went looking for another 996 with a 3.4 engine...tried tips and manual and could not get over how much fun the tip is in its manual mode. Now and then I leave it in auto mode but not often. 99% of what I could do in a manual trans car I can do with my tip...I have zero complaints.