Are automatics fun?

Depends on the car and the gearbox

I do prefer manuals but I've only ever driven two automatic cars, one was a Nissan Primera 1.8 which was hateful and another was an Aston Martin DB9 around a track which I loved (but I used the paddles on the steering wheel)
 
I sometimes drive my old man's 2 litre Xantia Auto. It's defiantly not fun, but it does make town driving easier (although low speed manoeuvring takes a bit of getting used to).

My dad's one uses the older 8 value engine, which is a little odd because manuals were using the 16 value unit. I found my dad's car generally used more fuel then either the 1.8 8v or the 2.0 16v he's also owned.

I'm also often a passenger in my mum's 1.6 Focus auto. We haven't yet been over taken by a milk float, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time.
 
I have never driven an auto but wouldn't it be really boring?

If the journey is just to the shops or work etc, then an auto would be fine imo.

If it's a long journey, or a drive, then surely an auto will be utterly pointless? The fun in driving is the actual driving, changing gear is part of that.

Wicksta said:
My auto Z4 is more fun to drive than my manual 328ci is.
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They're two different cars though. Would your auto Z4 be as fun as a manual Z4, providing they both had the same engine?
 
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My 2.8 Granada was automatic, and it was enormous fun.

I once remember stupidly trying to outdrag an Impreza turbo from the lights in the wet once, I must have spun the wheels for a good 10 seconds fishtailing like mad up the road.

It was mental.
 
Autos with small 4 cylinder engines are typically horrible, and sap whatever modicum of fun the car in question may have had with a manual and make it absolutely joyless and just plain nasty to drive. Larger engines with good auto boxes are a whole different kettle of fish, they really can be a lot of fun, certainly not unpleasant although you do lack the ultimate level of control you get with a manual of course.

Probably the best auto box I have ever experienced is the Jaguar ZF 6 speed box, that's brilliant.
 
Been out in my brothers new Range Rover sport today which is an auto and that was fun.

The 4.2l supercharged V8 might've helped admittedly....
 
The new Triptronic gearbox auto in a 2008 Volvo V70 D5 drops the MPG about 10-20%, from over 40 to under 40 from what I remember!

Also after having this one chipped I have to say large diesels ***. :p

As for fun, in traffic it is immense, in the countryside, its abit of a pain as there is a pause after you hit the change up/down leaver, which is annoying to say the least :(
 
This question is unanswerable really. "Automatic" covers many gearboxes.

To be honest these days i wouldn't even comprehend a manual gearbox, its an extra manual item to have to deal with. The advantages are far far outweighed by the disadvantages. That and most cars i would be interested in are not available with a manual option anyway.
 
[TW]Fox;14418045 said:
The manual Z4 is more fun to drive than your auto Z4 is ;)
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That wasn't the question asked. ;)

Also, living in such a busy area it is a lot more fun sitting in traffic in an auto so unless I decided to go on track days I wouldn't really choose a manual living around here, fun would be the last word I'd use.
 
silane said:
They're two different cars though. Would your auto Z4 be as fun as a manual Z4, providing they both had the same engine?
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I was stop/start traffic in central london yesterday for about 3 hours. While it's not the highlight of my driving life, it wasn't a chore.

One of the best things about driving an automatic is that it leaves your left hand to do other things :D

But saying that I wouldn't want an auto in a small engined car and definitely not in a MR2.
 
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Concorde Rules said:
The new Triptronic gearbox auto in a 2008 Volvo V70 D5 drops the MPG about 10-20%, from over 40 to under 40 from what I remember!

Also after having this one chipped I have to say large diesels ***. :p

As for fun, in traffic it is immense, in the countryside, its abit of a pain as there is a pause after you hit the change up/down leaver, which is annoying to say the least :(
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That will depend on how it's driven. The Auto should be better on a long run, but will suffer round town.
 
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