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Do you regret your manual or automatic decision?

agarber5687

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Does anyone out there regret their transmission choice and if so, why?


Trying to decide and all practicality pushes me to an automatic (family, wife that can’t drive nor wants to learn, decent commute time with traffic, etc.) but my heart wants the manual for the simple fun of it.

Talking to a friend recently, he said he thought there is a higher chance I will get the manual and regret it later than if I get an automatic. I am curious to see if anyone here has those regrets or vice-versa.
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NewJLU2019

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Does anyone out there regret their transmission choice and if so, why?


Trying to decide and all practicality pushes me to an automatic (family, wife that can’t drive nor wants to learn, decent commute time with traffic, etc.) but my heart wants the manual for the simple fun of it.

Talking to a friend recently, he said he thought there is a higher chance I will get the manual and regret it later than if I get an automatic. I am curious to see if anyone here has those regrets or vice-versa.
I have the 2.0 Turbo with 8 Speed Auto. Great Power/Torque etc. Never drove Manuel in any auto so can't say much about that.
 

Paluss

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Automatics are so much better now then 10 years ago I'm not sure if a manual has any advantages. 0-60 and MPG is better with an automatic and if you live in an area with lots of traffic (as I do) its nice to not have to press and hold a clutch pedal as you inch along in traffic. I have owned 5 manual vehicles and despite that I don't miss it. But some purist like the 3 pedal thing...
 

Captain Obvious

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We sold our 2016 Camaro SS to get the wife back into a Jeep. She said if the Camaro was a manual, she'd have kept it. She just loves the manuals, feels like she's missing something if she's not shifting her own gears. I can go either way, don't really mind one way or the other. In a sports car or an underpowered car (econobox), give me a manual. In my truck or whatever, I'll take the auto.

Some don't like the manual in the jeeps because the 3.6 is a high revving engine and doesn't have a lot of low end grunt. I can see that. You gotta rev it out a bit to really see the power. We had a manual JK so we pretty much understand what we're getting into with the manual. It's different than driving something like a V8 muscle car or something, if you short shift it you'll wonder where all the power is. The answer is, it's there, you just haven't found it yet.
 

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I’m 70 years old and have owned many cars. The only ones that had automatics were the ones that were only available that way—until now.

I have always enjoyed the involvement and the better performance and lower cost of the manuals. There was really no decision to be made. When I had to drive an auto I always had this kind of ugh feeling.

Things have made a big change. The manuals are still usually cheaper (not with the Scion FRS I had) and the involvement factor is still there. For that you give up better performance in fuel economy and acceleration. That is big for me. Then there is the off pavement thing. I spend a lot of time slogging around at low speed and find that I prefer the auto for this while using manual gear selection a lot, especially for braking going downhill.

I am still leery of the sealed for life deal but as long as the transmission works I will be very very happy with this eight speed. It is by far the best transmission I have experienced, well except for the similar one on my Grand Cherokee.
 

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Does anyone out there regret their transmission choice and if so, why?


Trying to decide and all practicality pushes me to an automatic (family, wife that can’t drive nor wants to learn, decent commute time with traffic, etc.) but my heart wants the manual for the simple fun of it.

Talking to a friend recently, he said he thought there is a higher chance I will get the manual and regret it later than if I get an automatic. I am curious to see if anyone here has those regrets or vice-versa.
Welcome to the community!

Your friend is on to something there. The currently used ZF 8 speed auto is considered one of the best transmissions ever. As mentioned above, the current v6/manual combo has left a lot of room for improvement. More and more posts keep popping up that sound like people are not getting as much fun out of it as they had hoped. Just my opinion based on observation.
 

jessedacri

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Wanted a manual - drove the 8 speed and fell in love with its performance, it reminds me of a twin clutch DSG transmission from Audi.

I love being able to putt around in 4L on the trail easily from 0-20mph without tons of manual shifting. I love manual, but as far as I could tell the 3.6 has a weird powerband that shines best with the auto.
 

Wanted33

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Welcome to the forum. I also think your friend may have given you some good advise. I feel with your daily commute it won't take you long to regret getting a manual. I also went with the A8 because of my bride. She can, but won't drive a manual anymore. I have been very pleased with the 8 spd auto in my Sahara. Jeep seems to have gotten the parameters just right, and it's always in the right gear for the situation. Good luck on your decision.
 

cosine

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i have the 8 spd auto and love it. i do agree with a lot of the above post about the performance and practicality of the auto.
 

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jeepingib

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I had a manual JK. I loved it. But the manual in the JL didn't feel right on the test drives. I really wanted to like it, but I didn't like the clutch feel, or the shift pattern closeness. That combined with how well the 8spd auto performs made my decision easy. If I want to row some gears, I just drive the wife's VW.
 

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As much as I love driving a stick, I cannot imagine doing the off-roading without the auto. The ZF8 is an awesome trans. Very well tuned for highway and off-road.
 

HealthRebel

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I have had 2 manual Wranglers (both 2 dr.) in the past, 2002 and 2012, and I just came out of a 2016 Mini Cooper S with a manual. But, in my 2020 JLRU, I opted for the 8 spd. auto for several reasons:
* The Unlimited Wrangler is a pretty large vehicle. Manuals are more fun in a smaller vehicle, even a 2 dr JL, but not so in a larger vehicle.
* The 8 forward speeds give you more advantages than the manuals' 6 when you add larger tires.
* Another advantage, rarely spoken, with the auto is your ability to probably position yourself a little further from your dash and steering wheel than with the manual. No clutch to have to push to the floor, thus perhaps making you sit closer. For me, this is a lot more comfortable.

I do recommend you drive both. Manuals are a lot of fun to drive! Of the 35 or so vehicles I have owned, around 20 of them were manuals. Also, consider how much commuting you do in stop 'n go traffic. Stuck in traffic everyday can be a pain in the ass with a manual. Also, off-roading can be a little more challenging with a manual transmission in my opinion.

To answer your question... I have NO regrets getting the automatic!
 

ChimpanZed

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This is something that I’ve been pondering a lot as well, but I’ve landed on a firm position.

For me, driving experience > driving performance. I know that the ZF 8 speed is superb and makes the Jeep faster and get better mileage. The automatic is better off-road as well.

But the thought of driving with the top down and the doors off with an automatic is just so profoundly unappealing.

Alas, my wife can heel-toe with the best of them. If she couldn’t it might be another story.
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