Stick VS Automatic?

Seriously looking for a replacement Miata. Thanks to all who offered
suggestions as to where to look.
My bride and I are true stick shifters...but there seem to be an abundance
of automatics out there. Is that because they detract from the true "spirit"
of the roadster?
Interested in hearing from those who have driven both types.
Tom

When we were visiting the USA a few years ago, we noticed a couple of the
big hire car companies offered Miatas. Like everything else, they were all
autos. I suspect a lot of Miatae probably started life as a hire car. I
guess this means they were serviced regularly, but driven by people who
didn't give a toss about long term reliability.


"Cat in the Hat" > wrote in message
...
> Seriously looking for a replacement Miata. Thanks to all who offered
> suggestions as to where to look.
> My bride and I are true stick shifters...but there seem to be an
> abundance of automatics out there. Is that because they detract from the
> true "spirit" of the roadster?
> Interested in hearing from those who have driven both types.
> Tom
>

On 2007-04-05, Mal Osborne > wrote:

> When we were visiting the USA a few years ago, we noticed a couple of the
> big hire car companies offered Miatas. Like everything else, they were all
> autos. I suspect a lot of Miatae probably started life as a hire car.

Nope. Automatic Miatas are quite rare, and I've never seen one
available for hire anyplace I've been in the US.

> I guess this means they were serviced regularly, but driven by
> people who didn't give a toss about long term reliability.

Probably so.

--
Grant Edwards grante Yow! Yow! Am I JOGGING
at yet??
visi.com

Seems that I read that 10% of Miatas produced had an Automatic.
As a person who has owned a 95 automatic and now an 05 6-speed, I will
say that for an automatic the Miata was a nice car. I ran it on
Autocross Courses, hit redline many times in 2nd (mine had the "hold"
feature that kept it from shifting above the gear you had it set for).
It does not have the acceleration capabilites as the stick, as the
transmission wants to shift quicker than you want to. The "hold"
feature did help that though.

On Apr 5, 8:06 am, Grant Edwards > wrote:
> On 2007-04-05, Mal Osborne > wrote:
>
> > When we were visiting the USA a few years ago, we noticed a couple of the
> > big hire car companies offered Miatas. Like everything else, they were all
> > autos. I suspect a lot of Miatae probably started life as a hire car.
>
> Nope. Automatic Miatas are quite rare, and I've never seen one
> available for hire anyplace I've been in the US.
>
> > I guess this means they were serviced regularly, but driven by
> > people who didn't give a toss about long term reliability.
>
> Probably so.
>
> --
> Grant Edwards grante Yow! Yow! Am I JOGGING
> at yet??
> visi.com

"Cat in the Hat" > wrote
> My bride and I are true stick shifters...but there seem to be an
> abundance of automatics out there. Is that because they detract from the
> true "spirit" of the roadster?
> Interested in hearing from those who have driven both types.

We own both. The '97 5-speed is a whole lot more fun to drive than the '90
automatic. That said, the '90 automatic is a whole lot more fun to drive
than a Toyota Corolla. Now if we are talking a new MX-5 6-speed automatic
with paddle shifters, the automatic may come a bit close to nirvana. I don't
have experience with that one (yet).
--
Ken Lyons '97 Brilliant Black/'90 Classic Red
Inside the Beltway
[Remove the first two digits to reply]

On Apr 4, 10:43 pm, "Cat in the Hat" >
wrote:
> Seriously looking for a replacement Miata. Thanks to all who offered
> suggestions as to where to look.
> My bride and I are true stick shifters...but there seem to be an abundance
> of automatics out there. Is that because they detract from the true "spirit"
> of the roadster?
> Interested in hearing from those who have driven both types.
> Tom

Following a bad car accident I was anxious to see if I could "do" a
Miata again. The first challenge was "can I get in it?". At this time
I was still using a walker. The only car they had available was an
automatic. I got in and gave it a little drive. It was a Miata, but it
wasn't MY Miata. It did encourage me to finish the physical therapy on
my hand so I could shift again! Once I got into another stick I knew
there was no way I'd buy an automatic Miata. Now, if I were shopping
for a Lincoln Towncar....

I believe that a big part of the beauty of the Miata is the total driver
involvement. You know, up close and personal. Perfect balance and all that
stuff. A big part of that is having the car in the perfect gear at the
perfect time to deliver the perfect amount of power for the situation. With
autos, you never seem to know exactly when / if they are going to downshift
or bog. No thanks, not for me. As previously said, the paddle shifter
version should be closer to wonderful in this regard.

Good luck,
Chris
99BBB

I own a 6 speed and it just offers too many choices. I would prefer a 5
speed if I stuck with a manual. But being an old fart, I've shifted a few
million times in my lifetime and believe me, the thrill wears off after a
while. If I were to buy a new Miata, I would get the auto. I would likely
get better gas mileage with the auto as well because I tend to put my foot
into an auto less often than a manual. I think manuals excel on the track,
but a modern 5 or 6 speed auto makes a lot of sense on today's highways -
especially city driving. I have driven several Miatas with autos and was
very satisfied with the sportiness.

You need to drive both before you decide - our opinions are meaningless.
--
Boreal
2001 LS 6 speed Silver/tan, Sport Suspension w/hard rear sway bar



"Cat in the Hat" > wrote in message
...
> Seriously looking for a replacement Miata. Thanks to all who offered
> suggestions as to where to look.
> My bride and I are true stick shifters...but there seem to be an
> abundance of automatics out there. Is that because they detract from the
> true "spirit" of the roadster?
> Interested in hearing from those who have driven both types.
> Tom
>

Chris D'Agnolo wrote:
> I believe that a big part of the beauty of the Miata is the total driver
> involvement. You know, up close and personal. Perfect balance and all that
> stuff. A big part of that is having the car in the perfect gear at the
> perfect time to deliver the perfect amount of power for the situation. With
> autos, you never seem to know exactly when / if they are going to downshift
> or bog. No thanks, not for me. As previously said, the paddle shifter
> version should be closer to wonderful in this regard.
>
> Good luck,
> Chris
> 99BBB

I completely agree, with exception for those that are simply unable to
physically drive a standard or just want the car to cruise around in.

My general rule is autos for big trucks/vans or highway cruisers and
standards for anything small, especially if it only has two seats.

Pat

On Fri, 06 Apr 2007 14:16:18 -0500, Chris D'Agnolo wrote:

> I believe that a big part of the beauty of the Miata is the total driver
> involvement. You know, up close and personal. Perfect balance and all
> that stuff. A big part of that is having the car in the perfect gear at
> the perfect time to deliver the perfect amount of power for the
> situation. With autos, you never seem to know exactly when / if they are
> going to downshift or bog. No thanks, not for me. As previously said,
> the paddle shifter version should be closer to wonderful in this regard.

I read that in Europe, cars are 80% manual, 20% automatic. Here it's the
opposite. I guess most people here just hate driving.

I could maybe see paddle shifters with an auto mode for traffic. But a
full auto, never.