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I do not want to start a fight but: the pleasure of an AT NSX.

Weird; I can't see anyone starting that particular fight!

Do you have an auto? I'd appreciate an answer to the question I posed above from some auto-owners.

This is why I mentioned "in other thread" since OP's title was about. If you read older posts, anytime a member mentions "auto", you got all these other guys with their eyes rolling:rolleyes: :biggrin:

I would say the 95+ auto is a lot funner due to the sports shifter.
 
most super cars come in,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,auto,why is that?:smile:

Not true they come with manuals that are actuated automatically, big difference.
 
i know ,,just havin fun,,,auto,manual,both looks good to me!

Wait a mintue, this is the interweb I am looking for a debate. ;) Rabble, rabble, rabble...
 
Now that I have driven an AT NSX, that would be the best daily driving for the DC area. I currently own 3 NSX, 2 MT and 1 AT for daily driver and it's still pretty fast on the off ramps. I also had the plesure of driving grybrd's NSX, that has 1/2 the mileage of my AT NSX, it drove like a brand new car.


Bryan


I have now had three other NSX drivers drive my '94 AT. Without exception they have all been very favourably impressed with the car. The latest guest driver suggested that I post this.
I previously owned a MT NSX. Both cars are great, but the AT with the EPS (power steering) is such a pleasure in traffic, in daily driving, and in spirited driving.
I live in the DC area and the traffic can be dreadful at times. A clutch is NOT the best thing to have in those circumstance. On the other hand, spirited driving through the mountains and Shenandoah Valley are not inhibited by the transmission. It automatically responds very smoothly and can be manually shifted as well. In all conditions it has proven itself to be every bit an NSX.
The AT is not like the one in your granny's Oldsmobile. Shifts are quick and sure. Redline shifts are a darn sight faster than I could manage with a MT.
I know that the "MT-or-nothing" crowd will chime in with their derisive comments but as the old adage goes, "Don't knock it 'till you've tried it." There is no reason to turn up your nose at your AT brothers and sisters!
 
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The other half of the fun goes away quickly when you realize that you're in a Silverstone.

Did you get kicked off the Porsche forums? what are you doing here...
 
FWIW, I am not too big a fan of serious creature comforts in a car. Imagine driving the most quiet luxury car with zero road noise, and suspension that rides like a cloud, shifting you never feel, supple leather seats you can catch a coma in, while playing your favorite chill music and BAM! you just fell asleep behind the wheel. HAHA. I like the idea of the brain always needing to pay attention to every aspect of driving. Manual transmissions help with that. It keeps you from being too lazy behind the wheel. I think a lot of people need to be able to use both hands to drive the car and keep the legs and feet moving. It conditions the brain and body to be more alert and aware that you are driving a machine that needs attention. Too many people are pampered behind the wheel nowadays. But that's just my opinion. Autos aren't the worst thing in the world. If they didn't rob us of power, economy, and weight, and were always as quick to shift like the Ferrari F1 sequential, then hey I'd be swinging more to the other side. I'm used to heavy multi-plate clutches that chatter to high hell that you can't slip (sintered iron material in the new ACTs) in heavy traffic. I just adapt to drive it like everything else I've ever driven. Although an auto NSX is quite the opposite of what you'd expect in a boring AT vehicle, I am still a fan of the MT. I won't dog another NSX owner for their choice of driveline, but rather congratulate them for their choice of car :)
 
I do believe that the NSX autos are greatly underrated and I don't look down on them at all. Also I'm very surprised that NSX ATs don't sell faster than they do because they are rare and there are some incredible deals that can make it a little easier to get into NSX ownership. But for me (I'm old and old school) a sports car should have a manual tranny. There is some skill and satisfaction in making a smooth gear change at just the right time. It feels so mechanical. And I realize that the dual clutch auto is the future as well as hybrid technology. But I think that future sports car drivers are going to be missing something and sadly they won't realize it unless someone lets them drive an MT 91 NSX, MT Porsche 911 or even an S2000.
 
Thanks for answering my question, guys. Before I bought my NSXs I had a chance to go for a drive with a local F-matic owner, but in the end our diairies didn't match up and he had a new timing belt and wanted to take it easy for a few miles. So I never got the chance to try it, and I went ahead and looked at manual cars (only).

My 2000 Accord had Honda's sequential auto, my old Civic just the standard type of auto you get everywhere (and I've had auto Nissans, Mercedes, etc). The Accord's auto box, if left to its own devices was just like the others in that you'd brake on the approach to a corner, meanwhile the auto box stays in the higher gear, then you get to the corner, start steering around it and just when you come to accelerate, the auto decides now would be a great time to change down. So you get a moment of power off, a lurch as the box shifts down to more torque, and the car is naturally unsettled.

I've never driven a full-auto sports car, so I'd want to know that it didn't do that. It's the exact opposite of the manual's involvement and the feeling you get when you get it super-smooth.

FWIW, LJK Setright (a big fan of the NSX) wanted both auto and manual NSXs in his fantasy garage - in the article he wrote when the McLaren F1 was launched.
 
Personal preference and there is nothing wrong with an auto if that is what you want. When I was younger, I had a manual car as a daily driver and have since switched to autos. With the amount of traffic we have in NJ daily driving a manual gets old.

Good point about the don't knock it until you try it. I am dead set against paddle shift cars but truth be told I have never drive one. I think I need to try it as I have been known to knock it.

is your nsx AT?
 
Good post -- have never driven at AT NSX, but suspect it is pretty good. One of the reasons I don'd daily drive my NSX to work is due to the awful commute i have - stop & go traffic on an interstate. Sometimes I think the AT NSX would be the good answer. Hey, I think any NSX, either MT or AT is a very good thing. Think the "MT -or nothing" is overblown. Happy Motoring, and thanks for your post!

x2! Couldn't agree more on all points stated.
 
I've driven an AT NSX, and it just feels like yet another automatic car. It is as fast as my MT granted I won't lip and burn the clutch. The only thing that bugs me is the 4 speed tranny, sounds and feels dated. Now, if someone can retrofit a dual clutch transverse tranny, now that would have MT owners switching...
 
The majority of Corvettes I've seen through the years have been AT.

I prefer the AT in the vette over the one in the NSX. For the NSX it just seems like an afterthought that was a random Honda AT used in other cars. It takes the Special outta the Special.
 
I have a 91 AT NSX, showed up in front of me for the right price. That said it is definately different than any other auto I've driven, after looking it up in the service manual it is different with hydraulic actuated clutch packs for each gear. It is more impressive than I expected and love driving it especially in traffic (car show weekend) and long highway driving. On the track it is fun but that is where the clutch is missing but the Integra Type R turbo mt will handle that.
 
Another reason to buy an A/T equipped NSX: Lower initial cost. And as much as I love the direct feel of my manual steering, there are situations where I would love power assist and a faster ratio.

To the poster who thought Honda might be holding out on the larger, more powerful engine in AP2 NSX automatics, I suspect the issue is actually limitations in the torque converter.

My 98 V6 Accord automatic was one of the best slush boxes I have ever driven. Shifts were smooth yet fairly quick and firm. Gear selection could be easily managed with very precise throttle adjustments. I quickly learned how to summon up a one gear or a two gear downshift using the skinny pedal, and it always gave me the ratio I was after. The transmission programming also held gears well before upshifting based on throttle position. Now the 97 V6 I test-drove was awful. Not surprising that this generation was the only one to never make Car & Driver's 10 Best list.
 
6'3 size 14 shoe was also a factor for me,i drove an mt nsx,not very much room down there for my big ol feet,it was fun,,but my auto fits and is more comfortable
 
Should be pointed out that the 94-05 F-Matic autos are fare more desirable than the 90-93 standard automatics
Thanks for answering my question, guys. Before I bought my NSXs I had a chance to go for a drive with a local F-matic owner
What's an F-matic? :confused: If you're referring to Honda's Sportshift automatic transmission with the paddles behind the steering wheel for shifting, that was introduced for the 1995 model year NSX, not 1994.
 
I have now had three other NSX drivers drive my '94 AT. Without exception they have all been very favourably impressed with the car. The latest guest driver suggested that I post this.
I previously owned a MT NSX. Both cars are great, but the AT with the EPS (power steering) is such a pleasure in traffic, in daily driving, and in spirited driving.
I live in the DC area and the traffic can be dreadful at times. A clutch is NOT the best thing to have in those circumstance. On the other hand, spirited driving through the mountains and Shenandoah Valley are not inhibited by the transmission. It automatically responds very smoothly and can be manually shifted as well. In all conditions it has proven itself to be every bit an NSX.
The AT is not like the one in your granny's Oldsmobile. Shifts are quick and sure. Redline shifts are a darn sight faster than I could manage with a MT.
I know that the "MT-or-nothing" crowd will chime in with their derisive comments but as the old adage goes, "Don't knock it 'till you've tried it." There is no reason to turn up your nose at your AT brothers and sisters!
I know this is an old thread, but I rode from Source One near Cincinnati back to Columbus last year during NSXPO 2014 with a gentleman from Virginia in his AT NSX (I'm assuming it was you, grybrd, with the funny license plate!). I got into the car wondering what the transmission would feel like, and although I didn't drive it, the car felt every inch the equal of my 5-speed. Acceleration, performance were non-issues. Although I still like running through the gears, I would in no way look down upon the AT cars at all.
 
04 Auto NSX here and love every bit of it. No shame at all.
Traffic can be a pain for one so not worrying about shifting gears in stop/go traffic is nice.
Like some mentioned, the manual mode is much nicer than just leaving it in D, and the shifts are very quick and crisp.

Another is I am 1 of 3 in 2004 with this color/trans combo. The rarity of that alone, along the mileage and price I paid, I was willing to walk away with an Auto over Manual.
 
i really want to drive an AT now after reading this now....

My biggest concern tho, that no one surprisingly seemed to touch on much, is that (i kno im gona catch shit for this) our cars aren't that fast already and with the auto its a 4 speed and combined with even less horsepower that cant be the best thing
 
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