Manual or auto?

mrincredible

The age old question.

Had a look at a lovely 142 Audi A5 and decided that was the one for me but.... I've just spotted a 2015 automatic that is still (although at the top end) within the budget. The 14 has a nicer spec (more tech) and there's very little difference in the milage, both 2.0TDI.

Thoughts?

ChippingSodbury

I have A6 auto: very happy. It makes you lazy!! Also has paddle shift which gets used once in a blue moon

Dravokivich

If money isn't an issue and there's only a couple of gadgets in the difference, what does it matter? You'll be the one stuck with driving either of'em. What do you prefer?

mrincredible

Dravokivich wrote: »

If money isn't an issue and there's only a couple of gadgets in the difference, what does it matter? You'll be the one stuck with driving either of'em. What do you prefer?

I like both. Have always driven manual though which is why I'm looking for others thoughts

Also, not sure if this makes any difference but I do very high annual milage

Del2005

mrincredible wrote: »

I like both. Have always driven manual though which is why I'm looking for others thoughts

Auto. Unless you spend the majority of your time doing spirited driving on fast twisty roads then auto is the way to go, even then auto with manual selection will be better but some people like making work for themselves

SBPhoto

I bought an A6 Auto last year, my first ever automatic, i love the automatic and would find it very hard to go back to manual again. The fact that you do high mileage is even better for an Auto, i do about 25 to 30k a year.

drunkmonkey

Auto if your driving the whole time, couldn’t go back to manual pain in the ass in traffic. Takes the luxury away from a luxury car.
Check prices in the uk though could be some big savings and better spec.

tayto lover

Auto all the way. Will never go back to manual again.

DaveyDave

Although my only experience with a manual was 3/4 of my lessons, I'd never get a manual. Driving an automatic is just too convenient. Especially living in Dublin where traffic can be chaotic at the most bizarre times, clutching every 5 meters gets old fast. Especially when a lot of automatics have auto hold or radar cruise control and stop start.

Then of course there's better performance and better fuel economy (for the most part). It also comes with peace of mind that the car wasn't revved like crazy or shifted wrong.

DSG is a little clunky to move off at lower speeds compared to torque converter, but it's super seamless at shifting and a little quicker at manual changes.

copeyhagen

deffo 100% auto.

just bought my first auto, dsg Passat cc gt, the auto box makes such a difference. I have a leg injury and like you do a lot of work mileage, the auto is a dream!

colm_mcm

Auto. DSG is lovely.

bazz26

Which version of auto gearbox is in the A5? If it's the 2wd version them it's most likely the old multitronic gearbox as I don't think that model A5 got the Stronic gearbox on the 2wd versions until the new model last year. I test drove an A6 with that multitronic gearbox and could not warm to it at all. Felt jerky when shifting gears, the newer Stronic gearbox is way more smoother.

R.O.R

Is it S-Tronic or Multitronic?

If S-Tronic then go for that. If Multitronic I'd prefer a manual as I hate that gearbox.

mrincredible

Hey

It's the Multitronic

Leonard Hofstadter

mrincredible wrote: »

Hey

It's the Multitronic

Not sure about Audis but CVT boxes are beyond a joke to drive in Toyotas, they utterly ruin the driving experience, it feels like the clutch is slipping in them and when you want to go faster you just get more noise without actually going anywhere.

Multitronic has a reputation for not exactly being very reliable, either.

If it's a DSG then it's no contest, manual diesels are not very nice things to drive.

colm_mcm

Even the multitronic is decent enough.

Wildcard7

mrincredible wrote: »

Also, not sure if this makes any difference but I do very high annual milage

I've never owned an auto, but had one as a rental a few times. If I had to drive a lot I would definitely prefer an automatic. Especially if it's not 99% motorway. Stop and go in an automatic car is 1000x nicer.

The Bishop Basher

Had autos for years.. doing bangornomics this year and ended up with a manual.. I can't wait to flog it and get back to auto again..

grogi

captainspeed wrote: »

Not sure about Audis but CVT boxes are beyond a joke to drive in Toyotas, they utterly ruin the driving experience, it feels like the clutch is slipping in them and when you want to go faster you just get more noise without actually going anywhere.

It is perception, not the actual performance.

Reducing shift time (period during which the transferred power is reduced) improves performance. Adding more gears improves performance. Thus a car driven by gearbox with zero shift time and infinite number of rations is faster than with any type of fixed gear transmission.

captainspeed wrote: »

Multitronic has a reputation for not exactly being very reliable, either.

The latest version is miles better than the first one. They managed to get it in order shortly before the production ceased...
But the resale value will tank regardless.

PGE1970

If its anything above an A4, I'd go auto.

I'm in a 3 series manual. Next time round, I hope to go for a 5 series and manual won't be a consideration. Even for resale purposes, I think most people expect auto in a 5 series/A5/A6?

bazz26

But the A5 is just a coupe version of the A4. Same as a 4 Series really.

PGE1970

It is Bazz but in the same way, if it was a 4 series BMW (essentially a 3 series coupe), I'd plump for an auto.

Personal choice really.

PGE1970

Sorry Bazz - read your post again and I've made the point that you've made!! Essentially, down to personal choice!!

bazz26

I drive an auto myself and would find it very hard to go back to a manual again, would depend on the car though.

chicorytip

DaveyDave wrote:

Then of course there's better performance and better fuel economy (for the most part). It also comes with peace of mind that the car wasn't revved like crazy or shifted wrong.

Better fuel economy?? The common perception has always been the opposite - certainly in regard to older automatic cars. From a drivers perspective I much prefer a manual transmission.

Leonard Hofstadter

chicorytip wrote: »

Better fuel economy?? The common perception has always been the opposite - certainly in regard to older automatic cars. From a drivers perspective I much prefer a manual transmission.

Yes but anyone interested in a diesel clearly isn't that bothered by driving pleasure, therefore the auto is the best option for them, if anything autos make diesels much nicer to drive as they disguise the narrow power band beautifully and keep them in their power band all the time.

If we were talking about petrols I'd be in 100% agreement, a good manual box offers a level of interaction and satisfaction that you simply don't get in an auto (even something as good as the DSG box).

pm1977x

captainspeed wrote: »

Not sure about Audis but CVT boxes are beyond a joke to drive in Toyotas, they utterly ruin the driving experience, it feels like the clutch is slipping in them and when you want to go faster you just get more noise without actually going anywhere.

Multitronic has a reputation for not exactly being very reliable, either.

If it's a DSG then it's no contest, manual diesels are not very nice things to drive.

What model/year Toyota were you driving? That's not my experience of a 151 Auris, very happy with the CVT and to answer the OP having recently moved to automatic I wouldn't go back to manual unless I had to - great in stop/start traffic and all in all a better driving experience.

Leonard Hofstadter

pm1977x wrote: »

What model/year Toyota were you driving? That's not my experience of a 151 Auris, very happy with the CVT and to answer the OP having recently moved to automatic I wouldn't go back to manual unless I had to - great in stop/start traffic and all in all a better driving experience.

I drove a 2013 1.6 Valvematic in the UK a couple of years ago and did about 300 miles in it, so same engine and gearbox.

It would have been a pretty decent car but it was utterly spoiled by the horrible gearbox. It wasn't very economical, either. It made a racket any time I wanted to go anywhere, which was quite unpleasant and the box was just dim-witted and didn't want to do anything I wanted it to do.

I ended up putting it into manual mode because it annoyed me so much, it was actually quite nice to drive then, but surely the whole point of an automatic is not having to change gears yourself?

Granted I'm not a big fan of automatics in general as I like the interaction of a good manual but DSG and traditional automatics are orders of magnitude above CVT type boxes (in my humble opinion, of course ).

DaveyDave

chicorytip wrote: »

Better fuel economy?? The common perception has always been the opposite - certainly in regard to older automatic cars. From a drivers perspective I much prefer a manual transmission.

That's not the case anymore, at least with DSG boxes, of course it depends on the car. My DSG Golf gets better fuel economy than the manual. I think it's only .1l/100km, but it's better than nothing. We live in a country where you're financially punished for not driving an econobox. I wouldn't chose auto because of that, due to the cost of auto, but when getting an auto anyway it's a plus. The Golf R DSG is 0.8l/100km less than the manual. It's also .5 seconds faster 0-60 than the manual, putting it at 4.9 seconds.

The emissions are lower too. My tax is lower than the manual, similarly the Golf R tax is €570 Vs €750 manual.

Just some food for thought regarding automatics. There's plenty of upsides if considering one