helix139

Agreed. I do think it is a shame how few people know how to drive a manual, though. I think one consequence is a far greater amount of multitasking on the road, which is definitely not a good thing. It's a lot harder to text and drive when you have to row through the gears and operate the clutch. I know when I have kids I'll be doing my best to make sure they learn on a manual and drive one for their first car though not my 2020 RS4 or whatever I have at the time .

I will say, though, the choice on the S4 would have been a difficult one had we known about Launch Control when I ordered and were the manual mode a true manual mode. As it is, the lower cost, more engaging feel, total gear ratio control, known quantity with fewer things to go wrong, lower maintenance costs, and probably cheaper replacement cost (though hopefully I'll never need to confront this) drew me back to a stick.

rocknS4

I've been driving a MT car for 47 years now, what is this automatic transmission thing anyways? LOL

DrVolkl

I think certain cars do quite well as "autos" or whatever you want to call these new transmissions. The S4 is a toss... I just like shifting, that's about it. All my cars are manuals... and I'll continue to order them that way until I can't. However it's not the end of the world I suppose if DSG's are what eventually phase out the 6spd.

tribe

This is my first car without a clutch in 40 years of driving. I went with S-tronic because it's not a slush box and it seems to go well with S4's power. Overall I'm happy although I would like it better if manual mode would be really MANUAL and let me screw up if I want.

I probably would have gone manual if I had read that the S4 had better clutch feel and shorter shifter from factory.

mannelito

Test drove both. The auto just didn't do it for me. I got this car to DRIVE, not glide, so I picked the manual. Nothing beats the feeling of letting that clutch go and feel the power!

Although I have to eventually get a new car for Wifie with auto... but it's worth it!

blackhawk878

As I read this thread I start to think about the thought process that went through my mind when trying to decide between the tranny options. Now that I have owned the car for more than a year, I wish I had gone with the 6MT. I say that based on the different path my life has taken since the time of order. The S4 is not my daily driver so I wouldn't have the headache of traffic on a daily basis, which was a huge factor for me with my previous G35. What disappoints me is the inconsistency from car to car, and from run to run. Heck, each time I floor it I don't know if the dreaded 1-2 or 2-3 hang up is going to occur. At least with the DIY gearbox I know the cause for crappy shifting would be the nut behind the wheel, not the computer trying to "protect" the car. As some have stated on here I do miss the connection to the car.

drrick89

I haven't driven a manual car since 1996, when my 1995 S6 manual was totaled in a rainstorm. The TBI & 7 week coma I survived, left me with left-sided hemiparesis; basically an uncoordinated left arm and leg - making it difficult to use a manual transmission (esp. the clutch).

However, I could still bench press over 400 lbs on a weight lifting machine that kept the weight balanced. Unfortunately, I screwed up my right rotator cuff about a year ago and can't do that anymore @ age 53. *sigh*

But, the S-Tronic still allows me to drive sportingly and out-accelerate 95% of the cars out there!

my2ndaudi

Both the Wifie and I refuse to drive anything but a manual......despite occasional big city traffic. It comes down to boredom. Anything without a full clutch and shifter BORES us. We both enjoy being intimately involved with the process of moving our vehicles from point A to point B. Furthermore, we both enjoy long road trips in and out of mountains.....and anything less than a manual just doesn't cut it.

sakimano

I love the modern DSG transmissions in theory. If only we could eliminate the annoying little programming and safety systems that appear to be plaguing some of the B8 guys.

Frankly I didn't mind the tiptronic in the B6/7. A friend of mine's tiptronic B6 S4 just ran 12.24 @ 116 mph...on the stock transmission, so they can definitely move the car. He's faster than any stage III B5 S4 tip car according to S4biturbo.com, and the fastest B5 guys have tranny jobs and torque converters done. That B6 is literally stock transmission.

sakimano

What are the best 60' times for both pump gas and race gas launch controlled B8 S4s? I bet they're not exactly lighting the world on fire vs. the manual cars, or even the regular DSG guys.

I had launch control on my manual transmission B7 S4 (JHM built it right into the tune, as they do on the RS4) but I only used it at the dragstrip. It was fun, but so is doing it on your own (or leaving a 30 foot long black patch, when you're trying to be truly ignorant).