S4@last!::Now B7 RS4

I have pretty much decided on the Tip, but have noticed that a good few people on this forum have gone from tip to six speed. I would like to avoid that switch if I can help it, so please, some feed back on this?

TTS_4_to_A6

Do you deal with traffic? Yes=Tip No=Stick
Do you race others? Yes=Stick No=Tip(unless you chip it)
Do you like the luxury car feel? Yes=Tip No=Stick

I ordered mine with Tip, glad I did. I would have gone with the stick if the throw was shorter and there was no vibration on it with normal driving. I know the vibration in the S4 stick is normal, but in a luxury car, I would expect something better. Yes, the stick is faster, but the Tip is more than fast enough for me. You will never bogg or stall at a light if you decide to launch your car. If I didn't have to deal with traffic on a regular basis I would have probably purchased mine with the manual tranny, but with having the ability to change gears on the steering wheel is a plus IMO. One thing about Tip though, if there wasn't the weight issue and a few other technical things, the tip could have an advantage because it shifts faster than a manual (meaning, if you had a stick, by the time you pressed in the clutch the Tip has already changed gears).
In all you have to decide what you want. Do I question myself as to why I did not get the stick? YES, I really like it, but I like not having to press a clutch in a traffic jam!!!
Never let the influence of others determine how you spend your money

Luke's S4

Stick, or waste quatro

NASA racer

When I bought my tip, I had just come off a slew of automatics...I had various jobs where commuting was par for the course and I even had a mini-van to carry my hobby stuff around.

Well, in the year that I had the tip, I got back into racing and began to work at home and moved to a house on the top of a twisty road.

So my needs changed and I was a bit nervous having a chipped tip with the 310ftlb torque limit on the tiptronic tranny. A reasonably good opportunity came up to do the trade with relatively minimal out of pocket so I did. The clincher was that I was getting VERY rusty with heel and toe downshifting between races.

Now my wife still has an A4 2.8 tip...the other day I drove her and my parents out through crappy LA traffic and remembered just how good the tip is. If I had a commute and/or I had regular passengers, I'd have stuck with the tip.

I like the 6-speed, it's a VERY different feeling car...the tip is smooth and refined, the 6-speed is raw and visceral (that truck-like tranny feels like a Corvette). It IS a personal decision but having had both, I'm sure you'll be happy with whichever you choose.

Shredster

I can see why people would like them, especially in traffic. I do not know how to drive an automatic (hahaha) and have ONLY owned and driven sticks, so I don't know what I am missing in traffic. I am so use to depressing my clutch pedal thousand's of times, that I don't know the difference or think twice about it. I really like the physical demand of rowing my car through all of it's maneuvers, whether I am in traffic or not. What ever one you choose, you'll love it I am sure.

I know my post to this thread did not "apply"... just sharing my thoughts.

Good luck.

George @ BostonAudi

Tip is nice. Very smooth, very luxurious. Hands down its the best choice if you want a luxury sedan with killer performance. Tip (especially chipped) will hold its own fairly easily. Its a very refined system. I loved it.

I made the switch for a couple reasons:

1) Tip tranny is rated to 310ft/lbs of torque. Chipped you're at 366 even stage-I. I'm stock with the 6-speed, and will be for a good length of time, but when the money presents itself and I decide to go stage III or IV, there will be no issues. Maybe an upgraded clutch.
2) The car is SO much sportier with the 6-speed. Its a much nicer experience in my mind -- I'm not one for just sticking a car in D, kicking back and cruising.

The 6-speed is really no hassle at all in traffic. In the six weeks I've had it, I have only once wished I had the tip, and that was an hour and a half long five mile drive where people were really creeping along. Stop and go isn't bad.

My biggest problem with the 6-speed (and this is the first manual car I've owned, so its taken some getting used to) is the difficulty I've had getting a comfortable driving position, with the added need to have fairly subtle control of the clutch. I'm still experimenting with it.