everyone is always talking about how a 5-speed is faster off the block than an auto, this isn't true. No one can switch gears faster than the maximas auto tranny. I dont care what any one says- a 95 se 5-speed and a 95 gxe auto would tun side by side up to 80mph. I may be wrong, but let me know what you think. (All of this of coures with no mods)

 

The changing of gears has little to do with the difference in acceleration of an auto th gen vs. a 5 spd 4th gen.
We've gotten the hundreds of timeslips that consistenly show the 5 spd car well ahead of a auto car by approx .5-.9 in the quarter mile. Both stock and with mods.
You've got a few things to consider here:
1. Weight. An auto 4th gen. weighs between 80-100 lbs more than the 5 spd.
2. Parasitic power losses. Typically an auto 4th gen will dyno at 140-145 at the wheels, while 5 spd have shown 10-15hp more at the wheels (these numbers may be off a little, but in general, the 5 spd's put about 10hp more than the autos)
3. Gearing. The 5 spd car has ratios that are more "favorable" towards acceleration


There are many more variables that come into play here. But I'll give you a quick example (using my own car here, before I sold it)
I used to frequent the dragstrip, and on almost all occasions, I attended with a fellow Max owner, but a 5 spd. Both cars were 95's, with the same mods. From the time we were stock, to the time we were both modified (at that time, we both had intakes and Stillen Y's) his car was always .5-.6 quicker than mine. No matter what the track conditions were.

 

Jim is quite correct. The auto may be able to complete the shift faster. But the tranny slippage, gearing, weight, and power loss out weigh that.

ZuM

 

Yeah, our only hope is Don......

 

It's ok...you are

 

I'd like to see a stock maxima tranny shift faster than me :-)

 

Well to put it in a nutshell: An automatic tranny requires torque to operate. That's why at idle speeds the autos seem to be quicker, because some torque is developed in the tranny already. However when it really comes down to it the auto is robbing horsepower to operate itself. The 5spd is not.

 

I think that the biggest factor is the gearing. The manuals have much shorter gearing than the autos.