3.0 face lift - manual or auto?

S

Shamu1982

Member
Currently looking for a 3l post 2k6 z4 rag top. I'm coming from a 2l diesel 5 year old 3 series coupe that has a decent auto box.

I've always craved a flappy paddle and plan to test one back to back with a manual to get an idea for what i'd prefer but curious for your thoughts.

The car will mainly be used for fun driving,m with the odd 120 mile london commute (from cheltenham) when the weather's good. I'll be doing a bit of town driving, but not that much.

I like my auto, and as i say have always craved a flappy paddle. But a few questions

- What are they like reliability wise?
- How different is fuel economy vs the manual?
- how slick / quick is the gear change when you use the paddles?

All input gratefully received :)
 
The gear change itself is very smooth and fast - though there is a *very* slight delay as you might expect. I have found it's all about timing it right with a bit of practice. You can make it feel harsher by lifting off slightly as you change gear then accelerating. The paddle shift takes no longer than using the stick to manually shift (in an auto), and is faster than the time it would take to depress the clutch, select a new gear, and release the clutch in a manual car.

I used a mixture of the the stick and the paddles all day yesterday when on the Kent run - stick more when 'on it' as you can literally just flick it with your hand really fast to change.

Never had any problems with my gearbox - bought the car on 59k miles and it is now on 84k.

As for fuel economy, tough one actually. In full auto I reckon I see as good as the manuals, on a normal drive. In manual mode my fuel economy actually seems to be a bit - but not a lot - worse than the manual drivers I have been with on runs. I don't actually know why, but one theory I have is related to the way the box works when you floor it past the soft stop on the pedal - in manual mode it will still automatically kick down to the lowest gear possible, even if it means entering that gear at 6k revs for a few seconds. So I am actually working the engine harder than those in a manual a reasonable amount of the time we're driving.

Depends how you are intending to drive it - on a long commute or every day driving I just use the full auto and get average mpg because I am a lazy sod ; if you are mainly using it for 'fun' driving then I guess fuel economy is less important. Hope that ramble helps :thumbsup:
 
Shamu1982 said:
Currently looking for a 3l post 2k6 z4 rag top. I'm coming from a 2l diesel 5 year old 3 series coupe that has a decent auto box.

I've always craved a flappy paddle and plan to test one back to back with a manual to get an idea for what i'd prefer but curious for your thoughts.

The car will mainly be used for fun driving,m with the odd 120 mile london commute (from cheltenham) when the weather's good. I'll be doing a bit of town driving, but not that much.

I like my auto, and as i say have always craved a flappy paddle. But a few questions

- What are they like reliability wise?
- How different is fuel economy vs the manual?
- how slick / quick is the gear change when you use the paddles?

All input gratefully received :)
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I tested them back to back and the auto won the day, the research I did showed them to be solid boxs and the indy garage said the same, as for quick gear change on the paddles, I couldn't change a manual faster, BUT..... in sport, with the foot mashed, why use the paddles, it red lines each change.. :thumbsup: Sooo fast :D :driving:
 
Yep, that might be another reason for slightly poorer fuel economy - the noise at 7,000 RPM is visceral :evil:

I am not sure how many manual drivers actually red-line their car ?
 
Bing said:
Yep, that might be another reason for slightly poorer fuel economy - the noise at 7,000 RPM is visceral :evil:

I am not sure how many manual drivers actually red-line their car ?
Click to expand...

When it is safe (and legal to do so) I have partaken in pushing my car.

That sound is so rewarding and the car really does shift effortlessly
 
There's no right or wrong answer. Manaual or auto. Pure preference. The auto is perfect on the 3.0, but some like gear changes

Just as a point of note - there is no difference between gear changes with selector lever or paddles. Both simply ground the same 2 wires. Between normal and sport does change things a lot :)
 
cj10jeeper, good point about the Sport button, forgot that as it is simply always on when using manual mode :thumbsup:
 
Bing said:
Yep, that might be another reason for slightly poorer fuel economy - the noise at 7,000 RPM is visceral :evil:

I am not sure how many manual drivers actually red-line their car ?
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:D :D :D
in my car, I cannot change from 1st to 2nd and from 2nd to 3rd if i do not red-line it. :oops:
 
this auto or manual issue has been discussed over and over.

go on with what will suit you better.
IMO this car must be manual.

The only reason that i can think of to buy the auto, the city usage.
However for city usage maybe the 3.0si is the wrong car.


At the end of the day the Steptronic auto box is a simple (old) automatic transmission.
Not in the league of SMG, DSG, PDK :thumbsup:
 
I think you have probably asked the wrong question, as Z4 drivers we have already made our decision Auto or Manual, and most manual drivers would for many reasons not entertain an Auto. Better to have asked if any auto drivers regretted not buying a manual... I have a 3.0 Auto its a great drive, and with the sports button in an even better drive if you want a bit of fun. Now looking for an e89 35i and again will only consider an auto box.
 
My Zed is the first auto I have owned and far from regretting it I may be an auto convert for future cars too!

Auto boxes may not be great in smaller engined cars but in the 3.0 Zed it is great and if you have cruise control fitted it makes for effortless driving when you want it (cruise even shifts up and down gears for hills and overtaking etc.) and if you want a bit more involvement just push the sport button and and use the steptronic mode.

No fluffed gear changes and no stalls ever, just consistent effortless motoring. Never any roll back on hill starts either.and you never need to use the handbreak. :driving:

As I say not sure about 2.2 or 2.5 but for the 3.0 methinks it is fab! :thumbsup:
 
On my 35i the dct sold the car to me.One of the best auto boxes I have tried for a sub 50k car.

The new zf 8 speed tried in the m135i was also very good for a non twin clutch system.

I think the zf 8 speed may be the auto in the newest Z4 cars.

Such as below.

http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/bmw/z4-roadster/z4-roadster-28i-sdrive-m-sport-2dr-auto/857778
 
GreyZed said:
Never any roll back on hill starts either.and you never need to use the handbreak. :driving:
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Not that it matters as the decision towards auto is typically made for other reasons, but FYI, manual E85/6s have a hill hold feature so there is no roll back. Handbrakes only need be used for parking on hills and for hooning. Though any self respecting manual driver would never need a handbrake to start off anyway. We don't need no stinkin' hill start aids.
 
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