Originally Posted by JoeD

Again, I will reiterate...I fail to see how this has materialized into any sort of argument among enthusiasts, especially in the context of road-racing. This is indeed a first.

You can argue for days on the optional transmissions vs. standard manuals on other cars, from the SMG vs. 6-speed on the M5/M6, F1 vs. standard in Ferraris, to the DSG vs. 6-speed in a GTI, etc...the reason those comparisons are valid is because all the non-standard options aren't traditional automatics. Why are people so caught up on the 7AT? There is nothing special to it. So it blips on downshifts and shifts relatively quick...nothing groundbreaking for an automatic produced sometime within the last 10 years.

It’s funny how automakers can put paddles or buttons on the steering-wheel to shift an auto and fool people into thinking it’s any different than when you were manually shifting your mom’s '94 Camry when you were 16. Was there a similar auto vs. manual discussion for the 350Z?