Pdk or manual
06-06-2014, 02:05 PM
#46
06-08-2014, 05:15 AM
#53
Instructor
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: S.E. Wisconsin, U.S.A.
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Technically, it's a digital mode, since you shift with your finger tips, not with your hand. And, as with the audiophile analogies so often used, while digital may be potentially more versatile than analog, it just can't sound as good because much of the information is no longer present. If the whole point of the exercise is to faithfully reproduce sound...uh...driving pleasure, then why would you spend more for less, no matter how "fast" it is?
06-08-2014, 06:37 AM
#54
Three Wheelin'
That all depends on one's interpretation, for me manual vs automatic is about who makes the decision and not how much energy is consumed. In that regard PDK in manual is manual because I make the decision when to change the gear & not the car (computer).
06-08-2014, 03:39 PM
#57
Instructor
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I had the exact same need with my very first car. It was a 1964 Rambler Ambassador. I often shifted the 3-speed automatic transmission "manually" because, in the absence of a manual transmission I was, like you, desperate for some kind of involvement with the car...something to keep me from falling asleep at the wheel out of sheer boredom.
While I would never suggest that any Porsche with a PDK could bore you to sleep, it's still just a matter of degree. Once you free yourself of the fantasy that you're a race car driver who absolutely must save every possible thousandth of a second everywhere you go, and you remember that the car will always be faster in automatic mode, you begin to realize that all that finger twitching ("manual" shifting) that you're doing is just a desperate crying-out for the lost involvement that having a real manual transmission would afford you. If this was not the case, you'd never take that PDK out of auto mode. After all, there's nobody on here who's faster on the road or on the track with their PDK in "manual" mode...the whole point in the PDK is that the computer is always faster and always knows better, right? Yet, many (most?) PDK owners still catch themselves tickling those paddles in an almost pointless attempt to recapture a bit of what they've given up by opting out of a true manual transmission.
If you always run your PDK in automatic mode, then you're truly reaping the benefits of the technology: you don't have to shift, and the car is a bit faster because you let it do that for you...but, if you often run your PDK in "manual" mode, then all the blathering about the PDK's minor advantage in speed, while perfectly true, is nonetheless merely a rationalization for choosing the wrong transmission. Deep down, perhaps even unconsciously, you'd rather be shifting for yourself, but you are unable to, or are unwilling to commit to doing it full time, for whatever reason.
All the comments about "two hands on the wheel", carburetors, buggy whips, vinyl records, etc., are just a smoke screen attempt to distract those of us who chose the correct transmission (manual) for our needs/wants in the first place, and to try to make us feel inferior so we wouldn't notice how unhappy the paddle ticklers might actually be with their choice of a PDK. After all, they spent over $4,000US on the world's best automatic transmission...and then they intentionally interfere with its efficient operation. Why would they do that unless they were dissatisfied on some level?
Just speculating here. I've been full of poo before, and no doubt will be again. Obviously, everyone should get whatever they want and then enjoy the hell out of it.
06-08-2014, 04:09 PM
#58
Three Wheelin'
Lol
06-08-2014, 04:18 PM
#59
Drifting
That's an interesting take on it, and perfectly valid...as long as you realize that "PDK in manual" is also slower than PDK in automatic. With that in mind, I think I may know where that overriding psychological need to shift for yourself is coming from. I had the exact same need with my very first car. It was a 1964 Rambler Ambassador. I often shifted the 3-speed automatic transmission "manually" because, in the absence of a manual transmission I was, like you, desperate for some kind of involvement with the car...something to keep me from falling asleep at the wheel out of sheer boredom. While I would never suggest that any Porsche with a PDK could bore you to sleep, it's still just a matter of degree. Once you free yourself of the fantasy that you're a race car driver who absolutely must save every possible thousandth of a second everywhere you go, and you remember that the car will always be faster in automatic mode, you begin to realize that all that finger twitching ("manual" shifting) that you're doing is just a desperate crying-out for the lost involvement that having a real manual transmission would afford you. If this was not the case, you'd never take that PDK out of auto mode. After all, there's nobody on here who's faster on the road or on the track with their PDK in "manual" mode...the whole point in the PDK is that the computer is always faster and always knows better, right? Yet, many (most?) PDK owners still catch themselves tickling those paddles in an almost pointless attempt to recapture a bit of what they've given up by opting out of a true manual transmission. If you always run your PDK in automatic mode, then you're truly reaping the benefits of the technology: you don't have to shift, and the car is a bit faster because you let it do that for you...but, if you often run your PDK in "manual" mode, then all the blathering about the PDK's minor advantage in speed, while perfectly true, is nonetheless merely a rationalization for choosing the wrong transmission. Deep down, perhaps even unconsciously, you'd rather be shifting for yourself, but you are unable to, or are unwilling to commit to doing it full time, for whatever reason. All the comments about "two hands on the wheel", carburetors, buggy whips, vinyl records, etc., are just a smoke screen attempt to distract those of us who chose the correct transmission (manual) for our needs/wants in the first place, and to try to make us feel inferior so we wouldn't notice how unhappy the paddle ticklers might actually be with their choice of a PDK. After all, they spent over $4,000US on the world's best automatic transmission...and then they intentionally interfere with its efficient operation. Why would they do that unless they were dissatisfied on some level? Just speculating here. I've been full of poo before, and no doubt will be again. Obviously, everyone should get whatever they want and then enjoy the hell out of it.
06-08-2014, 04:20 PM
#60
Race Car
That's an interesting take on it, and perfectly valid...as long as you realize that "PDK in manual" is also slower than PDK in automatic. With that in mind, I think I may know where that overriding psychological need to shift for yourself is coming from.
I had the exact same need with my very first car. It was a 1964 Rambler Ambassador. I often shifted the 3-speed automatic transmission "manually" because, in the absence of a manual transmission I was, like you, desperate for some kind of involvement with the car...something to keep me from falling asleep at the wheel out of sheer boredom.
While I would never suggest that any Porsche with a PDK could bore you to sleep, it's still just a matter of degree. Once you free yourself of the fantasy that you're a race car driver who absolutely must save every possible thousandth of a second everywhere you go, and you remember that the car will always be faster in automatic mode, you begin to realize that all that finger twitching ("manual" shifting) that you're doing is just a desperate crying-out for the lost involvement that having a real manual transmission would afford you. If this was not the case, you'd never take that PDK out of auto mode. After all, there's nobody on here who's faster on the road or on the track with their PDK in "manual" mode...the whole point in the PDK is that the computer is always faster and always knows better, right? Yet, many (most?) PDK owners still catch themselves tickling those paddles in an almost pointless attempt to recapture a bit of what they've given up by opting out of a true manual transmission.
If you always run your PDK in automatic mode, then you're truly reaping the benefits of the technology: you don't have to shift, and the car is a bit faster because you let it do that for you...but, if you often run your PDK in "manual" mode, then all the blathering about the PDK's minor advantage in speed, while perfectly true, is nonetheless merely a rationalization for choosing the wrong transmission. Deep down, perhaps even unconsciously, you'd rather be shifting for yourself, but you are unable to, or are unwilling to commit to doing it full time, for whatever reason.
All the comments about "two hands on the wheel", carburetors, buggy whips, vinyl records, etc., are just a smoke screen attempt to distract those of us who chose the correct transmission (manual) for our needs/wants in the first place, and to try to make us feel inferior so we wouldn't notice how unhappy the paddle ticklers might actually be with their choice of a PDK. After all, they spent over $4,000US on the world's best automatic transmission...and then they intentionally interfere with its efficient operation. Why would they do that unless they were dissatisfied on some level?
Just speculating here. I've been full of poo before, and no doubt will be again. Obviously, everyone should get whatever they want and then enjoy the hell out of it.
I had the exact same need with my very first car. It was a 1964 Rambler Ambassador. I often shifted the 3-speed automatic transmission "manually" because, in the absence of a manual transmission I was, like you, desperate for some kind of involvement with the car...something to keep me from falling asleep at the wheel out of sheer boredom.
While I would never suggest that any Porsche with a PDK could bore you to sleep, it's still just a matter of degree. Once you free yourself of the fantasy that you're a race car driver who absolutely must save every possible thousandth of a second everywhere you go, and you remember that the car will always be faster in automatic mode, you begin to realize that all that finger twitching ("manual" shifting) that you're doing is just a desperate crying-out for the lost involvement that having a real manual transmission would afford you. If this was not the case, you'd never take that PDK out of auto mode. After all, there's nobody on here who's faster on the road or on the track with their PDK in "manual" mode...the whole point in the PDK is that the computer is always faster and always knows better, right? Yet, many (most?) PDK owners still catch themselves tickling those paddles in an almost pointless attempt to recapture a bit of what they've given up by opting out of a true manual transmission.
If you always run your PDK in automatic mode, then you're truly reaping the benefits of the technology: you don't have to shift, and the car is a bit faster because you let it do that for you...but, if you often run your PDK in "manual" mode, then all the blathering about the PDK's minor advantage in speed, while perfectly true, is nonetheless merely a rationalization for choosing the wrong transmission. Deep down, perhaps even unconsciously, you'd rather be shifting for yourself, but you are unable to, or are unwilling to commit to doing it full time, for whatever reason.
All the comments about "two hands on the wheel", carburetors, buggy whips, vinyl records, etc., are just a smoke screen attempt to distract those of us who chose the correct transmission (manual) for our needs/wants in the first place, and to try to make us feel inferior so we wouldn't notice how unhappy the paddle ticklers might actually be with their choice of a PDK. After all, they spent over $4,000US on the world's best automatic transmission...and then they intentionally interfere with its efficient operation. Why would they do that unless they were dissatisfied on some level?
Just speculating here. I've been full of poo before, and no doubt will be again. Obviously, everyone should get whatever they want and then enjoy the hell out of it.