ORIGINAL: 1 Bad Mirada
manuals are almost a must for smaller engine cars at the dragstrip, as the power eaten by the auto trans REALLY slows them down...
Excellent point. Smaller engine cars have less extra power to work with and need as much power as the engine points out to keep competitive. I think I remember reading for an example that the 95-00 Stratus/Breeze equipped with the Neon 2.0L had a gigantic acceleration time difference between the auto and manual. The auto was found to take 12-12.5 secs for the 0-60 mph run, the manual did it I think in around 9.4-10.0 secs. It makes a big difference in smaller engined cars.
The difference in the GTO between the auto and manual was only about .2 secs in the tests I read and the manual had two more gear ratios. It also depends on the manual and auto being used. I believe many people said that the torqueflites could shift faster than an person with a manual could. That could have been from the fact that only manuals were less refined and more difficult than current manuals are to shift.