Which transmission do you prefer?

S

sk8rboy1091

18
do you prefer automatic or manual transmission more? which one is best for drifting? also, ive used auto since i first started playing and i was wondering what the best way to make the switch over to manual is...
 
Hello, skater, and welcome to GTPlanet. We hope you learn a lot and have a good time here.

Using the advanced search for "transmission", limiting it to thread titles on the GT4 board, I came up with a bunch of existing threads on this topic. The most useful one is probably this one:

https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=44199&highlight=transmission

See if that or one of the others helps you.
 
sk8rboy1091
well, yeah, it told me what people like to use but it doesnt tell me what a good way to learn to use mt is...
Click to expand...

I'll bite since this thread is still open.

To use a manual, you have to be aware of your car's power-band and torque...and this gives you an idea of when to shift gears.

...there was some discussion about this not long ago and I don't feel like typing everything I know on this topic so here's the thread....

https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=100109

GT4 is a **** forum btw

4 stars! :)
 
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Practice. That's undoubtedly the best way there is, pick a car and drive it with manual regardless of how many times you screw it up. Nothing else helps, you learn by doing.
 
Greycap
Practice. That's undoubtedly the best way there is, pick a car and drive it with manual regardless of how many times you screw it up. Nothing else helps, you learn by doing.
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Yup. I first drove a manual by accident back in my Ford Racing days on the PS1 and i didn't feel like restarting my race.

It also helps to know when to shift by studying your car's power & torque curves, which is why i just dragged that thread up. No sense in letting a car reach peak rpms when peak power is located 1,000 rpms below redline...
 
Parnelli Bone
GT4 is a **** forum btw

4 stars! :)
Click to expand...

:lol:!

To put how much manual can help you, I was over a second faster on the same track with the same car when I switched to manual from automatic. In a 5 lap race thats 5 seconds you can shave off. In an endurance race, it could be a minute!

When first using MT, just learn to shift before your car hits the limiter. You need to rely on the car's sound to help you know when to. Once you got that down, you can start shifting at the peak rpms as mentioned, again using sound to guide you.

Also theres more fun with manual. Short shift in V8s to hear that grumble, or hold 2nd gear for as long as possible in a Honda to hear it screeeeeaaaaaaam! :sly:
 
TheCracker
There you have it. GTPlanet is a 4 star website.
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That thread is CLASSIC. :cool:TheCracker, you get a million cool points in my book for clarifying that.The other guy got banned for posting his 4-star review in the GT4 section. What can we do for five stars though?

Anyway, manual is "a lot better than automatic", because you can control the car much better and release it's potential. It's really up to you(some great gran turismo drivers use the Automatic Shifting System system) but you should really shift to manual. It takes about 2-3 hours to feel okay with it(at least it did for me).
 
I started using manual for just messing around in Time Trial. One day I forgot to change back to automatic when I went to Gran Turismo mode and from then on i can only race on manual.
 
I forced myself to try manual. It seemed to hard for me when I started. I thank my wheel for helping me to use manual. Even though it's a 'flappy paddle', it gave me another reason to try it. I always use manual now. All I can say is, force yourself to try manual. It's very easy to get used to when you start using it.
 
I will NEVER use AUTO whatsoever for ANY racing car game, and I've been playing racing car games since 3yrs old (26yrs!!). No offence meant to the automatic drivers....well a little offence intended, because to be honest with all of you here......if you can't shift gears on a game or recognise that cars do have rev-limiters and you need to shift gears, you should steer completely clear from driving a manual IRL. 👍 And if I, AS A 3YR OLD could understand that concept, it goes to show how idiotic some people are.

I honestly wish automatics were NEVER released to Joe Public, too many morons get that chance and ability to drive, and usually the reason why we have a high road toll in any country in the world.....but that's another argument for another time. :dopey::D

Sorry, that answer became a 1/2 rant. :lol:
 
mafia_boy
I will NEVER use manual whatsoever for ANY racing car game, and I've been playing racing car games since 3yrs old (26yrs!!). No offence meant to the automatic drivers....well a little offence intended, because to be honest with all of you here......if you can't shift gears on a game or recognise that cars do have rev-limiters and you need to shift gears, you should steer completely clear from driving a manual IRL. 👍 And if I, AS A 3YR OLD could understand that concept, it goes to show how idiotic some people are.

I honestly wish automatics were NEVER released to Joe Public, too many morons get that chance and ability to drive, and usually the reason why we have a high road toll in any country in the world.....but that's another argument for another time. :dopey::D

Sorry, that answer became a 1/2 rant. :lol:
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sorry maf's but are you for or against manual or automatic. the first sentance is never use manual then you bag auto. :) i am confused.


i use auto because that's what i am used to. i can drive a real life manual (and quite well for that matter) but as i am getting older my knees
's can t handle grid-lock rush hour traffic so i drive auto. as well as in the game it's just what i am use to.
 
mafia_boy
...if you can't shift gears on a game or recognise that cars do have rev-limiters and you need to shift gears, you should steer completely clear from driving a manual IRL.
Click to expand...
I think you need to recognise that there is, in fact, practically no relationship between real life and GT4. The key is, of course, that GT4 is a game. It uses words and concepts that bear a passing semblance of driving cars IRL but that's about it.

I drive a manual fine IRL. I always have and always will. But my ability to do so in no way affects or is affected by my ability to play GT4. In the same way that my ability to play NHL 2007 does not make me better able to play ice hockey. GT4 does not make it any easier for me to find the friction point or to match engine revs with speed, or change lanes, or avoid idiot drivers; I don't push the engine to the rev limiter (or even the red line!) when driving around town and I don't engage the ABS every time I brake.

Just because I choose not to use MT in a game doesn't mean I am unacquainted with the fact that cars have rev-limiters and that you need to shift gears. Millions of people manage to drive manual transmission cars every day without ever having played GT4. In short, real life has nothing to do with it. It is a game and should be evaluated solely on those terms.
 
Parnelli Bone
GT4 is a **** forum btw

4 stars! :)
Click to expand...


^i don't get what the other guy said in the other thread.., what did he mean by **** forum??? :confused:

in my younger years of GT, i always use Auto back then.., but one day when i was playing GT2, i accidentally selected Manual before the race. UH OH, (sweat drop) :nervous::scared: i got nervous, and scared, for the first time.., but when i raced with the MT option, i got hooked.., i then knew that if you use MT, you have full control of your car. i was getting better and better lap times when i used MT.., since that day, i will never use Auto again..,
 
Parnelli Bone
To use a manual, you have to be aware of your car's power-band and torque...and this gives you an idea of when to shift gears.
Click to expand...

Funny you should mention that, Parnelli. I used a bone-stock (not even an oil change) Corvette '62 (C2) in the 1000 Miles! championship some time back, and I learned that there was a MUCH better time to shift for acceleration than at the typical redline. This car hits its power peak around 4,500 rpm, and it actually doesn't redline until much closer to 6k, so shifting at redline means that there is a LOT of revving done with far less than optimum power. For myself, I found that shifting near 5-5.5k made for much faster acceleration with the original 3-speed transmission, but it still had plenty of power to get up over 200 km/h.

Knowing your car is very, VERY useful, indeed.

As for answering the original question, I prefer manual. IMHO, it connects me to the car in a much more "real" way.
 
I use manual for everything, drift, race and normal driving (i do that sometimes)

I find it more realistic when using a wheel, and fairly easy.

Shift up just after the redline starts, shift down in the same place the rev needle goes when you shift up (if that makes sense)
 
=drifting24/7=
^i don't get what the other guy said in the other thread.., what did he mean by **** forum??? :confused:
Click to expand...

If you type a 4-letter word here like ****, it automatically goes ****. So that dude was trying to trash us but then someone else immediately turned it around! :lol:




Just wanted to add a couple things.

1. In GT games, auto transmissions are NOT true automatics like you'd see in a normal car because real auto trannies will shift gears at much lower RPMs. If Automatics in GT were like they are in real-life, they'd be much less fuel-efficient because we'd have to go around redlining every time we wanted to the auto to change gears! :lol:

2. Also, when an automatic shifts gears in real-life, there is no "lag". It shifts very smoothly if it's working properly. In GT games, an auto shifts like a manual. There is a definate dis-engagement, releasing of the clutch...then the revs fall as the till the clutch re-engages. Autos in GT are nothing but manuals that are programmed to shift automatically.

3. I mostly use MT, but in some cars (like the Ford Taurus SHO, which was only offered with an auto in real-life) I'll use an automatic. I know...blasphemy. Also, as I game, I actually have different drivers and a memory card for each driver.

My "ricer" driver (Vanilla Rice) ALWAYS drives a manual. No ifs ands or buts. But then I also have a Soccer Mom. She races wagons, SUV's, minivans. She hasn't got time for the "hassle" of a manual, so she always uses automatics, just like most soccer moms irl. :ouch:
 
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I always use automatic, regardless of the type of car. It allows me to concentrate more on turning and braking.
 
I can't stand AT. So many cars are downright neutered by it, and if you try to force the auto to behave on those cars it takes more effort than the MT does.
 
It's good practice to do the Licenses again in manual until you come to the same (or higher) level that you were at using automatic.
 
I wasn't coordinated enough, either. At least, I wasn't when I first started. There were many times when I was accelerating at full throttle, and couldn't for the LIFE of me figure out why I wasn't accelerating at all. The reason: I was at redline and not shifting up. A few laps of practice with a car I particularly liked on a course I knew (Miata at Tsukuba) wound up helping me keep track of what gear I was in by counting in my head, as well as keeping me aware of when/where to shift.

When you first switch, you'll probably go through a time of "OH NOES, I = SUCK AGAIN!!1!1", but you'll get the hang of it if you keep at it. I know the first few times I tried switching (unsuccessfully), I gave up quickly because I couldn't keep up. It just takes practice, as well as setting your mind to the fact that you will learn!

Keep after it, amigo!👍
 
I started using the manual a good long time ago, back before I even had an ounce of car control (I'd drive most cars without aids, but couldn't handle the Group Cs, LMPs, and FGT for the life of me without ASM). Don't ask why, I don't know.

And I've never looked back. Yes, it's one more thing stealing concentration from your driving... But it lets you not worry about the slushbox dropping a gear and you don't have to slow down excessively to grab the gear you need.
 
I've pretty much used MT in GT games since day one, it just feels much more natural then letting the game shift for you. ;)

I think it's time to throw my old Driving Force away and pick up a G25 to get some real shifting done.
 
I'll probably give manual another shot. I just never got the hang of driving manual with a DS2 controller.

I guess I never felt the need to use a manual in this game, beaten all the licenses, challenges, race halls, etc. and got 98% completion using an automomatic.
 
About a week ago i broke out my Top Drive GT (POS) wheel and raced in manual because of the gearstick.

I prefer manual so much more now.

My advice to anyone wanting to learn manual on GT4.... Use a wheel!
 

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