Re: subarus (was: A valid comparison?

[Eliot Lim <eliot@u.washington.edu>]

> I drove one of those wedge thingies that Subaru made with the flat six 
> and was really suprised.  It's not a bad car.  The biggest joke with 
> that, the SVX, and even the WRX is the lack of a manual transmission.  
> How can you make a car like SVX and WRX with automatic only???  That's 
> worse than the new V8 SHO.

while i would have liked to see a 6 speed manual as an option a slush
if properly implemented isn't too bad, especially if it can assist
in rapid boost build up.. (i.e. one's working when the other's not)

there are other advantages to automatics.  they are *capable* of
making better shifting decisions than many humans, though i would
hesitate to include anybody on this list in that group... :) :) :)

it is appalling to see people cruising on the freeway with the engine
screaming in 4th, or people who try to climb grades from a standstill
in second. or people who are too distracted to know or care what gear
they are in.

one of my good friends who also has a g60 prefers to keep the engine
screaming in a low gear and a slightly open throttle rather than to
use the great abundance of boost and torque (modified car) which is
unleashed by a WOT and a higher gear.

i am not a fan of those slushboxes that try to be too smart and try to
predict what you are going to do next.  the one in the eclipse turbo
is particularly irritating.  i really do like the (new) slush software
in the v8 because it doesn't try to outsmart you and you can learn its
characteristics and thus merge the shifter and the throttle pedal into
a single "go-faster" pedal.  plus it makes left foot braking through
the turns a lot easier.

remember that automatic transmissions were used in formula 1 racers
before they were banned.  today's cars still have clutchless
sequential shifts and safeguards to prevent over revving.  i don't
see a macho factor in using a manual.  


eliot