Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Auto's do have higher losses than manuals....

On road, with a modern auto with converter lockup, you might notice a small decrease in economy - but perhaps not.

Off road, my experience seems to be the opposite, not that the losses arn't there, but it seems to me that the auto's so much kinder to the vehicle, and its so much easier to be at the "right" engine RPM that theres' far less fuel sucking under and over revving.

Its hardly scientific ...... but its not easy to do off road economy tests.

so petrol gq's with autos arnt as bad as i think, if ya chuck a turbo on

nate_lux wrote:so petrol gq's with autos arnt as bad as i think, if ya chuck a turbo on

Its good off-road when u get a reduction gearing ...

Think we've done this thread to death.
bottom line is it doesn't matter which you drive, as long as your out there driving, RIGHT!

bingo

I asked someone this question about 6 months ago and they sent me to this thread. It's taken me since then to weigh up the pros and cons mentioned here to make up my mind.

I'm getting a manual.

Why ?....because it was $2K cheaper lol

ellicat wrote:I asked someone this question about 6 months ago and they sent me to this thread. It's taken me since then to weigh up the pros and cons mentioned here to make up my mind.

I'm getting a manual.

Why ?....because it was $2K cheaper lol

It all depends on the vehicle.
I have an auto and think it is great.
Only real bug with a manual is driving in soft sand.
You cannot change gears without losing momentum.

Out of interest, what did you buy?

RonMcGr wrote:

ellicat wrote:I asked someone this question about 6 months ago and they sent me to this thread. It's taken me since then to weigh up the pros and cons mentioned here to make up my mind.

I'm getting a manual.

Why ?....because it was $2K cheaper lol

It all depends on the vehicle.
I have an auto and think it is great.
Only real bug with a manual is driving in soft sand.
You cannot change gears without losing momentum.

Out of interest, what did you buy?

Bet i can change gears quicker than your auto

I like the manual but if i could get a 6 speed tiptronic box to go in the Lux i would

get out there and wheel with various vehicles.....( as i go around you in my 4 speed auto....)

LuxyBoy wrote:

RonMcGr wrote:

ellicat wrote:I asked someone this question about 6 months ago and they sent me to this thread. It's taken me since then to weigh up the pros and cons mentioned here to make up my mind.

I'm getting a manual.

Why ?....because it was $2K cheaper lol

It all depends on the vehicle.
I have an auto and think it is great.
Only real bug with a manual is driving in soft sand.
You cannot change gears without losing momentum.

Out of interest, what did you buy?

Bet i can change gears quicker than your auto

I like the manual but if i could get a 6 speed tiptronic box to go in the Lux i would

Only a soft roader would say that. You're dreamin.

LuxyBoy wrote:

RonMcGr wrote:

ellicat wrote:I asked someone this question about 6 months ago and they sent me to this thread. It's taken me since then to weigh up the pros and cons mentioned here to make up my mind.

I'm getting a manual.

Why ?....because it was $2K cheaper lol

It all depends on the vehicle.
I have an auto and think it is great.
Only real bug with a manual is driving in soft sand.
You cannot change gears without losing momentum.

Out of interest, what did you buy?

Bet i can change gears quicker than your auto

I like the manual but if i could get a 6 speed tiptronic box to go in the Lux i would

It would want to be a really "slick" manual
Any delay in soft sand = STOP!

LuxyBoy wrote:
Bet i can change gears quicker than your auto

Maybe, but can you keep drive at the wheels while you do it?

Why 6 speeds? are you trying to compensate for a massive lack of torque?

A TH400 with a gear vendors OD on the back of it will give you 6 speeds, a GV OD on, say, a toyota 4 speed auto would give you 8 speeds, or about 4 than you need if you have a reasonable power to weight ratio, mostly due to the flexibility of the torque converter.

Steve.

I reckon an auto cvt gearbox is the go... no gears... super steady revs just like a big rubber band when you give it gas...

Jeeps wrote:I reckon an auto cvt gearbox is the go... no gears... super steady revs just like a big rubber band when you give it gas...

Pull the drivetrain out of a modern tractor and you're already there.

CVT's are common, most have a clutch for fine movements (hitching implements etc) and have no problem working all day at slow speeds and high loads.

Gwagensteve wrote: Maybe, but can you keep drive at the wheels while you do it?

Was a joke.

Gwagensteve wrote: Why 6 speeds? are you trying to compensate for a massive lack of torque?

Lower revs on the highway

l prefer autos, but l have to, as the auto in my GQ just f@#$%d up, and now will cost me roughly 4 grand to fix. l better like it after this.

LPGQ4.2AUTO wrote:l prefer autos, but l have to, as the auto in my GQ just f@#$%d up, and now will cost me roughly 4 grand to fix. l better like it after this.

Why not put in a decent second hander .. I have seen em for sale for under $500 .. pop some new seals etc in it .. your still better off.

l am a bit wary about that. A cousin of mine put in a "good" second hander, and 2 days later she was cooked. lt was inspected before purchase by a auto specialist. Any way, my auto is now half way through being reco'ed, so it's too late now. At least it comes with a 3 year warranty.

LPGQ4.2AUTO wrote:l am a bit wary about that. A cousin of mine put in a "good" second hander, and 2 days later she was cooked. lt was inspected before purchase by a auto specialist. Any way, my auto is now half way through being reco'ed, so it's too late now. At least it comes with a 3 year warranty.

What brand of auto does the vehicle have?
4 grand is a lot of $$$$

LuxyBoy wrote:
Lower revs on the highway

The only real way to achieve that would be with a double overdrive 6 speed, such as the .05 OD on the GM 6 speed. Lets say you geared the car for maximum efficiency on the highway in the double OD 6th, then the rest of the ratios (especially 1st and probably 3rd) would be pretty useless.

I'm not being negative, but in a 4WD which has poor aerodynamics and high rolling resistance won't normally work with very tall highway gearing.

Of course you could look at a hollinger or something with totally custom gearset, but I seem to recall they have a 1:1 6th (no overdrive at all)

Steve.

4 grand does seem alot, but l rang 5 different auto places, and the prices varied between $3750 and $4100. The auto is nothing special, just a normal Nissan 4 speed in a GQ.