solomonschris

The 997 never seemed "happy" to me leaving it in manual so I got into the habit I described. I will try leaving it in manual with the new car and post my impressions

Abby Normal

You considering the new GT3 when it comes out? It will be interesting to see if the PDK is offered. With the FIA keeping it ruled out of racing, I have to wonder if they will make it available in the GT3 or not.

Tacet-Conundrum

PDK and I'm 38. Still would have chosen the auto in my youth due to living in and around LA and Orange county. Personally I don't want to dart around with a clutch at 5:30pm driving up the 405! It gets tiresome.

pedsurg

SKINZY: I think you're probably correct:

Older (in mind) = auto tranny
Younger (at heart) = manny tranny

fast1

Actually interchanging the terms PDK and automatic is confusing to me because Porsche still offers automatics. So when dealers advertise a car as an automatic, I'm not certain if it is PDK, certainly an acceptable option for me or a true automatic which I wouldn't want.
When I first saw the question about age and transmission choice, I expected that the older guys like me would opt for the MT out of habit, whereas the younger guys would opt for PDK. Since I live in the country I opt for MT, but if I lived in the city I'd order a PDK which offers the best of both worlds. Interestingly enough my wife insisted on a MT for the S5 which I ordered for her in February, even though she commutes to the city each day. We are both in our 60s.

tgcrun

38? You ARE in your youth!

Mike in CA

I have a deposit down, and am anxiously awaiting more details. I think I could be happy with either a PDK or MT. I'd like it to be my choice, though, not Porsche's.

Yeah, the Cayenne still uses a conventional automatic (Tiptronic); all the other cars in the line are available with PDK as I'm sure you know. One of the reasons I bristle a bit when people call PDK an "automatic" is that there is such a difference between the traditional automatic Tip in my Cayenne and the PDK in my Carrera. Calling them both automatics doesn't seem to do that difference justice.

As a fellow "older guy" I was married to MT's too. It was a big change for me to switch to PDK. I still love MT's, but I've really enjoyed the PDK. There's usually no one factor why people buy one car over another and it's was the same for me in choosing a transmission. Trying to boil it down to one thing like age is never going to capture the reasoning or preferences behind the choice, IMO.

chuckbdc

Mike, the true qualifier for insight into the transmission debate, is if you had to have a manual changer on your turntable. If you know what I mean then you are indeed a "fellow older guy".

parkerfe

Driving an automatic PDK Porsche is like paying a gigolo to have sex with your wife, while the gigolo may do a better job that you, it's still more fun to do it yourself.

mikegee

I have been fortunate to own ten porsches in my time, and at 65, I have just ordered a PDK Cab. I cannot tell you how nervous I have been over this choice. The cars build date is in two weeks, and I have picked up the phone at least a dozen times to change back to MT. My Bride tells me that in the off chance this is my last porsche I should keep the pdk. I may intellectually agree, but I ain't feelin it

mike

SSST

With all due respect to your bride, I would tell you that on the off chance this is your last Porsche, you should get the MT.

parkerfe

After decades of MT DD cars, my last DD was an Audi S5 Cab with what is considered an excellent 7 speed dual-clutch system. However, I grew tired of it in only a few months. That's why my new 992s has a MT, not PDK. Even in heavy Atlanta rush hour traffic on my 21 mile, 1 hour one-way commute 5 days a week, I still refer a three pedal manual to an automatic.

Mike in CA

LOL! My first table was a hand me down Garrard automatic from my Dad, which correlates to the hand me down '61 Plymouth 318 V8 with Torqueflite he also gave me for my very first car. After that it was all manual cars until my Carrera S PDK. As for turntables, I still own the AR-XA turntable that I bought new in 1969 as well as a Dual 701 from the mid '70's and a B&O RX-2 from the '80's. That's one full manual and 2 semi-manuals. I do know what you mean, even if I currently own a PDK! I've owned enough manual cars over the last 45 years that I can experience something new in PDK without feeling like I'm missing out or have abandoned my MT past....

solomonschris

My new SCab PDK is still quite new to me. I have driven it enough to see the PDK is a step up from my 997.2 PDK. It also occurs to me that, just as there are skills to learn with a manual transmission, there are also skills and techniques to learn with the PDK. Each transmission requires a certain amount of skill to extract the most benefit. In the case of the PDK you can choose to involve yourself or not. In the case of the manual, there is no such choice. If you have a manual you must get adept at shifting, taking off from hills, being careful not to downshift into a gear while going too fast (something I worry about with my 993TT). With PDK you don't have to get adept at anything. If you do decide to master it's possibilities, I think the rewards are substantial, but it is up to you. My 997 PDK never got me interested because I never felt we were on the same team so to speak. This new car seems much more exciting and involving in a way the 997 never did. With all that said, it's still new, cost me a bunch of dough so I want to believe I did the right thing, and time will tell. When you see my 993TT for sale you will know it has won my heart. One thing for sure is that it has a tough act to follow.....Chris

dochusar

I have read this debate with interest. My 991 is scheduled to be built in the next couple of weeks. It is a PDK. The only reason that it is not a manual, because I have had three surgeries on my left knee and I can no longer fully depress the clutch, even in the Carerra. Drove a GT3 with interest but that clutch is much more painful than the base. I guess I will have to settle for a PDK and use paddle shifters. I opted for SC.