Manual or Steptronic?

[apass]

Thanks for the great information everyone. I was leaning towards the manual since most of my driving would be on the German Autobahn and only some city. I was kinda concerned about the resale value but I plan on driving this thing until the wheels fall off so I guess that won't be an issue. Unless of course the 2007 X3 comes with that 300BHP 3.0 twin turbo engine the 2007 BMW 335i has! But I guess that’s a topic for a whole other thread.

Oh and by the way I am a Department of Defense civilian employee serving over here with an Army unit. Thanks for the kind words!

Andy

[Technomage]

Manual all the way! I have an X5 in manual and its mad fun to drive, I agree with the others manual is deftly the way to go.

[MysticBlueX3]

Go w/ the Manual!

[PeterNYC]

I would have gone for the manual but, like some of those above, i live in a big city (New York City), and, sadly, a stick in bumper to bumper traffic is not a lot of fun, esp when it's 95 degrees out (we use the car more in the summer than any other time).

I think there's no question its superior (from a performance standpoint) and a hell of a lot more fun to drive.....Just depends on your usage, and whether you mind sitting with your foot on the clutch in first gear for an hour or so.

[MADT]

I went the Auto because thats all that is available here in Australia for the 3.0 Diesel. Its a six speed and a good one. Always owned manuals and am peased to now own an Auto. Its true about resale here too. In the petrol models you cant give a manual away if the auto is an option.

[Rick in Prescott]

The manual does sound like a lot of fun but the Autobahn wouldn't be a place where you could really use a manual transmission is it? Once in 6th gear I doubt you'd be going through the gears much, for that an Auto seems like it would work just as well. I see a manual tranny good for back road driving, with switch backs and the like. This is a place where a manual transmission really gets fun. Living where we do, a manual is a waste of time, unless you like living between 1st and 3rd, stop light to stop light. Enjoy your new ride. Not matter what you buy, you'll like it just fine.

[apass]

Yea, I guess going flat out on the Autobahn wouldn't bring out the full potential of the manual tranny. But I live in an area with some hills and there are some pretty fun back roads. Also I'll be making trips to Austria in the winter for some snowboarding. How does the manual handle in the snow? Would the automatic be better in snowy conditions?

Andy

[phuksi]

Originally Posted by apass

Yea, I guess going flat out on the Autobahn wouldn't bring out the full potential of the manual tranny. But I live in an area with some hills and there are some pretty fun back roads. Also I'll be making trips to Austria in the winter for some snowboarding. How does the manual handle in the snow? Would the automatic be better in snowy conditions?

Andy

In my opinion, with manual you will always have better control in snowy conditions. Steptronic does give some more options and helps a bit but is not the same as manual. Here are my observations based on mostly my previous manual cars and my current one and only (and the last) automatic X3.

Manual does not downshift unless you do it. That can sometimes make things confusing on slippery conditions with auto tranny when going up a hill or pulling a trailer etc. and suddenly it downshifts when you least expect it. X-drive in X3 helps a lot to get over this and not loose control.

You can control the car a lot better with just applying more or less gas because of not having a torque converter and the delay in transmitting the power.

Engine braking with manual is an advantage. You can use that when coming downhill and don't need to brake in corners to cut your speed etc. Steptronic does help a bit but not that much. Also I find downshifting with step be a bit harsh and not as smooth as with how I do it with manual.

Steptronic does not shift when you tell it to. It may rev another 1000 after you tell it to shift when accelerating. When using engine brake to slow down you cannot skip gears since it goes through every one and thinks for a while before the next move. With a manual I can shift from 6th to 3rd if I feel like it.

Conclusion... I just find manual more flexible to different situations and having better overall control. At the same time I also understand how frustrating a manual can be in a very heavy city traffic.

My vote: Manual. Maybe 20 years from now, automatic.

- p

[asawadude]

Originally Posted by accella4.4

And get home safely.

Ditto from me too! A safe journey to both apass and woods56.

Get the manual. My X5 4.4i is the only second automatic I've owned and I miss driving a stick whenever I'm driving in free flowing traffic. But 75% of my driving is in urban traffic so the automatic has been a blessing.

Hmm.. free flowing traffic = oxymoron?

[BruinMan]

Steptronic !!!!!!
Are you kidding me with the manuel stick. This is not a sedan and I also don't understand why you all think the Steptronic cannot be redlined. I think it is the best of both worlds. Who wants to shift with a cell phone or a sandwich?