[First Porsche]

Mod note: This is a general manual-or-auto question, so it was moved to the General Discussion Forum.
@718Admin and @Porsche2018 : We are in semi-desperate need for a transmission and/or drivetrain category in the Technical subforums. Please establish one as soon as is possible. I'll migrate transmission-related threads to that subforum after it is established. -- @Viffermike

I was looking for this topic in the sub-forums and didn't find it (I apologize if it exists already).

Still, would appreciate information on your experience with either or booth units. Our 2017 Cayman came with the standard transmission which I really like but there are times, like being trapped in Southern California traffic I which we had the PDK. In addition my wife is uncomfortable with the six and I want her to enjoy the drive of our 718 too. After all she is half-in on the payments...we bought it used w/6k miles.

Can the PDK be driven in a real sport fashion with the paddles similar to the up and down shifts you see in indy cars?

Thank you for any and all comments.

 

[Semitone]

Yes, but it is not as much fun as a manual, IMO, because you are not using your leg. It’ll be OK and sounds like a good choice given your traffic issues and wife’s preference.

 

[hkginlax]

I was looking for this topic in the sub-forums and didn't find it (I apologize if it exists already).

Still, would appreciate information on your experience with either or booth units. Our 2017 Cayman came with the standard transmission which I really like but there are times, like being trapped in Southern California traffic I which we had the PDK. In addition my wife is uncomfortable with the six and I want her to enjoy the drive of our 718 too. After all she is half-in on the payments...we bought it used w/6k miles.

Can the PDK be driven in a real sport fashion with the paddles similar to the up and down shifts you see in indy cars?

Thank you for any and all comments.

Hi OP, here is my take on this.

I, too, live in SoCal. My daily drive is also a 6MT.

First I think the PDK is not as "fun". It might have better performance but not as fun. But this is only my personal opinion.

As for the wife, I don't have the same problem since she loves 6MT (her daily was a Mustang GT in 6MT before we got married). She will not want to drive a 6MT everyday now but once awhile for fun, she's in. In fact, she was the one insist on the 6MT since our other car is already an autobox.

When comes to traffic, I don't know how bad is yours. I live in South Bay, and the commute is 25 miles each way; takes 35 mins in the morning but over an hour in the afternoon. The 6MT helps to keep me from falling to sleep during the afternoon drive. FYI, my daily has been 6MT for the last 30 years.

 

[GregW]

I drove manuals for 50+ years, interspersed with work cars that were automatics.

Due to knee issues I went with the PDK. It's NOT JUST an automatic, it feels and drives very different from non-double clutch versions.

I do admit that it is so good--changing its processing depending upon circumstances--that I have become lazy and rarely use the manual options, even on spirited drives. The manual over-ride does get used in passing situations and occasionally at other times.

 

[duegatti]

I find that wringing the motor's neck on the roads of east TN/west NC helps make the PDK fun. I like it. (Drove manuals for 38 years.) It's nice to keep your eyes on the road and hands upon the wheel.

 

[duegatti]

I was having fun in this picture:

 

[Baka1969]

It's purely a personal choice. Tons of fun will happen with both.

 

[First Porsche]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply!
I do see now that this question has been put out there before but your recent input is valuable to me.
The wife does have knee issues and mine feel the wear and tear of working heavy HVAC and other Critical Systems Equipment throughout my career.

I'm seriously thinking of a trade-in for the PDK for those reasons. I think the 718 Caymans/Boxters are really amazing in their own rite, not just a Porsche you buy because a $300,000 911 GT RS is a bit out of your price realm.

Thank you again for contributing your experience and opinions!!

 

[Michael1]

All my cars have manual transmissions, but I have driven the PDK. The PDK is well done, but it is not a substitute for the driver engagement you get with a manual in my opinion. I live in the LA area, so I am no stranger to traffic. As long as the traffic is not moving so slowly that I have to keep it in first gear and constantly clutch in and out to go slower than idle, I enjoy having a manual in traffic. It gives me something to do!

 

[Grasshopper]

The first thing to point out is that you get an extra gear with PDK. The first 6 PDK ratios seem to be the same close ratios as the 6MT but the PDK has the extra 7th speed which is MUCH higher than 6th. 6th gear on the 6MT (and PDK) give about 25mph/1000rpm while 7th gear gives about 35mph/1000rpm. That makes the car a much more relaxed cruiser. In the UK and Europe, where people tend to go down motorways at 80mph or more (much more on the Autobahns), this is pretty crucial. I'm not sure if it matters that much in speed restricted USA, but I don't know. Also 7th gear allows "coasting" which saves fuel.

The next thing is that the PDK is more than an auto. It can be used in full auto or full manual - or you can use it in auto mode and just override the selected gear with the paddles. And, in full manual mode, you can either change gear on the paddles or use the stick like a sequential gearbox (and Porsche have finally got the + and - the right way round in the 718).

After having used a dual clutch box (first in an Audi TT) I would never go back to manual.

 

[johan]

My 5 cents,


As @GregW says its not just an automatic.
I rarely drive in auto instead i am using the stick or the paddles.
The only thing i have to say against is that on the track or spirited driving and while down shifting/braking in to a curve you are getting more input from a manual.
At least I have used the input to get a feel for the car and how


So the PDK can be a bit clinical and its also way faster then a manual when you get to trust what the car is capable of!!
You can shift as you want in curves without the back end moves, it behaves nearly as sequential gear box.
And the seventh gear is the Best at highway speeds.

 

[timlaw]

You and your wife need to both test drive a PDK car

But be ready for the trade in costs

I have had 5 porsches with manual and 2 with pdk

Pdk all the way for me from now on

Like any auto on traffic - super smooth - and the fastest shifts on the paddles you will ever experience in sport and sport +

I’m biased but it is the best box I have ever used


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[aeronca65tl]

We have 5 manual transmission cars (three MGs, a Lotus 7 and an Austin sedan). Love them all.

I ordered our 2018 Cayman with PDK so my wife and I could have a sports coupe we could both enjoy (she's not a stick-shift driver and at our age, that ship has sailed).

Our 718 has nearly 6000 miles on it at this point. I am still playing with the PDK, trying to decide my personal preferences. But I'm finding it really a hoot! The PDK gives you a lot of choices. Anything from mellow to balls-out racer. One of my endurance-racing buddies says they race their PDK Porsche in "Auto/Sport" mode rather than manual. It's faster and easier on the driver over longer races.

The PDK is fully controllable manually for gears when driving, but say, if you're driving in Manual and leave it in 5th gear and then come to a halt, it will automatically drop to 1st (so that's different than a manual.....but not really in a bad way).

If we buy another new Porsche, it will be PDK.

 

[TheLip]

I, too, live in SoCal. My daily drive is also a 6MT.

Good to know I am not the only one here in SoCal. I live in the Valley and commute daily to the Westside. Since 1986 my DD has always been a manual transmission.

I have written on this topic before. While it sounds pretentious, I honestly feel disconnected from the car (any car) if it doesn't have a manual transmission. That being said, I gained a new-found respect for the PDK when I had one as a loaner while my 718C was in the shop some months ago. Drive mellow and it is mellow, with lethargic shifts. Drive hard and the shifts become lightning quick. And having 7 gears made cruising at freeway speed a bit more pleasant as the revs were down about 500 from my 6MT.

But... As good as the PDK was, there was that extra level of driver involvement that was missing. Flapping the paddles is nothing compared to the engagement demanded (and rewarded) by shifting a manual transmission. And, frankly, the PDK did such a good job that I found using the paddles to be more bother that they were worth so the vast majority of the time I let it do the shifting.

Objective numbers say the PDK is better. For me, when it comes to the subjective elements that make you feel as one with the car, the PDK is no match for the manual transmission. And, for me, at least, I will gladly put up with driving my 6MT in heavy LA traffic so that I can always feel that engagement.

 

[Third]

Rush hour traffic jams drove me to trade my MT Cayman for PDK. I'll NEVER go back. I would argue that PDK is every bit as fun if not more so when you have open road in front of you, and can't be compared when stuck in traffic.

 

[Veets]

My first Cayman was a MT, and even in the parking lots they call roads here in Chicago, I never minded shifting. All of my previous cars were manuals too, up until my 981 Boxster, when I finally made the switch to PDK. There was no going back for me and my 718 has a PDK too. My children, who I taught to drive manuals, told me that I'm just getting old, which is of course true. I had driven manuals for so many years that it took me a long while to realize that shifting was taking some of the enjoyment out of driving for me.

The PDK is great. It always seems to pick the right gear, and lets me focus more on the rest of my driving. It also makes the car a great daily driver in the never ending traffic we have here. But I won't tell you that it's as involving as a manual, and I still wish my 718 had one on those days I'm on the right road. My advice to you and your wife would be to just drive your manual Cayman until shifting get's in the way of enjoying it. Then you will know it's time to make the switch.

 

[jungspike]

I was torn PDK vs Manual. I just got a PDK. I have had the wife FOREVER. LoL. My wife loves driving the car with PDK (she is manual literate and drives my 84 911), but I am sure she is so much happier with PDK.

The PDK is amazing. For example, you punch it at 40 mph to 60. When at 60, it doesn't up-shift and let revs fall off like an auto would. It knows you are in an aggressive mode. It will stay in second gear around 5k--ready for your next command...it is excited to get to play. After another couple seconds, it will up-shift, still kinda ready, but saying, "Awww, are you done?" It is disappointed you don't want to play anymore. Hard breaking is equally amazing how it keeps the right gear for the situation and you aggressive level. I'm joking around, but you will be amazed how it can read your mind/mood.

I drive 35 miles each way--love the PDK.

Tim

 

[Grasshopper]

I remember someone saying that the manual gear stick was your "connection to the soul of the car" - or something similarly pretentious. I don't really agree. I remember on my first cars - which mainly had no synchro on first gear and precious little left on any of the other gears - there was a certain satisfaction to be had by successfully negotiating the gearbox smoothly without crunching by clever use of double-declutching and heel-and-toeing. And I still do that on my '67 TR4A. But I think that's basically the nice feeling you get after doing something that's quite difficult - rather than fun. Doing something that's difficult is rewarding in a way that doing something easy is not - I get a lot more satisfaction from playing classical guitar which is technically demanding than playing electric, which is not.

However driving a modern manual car with a decent gearchange - and the Porsche has one of the best - is NOT difficult, especially if the car does the throttle blipping for you too. It's just a chore in my opinion. Keeping the car in the right gear when there are 6 of them is too much like hard work for me now.

 

[GregW]

In addition to that (above--to which I basically agree) is that when driving spiritedly the next gear up or down comes up just so fast! Great brakes and acceleration are something my old manual cars just didn't have.

(And of course I've gotten older and lazier over the years.0)

 

[duegatti]

Whatever sensations of driver engagement I've lost with the PDK, I make up for by using hand signals instead of my directionals.