This is another reason why non-racing Ferraris should have manual gearboxes.

This is awesome news. Everyone i know with a porsche/bmw/ even ferrari f1 dont even use the paddles to change gears. They leave it in auto only mode. So why even bother with paddles.

Have an automatic or a real manual.

 

I find that very hard to believe...

 

Really? Even on my Tiptronic Cayenne, I use the toggles to shift up or down.

 

He is right about a large number of people just leaving in full auto.

And this was a while ago (and cayman and boxster owners are more likely to be in manual mode than others imho)...

PDK Owners - Auto, Stick or Paddles?

 

I can't speak for the DCTs, which have a decent AUTO mode, but you will hardly find anyone using F1 in AUTO mode - it is flat out awful. When my 612 was delivered to me, I thought there was something wrong with the car, until I noticed the barely visible "AUTO" red indicator. Switched it off and car was several orders better.

 

Tiptronic is a true automatic - it comes with a torque converter.

F1, PDK, and DCTs are semi-autos, since they have an actual clutch (or 2).

 

It appears We have some that have seen the same as I and others that have not. My generalization is based off my experiences so could be 100% inaccurate but my sample size is fairly large. Again, it's just what ive observed.

 

If all the owner cares about is image/status, he/she won't ever touch the paddles. Sad, but unfortunately I think that's the world we live in now

 

Actually, we are heading towards self-driving vehicles. Like it or not.

Once the technology is viable and considering the carnage on the roads today, it will take the government a millisecond to decide to take away the freedom to drive on your own.

Scary.

 

Yep

Personally I still think we're a long way off from having autonomous cars. The current infrastructure doesn't really suit it, and updating it so that we have smart stoplights/intersections and other features will be crazy expensive.

Also, many current cars will have to be scrapped (probably the only ones from the current automotive landscape that survive would be vehicles that already have autonomous capabilities like the current S-Class, Model S, etc), so the former owners would either have to buy new autonomous cars or the government will have to give them away (more expense). And to expand on this, what will happen to the automotive market? I would think that going fully autonomous would be crushing for the world economy....how would different autonomous cars compare? Less of a propensity to crash? It would narrow the market down to just a handful of brands, which would result in lots of people losing their jobs worldwide.

Plus....there's still the worry about vulnerability to hacking. A freaking 14 year old hacked a car using $15 worth of parts from Radio Shack. Are we supposed to believe this technology is bulletproof, er, I mean hackerproof? I read somewhere that only the vast minority of Americans would feel safe (from hacks) in autonomous cars.

Or we could just take driving seriously, teach people how to operate a car in the first place, and ban phone usage by the driver (except in emergencies). But I guess none of that would be acceptable in the grand scheme of total control :/

 

You're right about a lot of that but I think we are going to see cars with full autonomous modes within the next 7 years and is possible within 15 years we will see specific lanes on the highway for cars that are operated in autonomous mode.

All of the automation we are seeing and will see ultimately means less jobs for those without a college education. 3D printing will put tremendous pressure on countries whose economies rely on low priced labor. The world is going to be a harder place to find work and the work that can be found will result in less pay.

So we're going to be safer but with less employment than today.

 

I cant see 100% driverless cars in less than 15 years. In fact i think the absolute minimum is 25 years due to various reasons.

 

http://youtu.be/-E_O4XVxT6Q

 

Given how inattentive, stupid unskilled and clueless drivers are these days, I cant wait for autonomous cars. At this point people are already relying on their cars to beep warning, automaticaly stop vibrate when drifting from lanes etc, there is very little atention being paid to driving, way less than before. The average Us rive today couldnt drive a car from the 60s around the block without crashing, in fact they probably couldnt even get it started.

So at this point automation is going to save the rest of who still really drive from being killed.

 

Exactly. We basically hand a drivers licence to nearly every 16 yo with a heart beat and it's good until they're a hundred and six! No real driving ability required and no follow up testing either.

Then the same governmental agencies are aghast at that rate of highway fatalities.

You don't need to be a rocket surgeon to figure out how to make our highways safer, and
it doesn't involve self driving cars!

 

The Government policy is to let any idiot drive, with little or no training. Then apply a speed limit to increase survivability when the inevitable happens.

This policy has resulted in a driver who can't drive and is highly discourteous to other drivers. Along with nearly 40,000 deaths EVERY YEAR and several orders more injuries. Not even wars we've been in causes the much carnage - and this happens every year.

Source: Road Crash Statistics

 

Unfortunately, I think the "driving is a right, not a privilege" mindset has largely permeated the minds of most drivers....

Speed doesn't kill. Rapid deceleration kills. I hate having to obey a 55 mph speed limit on I-77.

 

Actually, self driven vehicles are merely another step towards the REAL goal.

Too many people, ELOI, are content to have the government supply ALL their needs.

The government, MORLOCKS, will willingly supply those needs.

That's where we're headed, my friends.

 

I'm more concerned about all the Baby Boomers aging than the teens. Talk about a large group of people who shouldn't be driving - how many seniors have driven through storefronts or run over a group of school children waiting for a bus? There's a huge need for autonomous cars right there.

 

I know I'm late to the party, and it seems the thread already drifted beyond the OPs assertion. Ferrari is still a business and has to sell cars after all (especially now they are public) Follow the market, most people are not demanding stick, if so - Ferrari would make them. Ferrari, like all other hypercar manufacturers, are simply following the market.

As for being 'fake' or 'not real' etc...really 95% of the time you'll be driving on regular roads where you'll be stupid and irresponsible to drive at the limit. As other said here, the true measure of skill is not just able to row gears, but to control the car without a computer as your nanny.

If somebody wants to measure their driver skill against others, you have the very expensive Corsa Cliente or the relatively reasonable SCCA - both which are open to the public or with clients with the money. Nobody is stopping anybody from proving their driving chops on the track.

Stick nowadays is a mostly for the visceral qualitative pleasure it gives. Today in regards speed/performance automatic is the only choice if that is your main priority; which happen to be the vast majority of the customers - the fact that is also more convenient and allows it to be drivable by all - is just added additional benefit.

You get a stick for the same reason you would get a convertible, turn off TC and oversteer slightly install a radio/AC, it's to enjoy some performance sapping qualities in exchange for the visceral components of the driving experience. It doesn't make you 'real' or 'fake' - it's silly and dangerous to drive at the limit on everyday roads. You want to be 'real' - take it to the track and start getting ranked by SCCA or Corsa Cliente. Nobody there cares if you got a manual or automatic - what they care about is your lap time. Do you think people are calling out Hamilton because he's not rowing gears like the good old days?

 

I have no idea what youre saying. Please elaborate

 

My take is he fears that driving will only become legal through a regulated self-driving car paradigm.

I don't think this is entirely far fetched say in 50 years. Driving on your own would probably be only allowed in certain segregated areas in the name of safety and efficiency (which would be true as well)...thank goodness if this does come to fruition - it would hurt future enthusiasts and probably not me... (though I do weep for future enthusiats)

As far as other claims of government over-reach, I make no comment.

 

Insurance companies will charge a fortune for drivers who want to go the high-risk path -- i.e., driving themselves. That's probably going to be the deciding factor. Having an accident with the autopilot switched off? Probably a major dent in your insurance budget.

Government forced seat belts and crumple zones, but is way behind on this. We're still using infrastructure designed in the 1950s.

This. Driving on the I-5 nearly every week out here is terrifying. I sometimes wish cars had all the safety features of the 1950s so people would be less casual and more focused when driving.

Agree, although Hamilton isn't driving an "automatic" when he's on the track. The average driver on the road probably doesn't understand the difference between a slushbox and a DCT, or a carburetor and fuel injection. But anyone into driving as a sport or hobby should.

But overall, yes, if you want to go slower and consume more fuel, go with a three-pedal manual or automatic. For speed, DCT.

 

If I had the money and got into SCCA events, my car would be equipped with an automated transmission. Even though I'm a manual guy, I am not going to deny that my lap times would suffer quite a bit if I refused to go to a DCT, and if speed is the ultimate objective, DCT is the way to go.

However...I think it's a bit ridiculous to opt for a DCT in a road-going car just because it shifts faster. It's not like your grocery store is going to post the trip times of all of their customers inside their front door. If anyone on the site comes forwards and proves that they competitively race their road-going cars, I will take that statement back, but to argue for absolute performance over a more involving driving experience when all you're doing is ripping up the back roads is a bit of a double-negative in my opinion (the argument is for absolute performance, but the reality is that the car is only being flogged around on back roads for fun).

 

I've owned many three-pedal manuals, two DCTs, and several automatics. I don't think they're any less engaging or fun on account of the gearbox. (I DO think modern cars are less visceral, but mostly because they're climate-controlled cocoons with synthesized exhaust sounds, and way too large.) It's just a different experience.