Transmission remorse; thinking of trading in

HotBoxer · Dec 2, 2016

I've owned my 2013 LTZ Automatic for one month now. Fantastic car, all the nice features like leather seats and sunroof, etc. Love everything about it, except one thing. The transmission.

I got the "autotragic" trans. At the time I didn't even put much thought into it. My previous car was an automatic. The six speed 6T40 seemed like a nice upgrade. In the month I've been driving it however, I haven't been impressed. The 6T40 is clunky, inefficient, it shakes and stutters, and the gear ratios are all wrong.

I'm feeling remorse. I'm a guy who loves cars, loves working on them, maintaining them, driving them. I am fully capable of driving manual. The manual trans gets better mileage, better performance, and is lighter.

I went to my local GM dealership and explained all this to a sales rep. He is going to see if he can find me a 2014 or 2015 LTZ with manual trans (the 2016 doesn't have manual, and the 2017 Premier Manual isn't available in my country).

Am I doing the right thing? I had many mod ideas for this car but I've put all that on hold now because I am sad about the trans. It's not like I can just swap the 6T40 for an M32. Trading in for a different Sonic is the only way.

I'd appreciate any feedback, advice, consolation, etc. Anyone who has experience with both automatics and manuals. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks guys.

Stew · Dec 2, 2016

If the automatic is that much of an issue for you then trading to a manual is what you should do IMHO. Otherwise every time you get behind the wheel you are going to dislike your car and be regretful, you don't want to have those feeling for the next how many ever years you're going to have your car.

It sucks if you'll take a hit money-wise but it sounds like it may be worth it in your case.

mja · Dec 2, 2016

The 6T40 can take more abuse and much more power in stock form than the M32.

The previous owner to my car wanted an auto so he didn't have to clutch a million times a day on a commute.

Check out Turbo II build thread, still a sweet ride. There are benefits to the auto.

But if you want high MPG's, manual is the way to go. I'm at 48mpg this tank so far.

HotBoxer · Dec 2, 2016

mja said:
The 6T40 can take more abuse and much more power in stock form than the M32.

The previous owner to my car wanted an auto so he didn't have to clutch a million times a day on a commute.

Check out Turbo II build thread, still a sweet ride. There are benefits to the auto.

But if you want high MPG's, manual is the way to go. I'm at 48mpg this tank so far.

I think MPG is most important to me. I drive in heavy traffic sometimes, but not every single day.

How well does the M32 creep along in first gear with the clutch raised? I know some cars will buck and stall in first if you go too slow, but others can creep along fairly well.

mja · Dec 3, 2016

M32 creeps along well in the LT/LTZ.

1st gear for the RS would be too creepy for me.

https://youtu.be/8OZhw-aQTP8

It's going to buck because of the short wheelbase, but it's aight. Stalling is all on the driver.

Stew · Dec 3, 2016

HotBoxer said:
I think MPG is most important to me. I drive in heavy traffic sometimes, but not every single day.

How well does the M32 creep along in first gear with the clutch raised? I know some cars will buck and stall in first if you go too slow, but others can creep along fairly well.

My non-RS manual creeps along at 3 mph in 1st, but I tuned out the automatic raising of the idle with HP Tuners, so I can idle along at 800 or 900 rpm.

JesusTheAgnostic · Dec 3, 2016

My 2012 LT with the 6spd will creep forward at around 4 or 5 mph with the clutch out. It does buck a lot though if you give it a little gas and then let off. Otherwise you can make it do whatever you want with the clutch in.

HotBoxer · Dec 4, 2016

Stew said:
My non-RS manual creeps along at 3 mph in 1st, but I tuned out the automatic raising of the idle with HP Tuners, so I can idle along at 800 or 900 rpm.

JesusTheAgnostic said:
My 2012 LT with the 6spd will creep forward at around 4 or 5 mph with the clutch out. It does buck a lot though if you give it a little gas and then let off. Otherwise you can make it do whatever you want with the clutch in.

Can you release the clutch in first gear at idle RPM without stalling? Or do you need to give it gas?

Stew · Dec 5, 2016

HotBoxer said:
Can you release the clutch in first gear at idle RPM without stalling? Or do you need to give it gas?

Yep I still can on level ground and maybe a slight incline. When I'm in real heavy traffic that's how I normally let the clutch out, no need in raising the rpm up and wearing the clutch out faster if you don't need to.

HotBoxer · Dec 5, 2016

Stew said:
Yep I still can on level ground and maybe a slight incline. When I'm in real heavy traffic that's how I normally let the clutch out, no need in raising the rpm up and wearing the clutch out faster if you don't need to.

That's great. I'm looking forward to trying out the manual trans.

Hopefully my dealer can find me an LTZ with manual. They are kind of rare compared to LTs. I will lose some money on the trade but I think it will be worth it.

Sailurman · Dec 7, 2016

Love my Sonic, Love it even more with the Trifecta Tune (Engine and Trans). Beautiful shifting with the Tune and the Turbo Tune Power Gains are literally breathtaking coming from this little econobox. That's what is important to remember, IT'S AN ECONOBOX!!!

http://www.sonicownersforum.com/forum/trifecta/15743-trifecta-presents-chevy-sonic-1-4t-my2012-2015-powertrain-calibration-reprogramming.html

pbkn1p · Dec 7, 2016

My last car was an automatic. A 2nd gen CR-V. So I wanted to change to manual. I've had a few in the past and missed it. With that said the auto is pretty good from what I've read on here.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-J320AZ using Tapatalk

JesusTheAgnostic · Dec 8, 2016

You can release it at idle, slowly. Don't dump it. If you ever feel it a good idea to just take your foot of the clutch in this car you're gonna have a bad time :| It slams downward. It's ridiculous. You have to get used to the fact that the car wants you to either give it a little gas when changing gears or release the clutch slowly, depending on which gear you're going into.

Lazza · Dec 8, 2016

My dealer was able to find locate an LTZ manual in Florida but there only seemed to a few available at the time. I will say operationally the manual works extremely well; it is a good vehicle for a stick shift newbie to learn with. However my frustration has to do with driving a manual in stop-go traffic, and the gear ratios seem too tightly spaced (3rd to 5th). Otherwise it's a lot of fun and it is mated well with the turbo engine.

My experience with an automatic Sonic was when I went on a test drive in a 1.8L Sonic. I didn't like it the experience one bit.

_Lazza

Wooksquatch · Dec 8, 2016

What about the manual mode on the automatic trans have you tried that as a solution gives you more control to keep it in the gear you want at low speeds or stop and go traffic. I hear that a tune can make the transmission better on an automatic too. I am about to find out as soon as I get my tune back from bnr.

HotBoxer · Dec 8, 2016

Lazza said:
My dealer was able to find locate an LTZ manual in Florida but there only seemed to a few available at the time. I will say operationally the manual works extremely well; it is a good vehicle for a stick shift newbie to learn with. However my frustration has to do with driving a manual in stop-go traffic, and the gear ratios seem too tightly spaced (3rd to 5th). Otherwise it's a lot of fun and it is mated well with the turbo engine.

My experience with an automatic Sonic was when I went on a test drive in a 1.8L Sonic. I didn't like it the experience one bit.

_Lazza

The gear ratios are even worse in the automatic. More acceleration at lower speeds, but the 6th gear which is supposed to be for the highway is not tall enough. I wish auto makers would learn that the final gear needs to be tall for highway cruising. 3rd and 4th gear are also fairly useless.

Wooksquatch said:
What about the manual mode on the automatic trans have you tried that as a solution gives you more control to keep it in the gear you want at low speeds or stop and go traffic. I hear that a tune can make the transmission better on an automatic too. I am about to find out as soon as I get my tune back from bnr.

I use the manual mode on my automatic 99% of the time. It still does not have the nice gear ratios that the manual has, and the DFCO takes twice as long to kick in.

$ub$onic · Dec 8, 2016

my 3rd sonic has a M32 mz0 out of a 1.8 Cruze, at 70mph I run 3k rpm and still get 40mpg hehe

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JesusTheAgnostic · Dec 13, 2016

$ub$onic said:
my 3rd sonic has a M32 mz0 out of a 1.8 Cruze, at 70mph I run 3k rpm and still get 40mpg hehe

Sent from my S60 using Tapatalk

How though? o: At 70 MPH I'm at like 2k RPM I think, and I get like 30 MPG.

Putzo · Dec 13, 2016

I say you just bite the bullet and get a manual car if you know driving stick is what you want. I have a stick and know how much more enjoyable it can be. A car is a large enough purchase and typically something you use everyday, so I think its important to have a car you really enjoy driving and take pride in owning. You may be kicking yourself now, but I garuntee you won't regret having a manual once you find one. (assuming that you can afford any depreciation from trade in, or any increase in payments, etc)

It will make for a funny story in a few years and you will look back at it and laugh.

pbkn1p · Dec 13, 2016

Putzo said:
I say you just bite the bullet and get a manual car if you know driving stick is what you want. I have a stick and know how much more enjoyable it can be. A car is a large enough purchase and typically something you use everyday, so I think its important to have a car you really enjoy driving and take pride in owning. You may be kicking yourself now, but I garuntee you won't regret having a manual once you find one. (assuming that you can afford any depreciation from trade in, or any increase in payments, etc)

It will make for a funny story in a few years and you will look back at it and laugh.

I agree

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Transmission remorse; thinking of trading in

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