Need Help in picking between these 2 lease deals.

[Z4coupe]

In my previous post I mentioned one car I had in front of me, here it is:

#1 2009 Z4 3.5I Almost fully loaded MSRP 61475.00. Lease of 2000 down ,548.56 a month taxes and all. Plus they are taking my 07 lease and paying off the last 5 months and terminating the lease early. Every option except nav and steptronic 7 speed. Saphire black, on black with kansas leather and aluminum trim.

#2 2009 z4 3.5I Same as above except 2 differences, this has the 7 speed auto, plus it is cheaper per month 528.73. Same out of pocket and everthing. Just gotta travel a bit to get it.

The one issue I have is the 7 speed auto, no nothing about it, there are none, when i say none locally to drive to try it, closest one is a M3, about 2 hour drive away, not even a Z4 with the smg, so kinda no comparison. Im interested in it the more i read about it, like the launch control and such, plus no more shifting with a clutch. Anyone here gone from a 6 speed to this transmission? Just would like as much feedback and opinions on my dilemma. I wanted to close this deal within the next week or so. Thanks

[flpnout]

My car is scheduled to dock on 10/16 and hope to have it the following week. After driving the DCT several times, I opted for a manual since my last car was an M roadster and prefer the traditional shifting as it seems more engaging and fun having more control meshing through the gears yourself, IMO. I almost order DCT, as matter of fact I did in the begin when it first came out and I backed out when the car arrived. I'm just a manual purist. And if that is what you are used to, then stick with it. I regretted having an auto when I had a 135. That car only lasted me 8 months and then it ended up on swap-a-lease. Then again DCT is what most people are drawn to. Good luck on your final decision.

[TopDown]

I've been a manual purist forever, until I test drove an E93 M3 w/ DCT at a recent M-Power Tour event. The DCT is not only the first non-manual transmission I would be willing to drive, I actually preferred it over manual!

If the DCT in the E89 Z4 is a as good as in the E93 M3, then I would consider your second option.

[Z4coupe]

Thanks for the replys. You see I drive my Tahoe just for work and such. This is the only automatic I have, when I first heard automatic, i thought, slushbox. I drove the earlier Z4s with the auto, and that was definatly a nogo. But it seem that is not the case with the dct. Everyone keeps telling me when I say automatic, "its not an automatic'. Thing was when I test drove the 3.5i I felt the 6 speed and clutch system wasnt as smooth as my Si. Idk, i was getting a little tired of the shifting in my Si, maybe its my age now I never thought like this 10 years ago.

So what is the biggest benifit to the dct ? The biggests downfall?

[teagueAMX]

Originally Posted by Z4coupe

So what is the biggest benifit to the dct ? The biggests downfall?

Technically it's an automatic because it shifts for you "automatically". The problem is people who would traditionally not get an automatic for the reasons you mentioned, are confused by the word automatic so they have to call it something else.

Frankly, I don’t see a downside to the DCT, and there are many pluses to the DCT.

One of the biggest is fuel economy because you’ve eliminated the automatic transmission torque converter, which was implemented as an alternative clutch. The problem with a torque converter is that relies on the force of fluid dynamics for motive i.e., the internal force of fluid is used to cause another part of the transmission to move – there is no direct link, except with some transmissions have a 1:1 overdrive lock up function , but this is a very weak element. The bottom line: torque converter’s efficiency rating is well below a hundred percent, and that's the 1st part of the transmission that controls engine at the “flywheel”.

The other inefficient aspect of the automatic transmission is there are no directly connected gears like a manual transmission – it uses multiple friction disc packs within the transmission to transfer torque. When the car is new and everything is pretty much within manufacture’s specs, this is not a major problem. However, there is some small amount of slippage (i.e., less than total torque get to your rear wheels) and it increases slightly as time goes by.

This is not to say automatic transmissions are bad or other types of transmissions able to transfer 100 percent of torque to the rear wheels. No machine can do that because of friction, inertia, etc. However, when you compare an automatic to a manual transmission, the efficiency of a manual transmission is superior, but slightly less convenient for many people.

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...ed=0CB8Q9QEwAw

Transmission basics
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...ed=0CCEQ9QEwBA

Although, as noted, the DCT is an “automatic”, its underlying technology is very similar to a traditional manual transmission. It has a direct 1:1 clutch at the “flywheel” and it has very efficiency gears assemblies that transfers a high percentage of the engine’s total torque to the rear wheels. A DCT can be made incredibly strong as well, as the one used I the Bugatti Veyron with 1001 horsepower.

You can see from this wiki that a lot of manufactures are jumping on the band wagon and for good reason.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin-clutch_gearbox