One More Reason to Order Your Z06 With a Stick

Spoiler alert: a Stick is more fun, easier to maintain, and much, much cheaper.

There are a lot of reasons why you’d prefer a manual transmission in your sports car. While many high-performance automatics are capable of delivering faster lap times, many enthusiasts would still prefer the visceral experience of shifting their own gears. But there’s another reason you might prefer a manual transmission: the relative ease and cost of maintenance.

Short of routine clutch replacements, manual transmission tend to be fairly robust when cared for. And when they do fail, repairs and replacements are seldom as expensive as they are to more complicated automatic transmissions.

Typically, manual transmissions are standard equipment on sports cars, with the automatic as an extra-cost option. Automatic transmissions are pricey options, often costing more than some desirable option packages.

One more reason a manual transmission is preferred is economy. While many automatics can now deliver superior fuel economy to their manually-shifted brethren, some cars are still more efficient with a stick. One of those cars happens to be the 2017 Chevrolet Corvette Z06.

CHECK OUT: What Forum Members Are Saying About the Manual vs Automatic Debate

Many Corvette enthusiasts like to pass time by building their dream Corvette on Chevrolet’s online car configurator. As Corvette Forum member georgiadawgs discovered, adding the 8-speed, paddle-shifted automatic transmission — a $1,725 option — made the Z06 eligible for the $1,300 federal Gas Guzzler Tax. This means that if you want an automatic in your Z06 that badly, it’s going to cost you an eye-watering $3,025.

For the ultimate, hands-on, analog Corvette experience, we highly recommend a manual transmission. It’s a lot more fun, better for the environment (it’s hip to be green these days) and much easier on your wallet in both the short and long term. It seems like many of our forum members agree.

What transmission would you order with your new Z06? Check out the thread and add your thoughts!