Carpokes Porsche Forum

I've been looking at a few cars to add to my garage. Everything seems to have a DCT of some sort. I have driven torque converter transmissions with paddles and found them underwhelming. I have never driven a DCT. Anyone make the transition to a DCT? Did you find paddles satisfying as a manual? Do you just put in in auto and just use it that way?

grazie

Porsche's PDK is pretty good, and I'd say a much more engaging than an automatic with paddles. Certainly much faster at everything than any other form of transmission. I'd say go drive a few and see what you think. Nothing can replace the fun and engagement of a true manual for me, but the PDK is a worthy alternative. I drive mine like an automatic at times, and like a manual at times -- just depends on the circumstances. On the fun factor scale, if an auto is 0 and a manual is 10, I'd put the PDK at maybe 5 or 6. From a performance perspective, the PDK makes all cars and all drivers faster. But it's kind of like picking a favorite color -- everyone will have their own unique opinion.


Edit: by the way, my comments are about the porsche PDK. I've driven some other cars with dual clutch transmissions that were super clunky and in the way, including an early M3. I'm sure all of them have improved over the years, but if you are looking at earlier versions of the DCT definitely drive the car in question. Not all DCT's are equal, by a long shot!

I was not impressed by the early versions of PDK on the 991 but in current cars it is ultra quick in my experience. I tend to use the paddles on track with the RS cars but in heavy traffic I just leave it in auto. Of course it is not as engaging as a traditional stick shift but it is much better than a conventional auto.

I have always raced with a manual and had fun teaching students the fine art of heel and toe downshifting, but finally deciding to get a GTS with the PDK ( it is 1/2 second faster to 60 mph ) was the wisest choice I made. Doing Time Trials I knew the extra time gained on a 2 mile road course would add up quickly. What surprised me was the insane ability of the transmission to adjust to my driving style, downshift when needed and to be lighting quick. Stick it in Drive and " Hammer Time!" In Sport Plus if you want to shift up and down it is engaging too, with very solid engagement with a feeling of authority. For a " Die Hard " manual aficionado it was a tough step to take , but I jumped off the cliff and the fall had a soft landing --- PDK is simply " Pretty Damn Kool !!"

Agree with all comments above. I absolutely love Porsche's PDK both on street and on track. Like Willy, I was adept at heel & toe. (Actually for me, left top side of right foot rolling over to right top side of right foot ). This was on track in the Corvette which was awesome sounding with the big V-8 race motor if one could carry out the shifting correctly. (Do great sounding heel-toe shifts improve lap times? )

But, no matter how good one is at manual shifting, it won't be as good or fast as PDK.

WillyDaP wrote: Thu Jun 05, 2025 8:44 am I have always raced with a manual and had fun teaching students the fine art of heel and toe downshifting, but finally deciding to get a GTS with the PDK ( it is 1/2 second faster to 60 mph ) was the wisest choice I made. Doing Time Trials I knew the extra time gained on a 2 mile road course would add up quickly. What surprised me was the insane ability of the transmission to adjust to my driving style, downshift when needed and to be lighting quick. Stick it in Drive and " Hammer Time!" In Sport Plus if you want to shift up and down it is engaging too, with very solid engagement with a feeling of authority. For a " Die Hard " manual aficionado it was a tough step to take , but I jumped off the cliff and the fall had a soft landing --- PDK is simply " Pretty Damn Kool !!"

Nice, my TT had a 6 SP S-Tronic (DSG), so I expected the PDK to be even better, It is.

Would love to still have a manual in garage too

Thankfully I do still have a manual in the garage, ha!

I test drove the car with the DCT this morning. The auto function is a bit uneventful. In manual mode my little brain seemed to adapt fairly well. Hopefully when the deal goes through, I will be able to work on it here. Thanks for all the responses.

Stormy_Monday wrote: Sat Jun 21, 2025 4:57 pm I test drove the car with the DCT this morning. The auto function is a bit uneventful. In manual mode my little brain seemed to adapt fairly well. Hopefully when the deal goes through, I will be able to work on it here. Thanks for all the responses.

What did you test drive? Inquiring minds (even my feeble version) want to know!!

blueline wrote: Sat Jun 21, 2025 5:13 pm

Stormy_Monday wrote: Sat Jun 21, 2025 4:57 pm I test drove the car with the DCT this morning. The auto function is a bit uneventful. In manual mode my little brain seemed to adapt fairly well. Hopefully when the deal goes through, I will be able to work on it here. Thanks for all the responses.

What did you test drive? Inquiring minds (even my feeble version) want to know!!

Ferrari California T