Auto vs. Manual
Interesting discussion. This is also the reason that manual transmissions usually accelerate more quickly than automatics. There is more parasitic loss of power between the crank shaft and the drive wheels because of the torque converter... so more power makes it to the ground in a manual tranny.
The extra gears in a manual (excluding 5-speed autos, of course) also allow the engine to operate at it's power peak more often.
Many automatics also shift long before red-line, so you potentially lose some top-end acceleration before it shifts.
Automatics usually weigh slightly more than manual trannys in the same car... and weight cost acceleration and fuel economy, all else being equal.
The sport shift on the Protege is a regular torque-converter equipped automatic. It's not like the Ferrari F1 or Alfa Romeo Seleshift systems, which are actually manual trannies with computer controlled clutches. Thus, you have the disadvantages of an automatic, but gain a bit more feeling of control over the transmission compared to a "regular" automatic.
The shifter on the new Protege5 also looks trick with the leather two-tone knob and the gated shift pattern... which is probably it's biggest advantage.
Years ago, I drove a Porsche 911 with the Tiptronic transmission, which operates just like the new Sport Shift. Frankly, I thought it was a pretty lame tranny for a car like the 911... which fewer people probably drove in traffic like they do the Protege5.
There have been other variations on this theme over the years. Oldsmobile offered a funky tranny on their 442 Cutlass in the early 1980s. It had three shift levers, if I remember correctly. The idea was that one would move all three levers back for drag racing and shift each one individually when it came time to shift. It looked sorta cool (in an early 1980s General Motors sort of way), but probably offered little advantage over just putting it in "D."
The Alfa Romeo Seleshift is pretty cool. It can be operated just like an automatic by pushing a button, putting it into "City" mode. It can be shifted like a manual using either the up/down shifter in the center console or two levers on the back of the steering wheel (like the Ferrari). The coolest thing is the sound. The car double clutches and blips the throttle just like a good race-car driver. I swear it sounds like Mario Andretti is driving the car at a track. It feels awesome and probably is faster than an average driver with a regular manual transmission. It doesn't operate quite as smoothly as a regular automatic in city mode, though, and tends to buck and shift roughly when driven in light-throttle conditions.
I'm still hoping I can buy an Alfa 147 here in the states some day... what a beautiful car!
