the final drive ratios are identical at 3.27. the 6 spd, having the additional gear, has a higher gear ratio than the auto from 1st-5th gear. the gear ratio of the auto in 5th is .838, which is nearly identical to the .833 of the manual in 6th.

since the auto has a lockup torque converter it can acclerate without the 5-10% slippage associated with non-lockup converters. therefore, the auto can deliver the same, or nearly identical, power to the wheels as with the manual. not to mention it gets better fuel economy.

as far as 0-60 times are concerned there are several factors in play. the manual will accelerate faster while in gear than the auto due to the gear ratios. however, the auto can shift faster than a driver using a clutch. things should be expected to be pretty even. one thing i'm not sure of is at what speed under WOT the auto shifts into third. the manual will be in 3rd by the time it gets up to 60mph. and that 2nd- to 3rd shift will take some amount of time. anyone know at what speed the WOT shift occurs from 2nd to 3rd in the auto?

something very important that should give a slight edge to the manual is that it weighs 24 lbs less than the auto. it doesn't sound like much, but its around 8/10 of one percent lighter. this would translate to approximately 1/2 a tenth of a second in 0-60 times.

i think the answer on which transmission to get depends on how and where you drive, and the impression you get from your test drives. i had always preferred manual transmissions in performance cars. i drove both, and was more impressed with the experience i got from the auto. like many others, i found the 1st to 2nd shift to be awkward in the manual. i don't have any regrets.