I know I'll get a lot of ^%$* for the changeover. True, manuals are a lot of fun. Today, I'm still driving one (my daily driver 04 SRT-4 which I bought new). And, for that particular car, it's nice. Clutch takeup is superb, pedal effort is practically nonexistant, and I can launch at whatever rpm I feel like. I get it. I really do. Nothing beats rowing the gears in a big block-equipped car. Well, except that deeper first gear in a TH400, compared to my M21. And more consistant shifting. And quicker shifting of the automatic. I know, only 3 speeds compared to 4. Well, when I screw up and miss a shift (yeah, it happens to all of us), that similar car with the TH400 just lurched ahead 4 car lengths. OMG! I just realized why I want to switch. Last season, I had my SRT-4 at my local track, and I was paired up against this backwards-wearing-baseball capped pimple-faced teen toting his (presumably father-owned) new Mustang GT. He told me I had a nice NEON with a laugh. I said it was a Neon, till I'd beat him, then he would tell his friends he was beat by an SRT-4, not a Neon. I was running 13.4 to 13.6 all night. I knew what they ran stock. I missed third, and ran somewhere around a 13.8 or so. He beat me, running around a 13.6 or something. Then he rode my azz all the way back in the return lane. YUP, thats the reason I want an automatic. Or just learn to drive stick!! LOL