I am not in the CX camp. I suspect that the automatic allows for a sportier driving style, which is a lot of fun. But it was, I strongly suspect, not intended. So the overlong rear axle ratio of the manual gearbox is a bad joke, even if the machine doesn't have too much to offer above 4,500 rpm, as some people report here. I have to rely on these reports. The automatic transmission, on the other hand, offers an unintended loophole for really sporty driving. I strongly suspect that the addition of more and more gears in the automatic gearbox was by no means intended to allow the engine to be driven in a very sporty manner in manual mode. Even if it works very well in practice. So people, be glad that you have the manual mode with the steering wheel paddles! The real intention of the many (and thus shorter) gears is that the normal driver remains in automatic mode and the machine remains extremely boring in the very narrow rev range of the most favorable fuel consumption. So a toast to the paddles...probably the next item to be banned.
