Let just say up front, so I can make this perfectly clear... I totally dig the paddle shifting retrofit. I have done other mods, including UUC sways, M3 wheel and this is by far the best one. To paraphrase Bueller, it is so choice, and if you have the means, I highly recommend it.

So let me tell you about it...

Vincent installed the wheel on my car last Friday. The install is perfect; the guy flat out knows his stuff. In the short time that I have had the wheel I have quickly become reliant upon it. I would say I use the paddles for 95% of my driving. The only time when I don’t is when I am in traffic. One thing I didn’t like about the step transmission was that it was never totally instinctive to me, I would catch myself shifting the wrong way on occasion. Plus, I didn’t like that I had couldn’t feel what gear I was in like in a manual. With the paddles, that vagueness and uncertainty is greatly diminished as left is downshift and right is upshift. I don’t have to think about what gear I am in and do I pull or push. The paddles are such a natural addition to me that shifting just becomes instinctive. They feel great and are large enough that you don’t have to have your hands in only one part of the wheel to operate them. In addition, the mere fact the paddles are positioned where they are forces you into the correct steering posture. So even just driving around town I take advantage of the paddles and it has improved my driving experience, in this respect, at least three fold.

However, the paddles flat out shine when pushing the car through the twisties. I am lucky enough to have Mulholland Drive available to me on my commute to and from work. Mulholland is a rather famous stretch of road that tops the Santa Monica Mountains. Second and third are the preferred gears there and you are constantly in and out of both. What can I say, the paddles just make it so much easier to drive quick and confidently. To be able to shift on demand regardless of a late or early entry is just so awesome, you just feel the car and if it is not where you want to be in the power band, tap and you are there. Again, to not have to remove your hands from the wheel during cornering maneuvers allows you to drive quickly. That time it takes to reach down and shift and return to the wheel to prepare for a turn is gone, that time when you are stuck in third and the engine is starting to bog, but you have to wait until you are through turning to shift, that is gone too. Listen it is not SMG, but damn, it must be close.

That is one thing about the paddles that I want to stress, the transmission appears to shift more quickly. I think what contributes to that impression is the relatively small travel distance of the paddles when you pull to shift gears. I guess it is just similar to the effect that is derived from a short shift kit on a manual. Whatever it is, the car just seems to shift a little more quickly than before, a welcomed and unexpected benefit. So in driving conditions where tires are screeching and rpms are high, I would have to say that the paddles have improved my driving experience more than ten fold. I simply could not go back.

Oh and what about the wow factor? It is there, but trust me it is the functionality that provides the true enjoyment. If you can get it, get it. I would happily pay twice what I paid for it.