Yeah, my AC also doesn't work, so it's sometimes a choice between hearing and being cooled down, especially when I drove to Arkansas. My travel buddy hates that about my car. Sometimes I like it just a little bit though because I can hear how fast I'm going. When I drive my mom's GT, it doesn't have the HUD or loud exhaust and I have trouble keeping my speed.
And are you positive that it's not a sign of something going wrong? I just want to make sure I don't settle on an answer if I'm not positive about it. My mom has an '02 GT and it sometimes shifts hard around 2nd gear, but it doesn't do this if I remember correctly. It is a different transmission though (I think it's 4T65E instead of 4T65E-HD).