Newbie questions engine sound, auto downshift?

[bananawho]

Just hit 500 miles and I don't think the engine sounds that smooth, and am not sure if it has always. Is that normal?
2. In automatic mode, after coasting and then needed to speed up, the gear has not been downshifted and is too high for current operation. The demo guy seemed to say this happens you you haven't braked. Is that so?
3. Taking off at a light is not smooth and the engine seems unsure for the first few feet, then it's Cowabunga! and has the power. Normal?

[jwight]

Complex question. Smooth engine sounds? There's a "tat-tat-tat" thread you may want to read, but would need more info (or a sound file) to tell.

Shifting - your foot tells the computer what you want it to do. If you're in a higher gear and need to speed up, move the throttle down rapidly (not as far as kick down). If you ease it down the computer will take its time speeding up the engine.

Same with leaving a light; slow on the throttle and the car will ease forward and upshift "early" although that's what your throttle use told it to do. Want to leave faster? Rapidly put the pedal down (again, not to the kickdown point) and hold on.

Technique has everything to do with how these cars perform IMHO.

[a2jack]

J, Where is that Tat Tat Tat thread? A2Jack.

[jwight]

Buried in the 451 US model discussion: tat, tat, tat sound

[SuperGeek]

Originally Posted by bananawho

3. Taking off at a light is not smooth and the engine seems unsure for the first few feet, then it's Cowabunga! and has the power. Normal?

If you have a tach, I bet you'll notice that taking off at a light, in auto mode with heavy throttle once you pass 2800-3000 RPM just before it shifts from gear 1-2, you get the cowabunga, right?

Mine does the same... I think it's because the engine has low torque but decent HP, I think a side effect of having only 3 cylinders. The surge of power can be a problem so I'll sometimes let off the gas slightly just as I reach 2500 RPMs (it takes time to learn when exactly to do this), then that'll smooth out the shift. Or I just go easy on the throttle in manual mode and shift 1-2 manually around 4000 RPMs, _after_ the power spike has passed.

The first 500 miles though your takeoff will hesitate (as in, 1 second pause before any movement) as the transmission needs to mature a bit. For the first hour I wondered if mine was defective, but after a few weeks it improved considerably. It's still a manual transmission, not automatic... read the hundred posts on that discussion... they can be very informative.


Oh, and the RPMs at idle will cause the engine to feel like it's unstable... unless you have the AC on and fan speed set to 2-4. That raises idle RPMs from jumping around 930-950 up to 1035 stable. The 3 cylinder engines will never feel as smooth as a 4, 6 or 8.