bigcritter: Agreed totally, about some people sneering at a poster if they're not drinking the kool aid and 100% happy happy joy joy.
I've had my car almost five months. Most (but not all) of my cars have had automatic transmissions. When I first got my smart I drove it almost exclusively in auto mode. But, as time has gone on I find I am using all three means of operating the transmission ... and increasingly my preference is becoming paddles. To the point that I guesstimate I'm probably 70% paddles now.
I have a question for the group: when the car is giving you a massage, is there any damage being done? Increased rate of wear, or whatever? According to my Scangauge I get much better mpgs when I am 'lugging' the engine. 40 MPH in 5th gear, with RPMs well below 2K, for example.
I've driven manual transmissions throughout my 36 yrs. of driving, including 2 1/2 ton trucks while in the Army
You do not even need to use the clutch on those. That is what we used to train our new drivers back in the day as they were very hard to break. I loved no power steering also.
Reading this thread I am thinking, "why don't you like using the paddles? all the issues you have about lugging, being in the wrong gear, changing at the wrong time, being able to hold it in gear, would all be resolved with using the paddles and forgetting about the rediculous "auto" mode.
Remember the car is not an automatic, it is a semi manual with an automatic mode, I think it is easier to come from a manual car to the smart, than an auto to a smart, cos the smart acts more like a manual than an auto.
I think it is more about mindset than a mechanical issue, once you get your head round the fact that it is better in manual and start shifting with the paddles, which is loads of fun, the car starts to become even better.
So stop whinging about how rubbish the auto box is and have fun with the paddles.
Happy shifting.
Ellis
I love using the paddles when traveling over a mountain pass or some other times when I want full control of the transmission, but I don't like having to slip into "manual" mode, just to downshift one time for better performance. Inevitably, when I slip into manual mode (for one simple downshift), and I leave the next intersection, all of a sudden I'm over-revving because I forgot to get back into auto mode. It's just obnoxious that we cannot simply tap the paddle while in auto, and have it drop down a gear.
I'm not whining about the transmission, I'm just making a suggestion that would improve performance. If the indications are that this is possible on the 2009 models, then somebody must be listening.
Put the pedal past the click for just a half second, return to original position plus just a little more... the computer gets the instruction to downshift gently (pedal to the floor might tell it to downshift 2 gears if it calculates it has the choice). It will hold the lower gear until it decides not to (when that is depends on a number of factors). In some cases I think you can upshift again using the + paddle, but that may be coincidence.
As for "lugging" 5th gear, I don't know if there's physical damage, but I see no speed benefit in pushing half to 3/4 throttle to go uphill at 35mph. In fact, my Scangauge shows I use 20% more fuel with 3/4 throttle compared to 1/4 throttle, and the 1 mph speed gain is not even noticeable. All that energy's just going to the massager. The 08 transmission does act best in manual mode and I now drive in manual more than auto.
As for "lugging" 5th gear, I don't know if there's physical damage, but I see no speed benefit in pushing half to 3/4 throttle to go uphill at 35mph. In fact, my Scangauge shows I use 20% more fuel with 3/4 throttle compared to 1/4 throttle, and the 1 mph speed gain is not even noticeable. All that energy's just going to the massager. The 08 transmission does act best in manual mode and I now drive in manual more than auto.
Hills? You're in Mobile, I didn't think it was any more hilly than Panama City is, but I might be wrong. Flat as a pancake here.
Speed benefit? Huh? I was just talking about mpgs at a constant speed, and fairly flat terrain. I used 40 MPH as an example. In 4th gear, my Scangauge shows between 33 and 36 mpg. Shift to 5th gear and it jumps to close to 50 mpg. Whatever small changes in elevation come along significantly change the figures though.
I'm still curious about long term ill effects of lugging the engine though. It just doesn't feel right. And, since energy isn't free, it does make sense that the extra sound and vibration would be inefficient ... yet, there's the gauge saying things are hunky dory. Hmmm.
Hey, we got a road here called Hillcrest. There's gotta be a hill to crest, don't there?
OK, so the hills are like 200 feet long, but it's enough to downshift. :P
And NCC, yeah you're right on the 50mpg boost in 5th doing 40mph. I do that on weekends going to work and got up to 46mpg once on a 5 mile drive that usually gets me 29 in traffic. I thought you meant up a slight incline, sorry. With flat running 5th gear is great at 1500 RPMs. You get all kinds of mileage.
...what is this auto mode you guys keep talking about......lol
...for me is paddle shifting 99% of the time...mostly city driving....
...for the people with the white stuff on the ground keeping the little guy in 4th gear is a plus for quick response without the flashing light coming on....ask me how I know
For the life of me I can't understand why people persist in using the simulated auto mode. It is a manual transmission and without having to push a clutch pedal in and out multiple times like other manual shifters, this manual transmission is a dream come true, particularly when using the paddle shifters.
All the complaints are related to using the auto mode - so stop using it. This is like telling ther doctor it only hurts when you laugh - so he says stop laughing. This situatin is humorous nontheless.
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