Manually changing....with an auto

[Adski]

Hi,

I can feel a wave of stupidity washing over me as I ask this question but bear with me!

I have a 1999 W210 E280 with the gearbox that has D, 4,3,2,1 on and not the newer one that just has the +/-.

Anyway, the other day, I was driving, and for no other reason than (I’m assuming), boredom, I just moved the gear selector into 3. I was going quite quick, and when I did that, I went even quicker! Mostly because the car jumped to about 5,000 revs and then took off. I was always under the impression that if you did that, it’d hold the gear you were in until (in that case, 5th) until the revs were low enough for it for to change to 3rd. Now I tried it again on the way to work this morning, and I quite like doing it because it gives me a bit of control. I’m only really talking moving it from D to 3rd. I know it’s meant for holding gears on gradients though…so am I damaging the box by doing this? If I am, then I guess I’ll have to stop – but I guess it’s no different to kickdown really is it?

Any advice/pointers/warnings?

Thanks Gents (and ladies if there are any on here!)

Adam

 

[television]

When you are waiting to overtake, there is nothing wrong with selecting 3 rather than use kick down, you use less fuel that way

 

[star]

No harm being done, but just more wear as you would expect from high rev gear changes,

 

[television]

No harm being done, but just more wear as you would expect from high rev gear changes,

Very true.

 

[Parrot of Doom]

One advanced driving technique is to use 2, 3, or 4 when driving on tight twisty roads. It saves wear and tear on the gearbox with less gearchanges, and also allows you to more accurately control the speed of the vehicle.

 

[kid-jensen]

Adski,
Changing out of top will give you much more enging braking, and keep the engine in the power-band. So, as stated above, much more suitable to ear'oleing along country lanes....
The auto won't allow you to select a gear that would over-rev the engine, and if you select too high a gear, it just won't change....all-in-all fail-safe.

So carry on and enjoy it for the times/moods when it's suitable....99% of the time you're interested in smoothness and economy, so "D" is most appropriate.

 

[Marco Polo]

In my W210 E240 (1998) with 95K on the clock, waiting for the box to change under kickdown is like waiting for an eternity, so if I want to overtake quickly and safely, I always use the shift stick taking care not to pull it back to far.

Is there any in-built mechanism that prevents you pulling it back too far so that the engine red-lines?

 

[television]

In my W210 E240 (1998) with 95K on the clock, waiting for the box to change under kickdown is like waiting for an eternity, so if I want to overtake quickly and safely, I always use the shift stick taking care not to pull it back to far.

Is there any in-built mechanism that prevents you pulling it back too far so that the engine red-lines?

There are safety devices built in in case you make a mistake and nothing would happen until the cars speed dropped to the max for that gear

 

[Adski]

Well, thanks for all the advice folks! I've been using it that way for a few days now and I really like it.

I'm still a manual bloke at heart though - as was proved before when I was in 3 and moved it back for fourth. Trouble is, I seemed to forget it was an automatic and moved it into 2. And I was going quite quick at the time.

They make a lot of noise at the red line don't they? A wonderful noise of course.

 

[Rory]

I know it’s meant for holding gears on gradients though…so am I damaging the box by doing this? If I am, then I guess I’ll have to stop – but I guess it’s no different to kickdown really is it?

Just to clarify a point - you obviously now realise that you can downshift manually instead of using kickdown - but it's absolutely normal (and indeed recommended) that you can also do the same to control the speed down hills. So if you come to gradient where the car is already in 5th, and the car is gaining speed, you can knock it down to 4th (or lower in necesary) to control the speed.

Sorry if you realise this, but your post reads as though you think the car has to be in the gear you want to hold to start with.

 

[philharve]

Hi Adski

I have driven manual vehicles for 37 years and and my C230K is the first automatic I've owned. From day one I just left it in 'D' and let the car do the changing. It's only in the last 6 months that I've been experimenting with the manual ratios and I discovered quite by accident just how useful they can be.

I started with experimenting controlling the speed on steep inclines even though 'D' copes perfectly adequately. I was surprised at just how gentle the manual changes were and I soon realised the gearbox was still doing the thinking. It protected itself against over revving.

Then one day I forgot I had left it in 3rd and it felt no different to 'D' until I came to overtake a line of fast-moving traffic, uphill. The throttle response was instant and the acceleration very impressive and I soon passed the line of cars. It took quite a few seconds for me to realise that the car was still in 3rd and not in 'D'. I guess it was then I appreciated for the first time that having manual control of an automatic gearbox has its advantages. What I found even more interesting was that the gearbox didn't feel stressed during overtaking.

REGARDS

Phil

 

[kid-jensen]

Adski wrote:
I'm still a manual bloke at heart though - as was proved before when I was in 3 and moved it back for fourth. Trouble is, I seemed to forget it was an automatic and moved it into 2. And I was going quite quick at the time.

They make a lot of noise at the red line don't they? A wonderful noise of course.
----------------------------0---------------------
My claim to fame is that I managed to change into "park" at 40mph!
I blame manual transmissions of course, a week driving Mum's Metro, got in the Jensen and went to overtake by slamming it into 1st. At the red line, instead of notching it into 2nd, like a prat, I rammed it far forward, thinking I was still driving a manual and going for third!

Obviously, what I got was "Park" and locked the back wheels at about 40 moh. Luckilly it was raining and just spun off the road and parked itself neatly in a side-street. Almost as if I'd intended it...except without the smashed alloy and bent halfshaft...
Al fixed cheaply and no permanent damage, but I'm a lot more carefull since...

 

[brandwooddixon]

Modern cars tend to have electronic controllers which will prevent damage to the gearbox due to inproper use. They shouldn't change down if the engine will over rev.

When I used to work for a company supplying the software for Rover and Jaguar ECUs in the 90's I remember testing a new software build for Rover which involved moving the gear lever into reverse whilst moving forwards and from reverse into forward gears at 15mph.

 

[television]

Modern cars tend to have electronic controllers which will prevent damage to the gearbox due to inproper use. They shouldn't change down if the engine will over rev.

When I used to work for a company supplying the software for Rover and Jaguar ECUs in the 90's I remember testing a new software build for Rover which involved moving the gear lever into reverse whilst moving forwards and from reverse into forward gears at 15mph.

this is all perfectly correct, and thats the way it must be

 

[Blobcat]

I do enjoy the tiptronic with the leccy boxes holding it to the left selects the most suitable gear for rapid acceleration. I've covered ~10,000 miles in my W211 now and am not growing tired of that at all. The 7G box tends to select 3rd most often and then changes up once you hit the limiter :twisted:

 

[Rory]

a week driving Mum's Metro, got in the Jensen

I'll bet not many people switch from driving Metro's one moment, to Interceptor's the next!

I wouldn't recommend trying it, but you shouldn't able to put a modern auto into Park while it's moving - the locking pawls won't drop into the notches while the output shaft is rotating.

 

[television]

I'll bet not many people switch from driving Metro's one moment, to Interceptor's the next!

I wouldn't recommend trying it, but you shouldn't able to put a modern auto into Park while it's moving - the locking pawls won't drop into the notches while the output shaft is rotating.

Absolutely correct they just bounce off the rotating shaft, the parking pawl 35 in the first link, drops into 72 in the second link

http://www.detali.ru/cat/oem_mb2.as...M=717.462&CT=GA&cat=23V&SID=27&SGR=095&SGN=09

http://www.detali.ru/cat/oem_mb2.as...M=717.462&CT=GA&cat=23V&SID=27&SGR=085&SGN=08