[bodtwo]

Hello All,

Those of you with the auto box (i'm guessing most) when roads, traffic permit and you're driving a little more aggressively are you using paddles/flipping stick to the left and using engine braking by stepping down the box on it's own, are you using a combination of foot braking and stepping down manually or are you just using foot braking and letting the auto box work out which gear it wants to be in?

I guess it's road, condition dependent, just interested. I very rarely used the paddles in the merc apart from the last month of ownership where my brakes where on borderline and i used engine braking much more so i could hand back without pad replacement light shining.

At the end of the day, brake pads are cheaper than an auto box, but what gives smoother/controlled transition through twisty stuff.

cheers.

[Palexr]

I don't use the paddles much. Mainly I suspect because I just missed out on the PlayStation generation by a couple of years. Paddles still just seem un-intuitive. I also find that because the box has 8 gears shifting down doesn't have the same engine braking effect as in a 6 speed manual and I find myself going down the gear too far. I do use it to overtake rather than brake.

[Daftasabrush]

Paddles and stick to the left all the time, I don't think there's a single day that goes by where I don't use the paddles tbh.

Edit: this is in sport mode too, that way you get engine braking and burbley goodness

[SpaceHorsey]

I use the gear stick, what I find is that if I'm driving on a long straight piece of road at a constant speedo leave it in auto, but on the approach to say, a couple of roundabouts and some twists I'll knock the lever over to the left and drop it down a couple of cogs using a mixture of engine braking and the brake pedal. Then once I'm out of the interesting bit of road and back into boring straights I'll knock it back over into D.

But I quite like the stick as opposed to the paddles.

However, what I also like is: say you spot an overtake manourvre but your in D I'll drop it down a gear or two with the paddles then once you're past them it'll switch itself back to D once normal driving is resumed.

Another scenario would be, on the way to the station in the morning (less than a mile) I'll short shift with the paddles to keep the revs low as the engines not warm yet.

All in all I quite like the options this box gives you.

[Daftasabrush]

Interesting you use them to short shift, I use them to keep it in gear a bit longer so it warms up quicker, never above 2.5k rpm but the box usually wants to change much earlier

[JOHNBMWM5]

Originally Posted by bodtwo

Hello All,

Those of you with the auto box (i'm guessing most) when roads, traffic permit and you're driving a little more aggressively are you using paddles/flipping stick to the left and using engine braking by stepping down the box on it's own, are you using a combination of foot braking and stepping down manually or are you just using foot braking and letting the auto box work out which gear it wants to be in?

I guess it's road, condition dependent, just interested. I very rarely used the paddles in the merc apart from the last month of ownership where my brakes where on borderline and i used engine braking much more so i could hand back without pad replacement light shining.

At the end of the day, brake pads are cheaper than an auto box, but what gives smoother/controlled transition through twisty stuff.

cheers.

I use engine braking ALL the time on every car, at the straight off in my "new car brake-in" I use this and once Oil up to temperature it's up to 4K RPM and engine brake about 6/8 times, that beds in the rings.
Must be within first 50 miles though.

[NISFAN]

I use paddles quite a bit, but I come from manuals so it is second nature for me to dictate what gear the car needs to be in.

Regarding spirited driving, as a diesel has no throttle flap, they are usually very poor at engine braking. I just downshift to ensure the correct gear for when I floor it again. Certainly helps with the gearbox lag that you get.

[JOHNBMWM5]

Originally Posted by NISFAN

I use paddles quite a bit, but I come from manuals so it is second nature for me to dictate what gear the car needs to be in.

Regarding spirited driving, as a diesel has no throttle flap, they are usually very poor at engine braking. I just downshift to ensure the correct gear for when I floor it again. Certainly helps with the gearbox lag that you get.

Do you use the down shift on the gears on brake-in Gordon?, I do.
Helps with suction on the rings.

[cesare87]

I tend to only use mine to down shift

[HookJaw]

As above - just downshift & foot braking.

I feel like I should use them more but stick to left + sport mode.. damn that sport auto box is good.

[SpaceHorsey]

Originally Posted by Daftasabrush

Interesting you use them to short shift, I use them to keep it in gear a bit longer so it warms up quicker, never above 2.5k rpm but the box usually wants to change much earlier

I'm coming from an M5 which could get me off my steep drive and to the station on cold start idle with zero throttle.

So I change up super early. Also I leave the house at 5:30am so I try and do right by my neighbours.

[Randolph13]

In my many manual years I was always a slow with gears type, now with the current car I tried the paddles but don't trust them as they won't always change down the instance I want it, it might be a one second lag but it isn't instant. So I'm approaching a corner fast and want a bit of braking but to be able to accelerate through the corner, in a manual car easy just change down, in an automatic if that lag happens it can mean I arrive at the corner slightly too fast and whooops.
Anyone else noticed this lag and how do they deal with it.

[JustChris]

One thing I've noticed on the newer cars in Eco Pro is that coasting must be enabled now. If you lift off say going downhill you can feel the car free rolling and speeding up at times with no engine load. It's actually slows up a little at when pressing the accelerator as th drive re engages.

Damn just fessed up to some Eco Pro time there.

[Tengocity]

I almost never use engine braking in the 335d, and haven't on cars for a long time to be honest. Pads are cheaper than drivetrains to replace and I always upgrade the brakes on my cars anyway.

[SpaceHorsey]

Originally Posted by Randolph13

In my many manual years I was always a slow with gears type, now with the current car I tried the paddles but don't trust them as they won't always change down the instance I want it, it might be a one second lag but it isn't instant. So I'm approaching a corner fast and want a bit of braking but to be able to accelerate through the corner, in a manual car easy just change down, in an automatic if that lag happens it can mean I arrive at the corner slightly too fast and whooops.
Anyone else noticed this lag and how do they deal with it.

I kind of get what you mean with some older style auto-slusher-with-paddles-for-the-sake-of-it cars. But this new ZF 8speed is pretty good, once you get used to it you brain just recalibrates for the fraction of a second it takes to swap cogs.

If late braking upon fast approach to a tight bend or roundabout, knocking the stick forward a few times and standing on the middle pedal feels quite natural.

[Mattyk]

Not in the auto.

Never use the paddles, cba tbh, too many gears.

If I want to go quick, left and sport.

Damping limits fun

[Daftasabrush]

Originally Posted by Chris10Bimmers

One thing I've noticed on the newer cars in Eco Pro is that coasting must be enabled now. If you lift off say going downhill you can feel the car free rolling and speeding up at times with no engine load. It's actually slows up a little at when pressing the accelerator as th drive re engages.

Damn just fessed up to some Eco Pro time there.

Tbh I don't know if my car can coast or not, I've noticed it's smoother in comfort than sport, but it by and large lives in sport mode.

Originally Posted by Tengocity

I almost never use engine braking in the 335d, and haven't on cars for a long time to be honest. Pads are cheaper than drivetrains to replace and I always upgrade the brakes on my cars anyway.

Whilst discs and pads are cheaper than any transmission work, the 'box is designed to downshift at 2K RPM in sport mode anyway and that's essentially all I do unless completely ragging the tits off it so I don't really see it as being much worse than being in sport mode and full auto all the time.