[bimmer456]

Originally Posted by 340313

Holding the car on the brakes took some getting used to after years driving manuals. It still doesn't feel quite right to me.

I do put it into park or neutral if the car has been driven hard - I seem to recall reading somewhere that bits of the pad can fuse to the disc if the brakes are hot. I'm not sure if there's any truth to that?

Not sure if you can just touch the brake pedal without actually applying the brakes I will have to try it. I know the brake lights come on as soon as you touch the pedal without the brakes being applied so this may be all it needs though I've always felt like I had to come to a complete stop before I could shift back into drive if moving at low speed in N. In other automatics I could always move from D to N and back without even pressing the side button let alone the brake pedal.

[Watsey]

I put the AT in neutral almost every time when stationary. The ZF8 in my 2012 car develops significant torque when stationary and is held on the brakes - you can hear the engine 'unloading' when shifting from D to N.

No point just holding the engine/transmission on the footbrake when the car perpetually wants to creep - no good for fuel economy.

As has been said, requiring the footbrake to be applied when shifting into D is a safety feature and is absolutely required.

[HighlandPete]

Originally Posted by Watsey

I put the AT in neutral almost every time when stationary. The ZF8 in my 2012 car develops significant torque when stationary and is held on the brakes - you can hear the engine 'unloading' when shifting from D to N.

No point just holding the engine/transmission on the footbrake when the car perpetually wants to creep - no good for fuel economy.

As has been said, requiring the footbrake to be applied when shifting into D is a safety feature and is absolutely required.

Is your noticeable 'creep and unloading' caused by changes to the mapping? With NIC, it should automatically off-load about 80 - 90% of the idling transmission torque, helping fuel economy by design.

There are several parameters to be met, for NIC to function, (includes rpm and accelerator pedal values). I wonder if something is changed in your setup.

[RENT-A-GOAT]

I've only ever put mine in N when stopping at lights the few odd times in Wales where I had known the brakes would be hot so didn't want to put pad to disc to cause transfer so just popped into N put the hand brake on then went on my way going from N to D without any issue other then a tiny bit of faff to select it in and out and use the hand brake.

[jdrally]

Originally Posted by Alscoob

Down side with all these people in autos is not the fact that they have to hold the car on the brake when stationary but the fact that they have the brake lights on continuously when stationary, which in the drizzle and dark car be quite dazzling to the car behind. In fog it's even worse with the extra couple of lights on, but I'm not going there !

Why not put it into park when stationary or just apply the handbrake with your foot off the brake to give the folk behind an eyeball rest. So I don't get shot down in flames I'm not talking of when stopping and junctions or roundabouts but at times when traffic lights or stationary motorway stuff means you are stationary for some time.

What about using stop start. Need brakes on for engine to cut out so you dont smell my diesel fumes.

[Alscoob]

Originally Posted by jdrally

What about using stop start. Need brakes on for engine to cut out so you dont smell my diesel fumes.

Separate discussion that one, but best thing about start stop is that you can switch it off !!

[xenon]

Originally Posted by HighlandPete

This is something that concerns me, and not just auto drivers. The old style manual parking brake is fine, but with so many vehicles (including current 3-series) now using e-parking brakes, with an auto-hold function, we can easily forget that auto-hold is still displaying brake lights, be it manual or auto transmission.

Car manufacturer's are not helping the lighting situation.

Auto-hold on my A6 does not keep the brake lights on but active cruise does when decelerating, obviously. I didn't realise auto-hold puts the brake lights on on the BMW, that's daft.

[Watsey]

Originally Posted by HighlandPete

Is your noticeable 'creep and unloading' caused by changes to the mapping? With NIC, it should automatically off-load about 80 - 90% of the idling transmission torque, helping fuel economy by design.

There are several parameters to be met, for NIC to function, (includes rpm and accelerator pedal values). I wonder if something is changed in your setup.

I don't think there been any difference between N idling pre/post remap - it's always felt the same on my car.

Difficult to be precise about the reduction in TC load but it definitely has the feeling that it's still in D rather than N (fully disengaged), hence you can feel the difference when shifting from D to N.

Of course an AT in N is different to a manual transmission in N, and the AT in my car (2012) definitely has permanent drive in D rather than emulating N/disengaged when stationary.

[CuntFace5000]

Originally Posted by Watsey

I put the AT in neutral almost every time when stationary. The ZF8 in my 2012 car develops significant torque when stationary and is held on the brakes - you can hear the engine 'unloading' when shifting from D to N.

No point just holding the engine/transmission on the footbrake when the car perpetually wants to creep - no good for fuel economy.

As has been said, requiring the footbrake to be applied when shifting into D is a safety feature and is absolutely required.

My car is the same. If I put it into drive with zero throttle it will move forwards.

I have changed my driving style after reading some of the comments on here regarding not slow coasting and leaving it in drive. However I still feel it is right to pop it into neutral when stationary otherwise the car just wants to pull off.

[DaveH28]

Honestly I've never even thought to put in neutral..
Do use park now and again if stopped at lights.. holds off having to keep brake pedal down, plus if start/stopped (not a gripe of mine) car starts again when drive selected..

[CuntFace5000]

Makes me wonder why even have neutral at all then. Why not just drive, park and reverse.

[JustChris]

Originally Posted by demc1982

Makes me wonder why even have neutral at all then. Why not just drive, park and reverse.

N is handy for Car Wash and this....

[Eddamoo]

I occasionally do as the OP does, slipping in and out of N would be useful but it's prevented the same way in most autos. Like rent a goat says, you don't want the brakes clamping a stopped disc when hot.

It is a bit annoying, but doubt you could code it out

[CuntFace5000]

Originally Posted by Eddamoo

I occasionally do as the OP does, slipping in and out of N would be useful but it's prevented the same way in most autos. Like rent a goat says, you don't want the brakes clamping a stopped disc when hot.

It is a bit annoying, but doubt you could code it out

Code it out.... Finally a possible answer to my original post

[Busted]

Originally Posted by demc1982

Code it out.... Finally a possible answer to my original post

Read again......

You won't be able to code it out because this is how auto boxes are supposed to work

[bimmer456]

Originally Posted by demc1982

Makes me wonder why even have neutral at all then. Why not just drive, park and reverse.

On the DCT there is no P, like on the M2C. You just turn it off in D and it shifts to P by itself. The regular 8AT does this too if you shut off the motor in D. Like the other poster, you can use N for car washes but it only stays in N for 15-20 minutes before going to P so it could be a problem if there's gridlock at the car wash or it is just a really slow car wash. If you don't want it to go to P for towing then the tow truck driver has to use a tool to shift it into N from under the car which is dangerous AF but that's how they made it cuz they're more concerned with the car rolling when you forget to put it into P when parking.

[CuntFace5000]

Originally Posted by Busted

Read again......

You won't be able to code it out because this is how auto boxes are supposed to work

Ah thanks, I had misread. Oh well I will just have to get used to it.

[Rhino at Work]

I hesitate to ask this for fear of looking stupid but here goes...

Why do you need N in a car wash?

[un1eash]

Originally Posted by Rhino at Work

I hesitate to ask this for fear of looking stupid but here goes...

Why do you need N in a car wash?

Automated car wash that pulls the car through, but why anyone would be using one of them is the question you should be asking.

[Nobby Clark]

Originally Posted by demc1982

Hi,

I have recently bought a 335d xdrive auto. So far I am very pleased. My only gripe is that I find it extremely frustrating that I have to apply the brake to put the transmission into drive from neutral. This isn't an issue if I am completely stationary. But if, for example, I am approaching a red light and I select neutral from drive and almost coast to a stop but then the light turns green I should be able to press unlock on the selector and engage drive to pull away. It seems silly that I have to press unlock and have foot on the brake. Surely just pressing unlock should be enough.

Is there anyway to switch the footbrake unlock off?

Just tried this at low speed in my 2015 430dx. You can go from drive to neutral and back without touching the brake.

[CuntFace5000]

Originally Posted by Nobby Clark

Just tried this at low speed in my 2015 430dx. You can go from drive to neutral and back without touching the brake.

When I try it, and I must emphasis that it is only ever at crawling pace, the car starts beeping at me. OK I understand that it's a safety feature but I'm man enough to accept any possible theoretical damage. And it's not like having to press the unlock button isn't safe enough.

Anyway I have come to terms with the fact it is me that needs to adjust to the car not the other way round.

By the way I absolutely love it. Had it a week the had it remapped by DMS. Wow just wow

[Stainy]

Originally Posted by rosstin

I think you can have the door open if your seatbelt is on?

That'd be about right.....going backwards (slowly), so no real need for a seatbelt and no real way you can look out of the open door......which genius thought that one up.