[vchiu]

In DS I get that I can upshift from stop to speed and downshift for more power when passing. But what do you all do when you want to slow down or stop? There is no neutral. Do you downshift by speed? Do you downshift by RPM? Do you let it downshift by itself? Do you shift back into D?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

[nikneo]

downshift - provides engine braking and also gets you to a lower gear so that you can get going again after. I'm not much of a manual driver though. Only use the paddles when I want to pull off some semi-aggressive ramp launches or passes. otherwise i just let the computer do its thing and it does it really well

[David328M-Sport]

Originally Posted by vchiu

Do you downshift by speed? Do you downshift by RPM? Do you let it downshift by itself? Do you shift back into D?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Either let the 8AT do its own downshifting or you could use the paddles if your car is equipped with them.

[Bradbury]

Originally Posted by vchiu

Do you shift back into D?

If you use the paddles while the stick is in D, it will automatically return to D after driving a few seconds in the same gear without accelerating hard.

[KellerKiller]

Originally Posted by vchiu

In DS I get that I can upshift from stop to speed and downshift for more power when passing. But what do you all do when you want to slow down or stop? There is no neutral. Do you downshift by speed? Do you downshift by RPM? Do you let it downshift by itself? Do you shift back into D?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

I'd say it'd have to depend on your situation. I've started only using the paddles in Sport on the autobahn. If I'm going 140 mph and some jackhole doesn't see my lights, and goes left to pass a truck, I have to brake pretty hard. Being able to downshift as I like helps that a bit so the discs aren't taking the full brunt (however, with how high-revving this engine is, and the fact that 8th gear will take you comfortably to max speed w/o breaking 5000 rpm, I haven't had the need/balls to do any REAL engine braking).

Conversely, when I get in town, or on usual highway driving (65mph) I don't usually bother with the paddles OR Sport mode unless I have a bunch of trucks/tractors to pass on my way to/from work. The brakes and AT do just fine in the normal scenario.

But, as I re-read your post, if I am using the paddles in normal driving, I try not to let the revs get down lower than 2000 rpm when decelerating, as a general rule. That allows for either easy accelerating, or one easy downshift for some extra oomph.

[RPM90]

Originally Posted by vchiu

In DS I get that I can upshift from stop to speed and downshift for more power when passing. But what do you all do when you want to slow down or stop? There is no neutral. Do you downshift by speed? Do you downshift by RPM? Do you let it downshift by itself? Do you shift back into D?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

If you're manually shifting for fun, then just experiment with up and downshifts and learn which gear puts you at what rpm at what given speed.
This is what you need to learn when driving manuals as well.
Knowing what rpm a gear will give you based on what the MPH is will allow you to select the proper gear for what you are doing.

1st is the 'shortest' gear so as you accel and you select the next gear the engine will drop a lot of rpm. As you shift to 3rd it's less and once you get to 4th rpm drops in near equal revs, something like 500 for each gear up, and that same rpm change occurs on the way down, but remember it's all related to MPH.

Also, take note of the engines power band. With both the N20 and N55 there isn't much advantage to using higher rpm, such as above 5000-5500 as the torque starts a quick decline. Make use of the prodigious torque developed between around 1800-5000. It's one heck of a flat torque curve and it's very flexible.

If you are in manual trans mode you can choose to simply let the computer logic sort out the downshifts. It does a very good job.
No, you can't coast in neutral to a stop the way you can with an MT, but then you are always in a gear and that's actually safer because you have accel power if and when you may need it in an emergency situation.
You can try for 2000-2500 rpm before a downshift for every gear.
As you decel, when the tach gets to around 2500 then downshift, repeat.

Again, to get the best use learn the gears, rpm, and MPH of each gear. They are same every time so once you learn the gears you will get consistency.

[DarkTrigger]

I let it downshift for me. If I do it, it's usually pretty rough.

[snowghost]

Originally Posted by DarkTrigger

I let it downshift for me. If I do it, it's usually pretty rough.

God I'm glad I have the 6MT.

[vchiu]

Thanks for all the responses.

[KellerKiller]

Originally Posted by RPM90

If you're manually shifting for fun, then just experiment with up and downshifts and learn which gear puts you at what rpm at what given speed.
This is what you need to learn when driving manuals as well.
Knowing what rpm a gear will give you based on what the MPH is will allow you to select the proper gear for what you are doing.

1st is the 'shortest' gear so as you accel and you select the next gear the engine will drop a lot of rpm. As you shift to 3rd it's less and once you get to 4th rpm drops in near equal revs, something like 500 for each gear up, and that same rpm change occurs on the way down, but remember it's all related to MPH.

Also, take note of the engines power band. With both the N20 and N55 there isn't much advantage to using higher rpm, such as above 5000-5500 as the torque starts a quick decline. Make use of the prodigious torque developed between around 1800-5000. It's one heck of a flat torque curve and it's very flexible.

If you are in manual trans mode you can choose to simply let the computer logic sort out the downshifts. It does a very good job.
No, you can't coast in neutral to a stop the way you can with an MT, but then you are always in a gear and that's actually safer because you have accel power if and when you may need it in an emergency situation.
You can try for 2000-2500 rpm before a downshift for every gear.
As you decel, when the tach gets to around 2500 then downshift, repeat.

Again, to get the best use learn the gears, rpm, and MPH of each gear. They are same every time so once you learn the gears you will get consistency.

I agree. 3rd is about as low as I go in M, unless I have to. I've found that with 1st and 2nd I have to go to 3000-3500 rpm with constant throttle to get a smooth shift. Even then, it can still be rough at that low of an rpm.

The torque is great though, isn't it?

[rconti]

Please just leave it in D.

[jddssc121]

Originally Posted by nikneo

downshift - provides engine braking and also gets you to a lower gear so that you can get going again after. I'm not much of a manual driver though. Only use the paddles when I want to pull off some semi-aggressive ramp launches or passes. otherwise i just let the computer do its thing and it does it really well

brakes are cheaper to replace than an engine or tranny

For every day driving i just use the brakes to slow down. track is a different story of course