Does anyone have the problem when switching their automatic transmission to the clutchless manual of the gas being guzzled up faster than staying on the AT?

 

That would be expected. Almost anybody who uses the manual option is going to shift at higher RPMs than the auto tranny option would. Otherwise, there would be little reason to use the manual option.

 

Plus, you're undoubtedly holding it in lower gears longer, keeping the revs higher. Higher revs = more gas burned, pure and simple.

Mike

 

man I tried it once, and when I saw the rpm hit high up on the gauge I said f*** that. I stay on at....

 

i have watched (or more life "felt") when my transmission shifts to the next gear when on AT. So in Manual, I did the same thing: I shifted right about the same MPH or RPM level, or simply the earliest opportunity of shifting to the next gear (because if the MPH is too low, it will not shift to the higher gear). But still, the MT guzzles the gas faster than AT. Very odd, I think.

So, then what are the advantages of having the MT? Why install this feature at all?

 

Allows car to shift at higher rpm making it faster. As far as that it's also how hard your pressing into the gas pedal. Driven correctly though a manual is better mpg then an auto.

 

Not only are there those folks who like to play with the tiptronic, there are times one would want to control the gear the car is in for practicality or safety reasons. Five such times are when climbing steep grades, when driving in city traffic, when driving in snow, when driving on ice, and when descending long, steep, dangerous mountain grades. At those times, gas mileage is not as important as practicality and safety.

If you are upshifting and downshifting at the exact same points the auto tranny does during normal driving, I would think you would get somewhat near the same gas mileage, no matter what the onboad computer says. Maybe a little lower, but not significantly so.

Are you sure you let off the gas just as you change gears, and resume gas the instant you complete the shift? Auto trannys are very good at timing this precisely. Any gas fed just as the tranny is trying to go from one gear to another is wasted.

 

Exactly the reasons to get a real manual tranny -- and why I insisted that my Max have the 6-speed. It all has to do with control, which a manual will allow and an AT will not.

When driving on ice or snow with a real manual you can start in 2nd or even 3rd gear to reduce the torque at the wheels and thus wheel spin. Even the manual feature on the AT will not allow you to do this.

I live in the foothills west of Colorado Springs and use the best gear for breaking coming down hill into town and when I drive home going up hill.

Finally, when driving in traffic, a manual will allow you to stay in the proper gear to better control the space in front of your car. Guess I'm just a control freak.

 

Although we don't have any mountains here in Miami, I got mine manual for control more than anything else. The car has a completely different identity with the 6-spd IMO.