Manual Mode- Downshift?

[FreeVeggie]

Yes, like everyone else, I'm having a blast in my 3sGT. I thought I was going to wait for 2.5 manual transmission, but I'm very pleased with my decision to go with the automatic. Whenever the traffic opens up enough, I simply switch over to manual mode and take control of the shift points. Of course, this has a disastrous effect on my MPG, but it's worth it.

Question: For those of you using the manual mode in your automatic transmission, do you downshift as you slow down? I'm accustomed to downshifting from my years driving stick, but I noticed the car will do it for me if I don't downshift. Is it better for me to downshift, or to let the car do it?

Thanks for any input you can provide.

 

[FreeVeggie]

Thanks rvoll. I'm finding similar patterns, but it still feels counterintuitive to let the car downshift on its own when I'm in manual mode. Sport mode definitely jams, but when I'm in the mood for a full driving experience, I still like the experience of shifting even if I don't have a clutch. The bottom line is this car is pure fun.

 

[Chibana]

Thanks rvoll. I'm finding similar patterns, but it still feels counterintuitive to let the car downshift on its own when I'm in manual mode. Sport mode definitely jams, but when I'm in the mood for a full driving experience, I still like the experience of shifting even if I don't have a clutch. The bottom line is this car is pure fun.

Here, here! I love my 3!

 

[Chris_Top_Her]

I usually downshift in manual mode when I am coming to a brief stop from speed so that I can get moving again (like at a interchange or something where I need to slow down a lot but get moving again quickly) without the car doing the occasional 2 downshift if I'm hard on the accelerator (which causes a slight lag). The other time I do so is for engine braking during heavy traffic.