First Time Automatic Owner

Topics relating to Advanced Driving in cars
waremark
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby waremark » Thu Aug 11, 2016 10:21 pm

jont- wrote:
waremark wrote:
GTR1400MAN wrote:
Renaultsport Technical Expert wrote:



Technical expert? In marketing, perhaps.

Your dealer's service manager might know the answers. Have you tried?

:lol. I'd expect about the same level of "expertise". Main dealers these days are pretty much limited to plugging in a laptop and changing whichever box it tells them is broken :twisted:

They will know whether they have had to replace any clutches on these cars. And there is quite likely to be at least one tech in the dealership with enough interest in the flagship car in the range to know rather more about it.

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Bumblebee16
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby Bumblebee16 » Wed Sep 07, 2016 6:17 pm

GTR1400MAN wrote:It IS a nice car. :D

Just after advice how to use/drive an automatic PROPERLY. I can certainly drive it OK, but want advice on how to refine my use.

After 40 years of clutched cars I'm bound to find it a bit alien.


How are you getting on with your automatic?

Hubby picked up his new auto last week and I had the pleasure of using it today (no point leaving it at home!)

I too was conscious about keeping my foot on the brake whilst stopped. Sometimes, I would put it into "park" and apply the parking brake. However, I am not sure if this would have been the most appropriate action every time I stopped, and I did hold the car on the foot brake for a lot of the time (which I wouldn't dream of doing in my manual car).

The hill assist was good, no rolling back when I wasn't in "park". The stop/start was very responsive, too.

Now, what is most scary is that I have discovered that my hubby had tracked my journeys using his smart phone app. Therefore, he was able to tell me my average speed, fuel economy, miles driven, duration of the journey and he even knew I had opened the sunroof for part of the journey! :evil:
Last edited by Bumblebee16 on Wed Sep 07, 2016 9:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Triquet
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby Triquet » Wed Sep 07, 2016 6:31 pm

:hit: Take a hammer to his smart phone

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Bumblebee16
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby Bumblebee16 » Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:15 pm

Triquet wrote::hit: Take a hammer to his smart phone


No need for that, yet! He's abroad for a couple of days and I have just asked him if his car is okay. The response was he doesn't know as he has turned off some settings whilst he's away! Knowing him, he won't remember how to turn the settings back on! :lol:

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akirk
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby akirk » Wed Sep 07, 2016 8:37 pm

In my z3 which is an auto, I stop with the car still in drive and put the handbrake on, the handbrake will hold the car against the forward momentum coming from still being in drive... I don't need to use the foot brake...
Alasdair

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Bumblebee16
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby Bumblebee16 » Wed Sep 07, 2016 9:09 pm

Thanks, Alasdair,
That's something for me to practise on tomorrow's journeys.
Debbie

waremark
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby waremark » Wed Sep 07, 2016 11:58 pm

Bumblebee16 wrote:Thanks, Alasdair,
That's something for me to practise on tomorrow's journeys.
Debbie

But may or may not be appropriate, depending on the specific characteristics of your husband's new car.

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Bumblebee16
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby Bumblebee16 » Thu Sep 08, 2016 4:41 am

waremark wrote:
Bumblebee16 wrote:Thanks, Alasdair,
That's something for me to practise on tomorrow's journeys.
Debbie

But may or may not be appropriate, depending on the specific characteristics of your husband's new car.


I am going to try it on the driveway first.

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GTR1400MAN
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby GTR1400MAN » Thu Sep 08, 2016 7:51 am

Unless it is s true auto with a torque converter I'd not use the handbrake without selecting neutral. You'll not get an intelligent out of the manufacturers or the dealers. :(
Mike Roberts - Now riding a Triumph Explorer XRT. My username comes from my 50K miles on a Kawasaki 1400GTR, after many years on Hondas of various shapes and styles. - https://tinyurl.com/mikerobertsonyoutube

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Bumblebee16
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Re: First Time Automatic Owner

Postby Bumblebee16 » Thu Sep 08, 2016 10:16 pm

GTR1400MAN wrote:Unless it is s true auto with a torque converter I'd not use the handbrake without selecting neutral. You'll not get an intelligent out of the manufacturers or the dealers. :(


I don't think it falls into this category.

I understand that it's got a double clutch system:
As the clutch of the engaged gear opens, the clutch of the target gear closes simultaneously.


The electric parking brake does hold the car in drive mode.
I have also just discovered that the car detects when the driver is ready to move off and releases the parking brake automatically. (No need for me to do that anymore, then!) :roll:


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