StillKickin

Is engine braking using the tiptronic bad on the c230s tranny?....How bout coasting (shifting into neutral and then back into gear at speed)....by the way are there any new york area meets?

Zillarpillow23

According to the "manual", engine braking is ok up to 3rd gear. Second and first gear are more reserved for an uphill ascend although I barely upshift when cornering at low speeds. I still prefer my brakes. As far as coasting, I would only do that on a manual for a short period of time, not on an automatic. I used to coast all the time in my 87 cougar and then kick it back into drive but that damaged my tranny to the point where I no longer had 4th gear. I remember I had to drive for nearly 2 years without going on I-95 because I couldn't go over 43 MPH and I was too broke to fix it.

:v

Moviela

Brakes have friction material that is designed to wear out.
Transmissions have friction material that is designed to wear out.
Brakes cost about $ 100.
Transmissions cost about $ 7,000.
Why would anyone use a transmission to stop the car?

Using the transmission in 2nd or 3rd gear to decend a long grade is useful in that it limits your speed, whilst not overheating your brakes.

Shifting into neutral while the wheels are turning is not safe, and can possibly interfere with proper lubrication and cooling of the transmission. Most transmission designs have the oil pump on the input shaft. If your engine is at idle, the pump is producing minimal pressure, but the bearing surfaces on the output shaft are very busy, and require the increased lubrication and heat removal that a faster pump speed will produce.

Tiptronic transmissions are only found in Porsche cars. Mercedes-Benz cars have a Shiftronic transmission because those dogs at Porsche trademarked the name first.

Capt Nemo o2

Thats kinda what I had to do in my Jeep in the summer. I had to stay off parkways and couldnt drive for more than an hour b/c the transfercase was bad and when it heated up it locked the front and rear axles together, which made it very hard to turn.

I honestly do not like MBs steptronic. For one, it doesnt rev match when you downshift and two, its slow! I found it to really only be useful in aggressive driving where I threshold brake into a turn, I then downshift and use very little engine braking, and I exit in the right gear. But thankfully I only have to deal with that in loaners!

StillKickin

Its one tronic or other...everyones got one now...when is MB gunna rip off the DSG from Audi for the AMG cars...or do they shift as fast?

jrct9454

The DSG shifts a lot faster - this is the best compromise out there - full automatic if you want it, and real manual control if that's what you want.

(Sorry, but I too still get a tic whenever the term "Tiptronic" is used to describe any transmission with some kind of manual override. It is indeed a copyrighted name by the VW group [Porsche, VW, Audi]. As I mentioned in another post, this is kind of like using the term "kleenex" to refer to a tissue - probably unavoidable, but still...)

I have to add my caution that shifting to neutral and back into gear at speed with any torque-converter automatic is not going to be good for the life of the transmission.

Outland

Why don't you guys just by MANUAL TRANSMISSION CARS!?

I hate threads like this. Its a friggen slushbox...who cares if its slaptronic. Take off your skirts and learn to drive manual transmission cars.

230Kompressor

haha you tell them outland! naw but seriously, i think because either, 1. somebody other then themselves (mother, g/f, etc.) has to drive the car or 2. they just live in areas with messed up traffic, which is why you can get best of both worlds (or pretty close) with the shiftronic.
back to the subject, i'm not sure about the engine breaking, but shifting to neutral on an auto? it just doesn't seem to nice for the car.

Capt Nemo o2

I had a rental caddy when I was in Charlotte, and I noticed on that car that when coasting it went into neutral. The revs dropped down to like 700 rpm when doing 60mph, either that or it's some tall OD

Outland

Its best just to leave the little turd in the square with the "D" on it. Same goes for the slaptronic nonsense. Doesn't matter whose it is, either...they all are rather madening. Slow to respond, won't hold a gear...

MB-BOB

{moderator hat off} Really, Outland... no one is bashing your desire to drive a manual transmission. Why do you insist on chiding those who choose an automatic? I drove a stick shift in various sports cars from 1974-2001, probably long before your daddy slipped it to your mommy. Somewhere along the line, I outgrew the infantile opinion that "real men" drove manual shift cars. So I drive a "slaptronic" today. My choice, and those like-minded don't give a flying rat's *** about your narrow-minded comments.

When you reach 50 you'll realize how stupid your attitude is everytime you enter one of these threads to take a swing at AT drivers. In the meantime, get over it. Stop bashing others who choose to buy an MB the way that MB sells them to 95% of US buyers. If you hate these automatic transmission threads so much, then stop reading them and keep your opinion to yourself rather than injecting your off-topic remarks. {moderator hat back on}

StillKickin

all of my friends have thier cars on stick (maxima, A4, WRX STI)....but they dont drive down the va vyck to school everyday ...itd be a pain in the ***...plus whenever my dads POS ML breaks down hes gotta drive my car and stick cars **** him off...regardless MB has to step the tranny game up...if not more availability of manny trannys...why not work on something more of a DSG or a CVT...both are IMO better than what MB has available...especially after reading that the new 7 speed cant pick a gear

Zillarpillow23

Dude, I couldn't find a 6 speed for the life of me unless it was a new 06. Believe me, manual is the only way to go with these cars. My 04 gti before this was a 6 speed and that was an amazing driving experience. I had the chance to buy a new 05 (manual) but didn't have the down payment at the time. That blows!


:v

Outland

If you want an automatic for driving it like an automatic, hey, that's fine. You press the gas, and it goes forward, where ever you point it. Like a golf cart. I have owned several and currently own 2 that have automatics. I do not expect them to drive like a stick, and I don't complain when they don't. I'd frankly prefer more cars to have manuals, but sadly, that's not the case.Hey Bob, I'm not in the under 21 crowd here. I'm in my mid thirties.My personal, or daily driver has always been a manual transmission. It performs better, gets better mileage, lasts longer, and is a thousand times more satisfying to drive.

Now, if you buy the automatic, realize that its not going to do what you want it to all the time, that's why you bought it. You bought it to do the thinking, and the work for you. My wifes car has the slaptronic feature...we both agree its a joke. But, there was only one choice, so we have it. And that's fine Bob. This is America after all. I don't give a fat, non flying rat's *** that you don't give a flying rat's ***.I don't remember calling you stupid, or taking a personal shot at you. If you disagree with my opinion, follow your own advice, and be civil. Its a forumn...opinions are allowed, right?

Outland

Did you ask the Dealer to do a search of other dealer's inventories for one with a manual?

Did you trade the GTI in on the MB?

Zillarpillow23

I had the chance to buy new with a manual but I wasn't financially ready. No regrets though.

Actually, back in February the 11th of this year, this b<i>o/t{c\h ran me into the center divider on I-95 and totalled my ride. Only up to a month ago, my fiance and I have been sharing her car (04 mazda 3 / 5 speed) for the better part of 8 months. Trust me, it was getting annoying when two people had to schedule around 1 car. Not fun. That was my second GTI lease and it was barely 6 months old and it had 8300 miles. I was just about to install a chip, induction and exhaust all in one. Man, I loved that car!

MB-BOB

I didn't call you stupid. I said your one-dimensional opinion that AT drivers "should take off their skirts and learn to drive manuals (like real men)," demonstrated a stupid attitude. There is a difference. I'll take this offline in a PM to you.

PC Valkyrie

By the way boys, Mercedes' manumatic transmission is called "Touchshift", not "shiftronic". The AMG version is called "Speedshift".

diamondblak05

Coasting is good when you're going downhill and don't need your foot on the gas pedal or when you want to roll to a slow stop. Other than that, you'll be one of those drivers that I see all the time....one moment, he's slow as ever and then another moment, he's hugging my a**s already. Engine braking is good when you're going down hill too fast (steep decline) and you don't want to constantly step on your brake pedal. It's also good when you're constantly going down hill....like coming down from a mountain at Yosemite national park.

(OFF TOPIC): Regarding those comments by "outland", many people choose automatics simply because of different reasons. But from my own personal experience, it goes like this: First, autos have been known to last longer than manuals. Second, it is easier and more relaxing to drive in heavy traffic hours. Third, it's almost as fuel efficient as a stick if you don't have lead foot. But just by observing how most americans drive, I would say about >90% of them have lead foot. Fourth, not everyone can drive sticks. My mother used to tell me....if your car is a stick, it means you're stingy because you don't want us old folks driving it. And fifth, insurance is cheaper for autos. Why? because they know that stick cars will break down faster and in general, those who drives sticks are more wild than those who drives autos (insurance's point of view). This dumb rule also applies to a RED color car compared to a WHITE color car.

Driving an auto doesn't mean we have to wear skirts! It's a matter of preferences. I drive both because sometimes I want to be a little on the wild side (manual) but sometimes, I want to be down to earth (auto).

StillKickin

Thank god my car is white....I would coast all the time when i was driving upstate and the highway was going downhill...It gave me a bit more fuel economy too...and engine braking I would use to slow down before coming to a stop at a light...not insane downshifts but revs would reach 4K or so everytime I downshift...the question isnt in the use but wether or not it damages the car...after reading what people said initially I havent even touched the whatever-tronic...Im scared that after a summer of abusing the tranny its going to die on me in the winter

CitronC230K_03

i dont brake, i just rearend people!

FrankW

AT drivers drive AMG...

Outland

I know. We all have different needs. I does get my hackles up when I read comments that are along the lines of "why can't I(keep the car from upshifting), or why won't my slaptronic do this(make the car faster, or shift faster like brand X if I shift it manually), or do that, or I want to do something that manual trans cars do(ah yes, the neutral drop...or even, coasting).

The comment that you seem most upset about was directed at the SMG/DSG posting. Have any of you guys driven an SMG equipped car? Its awful. Totally ruins the car. The system was so slow to respond, and so jerky when you shifted, it would make you clench you stomach muscles each time the car changed gears. I haven't been in a DSG Audi yet, but I don't think I like it anybetter.

I would definately dispute this. Automatics have more wear components, and are hugely more complex than a manual. The manuals, if kept filled with oil and driven properly, only have one real component to wear out...over a reasonable span- the clutch. If youve ever seen the inards of a tranny, you'd know that the automatic has a lot more to worry about. Fortunately, volume is on the side of the automatic. More and more people don't know how to drive stick shift, so more and more are buying automatics.

Personal preference. I don't feel it to be a big issue, compared to the pluses you get from having the manual.

You actually can improve the mileage greatly on both manuals, and automatics by driving sensibly. I can consistently get 29mpg on my way home from work, driving IN THE CITY, and not on the expressway. Ive never been able to get close to that with an automatic equipped loaner car. Using the slaptronic to force an upshift early, and use the engine's torque keep accellerating with the revs low helps a lot.


Yep, and then they complain that their cars do not get the mileage on the window sticker.

Last time I checked, my Insurance company doesn't handle warranty repairs or mechanical breakdowns...the first part of your statment is invalid. Regarding the second part, I would accept that from the insurance companies point of view, the driver who desires more performance picks the stick shift, and in the world of insurance, performance is directly related to rates.
Wardrobe choices are your own of course.

diamondblak05

I wasn't upset at any comments you made; I just disagree with your comments about guys who drive autos wear skirts. Like FrankW said, tell that to the AMG community.


If autos are kept filled with oil and driven properly, there is no clutch to worry about wearing out.


Comparing your miles from your own car to a loaner is a no brainer. Loaners are driven harsely by just about anyone who drives it and probably poorly maintained also. I hope you don't drive your car like you drive a loaner. I drive an auto and consistently gets about 27-30mpg with mix driving. For long trips on the expressway, I've averaged about 29-33mpg. I travel 40 miles a day 5 days a week and I see that average everyday. Plus, I don't have lead foot.


Exactly!



What kind of insurance plan do you have? Once your regular 4 year/50K miles warranty expires, your insurance handles most repair costs......such as engine, transmission/transaxle, drive axle, air conditioner, steering, front suspension, rear suspension, brakes, electrical, etc....and you pay a deductable. If you don't plan on keeping your car pass the factory warranty period, then I can understand that part.

I hate it when insurance companies group people into those types of categories. Just because I drive a stick doesn't mean I'm more reckless than someone who drives an auto and vice-versa.


Your comment here "Take off your skirts and learn to drive manual transmission cars." assumes whoever drives autos wear skirts. Sure...they can wear whatever they want, but you're prejudging them already. How would you like it if I call you 'stingy' .....like my mom did to me...even though you're not at all?

tmak26b

Sorry to go off topic a little, but is it me or does the C230 have tons of engine braking? I just noticed quite a bit of it when I was driving it.

Yes, I agree brake pads are hceaper than transmission. Also the seq. shift stinks, the tranny shifts like a grandma #1, so you can never get the gear you want at the time you need it. Also it isnt truely a standard because if you try to run the car in 3 at 2000RPM, it will downshift for you. Remember 2 means 1-2, 3 means 1-2-3, etc