Just wondering, for those of you that have an automatic, do you normally drive in the C or S setting ?

I picked up my car in July and have always had my car in the S setting. Well, we had our first snow fall here in Chicago ( only an inch or two ), so I put my car in C for the first time ( the roads were fine once I got out of my neighborhood ). I must say, I really noticed a difference ! The car drove SO much better ! There was no lag from a dead stop and the shifts were perfect from each gear up and down. I always read about how wonderful the 7 speed auto gearbox was on our cars and I could never understand the hype, for I was never overly impressed. Now I get it, my car was so much more pleasant to drive.

I know ( in the US at least ) all the C and S setting does is change the shift points ( and the car starts from 2nd from a dead stop in C ). I assumed that S would be the best setting ( I had a 1998 C280 before this car and I never liked the car in the “comfort” mode ) but I may never switch it back to S again.

Am I completely nuts ?

Nick

 

No you are not nuts - If you like it in C mode then leave it there. I know many people that never use S mode in the life of the car.

 

Always C for me, the car does feel much better. Then again, unlike most people I prefer cruising instead of aggressive driving, perhaps that's why I like the C setting.

 

I use C most of the time in the winter as well. Summer rolls around, roads are nice and dry again....time for S.

And actually, C mode will still use 1st gear if you mash the pedal so it's a great mode to leave it in for daily driving all year round.

 

C in my 5 speed auto, 200CDI diesel. it's nor really a S-port engine anyway...
(also, it always starts in 1st, whether C or S)

 

I always drive in S, unless my grandma is in the passenger seat or something like that.

 

i drive in S only when i want an extra kick, or else its not worth wasting much more gas just to be in S mode.

 

I Drive in C and get much better gas mileage.

 

jeez I always drive in S. Am I missing something here? It is jerky when i floor it, it keeps the rev when I don't want it to.

 

Yes... try C.

 

Only reason I switched from C to S 1st day I got it (lil over a month ago) is because the car felt faster/more torque in S mode. I am going to try C for a couple days.

 

I always start off driving in C mode, but depending on my mood, tempo of driving will switch to S. My C mode is practically trained to S mode anyways, but if I'm about to switch from city to autobahn, I'll switch to S at least until I'm at cruising speed.

 

quick question for you guys-

in my old c55, my car would start in whatever mode i had it in when i turned it off, in my new c300, it always starts in C mode, even if i was driving in S previously.

is this normal? any way to change that?

 

Tried C mode today and thought the engine was much less responsive...suppose it would be nice on a long road trip though. Also didn't notice any improvement in gas mileage.

 

C mode to save gas sounds nice.

 

umm.. thats weird cuz mine doesnt do that..

 

What year is your car? My 2008 remains in S no matter what I do, unless I deliberately press C. Then it stays in C.

 

I always drive in S mode, but may try C mode in light of the above info...

 

08 and 09 will start in whatever mode you had on your last setting, 2010 model will start with C mode only.

 

only C mode (4 years and counting...)

 

2010

 

^same here, 2010 models always stay in C.