How does Manual mode work?
Sorry dumb question, I dont use the paddles much

 

The opposite of automatic

In all seriousness - either start pulling down or up shifts while in auto and you immediately go to temporary manual mode -- to exit you can long pull the upshift paddle or just wait and it reverts by itself - or you can put the car in proper manual by selecting the gear indictor icon on the steering wheel mode selector or center console - then use paddles to shift gears. There is a shift light that comes on, however it's way up in the revs before you see it on the dash. Experiment, have fun - it's easy stuff.

 

"however it's way up in the revs.".

I noticed that it will rev high and long.
Does the high rev damage the engine ?
lastly when driving , then selecting M mode , am i required to use the paddles or can i stay in M mode and drive normally <<< Again forgive if its a stupid question

 

"High" revs won't hurt the engine unless you sit on the red line without shifting - or stay in an unnecessarily low gear instead of shifting up -- Just use common sense, see and hear how the car shifts for you in auto and then mimic it manually to practice.
Another trick is to long pull the downshift paddle while in auto - the car will drop to the lowest gear possible in temporary manual mode....similar to you flooring it in auto with kickdown.
Manual mode does not shift for you, ever.

 

Another trick is to long pull the downshift paddle while in auto

scenario > Driving in A mode @ 50 MPH ... will long holding the Downshift paddle , slow the car down ?

 

Yes, as long as you don't give it throttle.

Go play.

 

Am I correct to assume you have never driven a car with a manual transmission? Because conceptually, the manual mode works like a manual transmission. Instead of the transmission choosing the gears, it's up to you to shift up or down at the right time. AMGs have what's often referred to as a true manual mode, meaning they never upshift for you in manual mode. You will bounce of the rev limiter at the redline if you don't upshift yourself. That's if you are in permanent manual mode by pressing the gear button. In temporary manual mode as explained above, it will still automatically upshift at redline and eventually revert back to automatic mode. However, the transmission will downshift automatically in manual mode if you let the revs drop to the point where the engine would eventually stall, so to avoid a stalling engine, it will automatically grab the next lower gear. The transmission will also protect the engine, so for example if you try to downshift at high rpm and the resulting rpms in the lower gear would overrev the engine it will block the downshift. This is called a money shift in the manual transmission world as it will destroy the engine and cost you lots of money.

At the end of the day, the manual mode is for those who know what manual shifting a car entails. It gives direct control over the selected gear and lets you put the transmission in the right gear ahead of a maneuver. For example if you want to overtake somebody, you can first downshift, then overtake instead of letting the transmission react to your throttle input. Another use case is downshifting into a corner to be in the right gear to accelerate out instead of having the transmission react first to your throttle input. You can also use it to slow down by taking advantage of engine braking. However, if you don't really have a concept or understanding of manually shifting gears, then it's better you just leave it up to the transmission. Since I drove manual transmissions for almost 20 years, I drive 90+% in manual mode.

 

Am I correct to assume you have never driven a car with a manual transmission? Correct

Thanks for the read

 

That's somewhat of a shame and perhaps something you still might wanna learn. Manually shifting a performance car can be very satisfying and rewarding, even if it no longer involves manually operating a clutch and throwing a gear lever around, as long as the manual mode is instant as it is in this car. The shifts in complete lockstep with what's going on in your head and what you see ahead elevates the driving experience, especially when you hit up one of those canyon roads. Modern automatic transmissions are very good at picking the right gear, and I must say this transmission is one of the best I've experienced in automatic mode, but even the best transmission can't read your mind or see what you see. Although, there are some GPS connected automatic transmissions such as the one in a Rolls Royce, so with the help of the navigation maps it can effectively see the roads up ahead and choose the right gear ahead of time, or if you have an active route it even knows where you are going next and can start downshifting as you are approaching your next turn.