felthove

How many of you use the manual shift option in your car? I find that if I downshift to 3rd gear at about 60mph I hit 3K rpm and can really take off if I want to pass someone or smoke some chump

Have any of you that race timed your manual speeds versus the automatic shifting?

Finally, lately I have been downshifting when coming to a stop to use some engine braking rather than my brakes (to reduce brake dust and keep wheels cleaner longer -- don't laugh!). Is this bad on the engine and should I stop doing this?

Thanks!

fireice

It's great for traction in the corner. However, there is more wear and tear on engine and brakes are much cheaper to R/R.

OldNate

eh, some people say it is bad, some people say it doesn't. Personally, iv'e been doing it a long time and i'm still on my first engine and tranny at 165k miles. I drive my car preety hard too. The cars were made to take the heat. Most likely, there will be a lot of people posting here saying that it is bad, but they have no evidence showing so. They will just use their head, but have no personal experience. So do what you want

zoink

Put it this way...

Downkick - whether you manually or automatically downshift - would certainly add more stress to the tranny and the engine. Why? It will give a sudden surge on the tranny and engine speed.

Here's an analogy:
Try to jog on a treadmill.... Then you all of the sudden speed up... then slow down... then speed up again... then slow down again... Would it make you tired faster? It's the same thing as the tranny and engine.

Now... the tranny may still last 200K but that's not the point. The point is that it will shorten the life of the tranny. But it may not be short enough for you.

As for down shifting to get the car to stop.... well, it will also put more stress to the tranny but not as bad as you downkick (downshift and floor the gas). Whether you realize or not, the engine does downshift as you brake.

JamE55

Not sure what you're talking about but i'm on 3rd gear all the time!

xlr8tin

Well, for me it is one of the main features that I love about these cars. I don't miss treat it though. I don't like the rpms too high like what you're saying in third gear.

I like using the manushift the most going through town when I have to stop and go often at every light. It helps with quick stops, but I don't get above 35mph.

But I use it all the time and will continue to.

The way I see it... is Mercedes wouldn't have made it if not to use it.

Eurosport

i'll take the 5th ammendment not gear

it's fine to shift, if it wasn't it wouldn't be there in the first place

xlr8tin

Hey, that's what I said (different wording) ..lol

So now you have a least two people that agree with you

Hazy1

+3

Like Zoink said, the car will downshift on its own as you slow down, just with less force than you are doing manually. I've noticed that I can go 2-3 times longer driving with the same amount of brake dust. I've also done this in past Mercedes, including one that was totaled with 275,000 miles (I put on 160,000 of those in 3 years) and the tranny was still working flawlessly.

ProjectC55

When racing I just let the tranny and ECU handle all the shifting. Seems to perform better on it's own especially in the 1/4 mile.