So all My cars have been manual trans until I bought the E63 wagon. So what's the consensus during "sporty" driving in manual paddle mode. Brake with left foot or right? Does it even matter? I'm guessing the F1 guys left foot brake but never really tried to find out. Also I am used to coasting in neutral up to stops, I'm guessing that's a no no now?

 

I drive my car in eco mode because the view seldom changes.

 

I can't imagine ever needing to left foot brake on the street. And frankly having had some very hard street/curvy driving in a manual under my belt in the past, it wouldn't even occur to me to try left foot braking. It is simply not needed. For harder driving, I would give S+ a try and see how you like the programming. It does an acceptable job in my experience.

I think what I am saying is I don't really feel the need to use the paddles. I guess that doesn't answer your question.

 

Any input is helpful for Me. After 45 some odd years of heel and toeing the paddles are a new thing. The only driving I have done in the E63 so far is highway in "C" mode.

 

Not specifically to the W212, but left foot braking is not necessary. In modern cars you can't brake and throttle at the same time. The moment you step on the brakes, it cuts the throttle, so there isn't really an advantage to left foot braking. I always right foot brake. I've also driven manual transmissions for almost 20 years, then got a car with dual clutch transmission and now my 2019 C63S coupe with the 9-speed MCT. I was never a fan of the 7-speed MCT. The manual mode is not very good. It lags and sometimes refuses to shift. I drive 90+ percent in manual mode. Did so with the dual clutch and do so now with the 9-speed MCT and I require that the shifts are instantaneous w/o even the slightest perceptible delay. The 7-speed didn't provide that, but the 9-speed snaps gears w/o lag and never refuses a shift unless it'd be a money shift. I find that paddle shifting is frustrating and unrewarding if there is even minimal lag.

 

Yeah I don't expect to be braking and gas at same time. My only experience with paddles is Gran Tourismo on Play station, that is easier brake left gas right lol.

 

It takes some getting used to before getting the hang of it, but it's fun with a good snappy paddle shift transmission to get most out of the car. Very different from something like Gran Tourismo, because you actually get all the sensations, but the key is that the shfits happen as soon as you pull the paddle, and not a fraction of second later.

Here's a bit of teaser video. Not with the MCT transmission, but this is me driving the GT Black Series at the Nürburgring Grand Prix circuit. It has a dual clutch transmission and I'm shifting manually.

 

Cool vid , Thanks for posting. I just gotta get out there and play with it.

 

I drive in S mode 95% of the time. Very occasionally I'll find a situation where I actually want to use eco mode so the engine shuts off (I'm still not convinced this is a good idea but I am playing around with it because it's really my first car with this). On certain hard driving situations I'll use S+. I have tried M and it's not that great. Never tried race start (well I figured out how to enable it and get to the rev limited pre-launch condition) but I likely will never actually launch with it. Seems abusive on everything and most people say it's also slower than the old fashioned brake torque anyway. But I digress.

 

I live in a town with 2 stoplights so eco mode is always off. I won't have many chances to do brake boosting either.

 

You don't wanna brake boost this transmission. It has a clutch not a torque converter. Race start does a controlled clutch drop. Brake boost would slip the clutch like crazy.

 

I can't imagine NOT using my left foot to brake. And by that I mean 100% of the time. I know >99% of people don't, but imo it's only because they never put any thought into it.

Picture this, assuming the steering wheel is on the left, like in the US: You can drive an auto with just one hand, but in a stick you use your left hand to steer and right hand to shift. Right? Would it make sense to not use your left hand? Steer with your right and let go of the wheel to shift with the same right hand? No, that would be stupid because you have a left hand. Two things to control, two hands, duh!
So how is it different with feet? Should I use one foot to control both these pedals while the other foot does nothing, or one foot per pedal? Hmmm, let me think here...
The whole right foot braking thing is so stupid people wouldn't screw up when switching between a stick and auto. Maybe stupid is harsh, but clearly many people cannot make the switch between left foot braking an auto and right foot braking a stick, so we were taught this lame way thanks to those people. I never believed in this, even when taking my driving class in high school I used my left foot to brake. I can recall the instructor commenting on it and me saying something like; why would I use my right foot?
When you get in a stick you have to switch gears in your brain to use a clutch, right? Same deal but you also adjust for the brakes, easy. A motorcycle has drastically different controls but people don't seem to have an issue, at least those who can ride a motorcycle. So maybe the person/people who decided on the right foot braking rule is the real stupid one and should've been taken out and shot. Imagine all the accidents that would've been avoided if braking left was taught from day one. Or at least teach people the option. Where I drive the traffic is stupid, like a video game that throws things at you constantly and you have avoid making contact. Any time I'm driving in a residential zone, parking lot etc, tailgating, in heavy traffic etc etc, my left foot is already on the brake. Not enough to trigger the brake lights, but close and I'm ready. It takes me a small fraction of the time to brake compared to how people are taught, and I couldn't possibly count how many times that came in handy. Even if it's as simple as not hitting a cat, or rabbit, it counts in my book. Plus there are all kinds of situations where I need the gas sooner, and oh, look, I have dedicated foot just for that! Or I need braking and gas at the same time, which I know is something few people do, but I do. I also do that with a stick, where I need clutch, brakes and gas at the same time. Some of you will how that works, but the point is not everyone drives like a granny going a mile to the grocery and back. Some of us push our cars to their physical limits and all the people somewhere in between. But even for granny, right foot braking is a bad idea. I've even been rear ended by grannies, but honestly I don't think they hit the brakes until after contact.
I have talked many people into using their left foot to brake, and they all say the same thing; it's so much better... The only negative they have to say is it's difficult to not default back to right foot when in autopilot. Well, I can't help them there because I was never brainwashed to use the wrong foot.

Coasting in N is fine, imo, and I do it often. I do it out of boredom more than anything else. Something to do on a mundane drive. Plus it's illegal where I live so all the more reason to do it. I also put it in N a lot during the summer, like today, because idle in D doesn't spin the eng fast enough, and the spark timing is too retarded. Pop it in N and your rpms go up, as does timing, and it runs a lot cooler. Sure I could ignore that and let the eng cook like most people do, but I prefer not let my eng cook. Plus heat contributes to ping and I may need to gas it at any moment and I don't want heat holding me back. Mostly I just can't stand the thought of my engine on the verge of overheating, and that some parts are too hot but you don't know it. Plus all the plastic and rubber under the hood is breaking down that much faster, etc etc. There is zero reason to let that happen, so why do it.
I also downshift, all the time. More often that not actually. No real bennie other than boredom, it's simply something to do. When the lawmakers take away virtually everything fun, you find little things like this to stimulate your brain. One bennie is you keep your brain tuned to what gears work at what speed, so you have that if you need it. How many people know what gear is best when flooring it at 50mph? Note it's not always best to let the computer decide... In a stick most people know this. Well, I do and only assume others know, but in an auto people lose that. Another bennie is slowing down quickly when you see a cop, but don't want your brake lights coming on. Another is stop n go traffic where it's monotonous and annoying to brake, gas, brake repeat (another reason to left foot brake btw). So I engine brake as best I can, because while sitting in traffic I need all the entertainment I can get. It's a challenge to get through the whole traffic jam and never use the brakes, but also, and very important, never allow a gap in front that allows some JA to slip in front of you. Allowing that much gap makes the game too easy, but far more importantly is it's incredibly rude to every single person behind you. You know the type, those people that let car after car cut in because they have zero respect for anyone.

The only time I'm in E mode is now and then I forget to put it n S, then I give it gas and wonder wth is wrong with my car. Same with ECO mode, where I stop, it shuts Off, and for a microsec I panic. Then realize it's that stupid #%*! ECO thing. Yea, I'd like to wear out my starter, end up stranded somewhere and find out how much that costs to replace. Pass... Plus the extra wear and tear on the eng and battery, and I lose my AC during that time. No thank you.

Paddles suck! It's ok to have in addition to a console shifter, like my 2013 C207, but they took the console away in '14 so my '16 C207 doesn't have one. This is my #1 gripe about the car. #1, 2 & 3 actually. I steer with my left hand and shift with my right, it's always been this way and it works best. Now I have a right hand with virtually nothing to do other than reach up and upshift. Why upshift? Because the left paddle already at hand on the left can't shift up. Why? Would they do that? Well I know why, but it's stupid.
Since the paddles move with the wheel, how do I find them if the wheel is moved. Note to the MB engineeers; the steering wheel moves. If I do find them, how do I know which is the right one? Is the wheel upside right, or down? That wouldn't matter if either paddle could up/down shift, but no. Or they could've made the paddles fixed, but also no. The last thing I want to do in a turn is shift in the wrong direction, so basically I don't risk it, and performance suffers, often greatly. In some cases I can spend the time looking at my steering wheel and figure out which paddle is which, but when pushing the car a turn, or getting sideways, drifitng etc is not the time to do that. So whoever thought removing the console shifter was a good idea should suffer the same fate as the right foot brake guy. Engineers can be stupid too. I know, I work with them every day. Imo most of them drive like grannies so they have no clue how people like me, or many AMG owners, drive. Like my actual grandma, they probably think a column shifter is fine and "D" is the only fwd position you need. Plus there are bean counters that kill good ideas to save a penny, but whoever is to blame, I hate them.

 

Yes but a light brake torque at just over 1,000 is way less abusive than a slip at 3,700.

 

Yeah I'm not fan of brake boosting either. I drove around a bit today in S S+ and M , they were all better than C. It's gonna take some getting used to this tranny.

 

Particularly when it's cold, give it throttle like a manual and it's mostly fine. When warm I find mine works pretty well.

 

Also, a couple of tricks to more effectively shift in M that might help, provided they work in the W212.

• Pressing and holding the downshift paddle for 1-2 seconds drops to the lowest possible gear for maximum acceleration.
• Rapidly pressing the downshift paddle consecutively drops multiple gears in one blip. For example a double-click drops two gears at once. I use this frequently.

Again, these may not work or may not be as responsive with the 7-speed in the W212. Also, remember you can shift while staying on the throttle. For the multi-gear downshift I actually have to stay on the throttle with my 9-speed. If I'm completely off the throttle, then it drops one gear after the other with a delay, instead of multiple gears at once.

 

Ahhh OK that's handy info. Thanks I will try this with the MCT 7

 

Don't forget you can also press and hold the upshift paddle and it will go back into normal automatic. As far as I know this works on every 722.9 that has any kind of paddles (including my 07 S550).

 

This needs some clarification. There are two manual modes.

• Temporary manual mode: This mode is engaged by simply starting to use the paddles. It will temporarily go into manual mode, as long as you keep shifting manually and changing speeds. However, it will automatically revert back to automatic mode once you drive at a constant speed for about 10 seconds, or as said above you can press and hold the upshift paddle to immediately return back to automatic mode, or you can also push the gear selector to D. In temporary manual mode, the transmission will also automatically upshift at redline. This is also consistent with non-AMG models.
• Permanent manual mode: This mode is engaged by pressing the M button first, or by configuring it in the Individual mode. In this mode it will stay in manual mode no matter what. To return back to automatic mode you have to press the M button again, or change to another drive mode if M is configured in the Individual mode. In AMGs, this is also a so-called true manual mode, meaning that it won't automatically upshift at redline. Instead just like with a true manual transmission, you will run into the engine's rev limiter. This is pretty much how I exclusively drive in manual mode. I have M configured in my Individual mode, so whenever I activate I* I shift manually.

Several non--AMG models don't have the permanent manual mode as such. They are lacking the M button. You can however still typically configure it in the Individual mode, but as opposed to the AMG models, it won't be a true manual mode and always upshift automatically when reaching redline.

 

Yes that's right, I was referring to the temporary manual mode. I don't use manual mode because it doesn't do what I want (unless what I want is somewhat similar to what it was going to do anyway).