How do you drive an auto 'properly'

Bahco · 17 Nov 2004

Not a silly question but reading the thread on manual vs auto a couple of posters said most people do not know how to drive an auto properly

Being as i will be purchasing one soon I would be grateful for enlightenment.
Have driven them in the past but did not know there was an art to it.

AdamW · 17 Nov 2004

1) When accelerating, reduce throttle pressure a few mph short of your intended speed or you may overshoot the speed.

2) Flooring the throttle will give you "kickdown", where the box will drop down a gear for rapid acceleration

3) In traffic, put it in N or P. Leaving it in D with your foot on the brake wastes fuel and heats the transmission.

4) Use the "lock-down" settings on steep hills and anywhere else you may need to maintain a lower gear. "2" limits you to gears 1 and 2, "3" limits you to 1, 2 and 3 etc.

5) If you want to tow a caravan or heavy trailer frequently, look into getting a transmission fluid cooler.

6) Don't stamp your left foot down on the carpet everytime you want to change gear.

7) Stop by petrol stations slightly more often.

8) Bear in mind that to get from P to D you usually have to go through R, so don't get distracted halfway through or you may have an irate driver behind you in a traffic jam who thinks you are about to reverse.

9) Remember to park it in P, this locks the transmission so if your handbrake goes you still won't move.

Of course this all applies to "traditional" automatics, don't know how it applies to CVTs.

Bahco · 17 Nov 2004

Thanks

chambsesf · 17 Nov 2004

Adam has it covered. I can only add that to 'bump' start it may prove difficult if you ever have a flat battery. Also, modern auto's will not let you move the selector out of P (Park) without having your foot on the footbrake - something to do with a few 'runaway' auto's squashing people in the past and legislation being brought in to prevent. You may find your left leg and arm being fairly redundant.

Apart from that, I have owned 3 in the past (the last one being about 8 years ago) and love them. I would have one now if the emissions were lower and my company car tax bill was no so badly affected (VW Sharan, petrol, manual, in 32% bracket, auto 35%).

AdamW · 18 Nov 2004

I did miss a couple, as Chamb says you can't push start an auto... presumably because of the way a torque convertor works. If you break down you can only tow an auto a short way otherwise the transmission overheats.

And in adition to moving the gear selector out of P with your foot on the brake, most (if not all) autos won't start in D or R.

Even with an automatic moped you have to have pressure on the back brake before you can start it!

I've only driven an automatic car once (I know all the above because I had a very thorough driving instructor, insisted on at least explaining autos!) but every time I am stuck in traffic or just lazily driving somewhere I think about how an auto would be so useful right about then.

AdamW · 18 Nov 2004

chambsesf said:
You may find your left leg and arm being fairly redundant.

I knew someone with an auto who would drive with her left hand in her lap, and her left leg folded back towards her, sat in a sort of cross-legged position! Most peculiar.

Just realised, I have driven two auto cars, Sierra auto and Fiesta auto. What a name-dropper I am!

chainsaw_masochist · 18 Nov 2004

AdamW said:
3) In traffic, put it in N or P. Leaving it in D with your foot on the brake wastes fuel and heats the transmission.

4) Use the "lock-down" settings on steep hills and anywhere else you may need to maintain a lower gear. "2" limits you to gears 1 and 2, "3" limits you to 1, 2 and 3 etc.

9) Remember to park it in P, this locks the transmission so if your handbrake goes you still won't move.

3) I have owned three autos (two in USA) and have never come across this in the manufacturer's handbook. Maybe this advice is more applicable to smaller cars?

4) Surely the gearbox by its very nature selects the most ideal gear for the prevailing conditions ie if on a steep hill it will confine itself to the lower ratios. Also I am unfamiliar with the term "lock-down". In addition, manually selecting "2" does not always confine the use to just "1" and "2"; depending on the particular box it can just isolate drive to "2" - very useful in icy conditions when moving from stationary though do remember to change up! Though most modern autos do this in "D".

9) Problem here is that if you were on a steep incline parked in "P" with handbrake on and the handbrake was to take a holiday it would be a real bugger to get the car out of the "P" as the weight of the vehicle is resting on the gearbox. This happened to a friends car once in San Francisco. Wisely, and in accordance with local byelaws, he had left the steering wheel on full-lock towards the sidewalk. Upon discovering the handbrake cable had come adrift the only way of getting the vehicle out of "P" was to enlist the assistance of two hairy @rsed pedestrians. Three of us shoving eventually moved the vehicle enough for the selector to be freed from the "P" position.

ninebob · 18 Nov 2004

chainsaw_masochist said:
9) Problem here is that if you were on a steep incline parked in "P" with handbrake on and the handbrake was to take a holiday it would be a real b*****r to get the car out of the "P" as the weight of the vehicle is resting on the gearbox.

Um, OK, but if you weren't in "P" and the handbrake took a holiday, the car would take a holiday with it in a downhill direction!!!

AdamW · 18 Nov 2004

chainsaw_masochist said:
3) I have owned three autos (two in USA) and have never come across this in the manufacturer's handbook. Maybe this advice is more applicable to smaller cars?

You have to think about how the torque convertor works: you have essentially an impellor driven by the gearbox, and an impellor driving the wheels. There is fluid in between them. When you have the car stationary in "D" the first impellor is spinning in the fluid, but the second impellor isn't going anywhere. So you put all this kinetic energy into the fluid which isn't going anywhere, thus you generate a lot of heat in the fluid. If you put it in "N", the first impellor isn't spinning either, so you don't generate all that heat, and also the load on the engine is reduced.

I have read (albeit on the internet) that US autos are designed to be manoeuvred into parking spaces and the like with left foot on brake, right foot on throttle (hence the massive brake pedal). This is totally different to what I was told on how to drive autos, which was "release the brake and the car will creep at a speed suitable for parking".

So, perhaps US autos are adjusted so they don't creep? This would mean that leaving it in D wouldn't cause heating, but it would also mean you wouldn't need your foot on the brake to hold it steady on the flat.

Pushing a car in SF, that is an impressive feat!

chambsesf · 18 Nov 2004

ninebob said:
Um, OK, but if you weren't in "P" and the handbrake took a holiday, the car would take a holiday with it in a downhill direction!!!

Um, ok. Unless, as suggested, the steering was on full lock towards the kerb thus preventing the vehicle taking any holiday.

chambsesf · 18 Nov 2004

AdamW said:
chainsaw_masochist said:

3) I have owned three autos (two in USA) and have never come across this in the manufacturer's handbook. Maybe this advice is more applicable to smaller cars?

Click to expand...

So, perhaps US autos are adjusted so they don't creep? This would mean that leaving it in D wouldn't cause heating, but it would also mean you wouldn't need your foot on the brake to hold it steady on the flat.

None of the auto's I have ever driven stateside have been adjusted so they don't creep, nor are the brake pedals there any bigger than they are here. They do have a nifty foot operated parking brake though (which is small and hidden up the inner wing/footwell beneath the dashboard)

chainsaw_masochist · 18 Nov 2004

AdamW said:
You have to think about how the torque convertor works: you have essentially an impellor driven by the gearbox, and an impellor driving the wheels. There is fluid in between them. When you have the car stationary in "D" the first impellor is spinning in the fluid, but the second impellor isn't going anywhere. So you put all this kinetic energy into the fluid which isn't going anywhere, thus you generate a lot of heat in the fluid. If you put it in "N", the first impellor isn't spinning either, so you don't generate all that heat, and also the load on the engine is reduced.

Don't doubt the technical merits of any of this but I was simply saying that I have not come across any such recommendation via my own car ownership. It would make alot of sense and lead to less a/box wear though I imagine that autoboxes in US (certainly the larger ones) would come with standard transmission fluid cooler for instance.

AdamW said:
I have read (albeit on the internet) that US autos are designed to be manoeuvred into parking spaces and the like with left foot on brake, right foot on throttle (hence the massive brake pedal). This is totally different to what I was told on how to drive autos, which was "release the brake and the car will creep at a speed suitable for parking".

So, perhaps US autos are adjusted so they don't creep? This would mean that leaving it in D wouldn't cause heating, but it would also mean you wouldn't need your foot on the brake to hold it steady on the flat.

Yes, there does seem to be a tendency for the "two pedals, two feet" approach in the States. In all honesty, though, and having been out there for about eight years or so, I would hold that we (UKers) don't have a great deal to learn from them across the pond when it comes to driving technique. Contrary to this though, one of my favourite motoring journalists, LJK Setright - used to be a regular contributor to Car magazine before it went all Darren Dumb@rse - said this of auto driving:

'Nowadays only the most stubbornly primitive or the most recklessly skinflint would choose to drive a 3-pedal car'

'Driving is not an art, it is a science'.

'Whatever control you operate, do it progressively, not sharply; if it be a pedal, do not kick it, squeeze it'.

'If you have never tried braking with your left foot, be very careful indeed the first time you do so'.

'One of the most precious habits to be acquired with a 2-pedal car is to have your left foot always ready for an emergency stop. You can save yourself at least half a second in this way, which can be worth 44ft of road when driving at 60mph.'

I really miss old LJK.

Anyone know where he hangs out these days?
Oh and US autos creep, just the same as ours.

AdamW · 18 Nov 2004

I am sure those who drive sportscars would disagree with the 3-pedal statement! Even Jezza Clarkson has a hatred of flappy-paddle semi-autos despite being able to afford the cars that have good ones (I believe he used to have a Ferrari with one). A friend of mine who drove autos from 17 to 23 affectionately describes them as "golf carts"

I used to left-foot brake on occasion (in a manual) back when I drove in a fashion designed primarily to impress friends. Seeing as I no longer start a journey with the intention of beating my previous record, I don't bother anymore! Reason for doing it is that you can balance the car better on cornering with a little bit of brake and a touch more throttle. And you can also use brake then throttle in a corner to get considerable oversteer in a front-wheel drive car. Which judging by the way they drive on Top Gear and 5th Gear is the mark of excellent driving

For crying out loud, do they really need to slide every bl**dy car sideways on every bl**dy corner?!

chainsaw_masochist · 18 Nov 2004

Actually, I don't agree with the LJK's three peddle sentiment as I would sooner have manual control. But it does depend on the type of vehicle.
Regarding the use of paddles as gear selectors IMHO I don't think they are quite there yet. It's all very well on high price motors, but the owners are very likely to have access to alternative vehicles. Perhaps we will know it's a safe option when its on a Honda Jazz?

As for JC (ie Jezza, not that carpenter bod), TG and 5th Gear, they all suffer from the same inexorable decline that I earlier attributed to Car magazine: barely noticeable technical content capitulating to the techno-morons that fill that studio (I mean why are those people even there?). I do admit to the panache of the programme style, though. Very good camera work etc. Whereas 5th Gear seems to have one oik with a brownie camera.

Oh dear, sorry to have turned this into a berserk rant

. Pass the valium, please.

AdamW · 18 Nov 2004

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy watching Top Gear, even when the one who looks like a chiuaua is nuzzling JC in the crotch or licking JC's a**e. I reckon it has just as much content as the "old" Top Gear, but spread out over 1 hour instead of 30 minutes. It is more entertaining, e.g. playing conkers with caravans is great. I suppose it is a matter of taste, when they started fitting cameras inside F1 cars I remember people on "Points of View" moaning that if they wanted to see this they would sit in their car.

What makes me yawn is that a few years ago, the only cars that they would have slung sideways round the test-track would have been TVRs, Corvettes, possibly an Aston Martin. Muscle cars. But the other day I watched Tiff Needell on 5th Gear, trying his best to make a Kia 4x4 slide round the corners. Now a bit of oversteer is fun to do when there is no risk of hitting a kerb, another car or a person. It is fun to watch on TV occasionally. But not every single time they go round a corner.

Just watch, in the 2005 series of 5th Gear I bet Tiff Needell will take a JCB for a test-drive on the public roads, and will attempt to powerslide round every single roundabout he meets.

How do you drive an auto 'properly'

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