TD, et al were right... automatics do suck.

[FC]

After 5 months of not driving an automatic at all, I got a 9-2X loaner yesterday with a slushie.

Automatics suck. I was (still am) bitching the whole time. Of course, this crappy tranny doesn't help, but even my parent's XC70 tranny, which has a manumatic mode, still blows. If a 40K wagon cannot offer a decent tranny, then there is little hope.

Granted, from what I can vaguely remember, the BMW and Mercedes automatics from cars I test drove a while back were not that bad, but that was back when I still had my old benz with a shitty slushie nearing the end of its useful life.

Since eventually well have a roomier family vehicle with a slushie, I'll try to get one that I can control well in manumatic mode and that is silk-smooth on its own. My guess is that a very torque-rich engine will make a slushie a lot easier to live with, since it wont be searcing for a gear whenever you hit the gas, only sometimes.

Also, today I purposely drove on this section of road that is always partially covered in pebbles, and I experienced first hand the crappiness of the 90F/10R AWD that comes with the slushie 9-2X. It plowed for a brief moment before the other wheels got enough traction. On my 50F/50R manual 9-2X it's as if there was nothing on the road at all.

[dan]

we thoroughly enjoy our steptronic 325iT

[FC]

we thoroughly enjoy our steptronic 325iT

Yeah, like I said, the steptronic left a good impression on me on both a 330Ci and a 325i I test drove a while back. As did the slushie of an SLK320 I test drove years ago.

I hear the new 7-speed MB slushies are great. We'll see.

[Plaz]

we thoroughly enjoy our steptronic 325iT

My wife does, but I don't.

[TD]

I drove a steptronic in to work today and, as far as automatics go, it's a damn fine automatic. Too bad that constitutes faint praise.

An automatic can't actually read your mind (in spite of what some automakers would like you to believe). So, no matter what, you often find yourself flat-footed when you need a shot of power.

But it actually does a pretty good job of running through the gears on a straight-line accel run when you press down your right foot and hold it. It's problem is knowing what to do in less obvious situations.

[The HACK]

The best automatic I've ever driven was the auto in the 745i I drove for Susan G. Komen. The steps in E46 pale in comparison.

They must have used acceleration sensors in combination with a whole bunch of engine speed sensors and throttle position sensors to shift the gear, rather than relying on a planetary gear solely for the gear selection. It PREDICTED my passing manuever and downshifted as soon as I eased in the throttle to pass, at 70 mph. Car shot out from 70 mph to ~85 mph in a blink of an eye. None of that press down until the kick-down, or the press-wait-wait-wait-getting frustrated-wait-downshift B.S. common in almost all manuals. Truly amazing piece of automotive engineering, especially if you're too f**kin' lazy to shift for yourself.

[Rob]

The autos in my dad's CLK 500 (6 speed) and my friend's CLS 500 (7 speed) both have a sport mode that holds gears longer and downshifts sooner and shifts very quickly. They are almost acceptable. The auto in that same friend's 525 that he traded for the benz was not anywhere near as good in comparison.

But I would still hate them in traffic.

[lemming]

i think the modern automatics have come a long way --saab and any corporate GM product should be decent but it boils down to programming. as you may or may not recall many BMW auto's were GM hydramatic units in the past.........

....but i digress. i don't mind the fx35's slushie. but it still lags in kicking down when i would like it to do so.

i also concur that the 90F/10R based AWD systems suck pondwater. it's why i'd never touch a volvo and it's why in the future most audis are going to be at least 50/50 but more likely 40/60 like on the RS4. all it takes is programming.

that momentary lag in power distribution to the rear axle is most disconcerting, especially when you're trying to apply power. blech.