Rental Corolla

[wdc330i]

Originally Posted by zach

They seem to have finally figured out, at least the one in our X7. Both of our prior X5 50is had the random decision making and jerkiness.

Yes. Our X5 50i was anything but smooth at launch.

[FC]

Three or four years ago, I drove a slushie vanilla Golf TSI loaner for hundreds of miles. In normal mode it was horrid, but in sport mode it was actually quite good. It was well-matched to the car, responsive, and predictable - especially for not being a premium car.

[robg]

Originally Posted by Josh (PA)

This is so very true. People talk about how great the 8sp auto is that all the automakers are using these days, but its programming - especially off the line is horrible. The old 5sp auto in my e46 is light years more pleasant. It has a pretty linear approach to start - go and slow down.

The 8sp seems completely random in its decision making. I assume its due to fuel economy goals, but it either starts off so soft that you are afraid to pull out into traffic, or locks up so hard you jerk everyone/everything in our car. There is no such thing as smooth acceleration from 0 to 5 mph.

It sucks.

Yep. I've tried the 8 speed now in multiple cars including BMWs, Audis, Land Rovers and Dodges. Weirdly the Dodge felt the most smooth but that might be because it was paired with an NA v8. The BMWs were all bad. On the other cars with turbo 4s and sixes, it felt as you described (sometimes too soft, sometimes harsh and jerky). I'm always mystified by the positive press it gets. I guess if you're driving it all out, manually shifting, etc while trying to achieve a good 0-60 time, yes, it is capable of fast shifts. But most reviewers seem to totally miss the everyday lack of smoothness. It is also very unhappy when its cold. In all the cars I've tried it in, the first 15-20 minutes are filled with noticeable jerkiness.

The best automatic I've had was the ZF 6 speed in my old e92 335. That transmission never bungled a shift and always seemed to respond immediately to manual shift inputs as well. Rev matched downshifts as well. I remember thinking when I first drove the car "oh i guess they've finally figured out how to make good automatics". Then, when i first drove the 8 speed I was very confused given how much I hated the feel of it comparison.

[Alan]

I am very happy with the Automatics I have had, I did have a weird slow down to a stop sign at 2-3 mph and then hit the gas hesitation in the 540, I do not feel it in the 550.

The Macan S loaner has a weird glitch going through this same scenario and if you floor it on the highway you need to wait a couple of seconds for it to launch.

Big picture is I wouldn't trade my Automatics for a manual (Yes I know I am now banned from the board )

BTW while we discuss the downsides of the Automatic there are a lot of things we could say about the Manuals ...

One thing I learned is no car is perfect.

[lip277]

Originally Posted by wdc330i

The toaster comment made me laugh.

And then, I also wondered what's happening with your rebuild?

LOL - That is a novel into itself.
The car now runs... and is now having its interior reassembled. The dash/console is going in now. Parts availability is really a hassle for these guys. Parts that they used to have no problem getting have turned out to be NLA or with ugly lead times. Don's resorted to eBay or NOS sources he knows of for some items - and with that comes time, $$ and quality concerns.

The AC is being installed now (or should say installed 'again' - car came with it originally). It will have a new compressor (much smaller and lighter and more efficient) and new condenser & receiver/dryer up front. Original items in the dash though (I think). New hoses and switchgear too. Should work great with new items.... But -if you look at the dash - will look original.

We also had to find a new interior shop. The first one did about 2/3 of the work before we cut ties to them. Finding someone to finish up (with quality and cost considerations and ability to match what was done already) turned out to be a big challenge also. But - I now have door cards and other parts are coming in to complete that package.

I am hoping late spring... HOPING... really HOPING... LOL that it will finally be wrapped up.

[wdc330i]

What a saga!

It hadn’t occurred to me that the pandemic would make restorations more difficult as well. But makes perfect sense.

[SARAFIL]

Originally Posted by lip277

LOL - That is a novel into itself.
The car now runs... and is now having its interior reassembled. The dash/console is going in now. Parts availability is really a hassle for these guys. Parts that they used to have no problem getting have turned out to be NLA or with ugly lead times. Don's resorted to eBay or NOS sources he knows of for some items - and with that comes time, $$ and quality concerns.

The AC is being installed now (or should say installed 'again' - car came with it originally). It will have a new compressor (much smaller and lighter and more efficient) and new condenser & receiver/dryer up front. Original items in the dash though (I think). New hoses and switchgear too. Should work great with new items.... But -if you look at the dash - will look original.

We also had to find a new interior shop. The first one did about 2/3 of the work before we cut ties to them. Finding someone to finish up (with quality and cost considerations and ability to match what was done already) turned out to be a big challenge also. But - I now have door cards and other parts are coming in to complete that package.

I am hoping late spring... HOPING... really HOPING... LOL that it will finally be wrapped up.

Yikes, quite the saga - but I’m sure it’ll all be worth it when you get to see and drive the end product. 😄

Is the market for these still on fire? That might help take the sting off of it when it’s all said and done.

[kognito]

Originally Posted by FC

Three or four years ago, I drove a slushie vanilla Golf TSI loaner for hundreds of miles. In normal mode it was horrid, but in sport mode it was actually quite good. It was well-matched to the car, responsive, and predictable - especially for not being a premium car.

Sounds just like my experience with the VW Tiguan we leased (2.0 turbo/auto trans) Drive sucked, Sport mode was just fine. Drive is what got it the advertised EPA numbers

[FC]

Originally Posted by robg

Yep. I've tried the 8 speed now in multiple cars including BMWs, Audis, Land Rovers and Dodges. Weirdly the Dodge felt the most smooth but that might be because it was paired with an NA v8. The BMWs were all bad. On the other cars with turbo 4s and sixes, it felt as you described (sometimes too soft, sometimes harsh and jerky). I'm always mystified by the positive press it gets. I guess if you're driving it all out, manually shifting, etc while trying to achieve a good 0-60 time, yes, it is capable of fast shifts. But most reviewers seem to totally miss the everyday lack of smoothness. It is also very unhappy when its cold. In all the cars I've tried it in, the first 15-20 minutes are filled with noticeable jerkiness.

The best automatic I've had was the ZF 6 speed in my old e92 335. That transmission never bungled a shift and always seemed to respond immediately to manual shift inputs as well. Rev matched downshifts as well. I remember thinking when I first drove the car "oh i guess they've finally figured out how to make good automatics". Then, when i first drove the 8 speed I was very confused given how much I hated the feel of it comparison.

I can't speak for the 2014 LR4's which got the 8-speed when they went to the SCV6, but our LR4's 6-speed ZF is pretty good with the V8.

It makes good use of the torque and in normal mode is quite good at shifting appropriately at a leisurely-to-slightly-hurried style of driving. Push it more than that (which I nearly never do given the type of vehicle), and it gets weird. Alternately, sport mode is a full-on getaway driving mode. Crazy-aggressive in holding shifts, revving the engine, etc. Weirdly, it actually works quite well in that mode, but I only did that once when late to my BIL's wedding. But the LR4 is definitely a chill drive, so normal mode is perfectly good 99% of the time. It also probably gets 5mpg if you don't drive it in chill mode, so there's that for motivation.

[robg]

Originally Posted by FC

I can't speak for the 2014 LR4's which got the 8-speed when they went to the SCV6, but our LR4's 6-speed ZF is pretty good with the V8.

It makes good use of the torque and in normal mode is quite good at shifting appropriately at a leisurely-to-slightly-hurried style of driving. Push it more than that (which I nearly never do given the type of vehicle), and it gets weird. Alternately, sport mode is a full-on getaway driving mode. Crazy-aggressive in holding shifts, revving the engine, etc. Weirdly, it actually works quite well in that mode, but I only did that once when late to my BIL's wedding. But the LR4 is definitely a chill drive, so normal mode is perfectly good 99% of the time. It also probably gets 5mpg if you don't drive it in chill mode, so there's that for motivation.

I've briefly driven and LR4 and a Discovery 5 with the SC V6/ 8 speed combo. My impression of those cars was that they felt somewhat underpowered and soft off the line.