It was dog slow. I've read all the rave reviews about how fun to drive a TSX, and I was like, well, where's all the fun? The car was sluggish from stoplight and when merging to the highway. It's been a couple of months since I bought it brand new. Then, out of curiosity, I tried using the sportshift. Holy cow! Huge difference! Such a fun car to drive, I can't stop driving it! There's about a one second delay when the gears actually shift, so I had to somehow shift early so that the actual shift happens just at the right time. I can only imagine how much more fun a 6MT is.

I think using the auto mode takes away the fun because it upshifts too quickly so you lose the torque that the lower gear/high rev brings you. Before you know it, you're at 5th gear and there's hardly enough power on that gear.

To all 5AT owners, I say give it a try.

 

NIce, but what made you hesitate to use the Sequential Sportshift earlier on?

 

glad you like the sport shift
99.9999% of 5-at owners here have tried using SS.
and about 15.999999% ppl love using it, others dont bother using it.

 

so yeah stupid question. when should we be switching gears? at what RPM?

 

I was contented driving conservatively during the break-in period, and wasn't looking to do any spirited driving until recently.

 

sometimes i regret not getting the 6sp.....but ahh well SS will do!

 

I do it when it reaches 4.5-5.5K rpm. But you have to time it so the actual shift happens at that range-- that's the key.

 

i've driven manual car before for a short period of time,
and the answer for rpm is jus by listening to rev and controlling the gas.
obviosuly you can't technically apply both components in SS, but i'm jus saying try different rpms and see if the car runs smooth, that's the right rev.

sometimes i would go upto 7000rpm on 1st gear to 2nd,
sometime i would start 2nd gear... sometimes i would change 3rd to 4th around 2000rpm
whatever i like to do, computer on SS won't allow you to do crazy things anyway, like going 1st upto 7500rpm.
jus have fun with it.

 

welll.. 6 mt SHOULD be fun..,
but.. a 5AT SS will be good for me now..

 

4.5-5k maybe for normal, but if you want some real spirited fun you should be kicking it up to the redline. Just wait until you get above 6k (unless you're hondatafied, which sadly i'm not ).

edit: To time it i usually hit the upshift right as its crossing into the redline to get it to shift before the 7.2k (i think somewhere around there) revlimiter kicks in.

 

I jus start using SS mode more nowadays, it is fun...but I still use it because I think D is too slow to shift it in 5th gear. Sometimes it doesn't even go to 5th gear until 70km/h. I make it go to 5th at like 55km/h. Save gas + revving under 2k rpm FTW!!!

 

You might have the Acura engineers a bit miffed about your estimate of 1 second between shifts...

FWIW I have driven "manual mode" automatics from Nissan, Hyundai and Dodge over the past 2 years. Acura's is easily the most driver-centric, with the shortest gaps between shifts and the most freedom to up and downshift in any scenario.

Nissan's has improved in the 2007/8 model year vehicles, but used to be horrible. The ECU was constantly picking your shift points for you and refused to let you go up or down 2 gears if it didn't find it prudent. The shift delay was so noticeable that I often wasn't sure if I'd successfully shifted to the next gear. It's better with the new models but it's not Acura quality.

Hyundai's is actually pretty good. It's not as quick to shift as the Acura, and there's a little more motherly advice coming from the computer than you'd want, but it's better than what Nissan was putting out there.

Dodge... well, I don't think we need to bother with that.

 

I use it, of course it makes it quicker and more fun to drive, but if you have the navi too, the mpg also decreases, which is the con. It's fun to spin and rev the motor though.

 

Going off of this, where do you guys usually downshift, if at all? I ususally down shift from
5th-4th @ 40-35mph
4th-3rd @ 30-25mph
3rd-2nd @ 20-15mph
let it shift down to 1st itself

Sometimes i feel more lag then others, is there any "correct" way to downshift when in the SS mode?

 

i sometimes find it akward to downshift. it feels cool to upshift though. i really wanted the 6sp manual, but my folks, ex-gf, and siblings also sometimes drove my car and they don't know how to drive stick.

i wish the TSX had paddle shifters!!! even the Fit I think has paddle shifters!

 

yeah, i don't have as much of an issue shifting into higher gears as i do downshifting. it seems like whenever i downshift, the car just jerks a lot and scares me.

that range you put down seems kinda like the range i try to down shift, jwood.

 

If you haven't noticed yet, you only have to lightly "touch" the up/down shift points in the shifter to make contact. In otherwords you don't have to throw the shifter all the way forward or down to signal a shift (Short throws work). With a little practice you can walk the gears up faster and hit a downshift faster to the point that you'll have to rev match to avoid jerking the engine. It does take considerable practice but you can really make her move and even come close to engine braking like a MT.

BTW - Once you get out of 1st in D mode you CAN use the DBW & revs to control the up shift gears with ease and get up to speed really fast. I think part of the problem that people are having with this system is that it is too flexible and adaptive and yes, it's not a MT. It doesn't respond well to pedal mashing. You have to learn how best to drive it and when you do a whole new world opens up before you. Enjoy!

 

I have been finding that out slowly actually. The more i mess around with it in SS mode the more i see that you can really rev it out faster and more accurately. As for rev matching, that is what i'm trying but i don't think i'm doing it proper. Can some explain to me how they rev-match exactly when upshifting, i'm not following that? When i try to "mash" the pedal it doesn't work at all. What i find works better is if you step slowly on the pedal until you get to about 3-3.5k and then find the appropriate gear you want, then step on it harder it will be much more pronouced in taking off than just straight stepping on it. I guess this all has to do with the DBW

For down shifting i just spent a few days watching where the D mode downshifts and mimic that in SS mode. Unless of course i need to slow down a little faster cause of a jerk in fornt me, then i downshift a little earlier which i don't like to do but if necessary it does help a little.....NO big jerks, just little one if necessary.

 

stupid question--if i downshift at the wrong point, it's not going to f- up the transmission will it?

my greatest fear is probably screwing something up. which is probably why i don't use it much.

but dammit, i love it when i do. the engine revs so loud and car reacts a lot better.

 

nope it will be fine, i just never downshift to 1st.. the car REALLY jerks and screams at you.

fwiw, I use SS mode exclusively. I think the only time I've used D mode was when i'm eating and driving at the same time. A 1sec lag would be ridiculous, its practically instant for me, and like another poster said you dont have to push the stick all the way up or down u can just do a quick flick and it will switch gears.

I would also like more information on rev matching, I'm not sure i understand the benefit aside from smooth transitions (but if you want that just use D, right?)

oh.. and please, no paddle shifters, who the hell actually wants to hold their arms on the wheel at the 10 and 2 oclock positions. i always have left hand at the bottom of the wheel right near the spine and right hand on the shifter or my ipod, or maybe a hotties leg.

 

haha. word, i usually drive w/ one hand anyways and rest the other on the shifter.

i think the actual manual for our car has those rev ranges for shifting. but it doesn't go into too much detail after that about using the ssm.

i need to practice and mess w/ it. i don't really 'feel' when i'm supposed to shift as i've never driven a manual before.

 

No, it won't fxxx up anything, we have electrical computer that will limit from us doing something that will damage our tranny.
you can experience it yourself
when around 25~30mph, go down to 1st gear, car will jerk like crazy, rpm will go up like crazy. ---> not good

when driving around 45~50mph, when taking corner for example, go down from 5th to 4th, or 4th to 3rd, car won't jerk as much, smooth rpm will go up, you will be able to control gas pedal while attacking the corner at pretty stable speed/rpm.
now that's good downshifting + having fun with SS

 

yeah, that's what a buddy of mine said. 'you have a luxury sedan. the ecu is going to prevent you from messing up the car.'

so if i'm cruising on the highway at a steady speed, i should probably be in the highest gear right?

 

I only use my SS when gas goes down.... everytime I use my SS my MGP goes down =/

 

i dont like ss mode, its no where similar to a real 5 speed. i have my teggy for that :- )

 

only if you decide to conserve gas, but 4th gear can easily take you 100+ mph

 

I use it a lot during the winter. I really like feeling like I have more control when I'm on snow and ice. Once I turn VSA off and use SS, I can actually not get stuck in the snow (Dayton, OH doesn't know how to clear snow on streets or make it so you can drive on it). I also use it on hills to avoid getting tickets and from having to use the brakes cause I'm lazy.

But with all the talk about how 'totally awesome' it is. I will have to use it more often. I learned how to drive in a stick, but I really sucked at it at first. I debated whether or not to get a manual, but decided not to since I wasn't very good with it when I learned how to drive. I think it's definitely a good think to learn how to do, even though most people probably would be lost if they had to drive a manual. With the SS though, I sometimes have a hard time hearing when to shift, the TSX isn't as loud at my mom and dad's older cars. With them, I could HEAR when I needed to shift.

Also... I do most of the time! But then again, I can barely see over the steering wheel anyways...

 

don't we hit top speed in 4th gear (5AT owners)? i think there was a thread on here that listed what gear each of the transmissions hit top end. i know i took my car up to 110 in 4th, and when i shifted to 5th, i didn't get any more out of it. so i should have kept it in 4th, maybe? or maybe i was on a slight incline. i know i was at highish altitude, around 2500ft

 

yes, from my personal experience, 4th gear on ss will go upto ~ 105mph.
then i had to go 5th gear...

 

the 5at is not that slow if you are driving in SS. The reason why many say its slow is because if you drive in auto-D mode, the car likes to upshift fast. So when you floor it at low speed, its stuck at 2nd gear...and 2nd gear is a HUGE gear... if you stay in 1st gear and floor it...trust me... u can actually spin out the crappy mxm4 tires. the 5at is slow because of its gearing and its comfort-mode. Thats the reason for SS... the 1st gear has the ability to go up to nearly 38mph...while 2nd gear can hit close to 75MPH....

 

this is true of most AT cars that have a sport shifter. I rented a hyundai sonata for a few months last year and even that car was pretty fun to drive in SS mode. wouldn't take a corner at more than 35mph in it but that v6 packed a little punch.

 

and by that time VTEC kicks in, yum.

 

For some reason, this post reminded me of an incident a member experienced when his wife was driving his 5AT:

wife: Your car keeps making a funny sound.

him:What gear does the display show you're in?

wife:"It says 'M.' What gear is 'M'?

 

 

To those of you who are saying "I regret not getting the 6spd"
let me ask you this then.. what stopped you in the first place?

 

At least one advantage on the 5AT is that you'll be able to hold hands with your GF for the entire trip rather than taking breaks here and there up/downshifting ^_^...

Yeah, that reason alone should be worth it >_>

 

I love SS... not a stick... but it got the job done so far

 

I have had my ride for over a year now and have never tried the ss. I feel like a loser! I was always afraid of messing up the tranny, so I just left it in d. Now, after reading this thread, i'm gonna have to try it. I will keep you guys posted on my thoughts.

 

LOL

I used the sport shift when I took my car out on the initial test drive! The dealer I bought my car from was very close to a nice freeway interchange (Acura of Concord...680 & 242) so the salesman let me go on the freeway .

 

Speaking of weather...

I actually like VSA. Granted, I don't experience extreme weather in San Jose, but my parents own a house up in the Sierras. I almost got my TSX stuck...lol. The street the house is on has an incline before you get to the house. It was snowing and I decided to go test out the car in the snow. It handles snow/ice very well with the exception of driver error. Stupid me, for some reason I decided to stop on the incline. That was the end! I took the car out of VSA, and got the car to creep up the hill...tires spinning the whole time, of course. It was an experience, lol!

And of course...what passed me? AN MDX! lol