When you guys use the manual shifters do you guys let go of the gas then shift or just hold the gas down while shifting??? I noticed its smoother when i let the gas go?

 

It's PaDDle shifters.

Either way they shift too slow for my tastes...I use the stick.

 

I agree, very slow.

 

I do let up a little on the gas when using the paddles or stick to manually shift. This is only a artifact of my days as a manual shifter--I learned to drive on a stick shift by myself.

That said, I find both manual shifters in this car too slow for my taste, though the stick is marginally faster. I stay in "D" 95% of the time asa result. I use the manual in stop and go traffic or on icy roads, both conditions in which engine braking is a useful adjunct to to pedal braking.

 

Well THAT sure explains a lot.

 

I bought my first car, a used 1982 Civic DX coupe, and practiced shifting on the way home from the dealership. Hondas of even that time had remarkably easy-to-use, smooth shifters and within a day or two I was pretty proficient. I had to give up manual shifting after I got married as my wife needs to be able to drive my car in a pinch. She hadn't (and hasn't) the patience to learn to drive a manual shift car.

 

Funny how times change (and I approach a permanent home in the Smithsonian).

Our RL has 3 means of shifting, paddles, stick and complete auto. Perhaps 4 if you include grade logic. And 5 gears still ain't enough.

My 1st car was a 1970 Mustang Mach 1. It had less hp, and 3 gears in the FMX tranny. It basically had 2 speeds....complete stop and 'hang on!'. Grunt, power and a thrill ride of tractionless vectoring. It also got 12mpg if I was lucky.

Now we have a more powerful, more controled, much more capable vehicle with a harmony in engineering few will ever know...and it still is not enough.

And my stick training was also self taught, on a 1976 Datsun B-210 Hatchback 'Honeybee' (yep, the honey mustard color with honeycome wheel covers and slat shade on the hatch). It was a snickety 5 speed and without rev limiters, you simply could not overrev the car. It would buzz until you got the message...SHIFT you idiot! It was nothing short of the car yelling 'hey, Hey HEY!' a you.

But I degress.....

 

I use the paddle shifters only if I'm in the mood to save gas by starting out in 2nd gear. Just shift to 2nd while still stopped.

Wish I could set it to start in 2nd regularly with a driving mode switch.

I'm sure I wind up using more gas, though, because on subsequent traffic stops I forget to shift to 2nd and wind up racing the engine in 1st before I remember I'm not in "D".

 

Yea, I do the same thing. I have gotten lazy over the years. My wife insists on an automatic. An auto is also very useful in the stop and go traffic we have here.

 

The paddle shifters are useful when I drive spiritedly on the freeway, overtaking and switching lanes on a curve at fairly high speeds. With both hands on the wheel I feel confident with my ability as well as my car to execute spirited driving with poise.

 

Ditto....same here. I love starting out in 2nd and wish there was a way to make it permanent.

In terms of the manual shifting being too slow, I agree but I've learned to compensate by shifting a second before it's time...I drive in manual mode 95% of the time. Automatic when on the phone or with passengers.

 

I use the paddles alot to upshift from fourth to fifth to let my car coast better, especially when going downhill. It is useful when the grade logic wants you to be in fourth. It usually won't let you shift into fifth until you are going about 40 mph.

 

As much as I love my RL, I find the manual shifting of an automatic (I've test driven many with this feature), to be pointless. I've owned many cars with a manual transmission with clutch in the past, the best of which was the car which was replaced by my RL, a 2006 Mazda Speed6, a 270 HP twin turbo, all-wheel drive setup which was an abosolute blast to drive. There is no feedback, in my opinion, from an automatic with the manual shift feature; i.e., there is no particular sensation that tells me it's time to shift, and thus no communion between car and driver. A good short-throw shifter with a sensitive clutch can't be beat when it comes to driving exhiliration. In the RL, I don't think I can do any better job of shifting than the automatic.