Can't believe I forgot about this, during Audi Junkie's BMW rant, but I think SMG is hot!!....
#21
damnit, heres the problem, manual drivings good and all, but when they come up with autos
that are equal or faster, give you the same mileage or better, are evidentally safer as you only have to point and click without ever needing to take the hand off the wheel, when they are just so damn smooth... then what?
And not only that, they have to go and say its an infinitely variable transmission with a hardened multiplate steel belt using torque sensors that can respond and apply the exact amount of pressure needed within a thousanth of a second... What the hell do they want me to do? damnit.... it sounds so juicy!!!
And not only that, they have to go and say its an infinitely variable transmission with a hardened multiplate steel belt using torque sensors that can respond and apply the exact amount of pressure needed within a thousanth of a second... What the hell do they want me to do? damnit.... it sounds so juicy!!!
#22
why would you want smg?
it shifts quickly, but why wouldn't you want to shift your own gears?
gizmos are okay and i love f1 too, but i think that smg detracts from the sport and driving in general. (and i really hope f1 doesn't figure out cvt - then the sport would be nothing more than stomp on gas and turn wheel to right and left).
what is so exciting about pushing buttons?
not to sound like a luddite.
an aside - on U.S. M3's, launch rpm is preset - (hence you can expect a difference in 0-60 and 1/4 mile times - the car doesn't adjust for the multiple of conditions that a human can).
gizmos are okay and i love f1 too, but i think that smg detracts from the sport and driving in general. (and i really hope f1 doesn't figure out cvt - then the sport would be nothing more than stomp on gas and turn wheel to right and left).
what is so exciting about pushing buttons?
not to sound like a luddite.
an aside - on U.S. M3's, launch rpm is preset - (hence you can expect a difference in 0-60 and 1/4 mile times - the car doesn't adjust for the multiple of conditions that a human can).
#24
before my time. thank God for that. smg is almost as bad though. (question for you)
did they run that car in a race, or did they just experiment with it? what was the maximum power it could handle?
#25
Re: before my time. thank God for that. smg is almost as bad though. (question for you)
You know, This is a lot before my time too lol.
Its one of those pieces of information you suck up and just remember... I was reading this on a site devoted to CVT's... I would assume it could take the strains of F1 engines of that time, remember, it would only have to last one race length.
The CVT that audi came out with first appeared in 99 in the A6, and it was under deveolpment for 10 years, so if it came out in 93 to 95 or something, I would assume that technology levels would have been evolved enough to take the strains of one race.
Im not sure if they were testing or not, im pretty sure I remember people saying it raced, and was banned. I'll try and find out more stuff :S
Its one of those pieces of information you suck up and just remember... I was reading this on a site devoted to CVT's... I would assume it could take the strains of F1 engines of that time, remember, it would only have to last one race length.
The CVT that audi came out with first appeared in 99 in the A6, and it was under deveolpment for 10 years, so if it came out in 93 to 95 or something, I would assume that technology levels would have been evolved enough to take the strains of one race.
Im not sure if they were testing or not, im pretty sure I remember people saying it raced, and was banned. I'll try and find out more stuff :S
#26
Here's a really cool technical article about SMGII by Road and Track...
<ul><li><a href="http://www.roadandtrack.com/technical/articledisplay.asp?articleid=139">http://www.roadandtrack.com/technical/articledisplay.asp?articleid=139</a</li></ul>
#27
The coolest thing about semi-auto boxes is that when traffic gets heavy,
you can leave the shifting to the car. We've driven the Selespeed, which is very nice, but there is so much more enjoyment in matching revs and blipping the throttle IMHO.
PS. Porsche started with the Tiptronic variation during CanAm because the drop in revs during shifting allowed the turbos to fall off of boost. The slurring of the shift with auto box type system allowed the boost to remain fairly constant. I think they called it PDK.
PS. Porsche started with the Tiptronic variation during CanAm because the drop in revs during shifting allowed the turbos to fall off of boost. The slurring of the shift with auto box type system allowed the boost to remain fairly constant. I think they called it PDK.
#28
I think it's only available in Europe, but it's in the 3 series brochure for the 325 and 330...
on the global website.
It's a cool brochure (must be European since the license plates actually look good You can check it out online by clicking:<ul><li><a href="http://www.bmw.com/bmwe/products/automobiles/3er/pdf/3er_coupe.pdf">3 Series Brochure in PDF format</a></li></ul>
It's a cool brochure (must be European since the license plates actually look good You can check it out online by clicking:<ul><li><a href="http://www.bmw.com/bmwe/products/automobiles/3er/pdf/3er_coupe.pdf">3 Series Brochure in PDF format</a></li></ul>
#29
It goes beyond just shifting faster...guess it boils down to performance over tradition...
It's always been easy for me to satisfy my preference for manual shifting since I knew I could outperform the good old slush boxes.
Now that I'm faced with technology that can surely kick my *** (and if not all humans, well darn near 99% of them), it's not such an easy choice.
If there had been an A4 Quattro CVT (that could handle Stage III toque when I was buying, I can't say for sure that I'd still be driving a stick :-\
Now that I'm faced with technology that can surely kick my *** (and if not all humans, well darn near 99% of them), it's not such an easy choice.
If there had been an A4 Quattro CVT (that could handle Stage III toque when I was buying, I can't say for sure that I'd still be driving a stick :-\