I have a 2007 Vette A6 that i am taking to get tuned next week. The shifts are sloppy when using the paddles. What can be done with the torque managment to improve shift firmness. I want to hard but still drivable. I have a CAI, Magnaflow Exhaust, and Diablo Tuner.
Thanks

 

Everything can be done. You can have it shift smoothly at normal throttle and bang into gear at WOT. You don't really want to go too hard or too soft during shifts, as both can lead to breaking, one by heat the other by force.

I had a lot of success with tuning my 04 GTO's shifting patterns (pressure, time, rpm/speed, TM), really got that thing going. Just by removing TM from my 05 GTO's the shifts were enough to break the tires lose hard core from 1-2 shifts without a bump in pressure.

I drive a manual transmission Vette cause I hated the paddle shifters... the normal D was great though. When I plugged in my HP Tuners I immediately noticed that all the automatic transmission fields were blank, kind of brought a smile to my face.

Anyway, alot can be gained, so good luck! You don't neccessarily need a shop to tune your shifting, but you definately want someone with HP Tuners or EFI Live that knows what they're doing.

 

There are 4 Trans TM settings:

Upshift
CT Downshift (I believe CT=Closed Throttle)
Power Downshift (this is wide-open-throttle)
Garage Shift (I believe this is from Park to Drive, etc)

I would recommend only turning off "Upshift". Let's rule out CT Downshift and Garage Shift, these don't really make any difference at all. The Upshift will shift very hard at WOT (you will spin going from 1st to 2nd) yet be very reasonable at part throttle. It controls how much torque gets applied. Therefore if you are not WOT, then you don't really need torque reduced or increased so the shifts will be similar.

I would caution against turning off TM on Power Downshift. It causes a very hard downshift and you will loose lots of traction on a WOT downshift to 1st (under 40mph). I had it disabled for a week, then decided I didn't feel I could ever do a WOT at less than 40mph.

So my recommendation is to just disable "Upshift".

Good luck.

 

Agreed with Dave.

 

Whoa, thanks DaveC6! I've always wondered about that, but was too "scared" to experiment there as I just didn't know what the hell it would do. Tomorrow morning, I re-program. Again, thanks for the info!

 

Glad to help.

Let me elaborate on the disabled Power Downshift. If you're going less than around 35-40 mph, and you nail the throttle, you will spin hard on the downshift to 1st, then again on the upshift to 2nd. So it's a double wammy. If you are on even the slightest curve you'll need to turn around for new underwear (or if it's a big enough curve, it sort of turns around on it's own ). All kidding aside, it's kind of scary. That's with the SuperCar tires on a warm California day. I was afraid of cooler days to come, so I enabled TM on the downshift. The upshift spin is very controlled and only slight kick out to the side on curves.

 

I've disabled all of mine (Upshift, power downshift, CT downshift, and garage shift). Unlike others, I love the way it downshifts with TM disabled. I think of it this way.

To me, it is no different than having a manual, downshifting, dumping the clutch and going WOT. When you do this with a manual, you must be ready for how it reacts. It's no different with the A6 with downshift TM disabled. When you punch it you've got to be ready - just like you do with a manual. That's what I love most about the A6 with TM disabled - it almost feels like a manual on WOT upshifts and downshifts, but is docile when not at WOT.

Anyway, that's my take on it. Everyone may feel different though. Disable it, see if you like it. If not, you can always go back.

 

Can line pressure be increased and time between shifts decreased using HP Tuners on an A6?

 

Line pressure can, but not time between shifts. Line pressure is set to max of 110 psi. But from what I have read about it on the HP Tuner site, nobody claims to know what the safe limit is or what effect it has.

 

Guys:
I have a Diablo Predator U7194 tuner and it does not have the ability to change the TM. Do i need a different tuner or what am i missing?
HELP!

 

My 06 a6 was out of control anytime i nailed it from a roll under 40mph.

 

Yea, I just realized that myself this morning, too, when I eagerly went to the garage and hooked her up to make the change. I also have the DiabloSport U7194.

So, I checked the forum for Diablo and found that Diablo has been "working on it" for the last couple of years. It looks like a lot of Vette owner's on that forum are pretty upset. I kind of wonder that if it takes the engineers two years (or longer) to figure out how to toggle a software flag in their program, then either they don't know how to do it without redesigning the electronics, which becomes a production (and therefore, cost) issue, or it is at the bottom of their "To Do" list. It seems they are interested in trucks more than Vette's, possibly a larger crowd for profits.

I know when I bought it, the manual doesn't even list the U7194 model in there....sorry, but the manual was written by a 9-year old. I'm afraid to ask how old the engineers are.

 

I want to be clear about turning off the TM. Should I turn off everything, or just the upshift portion. Can a Diablo dyno tuner shop do this? I drive the car mostly around town and road/drag racing sometimes. I want to fry the tires and have it bark the tires at gear change and WOT.
Thanks

 

Would it be the same with the A4?

 

I can't comment on Diablo, I use HP Tuner. I stand by my earlier posts and say only turn off only Upshift. Power Downshift is too dangerous for driving on the street. I have Z51 Supercar tires and live in a warm climate. You live in a much cooler climate so I would say the conditions would make it worse. If it's free to go back and re-tune it for that one setting, I'd say try if for a few days. Then you could go back.

 

You will find varying opinions on this. For instance, DaveC6 feels one way, I feel the other. No wrong or right answer. It just depends on how much punch you want your car to have on the downshift.

I drove a manual for years with 4:10 gears that I used to drag race. When I downshifted and went WOT at the same time I had to be ready for the consequences. I would never do this unless I was heading straight. Removing TM on the downshift on the A6 is no different than driving a manual in my book. You've gotta be ready for it.

For me, when I punch it, I want instant power. I want it to shift like more like a manual at WOT, and less like an auto. I don't what my head to go forward (while the car is getting ready to shift) then backwards when the shift takes place. With downshift disabled, when I punch it, my head is immediately thrown back - no loss in power waiting for the shift to happen. Do I go WOT on a curve, or when it is not safe to do so - no, nor would I in a manual. You have to learn what your car can do and respect that.

If I were you, I would find a tuner that can turn it off for you to let you see if you like it. Drive it for a while. If you don't like it, turn it back off. That's the beauty of owning HP tuners, or having a tuner that will work with you. You can turn in on and off as much as you like.