Is it just me or is the downshifting when breaking more aggressive in track mode vs sport mode? I hit 500 miles today on a road trip and opened it up a little bit and noticed this.

The downshift seems to stay in a higher RPM range for longer? Love it even if its just me.

 

At Ron Fellows performance driving school last September, I drove an automatic tanny and observed the same phenomena. The programming intuitively holds the engine in the power band providing good engine braking and good acceleration. I would guess the programming does this better than a lot of us drivers.

 

I hit the throttle harder than I ever had on my way home from my 500 mile oil change and it said something about performance shift management or something and held the gears longer.

 

I knew I wasn't imagining this. Being in the higher power band feels much like a manny tran would if you were trying for it. Love it!

 

The only thing I don't like about it is. I would like it to down shift sooner keeping the car in higher RPMs as I come into the turn. I just feel like I am going into the corner with out the feeling of engine breaking, allowing me to feather the throttle to hit my corner right and pull hard out of it. I have had it down shift in the middle of a turn too many times and it was an uneasy feeling.


So for this problem I use the paddles in twisties. I am in control.

 

I know what you're saying but you're asking a simple machine to almost guess when you are going to brake. You see what I'm saying? Car doesn't know if you are braking to brake or braking to then get back WOT. I Went out and tested it again WOT and slowed and it did what I thought. Until I was into a lower RPM band it kept me into the 70% for a few seconds unless I hit the throttle. When I touch the throttle again in the higher RPM band it cycles fast. It's really more complex than I originally thought.

 

if so then what's the point of having Rev Match?

 

That's for a manual, To give you "Perfect shift" without you having to "Feather" the throttle to get the gears to mesh right during your shift, especially in aggressive driving.


Nothing to do with the auto downshifting...

 

Just be careful you auto guys don't overheat your transmissions

 

Good point BUT, I've noticed it doesn't go past the 4.5k range at the most. Very clever system.

I had a little fun today with a Porche 911 Carerra S. Tollway was 4-5 lanes plus HOV lane. We didn't do anything stupid. Let's just say the track mode was on point more than the Sport mode was. I was hesitant to think it was the car because I had just gone over 500 miles and hadn't played much. After the first toll I put it in track mode and then everything seemed to get more lively. The exhaust and the rpms were staying much more constant. I had to drive another 100 miles home and put it in sport and noticed right away that something was different. Just another reason why I LOVE this automobile.

Oh btw, 911 guy stopped short on his toll road while we were paying to take a look. No thumbs up but I knew what he was doing. I love Porsche too. My brother just bought a new Cayman S and I'm going to drive it next week. Has been a great week. Wow!

 

you can make the auto kick into the P/SHIFT when you give it gas and its about to shift floor it . its somewhere around 3500-4000 rpm .
played with it awhile and now i can do it on demand .

 

I owned my 2014 for quite a few months and was just getting use to the overall feel of the thing. One day I came into a twisty road area and thought this would be a great place to really test the handling so I braked hard going into a turn and hit the go pedal and held on. The dash said something and the next turn it downshifted hard and held the shift after the turn higher then ever before. It was like a totally different car. Exhaust stayed open and it was shifting like I would if I had a manual tranny. I was in Track mode at the time but I've used it before and it didn't behave like this. It actually scared me the first time it happened because it wasn't expected but since then I have figured out how to make it switch into this aggressive mode and really enjoy when it's in it. I have never been able to read what it says when it switches because I'm paying attention to the road but some members call it Performance Shifting Mode so I'll go with that. Stop and pull out normally and it goes back to sleep like nothing happened. Like I said I drove this thing hundreds of miles and it never acted like this until I drove it like a true race car and then it becomes one. Pretty cool stuff they programmed into these. Mine is a Z51 so I don't know if the base model does this or not. Maybe someone else can chime in here who has a base C7 and can shed some light in that direction.

 

My base A8 does that too in Track mode

 

The automatics also rev-match on downshifting if in manual shifting mode or "Performance Shifting Mode".

 

When they get too hot it will crack the tires

 

The reason you are seeing two different modes/styles of shifts is because the car is sensing your driving style and is adjusting shift points to what you are doing.


Take the same twisty road both in Track mode. Just cruise and it will shift at "Base" level, not much more than standard driving. Now go again, but drive more aggressively and the shift points will change to match what you are doing. is the best I can explain it.. Drive normal not much difference, Put your foot into it and it gets aggressive.

 

Not really.....


The automatic is doing what an auto does. The torque converter does not "rev match" anything, it can't. In downshifting it is basically "scrubbing" speed off by causing resistance and reducing the higher rpms.


On Manuals the rev match is used because you have separated the power of the engine from the drive train through the clutch. Rev match is there to assist in re connecting that power back seamlessly so it doesn't jerk, buck or dive on you.

 

The only way you can get it to "go" in.. Is to drive aggressively. The computer is detecting many things at once to determine how it's going to shift. TPS (throttle position sensor), Engine rpm, gear. Tells the computer your in it to win it and changes shift firmness, shift points during the drive. you slow down and go back to normal driving it returns to standard mode basically.

 

At Ron Fellows I was practicing my heal-toe downshift blip and while at first a bit awkward I eventually became very good at it. .... Then I noticed; ... I had hit the rev-matching tab! I was beginning to feel so cool by then I didn't let instructor Ken know about it. (I think Ken gave himself credit thinking he was a super blip instructor). And yes, even with my A6 when you get aggressive the computer takes note and goes to amazing steps to sync your engine with the tranny. With an A6 it can come as a big surprise. A lot of engine noise.




Sam

PS: Gear jammers will never concede that Auto trannys are faster nowadays. Except to be cool, ( a good reason), ... who among C7 owners really needs H-T blipping?.