Define Pointless

"Jcarr" (jcarr)
12/09/2016 at 17:20 • Filed to: None

So one of the things I was most amused with on our !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! was the fact that it has freaking paddle shifters.

I’m a race car driver now.

We didn’t buy it because we were under any illusions as to its sportiness, but I thought, “Neat, something to play with from time to time, I guess.” I assumed that they would let you manually shift the 6-speed automatic in a way many autos with sporty pretenses allow these days.

Wrong.

Turns out moving the console-mounted shifter from D to S doesn’t actually let you treat it like a quasi-manual. All it does is let you choose an upper limit for the gearbox. For example, the default setting when switching to S is known as S4. That means that the transmission will only shift up to 4th gear, locking out the fuel-saving 5th and 6th overdrive ratios. Moving the paddle shifters or gear shift up and down only changes that range to anywhere from S1 (locking out everything but 1st) to S6 (locking out nothing).

What a bunch of bull shift.

In other words, there’s no mode in which the transmission will—within reason—hold a gear until you tell it to upshift.

Now I don’t really have a problem with that since I didn’t buy the car for its manual shifting abilities, but the presence of paddle shifters pretty much gives you the impression that you can run it like a manual.

Oh well.

DISCUSSION (18)

Bourbon&JellyBeans > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 17:25

That’s so fucking “Toyota” it hurts.

Jcarr > Bourbon&JellyBeans
12/09/2016 at 17:26

It really is.

HammerheadFistpunch > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 17:28

Well, if you are in 4th at 3000 and you hit the downpaddle it goes down to 3rd though right? Basically this is just a manumatic feature that doesn’t gear hold...which is pretty common.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 17:32

Bold.

Takuro Spirit > HammerheadFistpunch
12/09/2016 at 17:42

Every auto Mazda I’ve had will bang off redline when in manual mode until you shove the leeeeeever for an upshift.

HammerheadFistpunch > Takuro Spirit
12/09/2016 at 17:48

Well thats the zoom zoom company, not one so grounded to the ground. Lots of company manumatic don’t hold gear. I suspect its because people who bought the car with the shortshift because it was on the lot and couldn’t care less about it accidentally knock the lever to sport and drive around redlining their engines not going anywhere and then blaming someone else (anyone but them) about their broken noisy car to everyone (consumer reports)

Eric @ opposite-lock.com > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 17:52

Nissan and Chrysler do similar things...

My problem is that the shifter is such a filthy liar and ugly on top of it. “No clutch, not a manual!”, stop the madness.

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 18:31

Ever since I had an ES350 years ago, I’ve felt that this could be downright dangerous.

If I’m rounding a bend at 60mph in 6th, and slam the shift lever into sport mode, the car forces a downshift into 4th, high-RPM engine braking sets in, the chassis gets upset, possible loss of grip......?

Oh, and I’ll be that guy: You bought a Camry, my condolences.

Jcarr > HammerheadFistpunch
12/09/2016 at 18:56

The 2005 Jetta we traded in would hold the gear long after the point that I would comfortable shift.

Jcarr > Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
12/09/2016 at 18:58

I love the Camry, it’s a fantastic car and pretty much exactly what we were looking for at this point (safe and reliable). I just think the shift paddles are silly.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 19:26

Most of the modern systems work in this way. The good thing is that you can probably just tap the - paddle with the car in D and it will drop a gear for you, very convenient for passing.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 19:37

For R50 Minis with the CVT red line was displayed as 5500 rpm but the transmission would rev all the way out to 6000 RPM before increasing the ratio. It’s almost like Mini realized the CVT was a disaster because the manuals with the same engine have a displayed red line of 6750 rpm and hit a limiter at 7000 rpm.

Audistein > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 19:53

Is it a V6 Camry? Don’t the I4 Camry’s have a CVT? If it has a CVT then those “gears” are simulated by the software, so it’s not actually shifting at all.

Jcarr > Audistein
12/09/2016 at 19:58

No it’s the 2AR-FE I-4 and a 6-speed auto. No CVT.

RazoE > Takuro Spirit
12/09/2016 at 20:18

That’s because Mazda is awesome. My daughter’s Corolla had a CVT and those paddles are useless. She hates them and just drives it like an auto.

Audistein > Jcarr
12/09/2016 at 21:07

Ok, so it must be only the hybrid that gets the CVT. I wonder why it doesn’t let you hold gears then?

The CVT in the Lexus hybrid I used to have had a “manual mode” that simulated gears and would hold revs until the engine redlined. It was a bit weird to use though because there was no tach!

For the Accord, the Sport trim gets different transmission and even engine tuning which I think allow for holding gears (not sure of this). I wonder if the Camry “sport” trim, which I think is the XSE, has different transmission tuning and if you can get that, supposing that it exists. Might be something to look into. This is a lot of speculation on my part because I haven’t driven any of these cars.

bhtooefr > Audistein
12/09/2016 at 23:35

Lexus’s eCVT fake gears are even weirder than that.

They’re engine braking maps, ultimately, IIRC, which is why they hold revs. “Downshift”, get more engine braking when you lift off, it has no real effect on acceleration, AFAIK... Unless it’s a IS 300h or RC 300h in non-US markets, then the paddles will change the sound of the fake engine noise generator.

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > Jcarr
12/11/2016 at 01:29

Really liked my 2008 ES350 as well. The 2GR-FE is a real sweetheart of an engine. Unfortunately only owned it for a year; sold it because I knew layoffs were coming and I owed too much on it.