I went on a club drive last weekend and one guy said he just read an article not long ago (last two months) on techniques on driving tips. He thought it was in Panorama or Excellence. I don't see it. Anyone else see this article?

He said one thing he read was counterintuitive. When in a corner, step on the break and push the accelerator to the floor and release it as quickly as possible. The idea is that it sends a message to the computer to downshift so you can accelerate through the corner. I have a feeling I would put in the ditch if I did that! I really want to see how it was written and by who. Anyone know?

 

If you are in auto mod the tip won't shift if you are beyond "certain lateral acceleration limits".

By pressing the accelerator to the floor and then releasing it quickly (still greater than 50% of full throttle) you are selecting the max rpm shift points. It's called electronic kickdown latching.

The repair manual refers to "Downshifting during braking (ahead of bends)" "Depending on the acuation of the brakes, brake deceleration, transverse acceleration and vehicle speed, downshifts are executed during braking at higher speeds than during normal vehicle deceleration. In the braking phase, downshifts into the next lower gear are made ahead of the curve. This allows the braking effect of the engine to be used and load on the service brakes to be reduced."

 

It's easier to accelerate out of a curve by matching revs with a manual downshif, thus avoiding most, if any, compression braking. My guess is that not many here use the tip in "D" mode so have not mastered the transmissions capabilities in that application.

 

A little off the run of the thread, but I am buying a Mazda6 for a daily driver that also has a tip in it-problem is that up and down shifting are in the opposite directions-this will be fun with motor memory. My 16 year old daughter wanted my Sube and as the family is still in Maine it made sense, I guess. The cars I tried (Accord, Altima, Lancer, etc) all steered like 70's Caddys-no road feel at all, except the Mazda6. Since I am still limited to an auto with my bride, the road feel, not great but eons above the others, and tip were deciding factors. So I'll be a 2 tip person.

Al

 

I dont LOVE it! I actually thought there might be an issue, till I did a search and saw this is the way it acts. But I enjoy the car with the auto, it just seems like it cant make up its mind when talking off from a light under light throttle. It could shift alot more firmly for my liking. With the correct software, can I tune the tranny to shift differently?

 

No. You did find an old thread. Nice to see somone use the search function. Use the tip in manual mode and it is very good. You will never be happy in the auto mode.

 

+1
and yes, the "extra shift" in 2nd gear is normal...

 

I've owned my Tip for 3 years. I only drive it with the steering wheel buttons. With the tremendous flexibility of the engine, I don't mind only having 4 forward speeds.

And for cornering, I manually downshift before the corner, matching revs with a quick stab on the accelerator.

In all, great fun. And even in bumper to bumper traffic, I still use "manual" mode. A lot of 1st gear use with occasional shifts to 2nd.

 

Tips are just the wave of the future. Try finding a new Ferrari without tips.

 

Perhaps, but I don't think so. There will always be those of us that demand, and get, a 6-speed. I do think that the ratio of tips to 6-speeds will shift in coming years, as the technology gets better.

There is also a whole generation being raised on automatics. I have four grown kids. Each one got a car on their 16th birthday and each car was a stick. In high school they were one of the few that drove a stick.

I owned a 993 tip for 6+ years that I bought as a daily driver for the Los Angeles freeways. It was perfect for what I bought it for. However, I think a 6-speed in these cars is a better fit.

 

The Ferrari F1 transmission and the Tip in the 993 are two completely different animals. But I get your point - there's no clutch pedal to press. Our 993 Tip is a true automatic with a "manual" mode (not really a manual transmisison) whereas the F1 transmission in an F-car is a true manual transmission activated/shifted via electro/hydraulic means. The F1 has a clutch plate, throw-out bearing, pressure plate exactly like the manual 6-speed F-car, our 993 Tip has a torque converter......like a Buick.

Don't get me wrong - I LOVE my Tip 993 and I also love my F1 360 Modena, but comparing transmisisons between the two is apples to oranges.

Cheers.

 

I thought I had killed this thread 5 years ago-wow.

And as to the F car comparison: Porsche has moved far beyond the tip in the 997 where the times to speed are quicker with the new transmission.

 

MPB993,
- what supercharging kit do you have on your 993? - and who installed it?
(it seems to be a much more common mod in the US than over here in the UK)

Does supercharging make it less practical as a daily drive i.e. is it generally a lot more thirsty, or can you still get a sensible mpg at sensible speeds?

Thanks

 

I did not mean to imply that the 993 tip could be compared to the current F tip. That is apples and oranges. What was implied as represented by 993 Maineiac is that current year Porsche tip is comparable to current year Ferrari tips. The PDK looks to be the direction that Porsche is moving.

While there will still be the 6 speed, the shift seems to go to auto, obviously for the reason stated earlier, most young people have never learned to drive stick.