I feel like such a dork asking this but I am trying to learn about my car. I recently bought a 2009 clubman S and I have two buttons that I don't know what to do with.
What does the sport button do and when would I use it and what is the DSC button and why would I ever want to turn it off? Ok I know that DSC stands for Dynamic Stability Control but that seems like a good thing so why would I ever want to turn it off?
I also have paddle shifters.... if you do to, how often do you use them and why?

(this is the best I could do for embarrassed)

 

The sport button changes how the computer controls the acceleration and steering. It lets you accelerate faster, and brings the rpms up higher I think. It also 'tightens' the steering wheel. Try it and see! You'll be surprised at the difference. It also, however, lowers the mpg so it's not something you want to do all of the time, only when you are looking for that extra boost and handling.

 

DSC controls how much power goes to your wheels. If you turn it off, you get more power. The most noticeable difference will be that you can spin your wheels and make them chirp, or squeal. That's not the purpose, just a side effect. If you try and take off from a dead stop, you'll notice with DSC on, the engine will pull back to keep the wheels from spinning, and the DSC light will flash. If its off you won't feel loss of power and the wheels might spin. I'm not good at explaining, hope it helps though!

 

Don't be embarrassed.
My MA told me to never turn the DSC off, so I never have!
I think the motorists who are really into performance and track use it, but I don't really know.
I love driving with the Sport button on though.
I haven't noticed a change in my MPG, but it makes sense that it would get lower MPG whilst driving more sportily.

 

By the way, not stupid questions. My neighbor has an automatic Justa Clubman, and she had no idea what those buttons were for either!
Sounds like the dealer should do a better job explaining everything!!

 

Please note the sport button does not let you accelerate faster. It only changes the throttle mapping. You still get the same amount of power out of the engine.

On an automatic, it will change gas mileage due to the change in shift points.

 

sport mode changes shift points to my understanding, giving you more power because it holds the shift to a higher RPM where the power band is......and I know when I accelerate in sport mode I sure do get there faster than in non sport mode.....

 

Welcome and dont worry about asking questions and dont feel embarrassed ...

Usually, the AT has a fully automatic mode where you put it in D and go... (I dont have an auto so going off the cuff here) but you should also see a "+&-" on the other side. If you move/click the shift lever to the side where the "+&-" are now you can shift manually by pushing the shift lever forward or back to go up or down through the gears... the paddle shifters on the wheel do the same thing.... it's like a manual with no clutch...the benefit is you can pick when to shift rather than the normal auto mode that shifts at the same point each time... it, like the sport mode is just a little more playful

 

An example of when turning the DSC off is if you were stuck in snow and wanted to spin the wheels to help get you out. Turning off the DSC will allow this wherein if you leave the DSC on the power to the wheels will be reduced to eliminate the spin.

 

Now THAT is a good thing to know!
A useful, real life application of the DSC.
Thanks!

 

That's not correct. DSC is a safety feature to help keep the car under control when wheels lose traction.

Here's an explanation of Volkswagen's equivalent system, which they call ESP. Every manufacturer has their own system that works pretty much the same way, but might be called different names:

 

Life lessons I learned with DSC:
It's automatically set to "On" every time you start the car, so you never think about it. But once I took my mini up to the cottage and took it out on the back dirt roads, got a little carried away and started sliding the car around and drifting through turns, got more and more confident with each bend in the road.
I came up to the last huge curve that leads to the home stretch and put the car almost completely sideways and smiled as it slid perfectly around the bend. Then I see the orange light flash on my tach with the triangle and the car goes from sliding through dirt, to gaining full traction and pulls in a straight line straight off the road, I went up a bank, cut the wheel, back on the road, off the other side up the bank and bounced back on the dirt and had complete control. When I got back I checked it out: not a scratch for all the brush, and no damage to the underside. Felt pretty lucky.