Just curious if anyone acutally uses the Steptronic Paddles, and if so, how do you get the most out of them?

Thanks!

 

For the past 50,000 miles, yes.

All depends on what you want out of your car... and how you want it to perform. When on the highway, I frequently just put the car in "normal" auto mode and let it do it's thing. I occasionally will use the paddles proactively to downshift a couple of gears before passing, to provide more immediate throttle response when I step on it.

When driving around town, I usually use "Sport/Manual" mode, but leave the car in auto and let it shift... the car maintains higher average RPMs and better pickup, at the cost of MPG.

When on a spirited drive on twisty country roads or on the track, I put the car in manual/sport mode, and shift it as if it were a manual - using the full torque curve of the car, shifting between 5000RPM and redline depending on conditions, downshifting to engine brake before corners, always keeping RPMS in the fat part of the torque curve.

I love the steptronic. Wish it were a DSG, but you can't have everything...

 

We live at the top of a six mile long three thousand foot high two lane mt road that is full of twisties and is faily rough. It's great to be able to keep both hands on the wheel while shifting with the paddles and staying on the throttle while getting tossed about by the rough road surface. Major fun

 

the flipside of the twisties coin, I also use mine in slow moving traffic to idle at a low speed to keep off the brake.

But, I agree the other guys, they're alot of fun on curvy roads and being able to keep your hands on the wheel while shifting helps with torque steer immensely.

 

All the time baby.

 

yeppers. Use them mostly for engine braking.

 

Use them on drives in the mountains, on the track to control the power when in manual mode.

Love them, car control is great on track since I can keep my attention on the corners and both hands on the wheel.

Blimey lays it out well.

 

what blimey and club-monS and old81 said. paddles are hugely fun-ctional, exactly for the above reasons.

and with a JCW kit it's even MORE funzo! A twin-turbo DSG 7-spd JCW? I'd be one of the first on the order list.

 

Yes! They're great for the occasional shift with no effort in moving hands and arms around the car. In sport mode I use them to 'relax' the engine around town. When I come to some road curves, I up and down shift to keep the motor humming just right. Mine is a NON-S so it helps to get the most out of the motor I have, meaning gears. I also use the stick/manual mode for that good old shifting action. I love the steptronic tranny.

 

So... y'r question been answered? We auto-heads are a pretty tight bunch, sometimes looked down upon by those waving big sticks, so we tend to "stick" together. haha. OP if Scooter is an auto y'l have some serious serious fun Scootering

 

I'm stickless and proud of it.

The manual guys call me "The Stickless Wonder"

 

my stick has a beautiful polished oem English Oak **** atop it... nice surprise when delivered. but I still prefer paddlin about. To me, that's the future, baby.

and Ive driven nothing but sticks my whole life.

 

oh yeah I use them ... can outrun a manual Mini with them too

 

Use Them ? Maybe even abuse them, way too much fun in twisties .... Mark

 

I wouldn't know what to do if I didn't have them!

If I could get it in park and reverse with 'em, I wouldn't even need that thing sticking up from the floor.

 

when I first got my 09 the paddles felt a little awkward, I kept trying to do too much with my right hand, but then I discovered that shifting with the left hand, for me, felt more natural. The only thing I wish is that the paddles extended down to 8 and 4, because most of the time my hands are down there (old evasive/defensive driving school technique that wont go away.)

 

I wish these cars came with boost gauges, because Ive heard one reason the autos perform faster is that there's no loss of boost by the turbo when shifting gears. I can feel it, but I wish I had a boost gauge to confirm it. I'll have to ask the "stickless wonders" that regularly post their track times in the "drag racing" subforum.

 

I have hit mine on accident a few times.

I am in the minority here but I would be happy if there were a way to disable them.

 

I've been using them more now that I'm more comfortable driving the car. I seem to prefer using the stick, however, since I'm apparently not coordinated enough to turn and use the paddles

 

Every time I try to use the paddles, it serves as a reminder that I have no idea how to drive a stick shift and should stop fooling myself into thinking I do

 

I always drive in the "Manual" mode and use the "stick" to change gears. On twisties, I use the paddles, since that allows both hands to be on the steering wheel.

 

yup - especially after I speed up thru a yellow light I quickly downshift in case a cop was watching (cause he can't see my brake lights when I downshift)

 

Just a little bit of history on the paddle concept: Ferrari was the first team to use paddles on a car. They raced in the Grand Prix of Brazil for the first time with this nifty gadget. Nigel Mansell won his first race with them on the first attempt with the semi-auto paddle gearbox. There's a funny picture of him with a huge frown on his face because he accidentally cut his hand on a sharp part of his trophy when they handed it to him! Ouch, must have hurt like hell. Oddly, Mansell had booked a one-way ticket back to England because he was absolutely sure the transmission would break down before he finished the race! He was also the last driver personally chosen by Enzo Ferrari before his death in 1988.

 

I've used a lot of "tronic" systems, and the one in my Clubman S is the best, hands down. The shifts are quick and precise (although not nearly as quick as many sequential gearboxes), not laggy like a lot of Steptronic of tiptronic systems.

75% of my daily driving, I let the auto do all the work on its own.. But when I'm feeling spirited, I will shove it into manual and use the stick to shift. Or if I am on some curves, I will use the paddle shifters and keep both my hands on the wheel.

The paddles were awkward at first, partially because it was just a new thing to me. But i've grown used to it, and love every minute of it. The automatic transmission in these cars is one of the finest I've used, and the paddle shifters make it just that much more fun.

 

those of you afraid of using the Manual mode are really missing a big percentage of the fun that can be had with an Auto. worth to learn for sure.