![]() You may find yourself reaching for a clutch pedal that isn't there and inadvertently hitting the brake pedal, which can cause some pretty harsh and unintended braking.Īlso called an automatic, this type of gearbox is a popular fitment on Volkswagen Group vehicles where it’s called DSG or, for Audi, S tronic. It's also very easy to forget what kind of gearbox you have if you've recently made the change from a manual car. They're complex, too, and can be expensive to repair. By design, an automatic gearbox will only change gear when it believes it's ready, so you might end up revving the engine much more than intended under hard acceleration. Some automatic gearboxes can be inefficient and reduce fuel economy if you drive in a particular way. Many automatic cars will also feature a manual mode, which allows the driver to change gear shift levers or ‘paddles’ behind the steering wheel, so you can gain back some of the lost control. Also, some cars will have a Sport mode that makes the gearbox more responsive. On the most simple level, an automatic gearbox will save you the trouble of changing gear yourself. Because there’s no clutch pedal you can rest your left foot and use your right to brake or accelerate.īesides that, if you want to get a move on, an automatic will launch itself from the traffic lights quickly because drive is instant and less momentum is lost between gear changes. If you want more acceleration, you can push your throttle pedal to the floor and the gearbox will change down a gear to give you more performance. Generally the term ‘automatic gearbox’ refers to a design that uses a complicated arrangement of mechanical parts to change gear without any driver input. For the same reason, the clutch will eventually wear out too, which can be expensive to replace. ![]() Operating a manual gearbox is just one more thing to think about. If you mistime your movements it's easy to crunch the gears, which can cause damage to either the clutch, the gears or the engine itself if done repeatedly. It’s also cheaper to make which is why manual cars are generally less expensive than automatics when they're brand new.Ī car with a manual gearbox does open the door to human error though. A manual gearbox is also a relatively simple device that rarely causes any issues. With practice, you can learn to be in the right gear for the speed the car is travelling at, so saving fuel, and reducing wear and tear on the engine and the car’s mechanicals. This gives you complete control over the gears you use and when you select them, so the car will only ever react to your input, which is useful when it comes to acceleration and deceleration, especially if you're trying to drive smoothly and economically. A manual gearbox allows you to select gears using the gearstick and a foot-operated clutch, which separates the engine from the gearbox to avoid the gears grinding when you change them.
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