I don't want this to sound like it probably will, but I don't think I like SMG II.
My first reaction when I saw the web site pop up was OMG!! I want it! There were three things that changed my mind as I kept reading:
1. It's only available on the M3 so far and I need my BEAST!!
2. If you listen to the sound clips, the speed of the shifts isn't really that much faster than manual. Yes, if you are a racer, you'll definitely want it for the slight quicker response and certainly for the consistency of shifting, but for the average person it's not going to make that much of a difference.
3. Regardless of how cool it is, it's kind of BORING. I love to shift gears. The paddles are a little too much like playing a video game or something. And I like to JUMP gears sometimes too. On an SMG you have to go down one gear at a time when you're shifting down. With a manual, you can jump down 2 if you need to, or if you're coasting to a stop, just put it in neutral and go (possibly) from 6th to 1st when you come to a complete stop.
I'm sure over time my feelings will change, but for now, I love my manual shifter!
Originally posted by StupidGrin8UP:
[b]
but for the average person it's not going to make that much of a difference.
My opinion: its the average person who will benefit most from SMG. More safety, versatility, consistency, and possibly reliability.
The fanatic who loves to shift and the experience race driver may only see small benefits from SMG. The inexperienced will see huge benefits in performance. We're talking orders of magnitude here.
I don't find the ability to be safely shifting in conditions and time frames that I'm not capable of boring. I find clutching my way through traffic boring.
There's nothing wrong with wanting your clutch and stick, nothing at all. Don't feel you should change your opinions on SMG just because I or someone else says so. You enjoy your beast, you enjoy the stick, by all means, keep what you like.
But there are some interesting things that SMG is capable of, a lot more than we have mentioned here, even more than what the web site suggests. IE IE higher fuel economy ratings, which will reduce the taxes some of us pay for these cars. There are those who chose not to drive standards, and those who cannot because of some disability, both which may enjoy these cars thanks to SMG. For many other people, SMG will be a big step up.
StupidGrin, it most definitely is not boring. Really you shouldn't judge it based on such guesswork. You need to drive it a lot and you will discover haw utterly brilliant it is. I had a manual E36M3Evo for 15k miles then got a '98SMG and drove that 26k miles (till my M5 arrived) and I loved it, the SMG was fantastic. I always drove it in manual mode, not auto.
You can miss gears, you can change 6th to 3rd or whatever you want, you do not have to go thru all the gears in sequence. See what I mean, you're reaching conclusions based on incorrect information and zero experience! :
Originally posted by jfm: StupidGrin, it most definitely is not boring.
jfm: Sorry, I think the word "boring" is not really transmitting my feelings well. I guess what I love about manual shifting is the feeling of one-ness I get with the car when I'm stomping on the pedals and slamming the gears for all I'm worth. It's a lot more engaging for me than the somewhat detached pressing of +/- paddles or rocking of a shift lever.
But to each his own - as I said in my post, I'm sure my feelings will change - maybe you didn't read that far.
Quote:
Originally posted by jfm: See what I mean, you're reaching conclusions based on incorrect information and zero experience!
I've had experience in a Porsche with Tiptronic and this is how I came to my conclusions. Of course I know that Tiptronic is not at all the same thing, but it does have the same "user interface", if you will, and didn't do anything for me.
I still say that if I was into racing my car against any/all comers at stoplights, etc. I'd prefer SMG for its speed. But since that only happens once in a blue moon, I'll take my shifter.
Quote:
Originally posted by Mr. Grinch: I find clutching my way through traffic boring.
Grinch, I'm not sure what you mean here, but I assume you're talking about really slow, stop and go traffic. I find that if I leave enough room between me and the car in front of me I almost never have to use the clutch. Yes, some people do cut in front of me, but not enough to affect my arrival time by more than a minute or two. Also makes you look cool - nothing cooler than an M5 rolling at 5 MPH for all to behold .
Points taken. But you cannot draw any sensible conclusions by thinking there is any real similarity with tiptronic. I know the user interface is similar but that's all. Really you cannot compare them. They are completely different and they feel completely different. SMG has a dry clutch, tiptronic is a regular torque convertor auto with epicyclic gears. Really, make time to drive SMG for a long time, not a 20min test, and you'll love it! :-)
because its different and I think what we have works fine. But, this is a similar system to what the professionals use, no? So I began to see the benefits of it. Im looking forward to the day I can try it out and see for myself.
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Linear Mode
