Lexustom

Studebakers had that feature in the early 50's.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

yeah, my 92 camry doesn't roll back unless it's bad slope as well. seriously this is more of a marketing thing than some rocket science

mcfly

Whatever you say chief.

L-Tuner

I drive a 5MT everyday in my Integra and never ever need to use the handbrake when on even teh steepest of hills. My footwork is pretty quick in order to minimalize any rolling.

Hartawan

iTrader: (1)

I live in the San Fran area but I havent been to a really steep incline. On regular inclines however, it works great. Sometimes I let go off the brake and just keep my foot on the gas pedal so the passengers will feel smooth acceleration.

mike714

I used to think all autos had that until I drove my girlfriend's 99 Civic. Maybe is just the weak motor but that thing definitely rolls back.

L-Tuner

None of the Civics are equipped with Grade Logic Control. That was a feature that was available on the Acura EL models, which are basically civics with optional leather. They used the Grade Logic Control as a feature to seperate the two lineups.

mike714

Anti rollback and grade logic are two totally different things. Grade logic will hold a lower gear while driving on a hill to keep the tranny from constantly shifting between two gears. I'm talking about a mechanism for keeping the car from rolling back when you let go of the brakes while nose-up on a steep hill.

kevp913

Actually what you are talking about is not grade logic, it is called Hill Assist. Grade Logic is where the transmission detects the grade of the hill and either downshifts or upshifts to slow, or improve power, to help eliminate gear hunting.

Hill Assist automatically applies the brakes when you start off on a steep climb to keep you from rolling backwards. I've tested this on my 350 and the engine revs to do not change, indicating that it in fact does apply the brakes properly. I haven't tested on extremely steep hills, so I am unsure to what degree it will apply brakes. It's also only available on the Auto.

Here is a page from the owners manual showing info on Hill Assist as part of VDIM on the IS:

inecstaz

does it have hill assist? Because i was coming out of a parking lot the other day, and the IS seemed like it was struggling holding.... it rolled backward on me. I'll have to test it out again.

lifeisgood

Missed your response earlier. If you think it's a marketing "thing", try this test. Drive your '92 Camry over to a hill with a slight incline. Have someone drive your IS and pull up 4-5 feet behind you. Take your foot off the brake on your Camry (don't press on the accelerator either). If you are right, the Camry will sit still, just like the IS. If you are not right, both your Camry and your IS will need to have some minor collision work done, after the Camry rolls back into the IS. Based on my experience with other automatic transmission cars, none of them will hold their position on a hill unless I keep my foot on the gas pedal or brake pedal. Not so with the IS. But if you are confident that it's just a marketing thing, give it a try and let me know how the conversation with your insurance company goes afterword.

wakaru8

iTrader: (1)

So the hill assist feature is ONLY available for AUTO? That kind of sucks considering the new E90 3er has it for the manual trans. It is kind of moot point to have it on auto. It is the sticks that will roll back on an incline. I'm not sayin autos can't roll back, especially given a really steep incline, but for the most part it is unnecessary. What is Lexus thinking!

Koz

Hill assist pulses the brakes to HELP keep the vehicle from rolling back. It will not lock the brakes, in case you're on ice or snow. I would think it should be available on the manual also.

Koz

ff_

He's right. Any decent stick driver doesn't need to use the parking brake.

ULTiMaX99

iTrader: (5)

i never had to use the handbrake on my old integra whenever i was on an incline. i don't use the handbrake on my is either but for some reason it's a lot harder. sometimes i can feel the car begin to stall on me and i have to pretty much floor it to prevent it from stalling.