uschardcor

...wear that is taken into consideration in the engine/transmission R&D. not to mention this car never just 'shifts' it waits till it thinks its safest to shift which is usually pretty close to what you told it.

TopGearLA

id have to agree with the committee for engine braking, lol
considering there is such consideration for it in the automatic... this is why you cant even downshift to 1 when ur in second... until it deems it safe.

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

Ummm, no he won't. He'll tell you using the engine to slow the car is dumb and poor technique regardless of the transmission type. If you need to brake, use the brakes. If you need to downshift, it's because you need a lower gear to accelerate out of a turn, not slow the car going into a turn.

If you really think there is value in engine braking, why do they put one way clutches on race bikes? Wait - because it upsets the chassis! So WHY do you want to do this with your car?

ndk83

really? I thought the cars were built to withstand that kinda abuse.
I ALWAYS drive with my hand on the gear, downshifting excessively. Im renting a toyota corrola right now, and it has D, D with overdrive, 2 and L . Im always droppin it to overdrive and sometimes even straight from D to 2. Its become second nature to downshift.Sides it makes driving more enjoyable. Thank god for warranty.

nabbun

Amen to that brother.

But in any case, I too am I user of engine breaking for slowing down on steep grades (when there's sloooooooooooow traffic in front of me) and when making fast turns when i'm driving spiritedly (if that's even a word). I try to take it easy on my tranny during stop n go traffic tho as not to overheat it unnecessarily and after a "Fun" drive, I drive at 45-55 mph for a few to "cool off" the car.

I don't feel that it upsets the balance on my car tho . . . It actually helps me power out of those oh so fun sharp turns

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

and its wear and tear thats totally avoidable, why subject your car to uneeded wear and tear when you can just avoid it. The car can take corner speeds at X mph, does that mean you have to do it?

I would never ever buy someones car if I knew they used engine braking to brake because the engine and drivetrain will have considerably more wear than someone who didnt.

javyLSU

iTrader: (21)

Truer words were never spoken (or typed ) Brakes are for braking, transmissions are for transferring the energy from the engine to the wheels. That's why they're called transmissions.

Also, the reason the transmission defaults to 4th gear is because that is the 1:1 gear in the 2IS. It's explained in the New Car Features section of the FSM. Here are the rules by which the different 2IS transmissions allow downshifting:


As you can see, 4th gear allows a top speed of 109, 113, and 109 mph, respectively. You have to be going insanely fast for 4th gear not to be appropriate for the speed at which you're driving.

Javier

Pnuge88

iTrader: (1)

you cannot downshift from secondgear to first untill you reached 30mph or below.. and i forget the rest of the gears but i do it all the time but i cant think of it right now for the life of me lol.. 1st gear ends at 40mp before it overrevs

i actually did the6th to 5th too.. (i drive home late alot on turnpike no po pos or traffic most of the time) but i dont remember that either..

i'll do it again next time :X

javyLSU

iTrader: (21)

^Why do you have to remember? I just posted the chart above...

Javier

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

Downshifting into first is usually about the worst thing you can do to a street gearbox and it doesn't matter if it's automatic or manual. Bad idea.

eric_r_ho

iTrader: (9)

I don't understand why a lot of you drive your car like it's going to break in the very near future. I downshift w/ mine all the time and sometimes even leave it in second driving around town so I can be ready to accelerate to dodge something or make an evasive maneuver. It makes driving just that much more fun. If you wanted to drive your car lika pansy..should've bought a benz or something.

nabbun

^^^

talk about driving to the limits of your car @_@

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

Really? Maybe you should go for a ride with me. I don't drive like a pansy in my IS or my Supra.

blk_is300

Not me either, sometimes I ask myself if my driving offends other people on the road... especially in my S4. We're just trying to take care of our cars whenever we can to balance out the time when we beat the hell out of them.

Fizzboy7

I'd have to agree (mostly) with this. Although I don't race or hot rod around, I think today's car can take a little downshifting. If fact, why would the default from auto to manual be from 6th to 4th? If that was so damaging to the trans, Lexus simply would not have programmed it that way. Further, I have rarely ever heard of anyone in this forum, or any other Lexus/Toyota/luxury car forum complain about their transmission completely failing at 50k miles. In fact, the failure rate of today's transmission is far far lower than it was fifteen years ago. And that takes into account how many new cars now come with manumatic shifters. Taking all the above into account, plus the Lexus nanny controls keeping us from downshifting too soon, plus saving brakes, plus aiding in safe driving in wet weather (no brakes = more grip), and you gotta give manual shifting credit.