martini3

hello all,

I was wondering about how to make good use of the 5-speed automatic. I have a '03 silver SC430 and my salesman showed me a couple of tips on 4th gear when I wanted to do some passing on the highways.

I don't have much of a stickshift background experience but would like to know how I can make good use of the 4th, 3rd and 2nd gears on this car?

QUESTION:
----------------
What do you use 4th, 3rd and 2nd gear for?
When I'm climbing up on a steep hill, what gear should I use? And when do I put it back to regular "D"?
When I'm going downhill, what gear shoudl I use? And when do I put it back to regular "D"?
What about straightaways, what gear shoud I use to take it up a notch? And when do I put it back to regular "D"?

Any info. would be helpful......thanks....teeman3

1NICESC430

I mentioned this in another post somewhere in this forum ....

I use D only when traveling for a period of time above 60 MPH
In order for me to get to civilization, I have to travel a two-lane 45MPH residential road (driveways, small businesses, etc.). I travel this between 45 and 55 MPH never taking the car out of 3rd. This gear offers nice compression to help slow down when I come upon someone turning into his driveway and a nice immediate punch when I need to step on it.
In town, I use 2nd extensively. Occasionally I might downshift to 1st, but you have to be going very slowly to feel it.
Except on my way to D, I rarely use 4th.
Generally, I try to keep the RPMs around 3000. (unless I'm in D
I keep ECT PWR on all the time.

JCtx

I automatically put the car in '4th' after 'R'. Only use 'D' on my rare freeway excursions, or on streets traveling above 55. Even with ECT on 'PWR' all the time, tranny throws gear changes faster than an automatic weapon. If left in 'D', I'm in 5th at 15 mph.

I'm going to start playing more with lower gears and higer rpms, as I accumulate miles (435 so far) and get closer to the end of break-in. So far I haven't gotten above 3500 rpm, and that because I didn't notice the car was in 4th on the freeway. Ultra-smooth engine. After I hit the 1,000 mark, I'll do a top-speed run to see what this baby can do at 4K' of altitude. That way I won't have a 'lazy' engine <he he>.

Good day people.

JC

martini3

Ok, I took your advice, ELP_JC...

I'm cruising around downtown, in 3rd gear....it feels nice RPM indicates between 1500-2000. Actually feels better when stopping and accelerating than regular "D".

So if I'm going between 35-45 on commerical strets w/ stoplights, do I stay in 3rd all the time?
When I hit a red light, do I slow down and move from 3rd to 2nd, then stop. when the light turns green, do I move up to 3rd again and cruise between 30-45?

What about on the freeway at 75-80? I'm in "D" and would like to pass. How do I get that extra punch and be able to pass? Should I move to 4th and then back to "D"?

Thanks....teeman3

JCtx

Hey Teeman. One of my gripes with Lexus 'intelligent' transmissions is their reluctance to downshift, even in 'PWR' mode, which I have engaged all the time. It requires a heavy throttle to induce a downshift, which is neither smooth nor fuel efficient. The cure for this was my GS4's steering wheel buttons to change gears. I was sad the SC didn't have them, but honestly, moving the gated shifter manually has proven to be much comfortable for me, since I like to drive with my left hand at the 12 O'clock position on the steering wheel, and my right one over the shift lever (on the GS, I had to reposition my hands everytime I wanted to use the feature). Piece of cake to just move the lever a bit to the left and down a notch for 3rd.

Before answering your question directly, the way the transmission works is in FULL automatic mode, UP TO wherever you have the lever. If you have it in 4th, it'll function as a 4-sp auto. In 3rd, like a 3-sp auto, and so on.

To answer your question, I personally use 'D', '4', and '3'. You can use the other 2, but I don't see the benefit of using them; besides, the weird gated pattern doesn't feel 'natural' (I guess to discourage use of lower gears). One very important point: DON'T use the transmission to slow the car; brake pads are a lot cheaper buddy. I keep the car in '4' since I leave my garage, since I ride on the streets most of the time. If a want to pass a car, just select '3' and back to '4' when I'm done. The same on the freeway: I'm always on 'D' there, but nudge the lever to '4' when I need passing power, then back to '5'. That way you have the power you need without having to induce the downshift with a heavy throttle.

As far as the rpms are concerned, just keep the engine below redline, but higher rpms mean more fuel consumption and higher engine wear. Remember peak torque on our engine arrives at an amazingly low 3,400 rpm, so you don't need to be too much above that, unless you really want to haul a$$, at which point full-throttle will do that for you.

Hope this helps.

JC

1NICESC430

> DON'T use the transmission to slow the car; brake pads are a lot cheaper buddy.<

Yeah, but the transmission is under warranty, brakepads aren't. I *always* downshift to slow down. Unless there's something in the manual about downshifting being damaging to the transmission, I don't see the problem.

JCtx

Torque converters have plates, and therefore wear too. They usually last around 100K miles before they need to be rebuilt (yes, they're a 'wear it***, just like a clutch, but have wet plates instead), but you can considerably shorten that period by constantly downshifting to slow the car down. At any rate, you'll likely be out of warranty by the time that happens. Same thing happens with clutch-equipped cars.

Just replaced the brake pads on my other car (all 4 wheels) with the best available (www.rockauto.com) and took me 2 hours to complete the job one afternoon, including cleaning and polishing all brake components to like new condition, at a cost of $70. Rotor thickness was like new, meaning only the pads were being sacrificed. A transmission rebuild costs well over a grand; do the math, but to each its own.

Have a great weekend everybody.

JC

Joe Peters

LexPro, will you give us your
thoughs on this subject.
Thanks,
Joe

LexPro

I use D mostly unless i want to be in 3rd o 4th gear without flooring it so the trans. will downshift. I never really downshift i also believe that it places unneccessary wear on the transmission.

Roofless

This issue was discussed about three months ago. Please see this thread for more interesting comments:

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...threadid=89477

mmarshall

One of the reasons Lexus automatics are reluctant to downshift is that the engines usually have enough torque that the tranny doesn't HAVE to downshift unless you either want to drive like an idiot or really get in trouble passing on a two-lane road. The tranny WILL downshift under light throttle pressure if you try to accelerate in 5th from very low speds, to keep the engine from lugging.

JCtx

So we drive like idiots because we like to downshift? Hmmm.... never mind. No need to make potentially offensive (and false) comments to make a point buddy. I didn't feel offended, but others might.

Back to the point. Our engine is no pushrod V8; it's a high-tech, 32V, 4-cam V8, that loves to rev, and makes power higher in the rpm range. It DOES make more power at higher rpms with the same throttle opening; it might be enough for you, but I call it a waste of gas and sound. Peak torque is at 3,400 rpm, by the way.

The issue here Marshall is that we both could be happy, if the 'PWR' mode was working correctly. The majority of us just want a little more 'sport' character in our cars, that's all. The engine sounds great as revs rise, and it's much more responsive as well, but the only way to accomplish that without driving like true idiots, and wasting gas like an SUV, is with the shifter. Fortunately, it's pretty intuitive and easy to use.
This is an awesome car; couldn't be happier with it (500 miles on the clock so far).

Good evening gentlemen.

JC