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Automatic transmissions are better & smarter than you. you may have to drive a little differently if you're driving an automatic in the scenario you described,

Automatic transmissions are better & smarter than you. you may have to drive a little differently if you're driving an automatic in the scenario you described, but saying that it doesn't ''know'' what you wanted to do means either your transmission is virgin & hasn't learned your habits, or, had a different driver for several years & is shifting at the wrong points. This 'ready to go' thing is all hogwash manual elitism.

mikeash 9y ago
Unless it's hooked into a sophisticated camera system, how could an automatic transmission possibly learn that I'm going to want a lot of acceleration in a couple of seconds once this car passes me? By the way, I'm not a manual elitist, but rather an EV elitist. I like not having a transmission at all.
dragontamer 9y ago
Look, a CVT semi-automatic probably would outperform me. I'm no master driver or whatever. But a typical automatic transmission? Dude, I have a huge advantage as a human. I have eyes. I can see things the engine cannot. It takes time for a internal combustion engine to rev up to its ideal torque band. The Ford Focus is a turbocharged engine, which means it only achieves maximum torque above 4000 RPM. Since most automatic transmissions are tuned for fuel efficiency (ie: 2000RPM band or so), they will perform worse when you're trying to accelerate. The manual driver has the advantage that they can choose fuel efficiency (ie: 2000RPM most of the time), or in cases of emergency... kick it into (low) gear for very high RPM to maximize the torque band. ------------- ICE Engines are all about tradeoffs, and the manual driver can choose the RPM-band that best matches the situation. Would a properly tuned automatic beat me in fuel economy? Probably. Would a properly tuned automatic beat me in acceleration? Probably. But no automtaic can be tuned to do both at the same time. Since high-Torque is high-RPM only... and fuel efficiency is low-RPM only... the computer cannot be tuned to try to do both at the same time.

mikeash 9y ago

Unless it's hooked into a sophisticated camera system, how could an automatic transmission possibly learn that I'm going to want a lot of acceleration in a couple of seconds once this car passes me? By the way, I'm not a manual elitist, but rather an EV elitist. I like not having a transmission at all.

dragontamer 9y ago

Look, a CVT semi-automatic probably would outperform me. I'm no master driver or whatever. But a typical automatic transmission? Dude, I have a huge advantage as a human. I have eyes. I can see things the engine cannot. It takes time for a internal combustion engine to rev up to its ideal torque band. The Ford Focus is a turbocharged engine, which means it only achieves maximum torque above 4000 RPM. Since most automatic transmissions are tuned for fuel efficiency (ie: 2000RPM band or so), they will perform worse when you're trying to accelerate. The manual driver has the advantage that they can choose fuel efficiency (ie: 2000RPM most of the time), or in cases of emergency... kick it into (low) gear for very high RPM to maximize the torque band. ------------- ICE Engines are all about tradeoffs, and the manual driver can choose the RPM-band that best matches the situation. Would a properly tuned automatic beat me in fuel economy? Probably. Would a properly tuned automatic beat me in acceleration? Probably. But no automtaic can be tuned to do both at the same time. Since high-Torque is high-RPM only... and fuel efficiency is low-RPM only... the computer cannot be tuned to try to do both at the same time.