Let me be more specific: my 1998 740i is an automatic transmission and after I shift from park into Drive and press the accelerator, the car slowly starts moving (not too slowly - if you are a passenger you might not notice how slowly it is pulling away after, let's say, a red light - you might just think I'm a cautious driver)
Once the car shifts to what I imagine is 2nd gear everything works fine - the care will have no problem then getting up to 65-80 mph on the freeway. If the freeway is crowded however and I come to a complete stop, then proceed on my way it will again start slowly (in
1st gear).
I don't have $6,000 to either (1) get my tranny replaced, or (2) buy another car so the 740i is presently parked in the garage.
Thanks again for your insight! Larry (Los Angeles)
hmmmmmmm. don't know what you mean "select manually". i suppose you mean instead of putting it in "Drive" I should start in "1". hmmmmm, i've never done that. let me try it and I'll post what happens. thank you very much. larry
It is a friction device used to change the gear ratio of a planetary gearset.. You can doubtless find out much more by searching the internet for each the terms.
Are you sure if it is indeed starting in first gear - or changing gear at all? The transmission has a limp home mode where only 4th gear is used. This will give a very slow pull away. But usually accompanied by a warning light or notice - like 'trans fail'. Which is usually an electrical problem and nothing like as expensive as it sounds. ;-)
Copied from the Owners Handbook. ________________________________________________
Winter program. For winter driving conditions. In position D, gears 2-5 only are selected in such a way as to improve traction in wintery conditions.
In positions 4, 3, and 2 the selected gear is held. In other words, you can also pull away in this gear, and the transmission does not shift down after acceleration.
On inclines or when towing a trailer, for example, it is beneficial to drive in selector lever position 2; in wintery conditions on icy roads, position 4 is recommended for pulling away smoothly with no gear shifts. ___________________________________________________
'S' as you've probably guessed is the sports programme. Upward shifts are delayed to make more use of the engines power output.
'E' Is the economy programme, or what I would call normal mode.
Sounds like ideal circumstances for choosing the * winter program. Mike.
ok...then you shift the lever manually for what you want
thats a low ratio? or is it high...always get them confused!
; in wintery conditions on icy roads, position 4
why 4th? isnt that a 1-1 ratio?
yup i use that often...but i do hate, that i have to build the revs from tick over...not that i can drop the cluth at 5 or what what ever thousand rpm i want too...
until this car, for the past 20 years all were manual, from 1 litrle Sunbeams, to 15 years of Celica's, from70's race tuned to other bags of shit.....ah i forget about the FSO, abused that to the death. i have hit oil, diesel and ice, in a manual i know what to do, even if it doesnt work out as planned, but in a auto i havent a clue.....
i know the touring BMW is heavier, as i have both 525's, and i know manual can beat me off the line, even with less torque, the torque/revs get decent...im just worried about ice and snow, like i was first time in the wet on country lanes.. i havent used the 1 and 2 settings yet in 14 months, i used too in Capri's but darent now.
me too, i drive my my old man!
thanks, wasnt too sure how to engage it correctly. still not too sure....how do i go down a fecking steep 1 in 3 like i did in a old Marina when i learnt to drive!!
Once had to go up a steep hill in reverse, in a Humber van, cos thats the lowest ratio it would go, 1st wouldnt make it (somwhere in Rippon or N Yorks IIRC)
I remember a couple of years back in E Germany, i saw loads of Mercs and other stuff just going sideways.....and all the little cars overtaking, i knew it was more about the drivers that car, cos i never got stuck (i did, but i could get out of it) but here, 1st 5mm of snow and all the friggin roads come to a standstill...i even had the fattest low profile tyres on a RWD 77 GT and could go where i wanted...even if slow and took me a few attempts
I should have been in Cottbus now, but i couldnt get winter tyres, and im too old to doss in the car now....esp with my back!
On my last BMW which had this it inhibited changes completely once you moved the lever out of drive. In other words put it in '3' and it would start in third gear and stay in it regardless.
If you on about what i think, it wasnt a round about, but one of those traffic light controlled large islands straight off a dual carrageway. and the tyre blowing pulling me off wasnt part of my plan.
The idea being that there is less torque when pulling away in the higher gears.
Think of it as a manual box. 'D' being 1st gear or low ratio. Lever position
2, 2nd gear, and so on up to 4th. 5th is automatically selected at speed, unless inhibited by the * function, and is top gear.
Maybe, but unlike a manual box, the torque converter allows it to be used to pull away from a standstill. Higher gears give less torque. 4th least of all, so there's less likelyhood of losing traction when pulling away or accelerating on a slippery surface. It is also high enough for for the lower top speeds you will be doing on ice or snow.
I tend to only use it when I'm following a vehicle I intend to overtake. If you're cruising along in top gear at say 40-50mph, and floor it when you wish to overtake, the box will change from 5th to 3rd. Switching to 'S' mode before you overtake changes the gear to 4th, making the change to 3rd slightly quicker.
Do the same as you would in a manual. I too have more experience in driving manuals, almost all RWD. I find taking ones foot off the accelerator gives similar results in an auto as it does in a manual on slippery surfaces. Maybe even better in an auto as there is less engine braking, so less likelyhood of engine braking itself to cause the skidding to go from one provoked by excess power, to one provoked by rear wheel braking from the engine.
There's no reason not use 1 and 2, but there's little point unless you specifically need to. The auto box will still change up to a higher gear once peak revs are reached, whatever gear you choose. The 'S' setting will give a similar result to pulling away at the '1' setting.
On ice and snow forget about the fact that it's an auto. Use the throttle to control your speed. Let the auto take care of the gears, and drive just as you would in a manual, and at the same speed as you would consider safe with a manual.
If you're driving gently in ice or snow, any shift will be almost imperceptible, and very unlikely to cause any imbalance. I've been driving autos since 1988. Many times on ice and snow, and have never experienced any problems caused by unexpected gearshifts. In fact I find it quite an advantage not to have to be concerned about gentle use of the clutch when changing gear.
You do that by using the 1, 2, 3, or 4 setting, or if the hill is particularly slippery, I would use the * setting in 4th to reduce the engine braking, and use the brakes on their own. On very slippery surfaces 4 wheel braking is more effective than engine braking which on it's own can cause driven wheels to slide.
In general thin tyres are better on ice, snow, and in heavy rain than the fatter profile tyres on larger cars. I remember an account of a guy driving a Porche in a heavy rainstorm on an autobahn, who was overtaken by a 2CV, and couldn't keep up with it because his car started to aquaplane when he tried to go faster.
I seem to have repeated myself a few times but can't be bothered to correct it. I'll leave you to pick out the salient points. :-) Mike.
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