Tiptronic Problem or "Characteristic"?
Discussion
Hello everybody,
I've just joined this forum and would very much appreciate some advice. I have a 2006 Boxster 987 with Tiptronic S transmission. The car has done 34,000 miles. I always drive the car in fully automatic "D" mode. Recently I've noticed something that may either be a problem, or simply a characteristic of the PDK transmission.
After a period of driving gently in traffic (30-40 mph, D mode, in 5th gear) when the traffic clears and I try to accelerate, the transmission changes down to 4th or 3rd but there seems to be a delay of a couple of seconds before the car accelerates, almost as though I have momentarily lost drive, then the acceleration kicks in abruptly. The car has just had a major service including a change of transmission fluid. No faults showed up on the computer diagnostic and my mechanic, a Porsche trained specialist, is at a loss to explain this behaviour. He has not seen it for himself, as it happens only intermittently.
Bad, when I drive the car in M mode, it always changes gear immediately and smoothly. The problem I describe only happens in D mode, and then only very occasionally. It seems only to happen immediately after a period of driving in a queue of traffic with minimal pressure on the accelerator. When driving more "normally" on open roads, the car seems just fine in D mode.
Also (and this may be in my imagination only) in D mode, when driving slowly with only gentle pressure on the accelerator, the Tiptronic seems to change up too readily and is reluctant to downshift. I occasionally manually downshift, even in D mode, to counter this.
Perhaps it is just a characteristic of the Tiptronic learning my driving style, although I have only really noticed this issue over the past six months and have owned the car for four years. My driving style is generally pretty gentle. The car performs just fine on open roads when I drive it more enthusiastically.
I would be very grateful for any comments and observations from those of you with much more experience of Tiptronic than me. Thanks in anticipation.
Daniel
I've just joined this forum and would very much appreciate some advice. I have a 2006 Boxster 987 with Tiptronic S transmission. The car has done 34,000 miles. I always drive the car in fully automatic "D" mode. Recently I've noticed something that may either be a problem, or simply a characteristic of the PDK transmission.
After a period of driving gently in traffic (30-40 mph, D mode, in 5th gear) when the traffic clears and I try to accelerate, the transmission changes down to 4th or 3rd but there seems to be a delay of a couple of seconds before the car accelerates, almost as though I have momentarily lost drive, then the acceleration kicks in abruptly. The car has just had a major service including a change of transmission fluid. No faults showed up on the computer diagnostic and my mechanic, a Porsche trained specialist, is at a loss to explain this behaviour. He has not seen it for himself, as it happens only intermittently.
Bad, when I drive the car in M mode, it always changes gear immediately and smoothly. The problem I describe only happens in D mode, and then only very occasionally. It seems only to happen immediately after a period of driving in a queue of traffic with minimal pressure on the accelerator. When driving more "normally" on open roads, the car seems just fine in D mode.
Also (and this may be in my imagination only) in D mode, when driving slowly with only gentle pressure on the accelerator, the Tiptronic seems to change up too readily and is reluctant to downshift. I occasionally manually downshift, even in D mode, to counter this.
Perhaps it is just a characteristic of the Tiptronic learning my driving style, although I have only really noticed this issue over the past six months and have owned the car for four years. My driving style is generally pretty gentle. The car performs just fine on open roads when I drive it more enthusiastically.
I would be very grateful for any comments and observations from those of you with much more experience of Tiptronic than me. Thanks in anticipation.
Daniel
Thanks, Craig.
Piers, the revs do not rise, not until after the delay, when the car accelerates suddenly. I should emphasise that this has only happened very occasionally, always in D mode, and always after driving in traffic with minimal pressure on the accelerator. It happened when the traffic ahead speed up and I accelerate to match.
Having disconnected and reconnected the battery, I took the car for a drive this morning, mainly in M mode, and it behaved perfectly, changing up and down smoothly. In D mode, it is still too inclined for my liking to hang in a high gear after I have slowed down, usually until the RPM drops below 1,500 and I press the accelerator again. Might this be normal, with the "fuzzy logic" responding to my generally gentle driving style and trying to minimise fuel consumption?
Maybe I should just drive it in M mode most of the time?
Best regards,
Daniel
Piers, the revs do not rise, not until after the delay, when the car accelerates suddenly. I should emphasise that this has only happened very occasionally, always in D mode, and always after driving in traffic with minimal pressure on the accelerator. It happened when the traffic ahead speed up and I accelerate to match.
Having disconnected and reconnected the battery, I took the car for a drive this morning, mainly in M mode, and it behaved perfectly, changing up and down smoothly. In D mode, it is still too inclined for my liking to hang in a high gear after I have slowed down, usually until the RPM drops below 1,500 and I press the accelerator again. Might this be normal, with the "fuzzy logic" responding to my generally gentle driving style and trying to minimise fuel consumption?
Maybe I should just drive it in M mode most of the time?
Best regards,
Daniel
Mine very quickly revert to lazy mode if pottering around, it stays in a very high gear. The best way I have found to get it working well, particularly after a battery disconnect is to drive it like you stole it in auto to make sure the adaption happens across all driving scenarios. See if that works. the other method for getting it to move to a more aggressive gear shift map when in auto is to double stab the accelerator. Basically as I think has been said the map changes dependant on a number of factors, including, but not exclusively, the speed of movement of the pedal, the heaviness of braking and the speed at which you take your foot off the accelerator (and the position it was in when you did). Basically it monitors how aggressively you are driving and changes pattern very quickly. The double stab makes it think you are being super aggressive with fast on off throttle movements and puts the car in a more aggressive map.
Now this may have nothing to do with your problem but it might help you get the best from the tip. My personal view is that it reverts to the least aggressive lazy map too easily and that spoils it a little but when in an aggressive map the speed of change, and in the turbo the lack of boost loss, means it is serious rapid.
Now this may have nothing to do with your problem but it might help you get the best from the tip. My personal view is that it reverts to the least aggressive lazy map too easily and that spoils it a little but when in an aggressive map the speed of change, and in the turbo the lack of boost loss, means it is serious rapid.
Hi Piers,
That's great, thanks: you have described exactly how mine behaves, and the momentary delay in the turbo boost may explain the "loss of power" sensation. I will try the double stab on the accelerator to see if that changes the mapping. It's great to hear that I'm not the only one who finds the auto too "lazy" when driving gently. I guess its all in aid of fuel economy, but hardly appropriate for a sports car. In any event, if it saves me having my mechanic pull the transmission apart...
Many thanks again,
Daniel
That's great, thanks: you have described exactly how mine behaves, and the momentary delay in the turbo boost may explain the "loss of power" sensation. I will try the double stab on the accelerator to see if that changes the mapping. It's great to hear that I'm not the only one who finds the auto too "lazy" when driving gently. I guess its all in aid of fuel economy, but hardly appropriate for a sports car. In any event, if it saves me having my mechanic pull the transmission apart...
Many thanks again,
Daniel
err...that would be something! Should have used inverted commas around "turbo". Don't know if the engine mapping is also influenced by driving style. Anyway, Piers's tip about pressing the accelerator twice did change the gearbox mode in D, made it slower to change up, more inclined to hold a in lower gear for longer. Guess I'll have to wait to see if it has also fixed the "loss of power" (more inverted commas!) issue.
I realised that I never posted the information about how I "fixed" the problem. Another Boxster Tiptronic owner told me to take it out and "drive it like you nicked it" for thirty minutes, i.e. aggressively, using heavy throttle and the kickdown a lot. I did, and problem solved! Apparently, my very light right foot on the accelerator had "taught" the auto to be rather lazy, so I just needed to reset it.
That was five years ago and that Boxster is now in the proud ownership of s good friend of mine. I'm now driving one of the last of the flat-six N/A Boxsters, in Guards Red with a PDK auto, and it's just brilliant!
That was five years ago and that Boxster is now in the proud ownership of s good friend of mine. I'm now driving one of the last of the flat-six N/A Boxsters, in Guards Red with a PDK auto, and it's just brilliant!
Daniel Joseph said:
I realised that I never posted the information about how I "fixed" the problem. Another Boxster Tiptronic owner told me to take it out and "drive it like you nicked it" for thirty minutes, i.e. aggressively, using heavy throttle and the kickdown a lot. I did, and problem solved! Apparently, my very light right foot on the accelerator had "taught" the auto to be rather lazy, so I just needed to reset it.
That was five years ago and that Boxster is now in the proud ownership of s good friend of mine. I'm now driving one of the last of the flat-six N/A Boxsters, in Guards Red with a PDK auto, and it's just brilliant!
So drive it like a Porsche then not a Nissan Micra That was five years ago and that Boxster is now in the proud ownership of s good friend of mine. I'm now driving one of the last of the flat-six N/A Boxsters, in Guards Red with a PDK auto, and it's just brilliant!
The PDK box is a total revelation compared to Tiptronic. Enjoy
Edited by craigjm on Tuesday 9th April 11:15
Radish said:
When you had the transmission fluid changed was the oil filter within the gearbox changed as well? You might try to dig out an old Wheeler Dealers where an early 986S Tip gearbox was sorted by doing a fluid and filter change.
I was thinking just this. It’s amazing what an oil change can do to an auto box. I had the oil replaced in my PDK last year, way ahead of the Porsche schedule, and it really sharpened up the changes. Gassing Station | Boxster/Cayman | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff