Tiptronic - I don't get it?
Discussion
Firstly I hope this thread can be serious and helpful rather than merely slating for those who think the same as me! 
So, the topic: I currently have access to a car (Cayman) which has a Tiptronic gearbox and I just "don't get it".
Personally I love manual gearboxes and wouldn't have considered buying a Tiptronic but how can you express an opinion if you haven't tried it.. and am thus appreciating the opportunity.
It seems to have 2 modes, manual and automatic:
- In automatic mode it drones and selects in a snatchy manner and quite frankly my old 1988 Ford Granada was smoother and more predictable. As for kickdown, you can make a cup of tea in the time it takes to kick in! Its horrible, but ok, maybe this isn't the idea of Tip.
- In manual mode its better but you still have to wait for it to change, and even then you can't smoothly bring the power in, its BANG! and on, or BANG! and off. Am I supposed to do something with the throttle or something?
I really don't like it, so I would like to hear from any Tip fans out there. What am I missing? What can I try?
On the plus side, the gear knob looks very nice
Cheers
Pikey
Edited to make the first sentence bold
>> Edited by pikey on Wednesday 12th April 14:19
So, the topic: I currently have access to a car (Cayman) which has a Tiptronic gearbox and I just "don't get it".
Personally I love manual gearboxes and wouldn't have considered buying a Tiptronic but how can you express an opinion if you haven't tried it.. and am thus appreciating the opportunity.
It seems to have 2 modes, manual and automatic:
- In automatic mode it drones and selects in a snatchy manner and quite frankly my old 1988 Ford Granada was smoother and more predictable. As for kickdown, you can make a cup of tea in the time it takes to kick in! Its horrible, but ok, maybe this isn't the idea of Tip.
- In manual mode its better but you still have to wait for it to change, and even then you can't smoothly bring the power in, its BANG! and on, or BANG! and off. Am I supposed to do something with the throttle or something?
I really don't like it, so I would like to hear from any Tip fans out there. What am I missing? What can I try?
On the plus side, the gear knob looks very nice
Cheers
Pikey
Edited to make the first sentence bold
>> Edited by pikey on Wednesday 12th April 14:19
Here's the bit where I swoop in with my cape billowing, wearing my 'Captain Manual' headgear, and sporting my little red over-underpants emblazoned with a crossd out 'T'. You get 'em warmed up, Pikey, whilst I go put on the popcorn.
Edit because of Pikey's edit - No slating then? Awwwww. *whirls cape in an about face, and stomps off stage left.*
>> Edited by colin5577 on Wednesday 12th April 14:35
Edit because of Pikey's edit - No slating then? Awwwww. *whirls cape in an about face, and stomps off stage left.*
>> Edited by colin5577 on Wednesday 12th April 14:35
Ok, so maybe these Tip fans don't want to show their faces for fear of you lot pointing and laughing, but I'm serious - I want to hear from someone who loves it.
Come on - there must be people reading this who own one. What do you think? Have you got used to it or are you slightly regretful?
How about those who specc'd it on their own car. Why? Bad leg, don't have a manual driving licence, love the ability to change up & down with the steering wheel?
We keep hearing how bad it is, I want to hear the other side of the argument now...
Come on - there must be people reading this who own one. What do you think? Have you got used to it or are you slightly regretful?
How about those who specc'd it on their own car. Why? Bad leg, don't have a manual driving licence, love the ability to change up & down with the steering wheel?
We keep hearing how bad it is, I want to hear the other side of the argument now...
pikey said:
On the plus side, the gear knob looks very nice
off topic mabe but I also like the look of your knob
do you think I could put a similiar knob from a tip car on my manual 996C2 ?
My knob is starting to get a little worn, still performs all tasks well and has alot of life in it yet but I seen the tip knob and was a little envious, do you think it would last as a man knob ? (as opposed to a tip knob)
>> Edited by DucatiGary on Wednesday 12th April 15:53
heh guys
I specc'd my TT from new with Tip and I've been delighted with it. I don't do track days with it & I'm a lazy bastard and I don't like changing gears...and i have to drive to work in traffic .
So for those of you that dont 'get it' - then never mind ,go and buy a manual - it's your money....and I'd never dream of asking you on how to spend mine
I specc'd my TT from new with Tip and I've been delighted with it. I don't do track days with it & I'm a lazy bastard and I don't like changing gears...and i have to drive to work in traffic .
So for those of you that dont 'get it' - then never mind ,go and buy a manual - it's your money....and I'd never dream of asking you on how to spend mine
los angeles said:
I believe Tiptronic knocks a second of the 0-60 acceleration... Now, you can beat me all over with a slipper if you want but that's the honest truth.
well done for sticking head above parapet but that is way off mark - tip is noticably slower - on paper and when driving
only the new 997TT claims the tip is quicker but I am sceptical of this (i will wait to see whether quicker 0-60 is just a result of 5 speed tip v 6 speed manual)
(edited for bad case of deslxiyia)
>> Edited by Adam B on Wednesday 12th April 18:14
los angeles said:
lots
Cheers for that, is interesting.
One of the things that struck me when I first got in is how its immediate impression (to me) is "I don't like it", but as a) Porsche are so clever and b) they keep selling this, there had to be more to it.
I'll have this car for probably a week or so and I think its interesting to see what I think on an extended test drive. I had a situation today where I wanted to quickly drop it and it shifted quite impressively.. making me ponder.
Perhaps people slate it because they don't spend time with it enough? The DSGs are supposed to be something else and I wonder if the range is going that way?
Anyway, I love wiggling the stick too much (oo, err missus!) to get an auto in a sports car. Much rather reserve that to a luxo barge.
By the way, I suppose you can't use this smiley
- maybe have another one created for Tip users? Ben
My 996 is Tiptronic. It takes some time for the 'box to "learn" your driving style, it will smooth over time.
My preference is also manual, for a utopian world with no traffic and no queues. But meanwhile back in the real world, I enjoy the ease of driving, and the ability to flick the tip switch twice and BOOT IT whilst you manual boys juggle legs and arms
PS the 997 Turbo is FASTER in Tip than Manual. Plus, unless you want to be merciless and mangle your clutch, 'box and drivetrain, I would wager that I am quicker off the line than a manual, every time.
PPS I have now left our erstwhile employer, and on gardening leave. If you get the chance drop me aline as I'd be interested to see the Cayman.
>> Edited by vesuvius996 on Wednesday 12th April 18:42
>> Edited by vesuvius996 on Wednesday 12th April 18:43
My 996 is Tiptronic. It takes some time for the 'box to "learn" your driving style, it will smooth over time.
My preference is also manual, for a utopian world with no traffic and no queues. But meanwhile back in the real world, I enjoy the ease of driving, and the ability to flick the tip switch twice and BOOT IT whilst you manual boys juggle legs and arms
PS the 997 Turbo is FASTER in Tip than Manual. Plus, unless you want to be merciless and mangle your clutch, 'box and drivetrain, I would wager that I am quicker off the line than a manual, every time.
PPS I have now left our erstwhile employer, and on gardening leave. If you get the chance drop me aline as I'd be interested to see the Cayman.
>> Edited by vesuvius996 on Wednesday 12th April 18:42
>> Edited by vesuvius996 on Wednesday 12th April 18:43
Adam B said:
well done for sticking head above parapet but that is way off mark - tip is noticably slower - on paper and when driving
Gimme a break - noticeably slower - LOL ! on paper Tip is 0.4sec slower and in reality Tip is faster because manual drivers fluff the gearchanges anyway
vesuvius996 said:
PPS I have now left our erstwhile employer, and on gardening leave. If you get the chance drop me aline as I'd be interested to see the Cayman.
Sure thing!
Interesting what you said about it learning your style.
I don't know, we might be "all arms and legs" but I kinda like it that way. I suppose for much the same reason I don't like Evo VIIIs and I like Caterhams - I don't necessarily want it to be that good/clever. Anyway, what am I talking about - it hasn't "learnt" me yet so I don't like it (yet?!)
Vesuvius - you don't have a PistonFest tag... are you not going? They are such a laugh and you can discuss Tiptronics, Manuals and Caymans with a beer in hand all night long and noone thinks you're nuts! Get yourself there man!!
On a serious note, as I've mentioned before, the Tiptronic gearbox is at the very back of the class where gearboxes are concerned. Anyone not interested in changing gear in a Porsche (for whatever reason - good or bad) should, in reality, be fairly annoyed that Porsche have not been quicker to offer an option more in keeping with the brand's image and market position. You can say what you like about Tiptronic - the reality is that this gearbox has no place in Porsche's product lineup. BMW, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Audi, Maserati, Aston Martin, Volkswagen and others have all managed to offer a semi-automatic gearbox option. Porsche seem to be alone in persisiting in a fully automatic system that should have been superceeded years ago, despite long since having had the financial resources to lead the way. I figure that in a world where demand creates supply, there must be no demand for an improvement amongst Tiptronic buyers. I personally don't think this says much about Tiptronic customers, nor does it say much about Porsche's commitment to engineering for its own sake. If you check Porsche's website, they make a meal out of the heritage of Ing. These days, if VW wasn't taking care of their R+D (it's not as though Porsche bother racing much these days), we'd be lucky to have electic windows on the cars.
I've owned 6 911s - one of them a 996 Tiptronic, and all but one of them bought new. I'm a mechanically sympathetic driver, and am not work-shy of the efforts that it might take to adapt to a semi-automatic's foibles. I still found Tiptronic absolutely dreadful. Plain and simple. It makes the car feel heavier, definitely slows it down, worsens the fuel economy, causes much of the engine's charismatic engine note to be lost in the various groanings and moanings it produces, doesn't effect a very quick gearchange at the best of times, and makes up its own mind much of the time as to what gear it should be in no matter what the driver has selected.
Roll on Porsche's (Volkswagen's) 911-ready DSG.
The argument from LA above regarding cornering, was one I had to endure for an hour from Ulrich Bez when I was lucky enough to corner him at an Aston bash last year (It seems to escape everyone's attention that the last thing you should be doing in a corner where you need both hands on the wheel is changing gear - particularly in a 911). That I had to hear it from one of the few genuine petrol-heads at the top-level in the business was particularly depressing.
I've owned 6 911s - one of them a 996 Tiptronic, and all but one of them bought new. I'm a mechanically sympathetic driver, and am not work-shy of the efforts that it might take to adapt to a semi-automatic's foibles. I still found Tiptronic absolutely dreadful. Plain and simple. It makes the car feel heavier, definitely slows it down, worsens the fuel economy, causes much of the engine's charismatic engine note to be lost in the various groanings and moanings it produces, doesn't effect a very quick gearchange at the best of times, and makes up its own mind much of the time as to what gear it should be in no matter what the driver has selected.
Roll on Porsche's (Volkswagen's) 911-ready DSG.
The argument from LA above regarding cornering, was one I had to endure for an hour from Ulrich Bez when I was lucky enough to corner him at an Aston bash last year (It seems to escape everyone's attention that the last thing you should be doing in a corner where you need both hands on the wheel is changing gear - particularly in a 911). That I had to hear it from one of the few genuine petrol-heads at the top-level in the business was particularly depressing.
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