[gtncpa]

Road and Track reviewed the Titanium. Finally a car review that understands a dual clutch. [headbang]

Here is what Road and Track said:

1. Its twin-clutch gearbox does an admirable job mimicking a torque converter-equipped automatic.
2. Titanium model is a luxury car in a small package.

Click here for the full article.
http://www.roadandtrack.com/tests/drives/2012-ford-focus-5-door-hatchback-titanium

 

[pra2veen]

From what i've read, weren't DCTs better that regular autos because they didn't have a torque converter?
and like mentioned in the article, roll back is a pain sometimes.

 

[gtncpa]

Maybe because I am use to driving a stick ... I dont see the problem. But the hill assist is a great feature .. even on a Auto.

 

[pra2veen]

^^ I've used a stick all thru my life and never faced a problem either.

It's just that, in a manual, you have control over whether you want the car to roll back or not. In the auto, it seems so unpredictable. Sometimes it doesn't and sometimes it just rolls back like it's in reverse. Scary

 

[voip-ninja]

I have driven sporty manual transmission cars all of my life (23 yrs of driving under my belt now).

I had been looking into one of the BMW or Audi cars with a slick dual clutch automatic transmission.... having test driven an Audi S4 and being totally sold on the S-Tronic transmission.

Now that I have changed jobs and have up to a 400+ mile a week of driving I have decided that German luxury (and poor gas mileage) don't fit into my needs as well for the time being and the Focus is really the only "econobox" that has piqued my interest. I have test driven quite a few including the extremely over-rated VW Jetta and Golf and really the Focus offers a level of features and luxury that you don't normally see on a sub $30K car.

It's still expensive for what it is, but basically for $25K you can get a small car that has reasonable power delivery and is "loaded" with the only critical features missing being 8-way power adjustable driver seat (sorry Ford, 6-way doesn't cut it), driver seat memory and BLISS.

Thank god that the American Shit Box economy car is on its way to being dead.

 

[Armen]

Maybe because I am use to driving a stick ... I dont see the problem. But the hill assist is a great feature .. even on a Auto.

How is hill assist even needed on auto? I just don't get it.

And I am used to driving manual too. This is the first small car I've bought with an auto. Again, it's ok but it's still jerky and makes some different noises around town/city.

It is what it is. It's not the worst tranny, but it's not the second coming either.

 

[gtncpa]

Hill assist on an extremely steep hill with a traffic light in the middle ... well it helps. I drive a Roush Mustang with out hill assist and I have no problem using a real stick shift car .. but hey ... it is a nice feature for those who are just getting use to a dual clutch. Is it needed ... nope ... is it nice .. I guess. I think Lexus has it on their LS460. The LS460 is like a Lincoln Town car ... but there is a button to manually invoke hill assist.

 

[Old TU]

I don't know if we in the USA are getting the same Owner's Guide as those of you in Canada. On page 277 there is a good explanation of Hill Start Assist. You could check out your index if the Owners Guides are different.

 

[Armen]

I don't know if we in the USA are getting the same Owner's Guide as those of you in Canada. On page 277 there is a good explanation of Hill Start Assist. You could check out your index if the Owners Guides are different.

Ya, I saw that. It also says in the opening pages of the manual you can deactivate it - which you can't on North American models.

I don't really care that the car has hill assist. But honestly, I don't understand the point of it especially with an auto. You're on a hill with a light and your foot is on the brake. The light turns green and you put your foot on the gas.

I guess maybe they do it because the car is technically in neutral with this dual clutch unit when your foot is on the brake.

With a manual it makes a bit more sense if you're new to manuals.

 

[Old TU]

The Hill assist is a momentary thing. If the car didn't have it it would most likely be in neutral as you mentioned and start rolling backwards like a manual transmission. Also, Ford may be covering themselves from lawsuits. I know the resent automatics with torque covers do not roll backwards in gear on a sloop. I can't recall whether the cars of the fifties and sixties with automatics rolled backwards.

 

[gtncpa]

I think people back than knew more about cars ... .today .. people do not understand mechanical things at all.

I know how the dual clutch works in my car .... I know it is designed to save gas ... and I have learned to drive with it .. and choose not to fight it by saying things like ... "It feels funny" I think its broke.

 

[Old TU]

gtncpa,

You are right. Before the cars had all the smog emission devices cars were easier to work on and easier to understand. Working on them yourself saved a few bucks and you felt like you accomplished something because they ran better. The down side is the older cars required much more maintenance and had bad gas mileage by today's standard.

Today you take them into a mechanic pay the bill and they run the same as they did. The catch is they ran very well to begin with. You are keeping them running longer by keeping them maintained.

I too understand how the DCT works, but also sympathise with those that don't understand the difference. I am more gear head and when it comes to computers I can't get enough good advice. This new software isn't working! I think it's broke....

 

[gtncpa]

gtncpa,

You are right. Before the cars had all the smog emission devices cars were easier to work on and easier to understand. Working on them yourself saved a few bucks and you felt like you accomplished something because they ran better. The down side is the older cars required much more maintenance and had bad gas mileage by today's standard.

Today you take them into a mechanic pay the bill and they run the same as they did. The catch is they ran very well to begin with. You are keeping them running longer by keeping them maintained.

I too understand how the DCT works, but also sympathise with those that don't understand the difference. I am more gear head and when it comes to computers I can't get enough good advice. This new software isn't working! I think it's broke....

[thumb] I think you nailed it in your comments, but I think we have become a nation of blithering idiots! [???] [rofl]

 

[Kabigon]

I don't really care that the car has hill assist. But honestly, I don't understand the point of it especially with an auto. You're on a hill with a light and your foot is on the brake. The light turns green and you put your foot on the gas.

There is no mechanism that forces you to put your foot on the gas immediately after lifting it off the brake pedal and (obviously) not everyone will do so.

 

[automated]

I think people back than knew more about cars ... .today .. people do not understand mechanical things at all.

I know how the dual clutch works in my car .... I know it is designed to save gas ... and I have learned to drive with it .. and choose not to fight it by saying things like ... "It feels funny" I think its broke.

I don't understand how it works, and haven't been terribly thrilled with it. Probably my least favorite thing about the car. It seems to get confused when accelerating from 0-30.

 

[seamustry]

having never driven a manual, would someone please explain how dual clutch is different? just curious how manuals feel compared to auto

 

[RustySocket]

having never driven a manual, would someone please explain how dual clutch is different? just curious how manuals feel compared to auto

the DSG is going to shift in milliseconds and behave like an auto, a manual you push the clutch in and shift it. A standard auto uses a torque converter which has a lot of powertrain loss, and is not as efficient.

Read this



http://auto.howstuffworks.com/dual-clutch-transmission.htm