I have a 1.8 tfsi quattro on order but have only used the s tronic gearbox on the test drive. Could anyone tell me how you use it at traffic lights, junctions, etc (especially on hills) - ie. do you keep your foot on brake or put into park/neutral and use 'hand' brake. Any help/ advice would be appreciated.
Using s tronic gearbox.
- Thread starter Jack24
- Start date
97catalunya
Registered User
I have one of these on order too, on the test drive I just used it line a normal auto box, ie kept my foot on the brake at lights etc, dealer told me it holds the brakes for 2-3 seconds after lifting off to stop you rolling back on hills.
this said I did end up ordering hold assist though as I have been driving an auto for a few years now and worried out of habit I would just pop it into park and forget the handbrake lol
this said I did end up ordering hold assist though as I have been driving an auto for a few years now and worried out of habit I would just pop it into park and forget the handbrake lol
Hi Jack24. You'll find that you develop your own style very quickly when you get the car. With my 8P s-tronic I tended to pop it into neutral and hold it on the foot brake if I was going to be stationary for any length of time (e.g. traffic lights). This was because there was always the impression that there was a certain amount of drag if the car was left in gear, so selecting neutral removed any chance of clutch wear. On hills there was always the possibility of roll back, so the handbrake was used to cope with that.
With the 8V the situation is completely different. Firstly, stop-start avoids the need to pop into neutral, as there's no chance of wear when the engine is stopped. Secondly, as 97catalunya has said, there is a short 'grace period' when releasing the brakes before the car will roll, so there's plenty of time to get on the gas. I don't have the hold assist option - In fact I was advised it wasn't necessary by the salesman. I usually only pull on the parking brake when I park, and only manually release it if I'm moving the car without a belt on (e.g. in and out of the garage).
With the 8V the situation is completely different. Firstly, stop-start avoids the need to pop into neutral, as there's no chance of wear when the engine is stopped. Secondly, as 97catalunya has said, there is a short 'grace period' when releasing the brakes before the car will roll, so there's plenty of time to get on the gas. I don't have the hold assist option - In fact I was advised it wasn't necessary by the salesman. I usually only pull on the parking brake when I park, and only manually release it if I'm moving the car without a belt on (e.g. in and out of the garage).
Hi Jack24
I have the 1.8TFSI Quattro, and it is exactly as constvoid said - you learn your own style. I also only use the "hand brake" when I park. The "grace period" is more than enough time to get on the throttle, even on pretty steep inclines. The stop start engages when you press the foot brake, so there is no inching forward at the lights.
Hope this helps.
I have the 1.8TFSI Quattro, and it is exactly as constvoid said - you learn your own style. I also only use the "hand brake" when I park. The "grace period" is more than enough time to get on the throttle, even on pretty steep inclines. The stop start engages when you press the foot brake, so there is no inching forward at the lights.
Hope this helps.
97catalunya
Registered User
This is the only reason I opted for hold assist as like I say I have been driving a normal auto for the las 5 years so I have got into a habit of not using the handbrake when I park so I'm scared that one day I will just pop it into park and jump out argh lol.
If coming from a manual you won't need it. The S-Tronic is a dream to drive, put it in auto when your feeling lazy then use paddles or stick when your feeling sporty
Hi 97catalunya,
Sorry, but I'm not quite with you. If you don't have hold assist (as I don't) and you just put it into park and jump out then it should be no different to a traditional auto box - P will lock the gearbox, and the car won't move (much). The only reason I prefer to use the parking brake too is that the car is immediately stable, rather than possibly moving very slightly due to the lock being in the gearbox, and hence slightly remote from the wheels. You see this happen in a lot of TV Progs/Films from America, where they seem to have an aversion to the parking- or "emergency-" brake.
Sorry, but I'm not quite with you. If you don't have hold assist (as I don't) and you just put it into park and jump out then it should be no different to a traditional auto box - P will lock the gearbox, and the car won't move (much). The only reason I prefer to use the parking brake too is that the car is immediately stable, rather than possibly moving very slightly due to the lock being in the gearbox, and hence slightly remote from the wheels. You see this happen in a lot of TV Progs/Films from America, where they seem to have an aversion to the parking- or "emergency-" brake.
97catalunya
Registered User
Oh does the S-Tronic still lock the gearbox in park? The guys at Audi are useless and couldn't answer my question! Wasn't sure it would still work the same. Oh well wasn't an expensive option lol.
Yes my current car is American (Grand Cherokee) and the handbrake is useless!
Thanks for clarifying this for me, it will still be helpful at times I guess
You'll find that car most likely has Hill assist by default and that keeps you from rolling back up hill. What you ordered is Hold Assist which, when turned on, allows you to move foot off the brake when stationary and car will only release brake when you press accelerator.
97catalunya
Registered User
Hi S4Tronic, yeah after talking with the guys on here over the past few weeks I have come to that conclusion. The dealer told me it wouldn't roll back on a hill going from brake to throttle (in his words "I don't THINK mine does" lol) but I was more worried about forgetting to activate the handbrake when in park as the dealer couldn't confirm if "park" still locked the gearbox. So hold assist will put the handbrake on automatically for me. However it has now been confirmed that Park does lock the gearbox.
I still think for £90 hold assist could still come in handy from time to time
