How to: Drive a semi-automatic car
How to: Drive a semi-automatic car
By Chad Lückhoff
We show that there's no need to be wary of semi-automatic/paddle shift gearboxes. They work just like a normal automatic.
In the days when automatic gearboxes sapped power and were expensive to produce, the majority of cars sold to the public were equipped with a manual gearbox, especially in South Africa. Abroad, and particularly in the USA, manufacturers opted to fit automatic gearboxes to their offerings, citing ease of use and convenience. When your fuel is cheap and V8 a dime a dozen, it makes sense.
Whether you learned to drive on an automatic or cut your teeth with a manual, the new trend of offering semi-automatic gearboxes may see you a little confused. They go by a variety of names and while the mechanicals may be different, the operation of the gearbox remains largely unchanged between them. The concept is not that difficult to grasp though:
Semi-automatics work in the same way as an automatic and when the gear lever is placed in D for Drive, the car will change gears on its own at the predetermined shift points. This remains the same for a torque converter semi-automatic and a dual-clutch semi-automatic (as found in the Volkswagen DSG range).
When you move the gear lever to the M (Manual) position, you have control over what gears are selected. There is no need to depress a clutch pedal or do anything different than normal, al you have to do is move the lever (or the toggle) in the direction of the + sign to change up a gear, and move it towards the – sign to change down a gear.
The same principle applies to cars fitted with steering wheel-mounted shift paddles. Pulling on the paddles marked + will change up a gear while a pull on the paddle with the – on it will see the car change down a gear. Often, this can be done without having to move the gear lever into the M position.
If you want to change back to an automatic shift where the car decides what gears to choose, pull and hold on the paddle marked +. In most paddle-shift cars this will default the gearbox back to Drive.