Motoring related Q&A thread

Gaygle

Gaygle

Gaygle

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Joined
7 Nov 2004
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East of England
Thought it might be a fun idea to have everyone post their motoring related questions which they've always wondered about so that some of OcUK Motor's experts can hopefully answer.

I have one:

Why do automatic car's always seem to use more fuel than manuals?
 
I assume it's because a human knows when to change gear much better than a computer because you know what's coming (a hill for example or a traffic jam) - the same way I always get much better MPG driving without cruise control than with, plus it must use a tiny bit of fuel to 'run' the autobox.

Q: You've been for a hoon in your N/A engined car, you park up, should you leave it running for a minute or just jump out and get on with life.
 
It can never do harm to leave it running for a bit even if NA. However, in this day and age, I doubt it's going to do much damage.
 
How do I work out when the most efficient time to change up/ down for max power or economy?
 
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Muffin` said:
How do I work out when the most efficient time to change up/ down for max power or economy?
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Probably just by driving it and trial and error. I did read that keeping your petrol car between 2k and 3k probably does the best MPG but every car is different.

Reading the road ahead makes a massive difference in my opinion. No point thrashing the car on a motorway to get up to 70mph if you have a little peek ahead and notice it's saying 40mph and there is a load of traffic.
 
Peerzy said:
Reading the road ahead makes a massive difference in my opinion. No point thrashing the car on a motorway to get up to 70mph if you have a little peek ahead and notice it's saying 40mph and there is a load of traffic.
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Yeah sorry it was meant to be RPM, I have my dag dag, do I red line it, or do i shift up at 3.5. Same with economy, do I shift up pre spool, or let it boost a wee bit
 
Muffin` said:
Yeah sorry it was meant to be RPM, I have my dag dag, do I red line it, or do i shift up at 3.5. Same with economy, do I shift up pre spool, or let it boost a wee bit
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Don't red line it.

Every car is different, my previous one I got the best out of keeping it between 2krpm and 3krpm but in the Boxster it's got enough low torque to keep it between 1.5krpm and 2.5krpm.
 
Someone once told me that generally MPGGODZ is at whatever revs your peak torque is at (look it up online/in a mag if you don't have a RR printout). Whether they were right or talking out their rear I don't know!
 
Westyfield2 said:
Someone once told me that generally MPGGODZ is at whatever revs your peak torque is at (look it up online/in a mag if you don't have a RR printout). Whether they were right or talking out their rear I don't know!
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I think they might be as i can't see just over 5k rpm being very economical in my car :p
 
PraxxtorCruel said:
One for me, how do you manage perfect gear changes. I find mine are so slow compared to other drivers :(
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Up changes, surely off accelerator, on clutch, change gear moving the stick quickie to desired gear, sidestep clutch and mash accelerator?
All done quickly...

Down changes are quite hard and very quick down changing probably won't do your car any good/traveling too fast on a public road.

Basically either, clutch-throttle blip-move stick-let clutch out quickly as you should have rev matched...(takes a while to learn)

Second way (easiest under hard braking) brake then whilst still braking dip the clutch and blip the throttle with the outside of your right foot at the sane time as pressing the clutch, change gear then release throttle and clutch at the same time, should take about a second if your hand us already on the gear stick.

I don't advise trying to quickly down change in a public road especially in a RWD car as you can end up in all sorts of bother...
 
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ng93 said:
Are RWD cars as hard to control in the wet as people say they are?
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Depends on the car and the driver. I find a FWD is easier to drive on it's limits, but a RWD car requires the driver to be more careful and attentive as to how the car reacts to different things.

Remember cars are usually RWD because they are carrying a fair bit more power.
 
ng93 said:
Are RWD cars as hard to control in the wet as people say they are?
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I would say no harder to control BUT react usually in a very different way to a FWD car would therefore requires different means to correct slides, which a person only familiar with a FWD car may not realise.

The only other thing I can think of is front engine rear drive cars may loose traction easier than a F/F car due to there being less weight over the driven wheels, but hard to control, no.
 
ng93 said:
Are RWD cars as hard to control in the wet as people say they are?
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Some are, some aren't. Old E36 M3's are supposed to be dodgy little so-and-so's, same with the S2000.

However, i have to say, on my E46, i've never had the back step out on me in the wet or dry. It is very hard to do in the dry, and not easy in the wet. However, with DSC on, it's pretty much impossible. I find that i have so much grip that even when pressing on hard, i never lose traction. The newer BMW's are the same, with the exception of the M models afaik.

EDIT: Tyres also make a BIG difference.
 
Is DM really on holiday for tax reasons or is he just in prison for tax reasons? If the former then why does he not have internet access?
 
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