Paddle Shifting In Action

[raisemyrent]

Boys (and girls),

I'm less than a week away from putting a deposit down for my 135i... we'll see about the details regarding the packages (past the obligatory M sports and metallic paint), but for now... on that same note, what ARE the paddles like?
I'm aiming at owners or people with media covering them...
Initially, it was one of the definitive points for me to want to buy the car... Formula 1 style shifting? For this boy who has been watching F1 guys do it for over 10 years, where do I sign??? hehe
but now I am a bit concerned that it is a disguised auto transmission, and that the paddles are counterintuitive with their back and forth thing...
I KNOW that's how some of the F1 types do it.. I am just wondering about truly getting performance out of them, or if they become abandoned...
my mother drives an Opel with optional manual shifting if you tap the lever left or right... I personally, even though I hate automatics, NEVER use it...
YES, you can shift, but it just doesn't have the same feel of control (possibly because, ehem, there is no clutch)
Anyhow, any input or links for pics/videos of the paddle shifting in action would be most welcome.

[atr_hugo]

Do you drive a manual tranny now? If so, then is there a specific reason you want paddles?

The ZF automagic is supposed to be one of the best autos out there. Suggest that you may want to bug your BMW dealer to let you drive a 335i with an auto before you order the 1er.

[vanbmw]

Drive the 335 first. i drove one with an auto and was very dissapointed. It seemed to be a simple automatic tranny with paddles. I had it on the highway in 6th gear and wanted to see the roll-on proformance. As soon as I gave it about 70% throttle it shifted down to 3rd and took off. Even though I didn't shiftdown (I wsa in full manual mode) it did it for me. I was a little late shifting one and I think it upshifted for me. As I was about to pull the paddle it shifted up. I'm sure it ws a nice automaitic tranny I would have liked one that let me decide to shift up or down when it was in manual mode.

[BMWnoob]

I drove the 335 with the auto and paddle shifters at the Komen drive. It is a very nice transmission and is very smooth but is it still an automatic. The shifting seemed very slow compared to my DSG GTI and the changes had the typical automatic gear engagement between each gear instead of the instantaneous crisp engagement that I think you are looking for.

Even with the DSG, which is an electronically shifted manual (i.e. not an automatic transmission) it still doesn't replace the feeling and control of a manual, and I find myself at times wishing I opted for the six speed.

[raisemyrent]

thanks for the info guys, I currently drive a real manual, yes, full shifter knob and all.. and I love it... YES it is a little tiring in the gridlock, the clutch and all... but the gridlock sucks anyways...

mmm the main point behind wanting it (I actually drive with one hand anyways) is because it's a great toy, IMHO... come on! shifting like in an F! car?

but if it's gonna otherwise kill my driving experience... forget it... I'll get the M package and a nice shifter knob...

I will ask that dealer to take me out on a335 with paddles...

ANOTHER qeustion, this is hard, what's the difference between normal paddles and paddles with the M package>???

at least in canada, you can get an steptronic with paddles that's not M....

[atr_hugo]

Never having shifted an F1 car I suspect all I can do is guess that it won't be 'quite the same' regardless - possibly one of the Ferrari's may come close. The DSGs aren't bad - they're true manual gearboxes, and some of the new autos rev-match on downshifts (as the ZF auto does on the BMW). My commute is pretty short (about 60 feet - since I work from home ; -), so no auto for me!

[Italteen3]

Originally Posted by atr_hugo

Never having shifted an F1 car I suspect all I can do is guess that it won't be 'quite the same' regardless - possibly one of the Ferrari's may come close. The DSGs aren't bad - they're true manual gearboxes, and some of the new autos rev-match on downshifts (as the ZF auto does on the BMW). My commute is pretty short (about 60 feet - since I work from home ; -), so no auto for me!

I believe the new F430 Scuderia shifts in 60 milliseconds!

Back on-topic. The transmission in the auto BMWs are great IMO. My reasoning behind that is having used many "steptronic" transmissions on American cars and a BMW X5 it just feels more real(in a 335i is what I am comparing the autos to). Ofcourse it is not a manual transmission but for someone with a long commute and/or lots of traffic the auto with paddles can provide lots of fun, a perfect example ME!

[plien69]

I've driven stick shifts for 20 years, I currently drive an SMG M3, and have driven a 335i Steptronic with paddles. The Step w/paddle shifters definitely is closer to an automatic transmission than a manual/F1/SMG transmission.

Here are the characteristics of Steptronic that I feel contribute to this:
* paddle actuation is different than SMG in that both paddles can both up and down shift: push to downshift, pull to upshift. With SMG, you only pull: pull left paddle to downshift, pull right paddle to upshift.
* shifts have that typical automatic transmission "smoothness" that is accomplished via a combination of engine timing retardation and torque converter, making shifts "lazier" compared to SMG shifts
* throttle response is still "buffered," like that of other automatics, due to torque converter

[raisemyrent]

it all points to testing it out on a 335i and deciding for myself...

dumb question, how do you "pull"? those things seem to me like you can push easily with your thumb, but not quite pull with it... or do they wrap around the back, aimed more towards being used with your other 4 fingers (F1 style)?

[plien69]

Yes, they wrap around back so that they can also be pulled with the other 4 fingers.

[raisemyrent]

I see...
I will test drive a 335... I'm actually LEANING towards a 335xi for that amount of money and with that rate... (shame)

in either case... I drove the crap out of my jetta a couple times today... the little car (which I love actually) has 120+ hp and 120+ torque and with a 5 speed manual (and traction control turned off), it's just a lot of fun!

so... my verdict (unless I fall in love with them after the test drive for some bloody reason) is, screw the paddles.

[Numb3rs]

Originally Posted by raisemyrent

thanks for the info guys, I currently drive a real manual, yes, full shifter knob and all.. and I love it... YES it is a little tiring in the gridlock, the clutch and all... but the gridlock sucks anyways...

mmm the main point behind wanting it (I actually drive with one hand anyways) is because it's a great toy, IMHO... come on! shifting like in an F! car?

but if it's gonna otherwise kill my driving experience... forget it... I'll get the M package and a nice shifter knob...

I will ask that dealer to take me out on a335 with paddles...

ANOTHER qeustion, this is hard, what's the difference between normal paddles and paddles with the M package>???

at least in canada, you can get an steptronic with paddles that's not M....

It seems to me that you are confused about automatic/step transmissions that offer ancillary, ergonomic approach of allowing gear shifts from paddle shifters VS real SMG/DSG style manual with servo's, ala Fomula1.

BMW has SMGIII and the all new version with dual clutch (M-DCT) gearbox available in the new M3. It will probably be a full year or 2 before it is offered in the 1 series. This is a Formula1 gearbox, not something thats an automatic that looks/acts like one.

[raisemyrent]

thanks for the info... now I really want an M3, but it's a monthly payment jump that I can't afford without some serious sacrifice... hahaha

anyhow, what I meant is that the price list for the 128i says you can get "Steptronic Paddles", and the one fror the 135i offers both, "Steptronic Shift Paddles" and "Steptronic M Shift Paddles", depending on if you bought the M Sport Package... what's the difference?

It's purely academic, I know, and it is probably due to it being a very early version of the document or something...
and it is even more academic considering the fact that tha transmission is the same, and after sitting in my friends series 3 M touring yesterday and seeing him TRY to push the steptronic on the highway to behave like a manual... and after driving my regular 5 speed manual with stick, the decision is made... M paddles or not...

[plien69]

I don't think there's any difference in the Step/paddles between the the 128i and the 135i. It's the same automatic transmission with the same paddles.

There might be a difference in steering wheel style and cover material/stitching, etc. But the tranny, tranny software, and paddle hardware itself are likely to be identical.

[Impulse]

For some reason i always need that knob and extra pedal!!

[993 911]

We have a 335i with step, and it really isn't as fun or sporty as a SMG tranny is. I'm choosing to go manual.

[raisemyrent]

+1

[BMW Dreamer]

I traded in my 07 Acura TL-S auto for an 07 Honda Civic Si sedan 6 speed manual, MUCH more fun. The Alpine white 135i manual, sport pkg. black leatherette with gloss black trim, comfort access will be in 10 months.

The paddles on the Acura were slow upshifting, downshifting worked very well.

But NOTHING like the real thing baby!!!

[raisemyrent]

yep, nothing like the real thing.
ive made up my mind on this. but today I went to the other dealer in my city. he said the M paddles (as opposed to non-m paddles hehe) are right shifts up and left shifts down. but the transmission is the same. which is the decisive factor here.

[1ToBeOn2Wheels]

I don't know if anyone else noticed, but the paddles in the 335 that I sat in felt VERY cheap and appeared unfinished on the back side.

[plien69]

Originally Posted by raisemyrent

yep, nothing like the real thing.
ive made up my mind on this. but today I went to the other dealer in my city. he said the M paddles (as opposed to non-m paddles hehe) are right shifts up and left shifts down. but the transmission is the same. which is the decisive factor here.

He is wrong about the transmission being the same.

No car in the current M line-up is available with a Steptronic automatic transmission (thank goodness). All M cars with paddle shifters have an SMG-based transmission (or the upcoming DCT in the E90/92 M3). SMG/DCT is completely different from Steptronic.

He may have been referring to a similarity with the SMG transmission that was available for a short time in non-M vehicles (E90 3 series and Z4, IIRC). That was a similar (but not identical) transmission to the M SMG transmission, and paddles for the non-M SMG were indeed pull to upshift, push to downshift. But that transmission has not been available for a few years.

[raisemyrent]

you are right. it's not the M transmission. that's not what I meant.
my statement there at the end was not too clear.
what I meant is that, no matter what KIND of paddles you get (M or not M), in a 135i, the transmission is always the same, if you go Steptronic.

and that is why no matter what the paddles look like or how they work, I am going manual.

I SO wish, though, that they offered they same kind of paddle shifting action and transmission as an M car... but one can only hope...

watch them do that in a couple years, and we'll be kicking ourselves when younger punks get that without even knowing what it is... just cause it was cool.