Auto box

How does the auto box work. I have never driven an automatic before. I know the basics... stick it in D and go... but how does the manual override work? and what are the red and black buttons for? What's a kickdown / double kickdown etc? Is it a far less involved drive. Seems boring but I dont wanna spend £8000 to change it to a manual but really like the aerotop!

:yawn::yawn::yawn:

The mkiv Supra Owners Club > Technical > FAQs

I did read those (believe it or not). They didnt answer my questions though.

Re the red button - Why would you want to move the car out of park without starting the engine?

Re the other button - presumably this is manual override - how do you then change through the gears? Do you use the big stick, or are there some little buttons, or paddles on the steering wheel

What's a kickdown / double kickdown?

Is it a far less involved drive?

Red button.... you ever tried to push an auto when it is in park down the road when you are working on it??

In manual mode, you simply push the gear level into L,2 or D depending on whether you want L,2 or D...

Buttons on the steering wheel are there for tiptronic...

Kickdown is when you are in auto mode, and you plant your foot and the car changes down one gear ready to boot it..

Gav

Auto box's are better for drag racing period....all the massive single turbo American Boys use em........much better for a daily driver IMO and just as quick......you gotta be a pretty goo driver to heave all the power out of the manual and get your shift rights......the Auto does it for you so less chance of messing up a shifts..........The red button is pretty pointless, only really need if your battery is flat and you need to move your car so from that point of veiw pretty good.....those old supras are heavy buggers etc

Thanks!

The red button makes sense now... guess its similar to leaving a car in gear and then trying to push it.

So do all autos have tiptronic?

Kickdown sounds cool

Are the gearchanges pretty fast and smooth? I know they wont be lightning quick, but i went in a b,w auto and seems to jolt the whole car and its passengers when it changed gear.

not all autos are tiptronic, only some of the later ones.

the changes are very fast and smooth, much smoother than the bmw or mercedes autos i have driven

Dude if you dont know how an auto gearbox works, should you really be starting off with an auto Supra of all cars ?

And no, not all Supras have tiptronic / paddles.

Dont be swayed just becuase of the word AUTO Drive one and see there just as capable as the Manuals......the only difference is the manual box can hold a lot more power than the Auto.......if your planning on Heavy mods....ie single turbos etc.....you may want to opt for the muanual unless you want to rebuild your auto which is'nt always a bad thing......but a touch pricey

I'm not planning lots of mods TBH. I would be more likely to change to a TT (when I can afford one).

MichaelG, what do you suggest I get then? A fiesta Mk3 auto to practice on? If I want an aerotop supra I dont really have a choice. I could go for a N/A hardtop manual but I'd be more likely to get a celica gt4. It just doesn't float my boat like the aero.

Unless you're planning to spend a lot of time on a race track auto boxes are far better than manuals - they do everything for you. Just leave it in D for a while until you get used to how it responds to your driving, then you can start playing with the manual shift modes. Ifyou've never driven an auto before, it might be worth renting something from Hertz/Avis etc for the weekend to get used to an auto before unleashing the Supra.

There's absolutely no problem with having a Supra as your first Auto car. If he drives almost any other car with auto transmission he's probably going to think they're crap. The gear changes on a Supra auto are fast and smooth, the power delivery is almost seemless when accelerating hard.

Cool, I'm slightly less worried about auto now. I will give one a go and see what I think. Thanks for all your help!