Powershift v Geartronic

[faffi]

Originally Posted by froggyted

Just out of interest, wouldn't constant heavy acceleration increase wear on the Powershift transmission, and reduce service life?

More stress means more wear on every component, but there is no reason why the DPF should wear quicker than a normal manual gearbox and clutch.

The worst wear, I would imagine, will come from crawling along in very slow traffic where the speed is too low for 1st gear to fully engage. On a manual, you can let the engine idle and just momentarily partially engage it before disengaging it again. This saves wear. The Powershift will need more rpm and the car will control when the clutch is slurring or engaging. Letting the car hang on the clutch, so to speak, on hills or just barely creeping up hills - because it is easy to do with a Powershift - will cause lots of stress on the clutch. Most people will have enough sense on a normal manually shifting car to sit, wait for a gap to form, close the cap, release the clutch again while waiting for a new gap and so on.

[961]

Originally Posted by faffi

Letting the car hang on the clutch, so to speak, on hills or just barely creeping up hills - because it is easy to do with a Powershift - will cause lots of stress on the clutch.

Same on all gearboxes, manual and auto

[froggyted]

Originally Posted by 961

Same on all gearboxes, manual and auto

From the day i took possession of my Powershift car 5 months ago, i made a conscious decision to put the car into neutral every time i was stationary at traffic lights etc. Apart from the fact that it's highly irritating to be blinded at night by somebody else in front of you with their foot on the brake pedal, i assumed there would be less wear and tear on the transmission by disengaging it rather than it fighting against the brake. It seems that a lot of people with autos however don't do this. Sure, you can pull away a bit quicker, but its not worth increased wear and tear and the associated garage costs imo.

I must admit that i resorted to flooring the accelerator pedal again yesterday. Why is it that so many other drivers still have this stereotyped image of Volvos / Volvo drivers being slow? There are a few of these stereotypes about, but you only have to conduct your own little survey on a lengthy drive to confirm that most of the idiots on the road are not Volvo drivers, and that in fact most Volvo drivers are highly competent (discussed in great detail last year on another thread http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=93007). The 2.0D Powershift provides more than enough power and rapid acceleration to prove the point to a lot of the drivers that make such assumptions (or just can't stand being behind a Volvo because they think it reflects badly on them), but i just wish that a), more people could think for themselves, and see beyond cliches, and b), i was a bit more mature and could resist rising to the bait! I can't do much about the former, but i'm working on the latter!

[zimbo565]

Thanks for the further comments froggyted. The Powershift we're looking at tomorrow is also a Lux but without sunroof and reverse parking sensors.

Originally Posted by froggyted

From the day i took possession of my Powershift car 5 months ago, i made a conscious decision to put the car into neutral every time i was stationary at traffic lights etc.

Yes, that is something we will need to try and get in the habit of doing, especially given Daim's earlier comments about the German experience of worn clutches. I guess getting stuck in road work queues / motorway tailbacks may not help if one is creeping forward very slowly - probably less of an issue for a conventional auto with a torque converter.

[zimbo565]

Originally Posted by froggyted

I’ve had no problems whatsoever with the DPF. The service schedule doesn’t call for this to be replaced until 6 years or 75k miles, and I’ve never had a message on the display saying that it needs regenerating, despite a fair proportion of short-haul journeys.

That's comforting to hear as DPFs and regeneration seems to be quite an issue with a lot of diesels from what I've read on the internet.

What brand of fuel do you use? Should supermarket diesel be avoided?

[froggyted]

Originally Posted by zimbo565

Thanks for the further comments froggyted. The Powershift we're looking at tomorrow is also a Lux but without sunroof and reverse parking sensors.

It's still a great spec though - heated leather seats, auto-dimming mirror with compass, rain sensor, headlamp wash-wipe, electric folding mirrors incorporating approach lighting (very useful for changing out of muddy walking boots in the dark!), all in addition to the excellent spec of the other models. To be honest, i could do without the sunroof. I initially missed it when changing from my 440 GLT to my S40 SE Classic, but soon concluded that climate control was far more useful than a sunroof. However, the rear parking sensors are very useful, and if i hadn't bought the vehicle i did, i'd probably have looked into having them retro-fitted.

Originally Posted by zimbo565

That's comforting to hear as DPFs and regeneration seems to be quite an issue with a lot of diesels from what I've read on the internet.

What brand of fuel do you use? Should supermarket diesel be avoided?

The question of supermarket fuel is a very interesting one and has been discussed on other threads (not ones started by me this time!)
http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=91782 and
http://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=92505
It's too early to say, but i suspect that Shell Fuelsave really does improve fuel consumption slightly and, perhaps slightly more doubtful, that Shell V-Power Diesel slightly increases power. I used to buy Tesco fuel (petrol) regularly for my 440 and S40 Classic, and never had any problems, but lately it's possible to shop around and buy Shell Fuelsave fuel for the same price, and sometimes less, than the local Tesco fuel, and let's face it it's probably better quality, with more additives, and you get Shell Points too. Here's yet another link you may find useful (a fuel comparator site):
http://www.petrolprices.com/

[961]

Originally Posted by zimbo565

That's comforting to hear as DPFs and regeneration seems to be quite an issue with a lot of diesels from what I've read on the internet.

What brand of fuel do you use? Should supermarket diesel be avoided?

My understanding is that not all 2.0 Diesel Powershift cars have a particulate filter

Mine hasn't, so far as I am aware. They may have now but the early ones, as I was told, do not. That's one of the reasons why I bought it because we use our car mostly for short runs

I've not heard any convincing argument to avoid supermarket diesel. Petrol may be different

[faffi]

Originally Posted by zimbo565

That's comforting to hear as DPFs and regeneration seems to be quite an issue with a lot of diesels from what I've read on the internet.

Went for a proper motorway drive today for the first time in 600 miles (650 at the end) and there have not been any regeneration of the DPF in that period, nor did it regenerate on my drive. At least for me, regens are spaced far apart.

[froggyted]

Originally Posted by faffi

Went for a proper motorway drive today for the first time in 600 miles (650 at the end) and there have not been any regeneration of the DPF in that period, nor did it regenerate on my drive. At least for me, regens are spaced far apart.

When do you know the DPF is actually regenerating? When i posted my earlier answer to zimbo565 i was simply stating that i've had no messages on the onboard display, i.e. the need for regeneration had not become critical.

[159john]

Originally Posted by froggyted

From the day i took possession of my Powershift car 5 months ago, i made a conscious decision to put the car into neutral every time i was stationary at traffic lights etc. Apart from the fact that it's highly irritating to be blinded at night by somebody else in front of you with their foot on the brake pedal, i assumed there would be less wear and tear on the transmission by disengaging it rather than it fighting against the brake. It seems that a lot of people with autos however don't do this.

I would imagine the Powershift works the same as the i-shift i had in my previous Civic - when stationary, with your foot on the brake, the clutch is completely disengaged; therefore no wear on the clutch plates is taking place.

I noticed in the handbook for my S60 Geartronic that it says the gearbox automatically slips into neutral when stationary with your foot on the brake (and gearbox in Drive). It notes that this is to save fuel.

Just to add my own opinion to this discussion; I would consider very carefully whether you want the expense of maybe replacing a very complex dual (automated) clutch at say 50-60k, if you intend keeping it to that sort of mileage. I know clutches can last a lot longer than that, but after that sort of mileage it becomes a bit of a lottery.

Incidentally, I always found with the auto clutch that you need to get into the habit of holding the car on the footbrake so that by balancing releasing the brake and applying the accelerator you can avoid rolling back in the split second before the auto clutch engages (I assume the Powershift is the same in that it will engage the clutch as soon as the accelerator is pressed, even if your foot is still on the brake?) Obviously you need to get the technique exactly right in order to avoid excessive wear on the clutch, but I found it became second nature.