[GavinH]

Hi there,
I test drove a 2.7 diesel A5 and was immediately alarmed at how much (I don't know how to name it) "Drag" it had. What I'm used to is my Jaguar auto - and when I'm driving along and then take my foot off the accelerator the car keeps rolling (as if free wheeling). When I did the same on the A5 2.7 it felt like there was a quite heavy brake on. In fact within a few yards I asked the dealer if the handbrake was still on.
Today I drove a hire car Mercedes E280 diesel and it's exactly the same - so I figure that this must be the behavior of diesel Automatics. It makes the driving feel very heavy and cumbersome to me. Here's the question: is it the same on the A5 Petrol Automatic versions? Am I the only one to feel this?

cheers
Gavin

 

[foxe]

Gavin, I've got the 3.2 Petrol for about a week now and thought the same thing. I checked the emergency brake yesterday but it wasn't on. With mine it seems to decelerate more then my other car (2004 Chrysler crossfire). It wasn't enough to make me think negatively about the car, just enough to make me think it was odd for about 3 seconds, then I forgot until now. But I can live with it because overall I'm impressed with the acceleration and nice looks of the car.

 

[Ess5ive]

To be honest mate I'm not really an automatic driver, I had to have lessons and pass a test - even now I have to think about it quite a lot.

 

[RGBArgee]

I have experienced the 'drag' you mention on some Diseasel autos (BM's and Audis) I have driven which partly explains why I prefer having 3 pedals and a stick. Although to be fair the V6 3.0 has 500Nm of torque and you don't actually need to use the gears that much!

Cheers

RG

 

[Stratdan]

I have noticed this on my 3.2 6AT. I attributed it to the quattro. My previous car was an infiniti FX35 and I would take my foot off the gas at the last stop sign before work to get my security card out of my pocket and roll the last half block to the gate without losing too much momentum , in the A5 I have to accelerate or I won't get there.

 

[Plob]

Hi Gavin
I've owned a 2.7 multitronic for a year now. I believe the symptom you describe depends on how you have been driving the car.

As you know, the gearbox adapts to your driving. If you pootle around town at 30, the revs will go up to around 1200 as you slowly accelerate and drop down to around 1000 when you are at 30mph. In this 'mode' the gearbox does little in the way of engine braking for you and you should feel like the car coasts slowly to a halt when you come off the accelerator.

However, if you boot it a bit, the revs will increase to around 3000 (or more - dpending on how frisky you feel) and will take significantly longer to drop down to 1000 when you reach 30mph (if at all). In the mode, you will find that the engine brakes for you much more when you come off the accelerator.

One other thing I noticed is that the gearbox responds to the terrain. For example, I was up driving in the lake district a while ago. Although I was driving sedately (meaning the revs would hover around 1000), I found that the revs would increase automatically as I coasted downhill. It was as if the gearbox sensed that my speed would increase despite me being off the gas - so it increased the revs (and therefore the engine braking) to stop me from speeding up.

So, to answer your question, the gearbox sometimes feels like it is doing a lot of engine braking for you - but I beleive this only happens when the car reckons you have been driving 'enthusiastically'.
I will admit that the gearbox takes a bit of getting used to - its like driving a normal car but with a slipping clutch. However, now that I'm used to it - I love it.

Hope that helps

Cheers
Plob

 

[ShadyJC]

As Plob says, it feels like engine/compression braking?

 

[GavinH]

Thanks for the replies. I'd find it hard to get used to - and if it's typical of the diesel it would make me want to buy a petrol version instead. I've been driving autos for the last 18 years and don't want to go back to manual. It just feels so unpleasing when you take your foot off the gas to feel the car slowing down so much. (This Merc E 280 Diesel is driving me mad). I wonder when this all got started becuase none of my previous cars have had it.

cheers
Gavin

 

[scb05]

Hi Gavin,
Funny you created this topic - I just mentioned/demo'd this to my wife today so she wouldn't become concerned when driving the car. There is a very noticeble "drag" feeling when you release the pedal. Thanks for the topic - I was going to ask the dealer but from I gather from the forum, its a "feature".