Still learning

[Buckman]

It will be a 1 year or 10k or 12 k miles, programmed into the car , what does your service record say in the handbook. No point in spending money if it is not needed.

Does seem weird that it requires a service so soon?

 

[Gafferbill]

Best to use Sport mode when towing as not so many gear changes.

......tried it and prefer the normal setting over sport and Evo modes.

Bill can I ask how much the oil change and filter replacement cost?.

.......£130 at Hyundai main dealer.
Went to main dealer as gearbox oil change is not straightforward with plenty of scope for cutting corners. Wanted it done the way Hyundai says it should be done.

 

[RogerL]

......tried it and prefer the normal setting over sport and Evo modes.

.......£130 at Hyundai main dealer.
Went to main dealer as gearbox oil change is not straightforward with plenty of scope for cutting corners. Wanted it done the way Hyundai says it should be done.

+1 for using normal mode for automatic transmission - there's enough intelligence in the transmission electronics to manage the loads and temperatures very adequately

 

[otherclive]

+1 for using normal mode for automatic transmission - there's enough intelligence in the transmission electronics to manage the loads and temperatures very adequately

Both of my Subaru Forester SJs recommended using the first of the two Sports modes when towing. They were a 150 bhp non turbo, the other was a 238 bhp turbo.

 

[RogerL]

Both of my Subaru Forester SJs recommended using the first of the two Sports modes when towing. They were a 150 bhp non turbo, the other was a 238 bhp turbo.

When I had my Subaru Outback, it had a 2.5 non-turbo engine so no bottom end torque but plenty of top-end power - on an international Subaru forum one of the contributors was a transmission engineer from the factory in Japan - he maintained it was best to leave the transmission in normal mode when towing and let the gearbox "sort it out" - given that "sorting it out" sometimes meant holding 6,000 rpm even in normal mode because of the lack of low down torque, it seemed to make sensse.

That was though with their 4-speed automatic which had a huge hole in the ratios between 2nd and 3rd - later plugged by the 5-speed version.

 

[otherclive]

When I had my Subaru Outback, it had a 2.5 non-turbo engine so no bottom end torque but plenty of top-end power - on an international Subaru forum one of the contributors was a transmission engineer from the factory in Japan - he maintained it was best to leave the transmission in normal mode when towing and let the gearbox "sort it out" - given that "sorting it out" sometimes meant holding 6,000 rpm even in normal mode because of the lack of low down torque, it seemed to make sensse.

That was though with their 4-speed automatic which had a huge hole in the ratios between 2nd and 3rd - later plugged by the 5-speed version.

Both of mine were SJ Foresters with the Subaru CVT gearbox so difficult to make a comparison with your Outback. But the Handbooks for both recommended Sport mode for towing. Putting the XT into the first Sport mode made little difference to towing a 1300 kg caravan. With its turbo it had torque aplenty low down and up the range. But the 150 bhp non turbo petrol was a better drive when in Sport mode towing the same caravan.

 

[RogerL]

Both of mine were SJ Foresters with the Subaru CVT gearbox so difficult to make a comparison with your Outback. But the Handbooks for both recommended Sport mode for towing. Putting the XT into the first Sport mode made little difference to towing a 1300 kg caravan. With its turbo it had torque aplenty low down and up the range. But the 150 bhp non turbo petrol was a better drive when in Sport mode towing the same caravan.

I tried the Outback CVT when it was launched, the only time I've driven a CVT and was very impressed with it.

 

[Martin_E]

Some cars can by dynamic for servicing depending how they are driven, types of roads etc

 

[Buckman]

Apologies I should have said I guess it depends on the number of gears in the car. Our Jeep has 8 forward gears so Sport mode is preferred when towing.

 

[RogerL]

Apologies I should have said I guess it depends on the number of gears in the car. Our Jeep has 8 forward gears so Sport mode is preferred when towing.

It probably more depends on the shape of the engine power/torque curve, the transmission ratio gaps and the programming of the transmission electronics.

 

[Hutch]

......tried it and prefer the normal setting over sport and Evo modes.

.......£130 at Hyundai main dealer.
Went to main dealer as gearbox oil change is not straightforward with plenty of scope for cutting corners. Wanted it done the way Hyundai says it should be done.

Thanks Bill, I will get mine booked in soon.
I have tried Sports and Eco mode.
Not much difference, so just let it run in Normal mode. But in windy conditions on Motorway I use Sport steering mode.

 

[Buckman]

In the Sport mode the Jeep stays longer in 8th or 7th gear and also the body lowers as it has air suspension. Economy seems slightly better when towing, but probably my imagination.

 

[Beachball]

It will be a 1 year or 10k or 12 k miles, programmed into the car , what does your service record say in the handbook. No point in spending money if it is not needed.

Actually it says 1 year or 12k miles in the handbook but in the window screen it says 2years or 20k that why the dealer said it come on early because it not due for a service.

 

[Dustydog]

+

+1 for using normal mode for automatic transmission - there's enough intelligence in the transmission electronics to manage the loads and temperatures very adequately

+2 for normal mode on the Touareg. Using Sport mode it holds the lower gears longer until a higher rpm is reached. Pointless waste of fuel imo.
The 8 speed box handles the TA effortlessly without the “ hunting” I had years ago with the auto Ford Sierra

 

[otherclive]

+

+2 for normal mode on the Touareg. Using Sport mode it holds the lower gears longer until a higher rpm is reached. Pointless waste of fuel imo.
The 8 speed box handles the TA effortlessly without the “ hunting” I had years ago with the auto Ford Sierra

But a 3 litre donk shouldn’t have any trouble in normal mode even with a TA caravan.

 

[Dustydog]

You’ve lost me on that last comment Clive??

 

[Buckman]

But a 3 litre donk shouldn’t have any trouble in normal mode even with a TA caravan.

There is no issue, but the revs stay lower for longer due to not changing gear so often and in my book that means a small saving.

 

[otherclive]

You’ve lost me on that last comment Clive??

Well a large diesel engine like the Touareg and Jeep has a towing capacity probably well in excess of even a heavy TA caravan.. So with 7 or 8 speed gearboxes it’s normal mode torque and power should see it tow comfortably on our roads apart perhaps from a more severe gradient where Sport mode may help particularly if there are bends or fluctuations in traffic flow. But towing a trailer nearer to the cars legal limit may see benefit in Sport model . Just thinking aloud and some conjecture. My last larger diesels a Disco 2 and Sorento didn’t have modes they had normal or low ratio 😂

 

[Dustydog]

Well a large diesel engine like the Touareg and Jeep has a towing capacity probably well in excess of even a heavy TA caravan.. So with 7 or 8 speed gearboxes it’s normal mode torque and power should see it tow comfortably on our roads apart perhaps from a more severe gradient where Sport mode may help particularly if there are bends or fluctuations in traffic flow. But towing a trailer nearer to the cars legal limit may see benefit in Sport model . Just thinking aloud and some conjecture. My last larger diesels a Disco 2 and Sorento didn’t have modes they had normal or low ratio 😂

Yes that’s what I said in #40, As Roger said , certainly on the VW, the system is more than intelligent enough to cope with towing adequately in D.
I have experimented with S mode solo. In essence it keeps the engine running at mid rpm, burning fuel unnecessarily giving the impression I am a boy racer🤪

 

[otherclive]

Yes that’s what I said in #40, As Roger said , certainly on the VW, the system is more than intelligent enough to cope with towing adequately in D.
I have experimented with S mode solo. In essence it keeps the engine running at mid rpm, burning fuel unnecessarily giving the impression I am a boy racer🤪

Guess that the systems are different depending on the engine and gearing. . My ones with Sport mode, including the 7 speed Xceed petrol auto just add around a couple of hundred rpm to the Normal mode which just allows the car to pick up more quickly and it holds revs longer while accelerating then drops back down to one gear lower than normal. Horses for courses.

 

[RogerL]

Guess that the systems are different depending on the engine and gearing. . My ones with Sport mode, including the 7 speed Xceed petrol auto just add around a couple of hundred rpm to the Normal mode which just allows the car to pick up more quickly and it holds revs longer while accelerating then drops back down to one gear lower than normal. Horses for courses.

There is an element of a big high torque, ie turbo-diesel engine being able to "make progress" while towing with far fewer gear changes than a small low torque, ie non-turbo petrol engine.

I'm surprised at Buckman's preference for towing with his 3.0 turbo-diesel Jeep in Sport mode - I'd have expected Normal/Eco to be just fine, but I've not driven a Jeep.

 

[ProfJohnL]

My new car only done 5,800 miles and the other day going to doctors appointment it said on the dash, oil change needed in 15 fifteen days so i rang the dealer it should not be on yet so now booked in on Monday 9th September .

Some cars can by dynamic for servicing depending how they are driven, types of roads etc

Some models of modern cars actually sense the condition of some of the important components that may need servicing, Brakes are a classic example, but others can look at the engine and gearbox fluids, for things like the amount of conductive particulates, (bits of metal) light transmissivity and some other characteristics such as pressures across filters, and the Engine Management Systems can call for services, when one of or more of these sensor inputs begins to fall below an acceptable level.

One of the things that happens with brand new cars, is they do need to be treated with extra care in the first few hundred miles, as the mechanicals bed in. This why most cars used to (and some still do) call for an early oil change and service soon after sale. I know that some manufacturers no longer specify this first early service, but there can always be the odd car which does find some extra reason for an early service.

It's better to have it checked than to ignore it, incase it leads to excessive wear and a premature failure.

 

[RogerL]

Actually it says 1 year or 12k miles in the handbook but in the window screen it says 2years or 20k that why the dealer said it come on early because it not due for a service.

Most, maybe all, modern VWs have optional servicing regimes, typically 20,000 miles / 2 years with an optional interim oil change at 10,000 miles / 1 year - this can be coded into the cars electronics and usually done free-of-charge when the car is delivered - this sounds like Beachball's car has been wrongly coded or not changed from the factory default.

 

[otherclive]

Most, maybe all, modern VWs have optional servicing regimes, typically 20,000 miles / 2 years with an optional interim oil change at 10,000 miles / 1 year - this can be coded into the cars electronics and usually done free-of-charge when the car is delivered - this sounds like Beachball's car has been wrongly coded or not changed from the factory default.

I had someone working for me who took her Skoda in for its first MOT and because it had not done 20000 miles it had not had a service. But she had kept muting/ignoring the service indicator light at start up for 12 months as she hadn’t done 20000 miles.

 

[Buckman]

There is an element of a big high torque, ie turbo-diesel engine being able to "make progress" while towing with far fewer gear changes than a small low torque, ie non-turbo petrol engine.

I'm surprised at Buckman's preference for towing with his 3.0 turbo-diesel Jeep in Sport mode - I'd have expected Normal/Eco to be just fine, but I've not driven a Jeep.

The Jeep as standard has the Eco mode from start up however you can switch off the Eco mode. The there is the option of selecting the Sport mode and when doing so the revs normally drop. On the motorway I tend to manually select the gear.