First time ever driving an automatic and I'm enjoying it, but....

 

I'm trying to find an answer to what to do with the gears when drawing up to, say, traffic lights, where it's not just a momentary halt but likely to be a minute or indeed more.  In a manual I'd shift into neutral and pull the handbrake on.  But what about in an automatic? I've searched the internet, YouTube and looked at the highway code and there's no definitive answer.  Choices seem to be:

 

A. Stay in Drive, foot on the footbrake.  Easy and quick to move off from but leaves drivers behind looking at bright brake lights and also if I'm shunted from behind or my foot slips off the brake we move forward.

 

B. Stay in D but put the parking brake on and release the footbrake (strain on the transmission?), or put the AVH on?

 

C. Shift into N and either keep my foot on the footbrake or put the parking brake on? Advantages - easy and quick to move off, but clearly less secure if shunted?

 

D..  Go the whole-hog and shift into P and put the parking brake on?  Advantages are secure, but disadvantages mean slower to move off and also while shifting back to D and passing through N the reversing lights momentarily come on, which I've seen happen when behind a car and now understand why. This can be disconcerting for the driver behind - I know!

 

E. Any other answers? - No reference to anchors please

Edited 4 May, 20215 yr by Ooopnorth

I think most people tend to do A.

 

I'd probably do C using the handbrake - it's no less secure than a manual car

 

Pretty sure B is considered a bad plan...

Depends if you have autohold, stop/ start,  dry or wet clutch DSG.

B definitely a bad idea.

 

14 minutes ago, langers2k said:

I think most people tend to do A.

 

I'd probably do C using the handbrake - it's no less secure than a manual car

 

Pretty sure B is considered a bad plan...

Yeah, that makes sense to me too..but reading the car's handbook the only description for using N (n the Driving the Vehicle section) was when the battery was dead and the car needed to be pushed, moved somewhere, or when 'starting a stalled engine' (not sure how that would happen in an automatic, but hey-ho).

I usually shift into N if I am likely to be at the lights for a while (Main junctions etc) otherwise I just leave it in D with my foot hard down on the brake.
In my Octavia gently pressing the brake doesn't fully disengage drive, the revs will sit around 1000 and engine note is slightly louder, hard pressing it the revs will be at the normal idle.

6 minutes ago, Kenny R said:

Depends if you have autohold, stop/ start,  dry or wet clutch DSG.

B definitely a bad idea.

 

Agree,  I tend to switch the auto stop start off automatically (I don't live in an urban area and on our Skodas (X2 past and present) the cars used to regularly stall when it was on), but, yes, that's another permeation I'd not even thought about if it was engaged.  Yeap, B seemed dodgy to me too.

I've only ever driven auto's in 40 years of driving.

 

I leave it in drive, foot on brake if only a few seconds (three or four at most), otherwise it's handbrake on and into neutral, as with the engine running it still feels (to me) that it's dragging on the clutch.

 

My car has auto hold, which I've gotten used to and now like.  If the car stops and switches off, then I don't bother with the handbrake and just leave it in the held position.

 

Gaz

 

I have autohold and use it all the time. At traffic lights I just stop in D and the autohold keeps the brakes applied. If going to be stopped a while I just flick the stop/ start on just to save the clutches though I don’t think there’s any problems leaving my wet clutch DSG in D with the engine running. 

4 minutes ago, Kenny R said:

I have autohold and use it all the time. At traffic lights I just stop in D and the autohold keeps the brakes applied. If going to be stopped a while I just flick the stop/ start on just to save the clutches though I don’t think there’s any problems leaving my wet clutch DSG in D with the engine running. 

Thanks 'guys'.  This is all very helpful info for me.  The gearbox concerned is a CVT! That's right, I've traded in the Yeti (tearful sniffle) for a Subaru Outback.  We're keeping the Fabulous Fabia, as it's our regular nip down to the shops set of wheels and general; runabout second car  (we live in an isolated, rural, very hilly, spot which is several miles from 'civilisation').  I'd have preferred another manual but that was all that was on offer in the model choice and, as I said above, I'm finding it quite enjoyable to drive.

 

PS - I did research this thoroughly beforehand and I'm aware of the reported issues and quibbles about CVTs, etc., but with a 5 year warranty I feel reasonably reassured.  Time will tell, eh?

As Gaz says above; do you really want to be "that guy" who lazers the eyes of the unfortunate behind him at every set of traffic lights?

 

As for "how do you stall an automatic?", my Dad once had one where the idle speed was set too low.

You used to use option C in a manual... no reason not to continue in an auto, the risk you mention is the same regardless of gearbox. 

Stick it in N, handbrake on. 

on the occasions i have driven autos, and now with swmbo's dsg arona, thats what i do if im gonna be sitting for more than about 10seconds.

 

its really not going to "slow you down" when moving off.

 

also pretty sure anything else is a marking down on a driving test, even for an automatic license.

I remember the advice from a Police Class 1 driver - when a pause becomes a stop put the handbrake on and the gears into neutral.

 

I've always done that whether the car is manual, auto or semi-auto.

Great posts here.  Thanks to everyone for their opinions.  I'm sorted now.  It's going to be into N and parking brake on when in the described situations.

You cannot stall an automatic, so you can keep the stop / start switched on. If any it saves a bit on pollution and fuel.

I sometimes stay in D / gear and just pull the handbrake.

On 04/05/2021 at 13:08, MATT0693 said:

I usually shift into N if I am likely to be at the lights for a while (Main junctions etc) otherwise I just leave it in D with my foot hard down on the brake.
In my Octavia gently pressing the brake doesn't fully disengage drive, the revs will sit around 1000 and engine note is slightly louder, hard pressing it the revs will be at the normal idle.

 

This is pretty much what I've always done in my autos. For most of them the auto stop/start kicks in anyway so the car isn't pulling constantly.

My autos haven't been DSG so there has been no clutch to worry about.

 

4 minutes ago, Aspman said:

 

This is pretty much what I've always done in my autos. For most of them the auto stop/start kicks in anyway so the car isn't pulling constantly.

My autos haven't been DSG so there has been no clutch to worry about.

 

I've been adopting this option now (into N and electronic parking brake on) for the last couple of days and all seems fine.  As with this vehicle the electric parking brake doesn't have to be switched off (it does it automatically when you move off in D), it's even easier than in the manual car with the mechanical handbrake needing to be button pressed and lowered - not that that was any great chew either.