Why the DCT is Safer Than 6MT

[DBH]

I can not agree with OP.

Way back when...I was taught - when you come to an abrupt stop "two feet in". If you cannot figure out what this means, you shouldn't be driving anything but an automatic.

[M3Now!]

Originally Posted by fongpi

After thinking for months on whether I should get a DCT or 6MT E93 M3, I have come to conclude that the DCT is a safer and more practical car because it is less accident prone. This is because there are fewer coordinated motions which the driver would need to make in order to stop a car in an emergency type situation.

No, I don't agree with this at all. First, agree with the others that over time driving a manual and moving around the gearbox becomes automatic.

Second, in an emergency stopping situation, the driver should do two things: Jam on the brakes, and hold on to the steering wheel in case maneuvering is required. Why would you screw around with the stick shift? It will make zero difference unless you've been standing on the gas, and then I could argue that a 6MT driver can get into neutral faster than the DCT can.

Cheers

[M3Now!]

Originally Posted by pharmdphd98

Another DCT vs 6MT thread...... 6 MT is for real drivers....DCT is for xxxxxx. Case closed.

LOL - I love it when people say "case closed" like it means something

[JohnnyRoaster]

It sounds like the OP is trying to justify getting the auto...I mean DCT.

I do think you have more control of the car with a manual. That being said, I might have gone with the DCT if I had to deal with traffic on a daily basis.

[m3an]

Originally Posted by DBH

I can not agree with OP.

Way back when...I was taught - when you come to an abrupt stop "two feet in". If you cannot figure out what this means, you shouldn't be driving anything but an automatic.

+1; every driver has had to stop short; and does it with both feet as instinct

[fongpi]

Originally Posted by Nati Beastcat

Dct for safety.....better get a roll cage installed. Someone might hit you with the top down and your head could get crushed if the car rolls over...

LOL!!

[desertfox73]

Originally Posted by ILSMKU

For example, say you hit the gas and go, but immediately need to stop. Throwing it into netural makes the cars forward momentum stop much quicker than in a DCT and just pressing the brakes. Because in a DCT, you're stopping the car and the engines forward momentum. Where as in a manual in netural, you will only be stopping the cars momentum.

Huh? How does this make sense? Putting a car in neutral makes any car (6MT or DCT) usually require MORE braking from the driver, since the engine is not providing passive (resistance) braking.

I also am not clear what you mean by "stopping the car and the engine's forward momentum" vs. "stopping the cars momentum". You can't separate the engine from the car. Or at least you shouldn't.

[Vagus]

Originally Posted by fongpi

.......

Would you agree that the likelihood of rear ending someone is greater when driving a 6MT over a DCT in the M3? As someone with about one and half years of 6MT experience, I say yes it is more likely that a driver will rear end someone when driving a 6MT simply because it takes more coordination to stop a vehicle on short notice. Then again, when braking I usually disengage the gear and put in neutral before coming to a full stop. I’ve noticed some people just step on the brake like it was an automatic and then pop it out of gear right before the car comes to a full stop. My fear in doing that is becoming rear ended when the car stalls on the freeway!

Talking like he has shitload of experience...
There are some people here who have been driving manual transmission for more than 10 years

[desertfox73]

Originally Posted by pharmdphd98

Another DCT vs 6MT thread...... 6 MT is for real drivers....DCT is for xxxxxx. Case closed.

Lol!

So...I guess that's what they're calling F1 drivers now?

[Stronghammer]

All I know is that it is to hard to text while driving a 6MT so I suspect that makes it a much safer car

[tibra1]

I am sure we are being trolled and this is a direct response to this thread..

http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=691942

These DCT guys constantly feel the need to even up the score..I am surprised he didnt come out with the usual money shift argument..nice spin w the accident angle

[Projectile]

I would agree that a properly functioning DCT is likely to be safer than a 6MT for a variety of reasons, the most important of which is that the DCT just doesn't make mistakes, so its less likely to unsettle the car.

The difference is probably very small, and will vary inversely with the skill of the 6MT driver.

Imagine a 90 year old driving a 6MT vs a DCT. Speaking only of the transmission, which is more likely to lead to a problem or even an accident?

[TVMA Doc]

Originally Posted by minigearhead

how about the 6MT guys that have been driving them for 20 years?
also, my dad taught me to depress the clutch, and not worry about moving shifter into neutral until I stop because a depressed clutch means neutral. Maybe theres a small difference but not a tangible one for experienced manual drivers.

Yeah, I was taught that as well. There is a little more wear on the throw out bearing, but that is pretty insignificant-especially compared to the impact you are trying to avoid.

I've found that it is even more important to worry about following distance and paying attention to the vehicle in front of you. Whatever theoretical advanatage either transmission may/may not have, you can't beat situational awareness and not doing dumb things like tailgating.

[TVMA Doc]

Originally Posted by Stronghammer

All I know is that it is to hard to text while driving a 6MT so I suspect that makes it a much safer car

I agree, and it's also much easier to get your wife-who REFUSES to learn how to drive a manual-to approve of the M3 purchase if you bypass the 6MT. See, it helps with all sorts of "driving problems".

The only reason I went for a DCT was the wife. I am glad that I did it, though. It's the first car I've even owned that has any sort of automatic mode, yet it retains the joy of chosing shift points.

If I feel the need to experience things with a manual transmission, I do have one of the slicker versions in my 2003 S2K.

[ILSMKU]

Originally Posted by desertfox73

Huh? How does this make sense? Putting a car in neutral makes any car (6MT or DCT) usually require MORE braking from the driver, since the engine is not providing passive (resistance) braking.



I also am not clear what you mean by "stopping the car and the engine's forward momentum" vs. "stopping the cars momentum". You can't separate the engine from the car. Or at least you shouldn't.

When your ON the gas and the RPMs are flying upward, hitting the brakes alone means the brakes not only have to slow the car, but it also has to slow down the engines RPMs. Now if your just coming to a stop and not on the gas, then yes I engine braking totally helps. Like, take off and once in 2nd, and RPMs are climbing to say 6K, now slam the brakes only while leaving it in gear. Now do the same thing, but push both the clutch and brakes. I seem to think that doing both in THAT situation would get your car to stop faster. Maybe Im wrong?

[Totti]

Originally Posted by ILSMKU

When your ON the gas and the RPMs are flying upward, hitting the brakes alone means the brakes not only have to slow the car, but it also has to slow down the engines RPMs. Now if your just coming to a stop and not on the gas, then yes I engine braking totally helps. Like, take off and once in 2nd, and RPMs are climbing to say 6K, now slam the brakes only while leaving it in gear. Now do the same thing, but push both the clutch and brakes. I seem to think that doing both in THAT situation would get your car to stop faster. Maybe Im wrong?

Better to shift down and brake, then you have the combination of engine brake and also proper brake.

[gblansten]

Think of the children. I ask all of you to just think of the children.

[1MOREMOD]

a panic stop is done 10 times a lap at the track and has nothing to do with the transmission at all in the first portion of slowing. you stand on the brakes then as speed is bled off you downshift?

[1sikbmr]

I Don't Want To Live On This Planet Anymore

[1MOREMOD]

sometimes the stick prevents this so it might be safer but less fun.

[ILSMKU]

Originally Posted by chriszeh

sometimes the stick prevents this so it might be safer but less fun.

Oh, I would argue chupa is less fun than manual!

[VMcV3y]

I'm sure my DCT is more dangerous.

When driving, I do not know whether to use the paddle shifters, or the stick...so confusing...during a curve or a sharp turn, don't use the paddle shifters, but only on a straight-line...and then when approaching a stopped vehicle, my mind wanders between the two options, and then there's that whole down-shift thing and engine braking...and then because the top is down I see a bird flying that is interesting...oh, yeah, the car in front of me is stopped.... paddle shifter or stick? Hmmmm.

Crashhhhhh......

Happens seven or eight dozen times per day.





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