OT: Driving electric cars in winter

In article , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes

The belt life decreased considerably as they tried to use them on larger engines. They tried steel backed ones but not really successful. The Daf though was brilliant especially in snow.

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bert
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In article , T i m writes

I had an 1100 auto, 4-speed box which was unusual in its day. Reverse failed one day. Makes for amusing challenges.

Reply to
bert

In article , NY writes

I had a Daf and it was brilliant to drive. Floor the accelerator and you could out drag almost anything. Ease your foot off when you were up to speed and the engine noise just died away as the pulleys sorted themselves out. Brilliant on snow and ice - you could have different gearing ratios on your drive wheels as they worked independently so the one which was spinning automatically increased the ratio.

Reply to
bert

The Daf had a two stage centrifugal clutch. To look at it you would wonder how on earth it could ever provide drive, but it did.

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bert

In article , NY writes

Autos I've had will let you hold in 2nd gear but have an overrun on first to prevent damage to the gearbox. Engine braking is not as effective as in a manual by any means. I used to go off roading in an auto Jeep. Required a different technique downhill.

Not in my experience. You need a little more finesse on the throttle. Having a 4litre straight 6 engine helps or a V8 even better. (Land Rover Defender 50th Anniversary Limited Addition)

The autos I've had (and still have) will stay in highest gear down hill unless you do something about it, namely limit the highest gear you can use. You will almost certainly have to use the brakes.

Reply to
bert

Ford tried them - ISTR they were rubber with steel backing.

Reply to
bert

Yeah, I think both the Fords were 3 speed but I can't remember the other two.

I bet. ;-)

The box on the Escort started not engaging and I contacted a auto-box specialist. He asked a few questions then suggested I add another

500ml or summat to the transmission (even though it was on 'full'). That did the trick and I think I sent them some cash just to say 'thanks'. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

Reply to
T i m

The (scooter) CVT's I've played with use a std centrifugal (centripetal really but ... ) to allow the bike to tick over with no drive and then the CVT itself handles the rest.

Yeah, I can see how the front pulley is controlled by the throwout rollers ramping the pulley cheeks together as the road speed goes up but the rear pulley is just sprung loaded together.

It's certainly a less in 'V' belt functionality and how they do drive off the sides. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

Reply to
T i m

Sounds like you didn't check it properly. When the engine is running, the pump causes the fluid level on the dipstick to drop. There's also quite a difference between the level cold and hot. They're normally checked engine running.

For the box not to engage meant the pump pickup was above the oil level in the sump.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Not impossible but I'm generally pretty good at checking the right procedure for such things.

Ok, like with most dipsticks then. ;-)

Check.

I can't remember what I did because it was a long time ago now. ;-)

Makes sense, but whatever the reason I do remember the guy at the auto shop suggesting that those autobox dipsticks were known to read high (which could equally mean they were being incorrectly read with the engine off of course)?

However, I'm pretty sure I didn't care what the reason was at the time, just that we made it work without a big bill. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

Reply to
T i m

Dave is of course completely wrong. Autos don't change down to prevent runaway down hills - or at least none of the 10 or so I have driven in my life do. They have brakes.

No, they dont, because te torque converter disengages them from the wheels when in overrun

Well no, because it doesnt change down. I have to say all the autos I have driven in the last few years also have manual select options, so I use those to lock teh transmission in a lower gear.

I find that autos

Well I haven't found that. In fact the reverse, they are often too lazy to change down.

If I am in a hurry, I use the manual mode.

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

In message , The Natural Philosopher writes

I tend to agree. My last car, for 18 years, was an auto, regularly driven over the Cairngorms, and I'm sure it didn't change down as I drove 'over the top'. I rarely used the manual option, with the Cairngorms being the exception.

Reply to
News

I lived in the USA for more than 30 years, a country which has almost exclusively automatic cars, and I never found one of several hundred (or possibly more) that would change down on its own while descending a hill.

Reply to
Davey

With autos, you may have to follow the procedure given in the driver's handbook, etc. Different makes have different methods.

The level drops much further from stopped to running and hot to cold than with engine oil.

Must admit to being surprised the level was so low it wouldn't engage a gear while showing anything at all on the dipstick regardless of how it was checked. You must have had a leak somewhere. Most modern boxes don't have dipsticks or the ability to top up easily.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

I said decent autos. Not that you'd understand such a subtle difference.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

More bollocks from our resident 'expert'.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

Thanks for proving beyond all doubt you've no experience of a decent auto.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

I didn't say all autos did it. Just decent ones. My '97 BMW does. ZF 5 speed. If it starts 'running away' on a hill on zero throttle and you touch the brakes it will drop a gear or two.

Reply to
Dave Plowman (News)

In article , T i m writes

Dave is correct. Auto boxes are checked with the engine running.

Reply to
bert

In article , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes

So you touch the brakes - that's not the same as saying it does it by itself. In my case Austin 1100, Austin metro, Renault 5, VW Transporter T4, VW Polo x 2, Suzuki Alto x 2, Land Rover Defender V8i, Jeep Cherokee, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Volvo 740, Volvo 940. Range Rover Classic 4.2 and P38. None would automatically change down when going down a hill. (I've probably missed at least one.) The worst gearbox was the Polo, the best probably the Jeep GC

Reply to
bert

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