Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more?

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 17:19
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - John F

While cycling slowly along a winding country lane I was aware of an impatient MG SUV behind me. Eventually it was safe to overtake, so he floored it. As it passed, it changed up and there was a distinct transient scrabbling from the wheels as the revs suddenly dropped. Presumably the much vaunted millisecond gear change results in a brief surge of kinetic energy from the engine suddenly spinning more slowly, causing a bit of wheelspin. I don't know whether the MG uses a DSG-type box or not, but it was obviously an automatic.

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 18:25
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SLO76
I believe it is an automated manual and I guess without a power sapping torque converter to smother power delivery it’ll be the same as any manual box with a engine with wee bit of poke which would produce a bit of spin before the TCS reigned it in if one was a little exuberant in passing some auld wheezer on a bike. I have much sympathy with them as a bus driver, cyclists are our nemesis. ;-)
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Thu 27 Dec 2018 19:03
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SLO76
“I do not agree with you my wife's automatic top speed is 109mph whether it is automatic or a manual and it has a proper auto box box. If you do not accept cyclists you should not be driving.”

What are you on about? Who mentioned top speed? We’re talking about wheel spin after a gearchange, your comment was utterly irrelevant. As for not accepting cyclists well I am one, Lycra daft helmet, the lot. I still hate them when I’m driving a 40ft vehicle that struggles to get past because most cyclists are totally ignorant of how much road it takes for a large vehicle to safely pass them especially when they spread themselves out all over the road or try to undertake you in traffic. It should be drummed into people before they’re allowed out on two wheels just how much danger they’re in.

As for the “you should not be driving” comment, well after over 25yrs of doing so including the last year squeezing 40ft Scanias round tight housing estates and single track roads I’ve yet to have an at fault accident. Can you say the same?
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Thu 27 Dec 2018 19:17
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - KB.

I think the thoughts of Chairman Ilos are to be generally disregarded ...as they were when he was Collos25, or just plain Collos.

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 19:41
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - bathtub tom

When I had a Maestro (non turbo) diesel I used to do full throttle up changes to try and get a little more acceleration out of the thing by using the flywheel effect of that diesel lump.

Don't recall it affecting tyre wear.

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 20:08
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - gordonbennet

Not really, scrabbling for grip is one of the main drawbacks of wrong wheel drive.

By the way, i have no issue whatsoever with cyclists (except for the fools who dice with certain death by riding on dark roads with no lights), if it takes me 10 minutes to get past one in my lorry so be it, road overcrowding is going to be a massive issue in the future as the country overfills so get used to it, gridlock is going to join death and taxes as a certainty you cannot avoid.

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 21:08
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SLO76

When I had a Maestro (non turbo) diesel I used to do full throttle up changes to try and get a little more acceleration out of the thing by using the flywheel effect of that diesel lump.

Don't recall it affecting tyre wear.

The best example of an engine that would outlast the car it was in it was the old Perkins designed direct injection lump found in the Maestro and Montego. These things would run forever if they’d only rust proofed them properly. I used a real rot box 2.0 D Clubman to jump start everything in my yard on cold winter mornings. It never failed to start. It was also the punishment car if you crashed your company car, later replaced with a base model utter poverty spec Proton MPI 1.3 GE.

Edited by SLO76 on 27/12/2018 at 21:11

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 21:35
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - nick62

The 0-60 quoted for the Maestro D should have been "in your dreams".

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 21:40
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SLO76

The 0-60 quoted for the Maestro D should have been "in your dreams".

At 16s dead it was a rocket compared to a Mk V Escort 1.8D (18s but felt slower) or Cavalier 1.7D (19s) but worst of the era was the Nissan Serena 2.0D which took 31 seconds. Diesels were painfully slow but kinda fun thanks to effort it took to keep with the flow.
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Thu 27 Dec 2018 22:36
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - bathtub tom

Didn't Nissan diesels use the Perkins Prima lump around that time, along with the ubiquitous London taxi?

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Fri 28 Dec 2018 13:54
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - groaver

the Nissan Serena 2.0D which took 31 seconds. Diesels were painfully slow but kinda fun thanks to effort it took to keep with the flow.

I had the misfortune to hire one of those in Lanzarote around 16 years ago . It was used to ferry 7of us around the island. It had absolutely no go. Dropping down a couple of gears to accelerate just made it roar with noise. Its one redeeming feature was, well it wasn't mine!

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Thu 27 Dec 2018 22:34
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - Big John

The 0-60 quoted for the Maestro D should have been "in your dreams".

Likewise the 1.3 Maestro - which I had as a company car for a while. The old A series engine was good in a Mini but terrible in a Maestro. You needed a gantt chart to plan overtaking!

My old 1976 2.0 Capri auto (obvioulsy old tourque converter) used to slighty "snatch" the tyres when changing from first to second flat out (think this was the tourque converter winding up between the gearchange gap). Had truly awful leaf spring/solid live axle rear suspension though - think tyre wear was OK though.

Most modern tourque converter auto box drivetrains now have devices to lock the tourue converter when up to speed so on a long run they should still be reasonably efficient and have the same top speed!

Edited by Big John on 27/12/2018 at 22:43

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Thu 3 Jan 2019 00:06
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SteveLee

Slow as a dog, but the A+ Maestro 1.3E would do a genuine 60mpg on a run.- astounding for a mid sized car of the day.

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Fri 4 Jan 2019 09:44
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SLO76

Slow as a dog, but the A+ Maestro 1.3E would do a genuine 60mpg on a run.- astounding for a mid sized car of the day.

On paper yes but in reality it would struggle to beat 40mpg.
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Mon 7 Jan 2019 21:46
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SteveLee

Slow as a dog, but the A+ Maestro 1.3E would do a genuine 60mpg on a run.- astounding for a mid sized car of the day.

On paper yes but in reality it would struggle to beat 40mpg.

I had the regular use of a two year old example - I used to easily achieve low 50s mpg on a run without resorting to hiper-miling techniques. It was better on fuel than the A+ engined Metro in the family too - I think it was more aerodynamic and longer geared.

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Fri 28 Dec 2018 13:06
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - Manatee

While cycling slowly along a winding country lane I was aware of an impatient MG SUV behind me. Eventually it was safe to overtake, so he floored it. As it passed, it changed up and there was a distinct transient scrabbling from the wheels

Perhaps skidding on a bit of gravel. Not many everyday cars have the power to spin the wheels on an upchange, even with intent on the part of the driver.

A DCT is extremely unlikely to do so as it is typically programmed to control the 'throttle' during changes and will 'lift' automatically on upchanges even when the driver keeps his foot in. You can hear them blip the revs on downchanges too.

Some people are very clumsy with their control of brakes, accelerator and steering, perhaps higher wear on brakes and tyres is a by-product. Just watch them - many can't control their speed properly and will follow the car ahead for miles, dabbing the brakes at frequent intervals to avoid running into the back of it; they will go haring past on dual carriageways, 300 yards from a roundabout before braking heavily when they notice the need to slow down. Maybe this kind of behaviour, when it is embedded, just becomes worse when driving an automatic as even less attention to driving is needed.

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Sat 29 Dec 2018 09:48
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - John F

A DCT is extremely unlikely to do so as it is typically programmed to control the 'throttle' during changes and will 'lift' automatically on upchanges ......

True, but not relevant. My point was the sudden surge of mechanical kinetic energy caused by the almost instantaneous drop in engine revs, considering all the moving parts of the engine and its ancillaries as a flywheel. I contend that this surge is greater, and more wearing on the driven tyres, than the slower drop in revs from either a torque converter auto or a clumsy manual change, where the clutch plate will absorb most of the energy.

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Thu 3 Jan 2019 00:15
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - SteveLee

My Lexus RX spins the rear wheels all the time pulling out of turns etc, doesn't seem to have damaged tyre life which is about 40K for the rears. It also suffers torque steer in a straight line as the fronts scrabble for grip.

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Thu 3 Jan 2019 09:49
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - Senexdriver
I have an A4 with DCT transmission (I am also a cyclist). It will spin the wheels with little provocation when pulling away on loose gravel or a wet surface, but I’ve never been aware of wheelspin on the rare occasions when instant acceleration is needed, which it can muster very competently. I’ve covered 17,000 miles from new and there is still plenty of tread left on the front tyres. The tyres are Bridgestone Potenza, by the way, a hard wearing unit in my experience.
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Fri 4 Jan 2019 08:55
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - Joseph299

While cycling slowly along a winding country lane I was aware of an impatient MG SUV behind me. Eventually it was safe to overtake, so he floored it. As it passed, it changed up and there was a distinct transient scrabbling from the wheels as the revs suddenly dropped. Presumably the much vaunted millisecond gear change results in a brief surge of kinetic energy from the engine suddenly spinning more slowly, causing a bit of wheelspin. I don't know whether the MG uses a DSG-type box or not mybkexperience, but it was obviously an automatic.

Hey there... Transmissions like dual clutch and automated manual are more prone to damage than others. Every manufacturer has done their own version of these transmissions, therefore each one can have different tolerances towards Launches at a traffic light.

Edited by Joseph299 on 04/01/2019 at 08:57

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Fri 4 Jan 2019 11:32
Do dual-clutch autos wear tyres more? - KB.

"Transmissions like dual clutch and automated manual are more prone to damage than others".

So all those little old ladies who I see revving the nuts off the engine whilst slipping the clutch as they pull away from rest are a figment of my imagination then?

Or youngsters tearing away from lights and slamming the clutch in as they change gear in three milliseconds?

Or those drivers who regard the clutch pedal as a footrest as they drive along?

No, I suggest an auto. is no more prone to damage than a manual.

Lots of buses, lorries etc are automatic and I can't believe they get the easiest life imaginable.

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