Does anybody else downshift using the manual shift mode or manual shifting to reduce brake wear? Is there a concern for transmissions? Would like to hear some of your thoughts......

 

i jus enjoy rev matching

 

Sliq: Rev matching?

 

trading brake wear for clutch wear IMO is counterproductive

 

Sounds like he is talking about AT.

I do it all the time, shouldn't be a problem.

 

There are clutches in auto trannies too. Which are more expensive than manual clutches.

It's a bad idea

 

I thought he was talking about either AT or MT?

 

By the first post I vote the topic is AT.

 

Downshifting with the manual transmission in our cars isn't that effective of a braking mechanism because the drivetrain revs a little too freely to offer significant enough resistance to slow the vehicle down enough unless you really put it into a low gear so that your engine RPM's skyrocket up to like 5K(In my opinion). I have a 6MT and am very familiar with rev matching and down shifting to compression brake because I do it all the time in my truck and it works really well in that vehicle.... however, it is just flat-out not effective in the G as a means of braking.

I do keep the car in gear if I want to slow down so that the engine sorta offers a little resistance to help slow it down when I'm coasting towards a stop light from far away, and I do downshift(and rev match in the process) while approaching a corner so that I'm in the right gear for going into the corner, but that's about it on the G for messing with shifts on decelleration.

If you rev match and do it well, there isn't that much wear on your clutch. The part of the clutch that takes the most wear from rev-matched downshifts would be your throwout bearing since it's spinning at fairly high RPM's for a few tenths of a second per downshift. The plate itself should take very little wear though if you do it right, and the same can be said of the synchros in the transmission.

 

either way its not worth it imo

 

You're right.

To answer the question: Rarely. I may downshift my MT on a long steep hill to avoid constantly tapping the brakes, otherwise no.

 

Do it to just save brake wear...nah
Down shift b/c of my spirited driving situations on the twisties with braking too...yup

 

Brakes are made to STOP THE CAR, your transmission/clutch are not.

 

I do the same, replacing the brakes is WAY easier to do than a clutch, so the less wear on it, the better

 

There actually are no clutches in an automatic (not a conventional automatic like in the G, anyway)