Torque Shop #6

Our mechanical engineer is here to help the average motorist in Singapore with his series of thematic Q&A articles.

- Shreejit Changaroth

THIS issue’s question-and-answer article is, again, about automatic transmissions, which equip the vast majority of cars in Singapore.

Like going from first gear to second gear, it’s a continuation from our previous issue’s Tech feature, which answered a few good questions about shifting from “D” to “N” while the car is moving, leaving a car’s automatic transmission in “P” without engaging the parking brakes, and switching to an automatic’s Sport or Power mode.

The questions this time are mainly about automatic transmissions with an “M” mode (manual), or its equivalent, for do-it-yourself gearchanging on the go, by using the gearlever (with requisite side gate) or paddle-shifters for “+/–” actuation up/down through the available gears.

Most automatic-transmission cars come with a manual mode these days. Would more wear take place if a driver were to change gears manually on a regular basis? 

The simple answer is no. Modern automatic transmissions which allow manual gear selection have sophisticated controls to maintain efficiency and reliability of both engine and transmission.