F1 in auto

Do any owners of 612 with F1 ever use the automatic option ? If so how does it drive ? I asume it has been improved over the past few years.

Thanks,
Edward

 

Yes, and yes. I test drove an early 612, and in auto it was terrible-- lurched all over the place.

The F1A in the 612 OTO is very good-- clearly not as smooth at mid-throttle as a true automatic, but not bad at light throttle. At mid throttle, you really need to back off the throttle when shifting, and of course you don't know when it will decide to shift in automatic mode.

But that said, I sometimes use it in auto when I'm in traffic around town. It tends to choose the highest gear possible for the situation, which caused me a bit of consternation early on-- seemed odd to be driving around at 30mph in 5th gear-- but it works.

Also, the F1A always starts in auto, regardless of what position it was in when you shut the car off. I don't know if that's true of the earlier cars or not.

 

"I sometimes use it in auto when I'm in traffic around town. It tends to choose the highest gear possible for the situation, which caused me a bit of consternation early on-- seemed odd to be driving around at 30mph in 5th gear-- but it works."


Don is spot on. It likes very low revs, but I learned to just let it do its thing. I use it when I'm having coffee, on th ephone, or in stop and go traffic - with respect to coffee, the cupholder is so shallow as to be almost useless - it's sort of a half-hearted, grudging nod to the cupholder crowd.

 

I use it in auto most of the time - I especially like the way that if you hit the brakes hard on the highway it takes 4th or even 3rd ready to go again

 

Have many of you taken long trips in your 612? I guess it is comfortable for extended travel ?

Thanks,
Edward

 

It's fantastic. It's what the car was designed to do, and it does it superbly.

I took my family (wife and two kids) around Europe for 1500 miles in mine. Trunk space was the main complaint, but we made it work. The trunk is fine for one person or for a weekend, but for multiple people over several weeks it's a bit tight.

 

I'd agree - its great for 2 persons for a long trip since you can fit a bunch of gear in the rear seats also. Comfortable, and because of the huge gas tank it gets good range on a tank, and the mileage is reasonably acceptable on a run - especially compared to what it gets around town If you have an '08 then you have real nav and a decent stereo as well to go with the V12 symphony.

 

I bought the car to use on long trips and, so far so good. My only complaints:

- I didn't get the spare initially, and it seems to be back ordered. Lack of a spare caused me a huge hassle and expense when I met a pothole far from home.

- The interior noise level is a little bit higher than I'd like. I have an '08 with the sporty exhaust.