Hi All

I am continuing my research of the new Bu and couple of questions came to mind:

1. How's the suspension? The old malibus were way to floaty, which is comfy but control is lacking. On the other end of the scale is Accord, that is very controllable, but does nothing for comfort. Where does new Malibu (i am talking about LTZ or 2LT with performance package) fit?

2. Paddle shift. Is this basically a range limiter, i.e. selects a gear automatically within the range - 1 to selected gear?

3. I presume you have to move the lever to some special position to activate paddles. What gar is selected right after you did that? On old malibus it was 3, one down which makes down on highway ramps.

4. On which side is the gear lowering paddle? Hope it's on the left, cause then I would basically use right hand to move the lever (presuming I cruise on D and all of a sudden need to downshift) and flick the paddle by my left hand quickly.

5. Does the MP3 capable player shows ID tags (song name, artist name and so on) properly or just track numbers?

Thanks,
Yury

Paddleshift is odd on the 'Bu.

On the left and right are both + shifts.

Basically, push it forward to shift up and down to shift down (both sides).

You do this on the M gear a.k.a. Manual.

The suspension seems nice to me. A comfty ride.

Paddleshift is odd on the 'Bu.

On the left and right are both + shifts.

Basically, push it forward to shift up and down to shift down (both sides).

You do this on the M gear a.k.a. Manual.

The suspension seems nice to me. A comfty ride.

oh, ok, that's why they are called paddles :) what is the gear it defaults to when you shift to M?

oh, ok, that's why they are called paddles :) what is the gear it defaults to when you shift to M?
It stays in the same gear as it was before shifting to M.

It stays in the same gear as it was before shifting to M.

that's sensible. will it hold the high gear if I force it above what is normally chosen by auto or it will shift down?

http://www.chevymalibuforum.com/gallery/images/122/large/1_2559406698_5864ef690b_b.jpg

You can see the + upshift buttons on each side. The downshift paddles are on the back.
If you are in manual and stop without downshifting, the trans will shift to 1st for you.

yes, that's sensible. will it hold the high gear if I force it above what is normally chosen by auto ?
Yes it will.
If you run past redline I do not know if it will shift up, or if the rev limiter will kick in. I need to look in the manual.

This was copied from my 08 Equinox Sport manual, which has the same trans.

While using the MSM feature the vehicle will have
operation similar to a manual transmission. You can
use this for sport driving or when driving hilly roads to
stay in gear longer or to downshift for more power
or engine braking.
The transmission will only allow you to shift into gears
appropriate for the vehicle speed:
• The transmission will not automatically shift to the
next higher gear without moving the shift lever.
• The transmission will not allow shifting to the next
lower gear if the vehicle speed is too high.
If the vehicle does not respond to a gear change,
or detects a problem with the transmission, the range
of gears may be reduced and the Malfunction Indicator
Lamp will come on. See Malfunction Indicator Lamp

This was copied from my 08 Equinox Sport manual, which has the same trans.

While using the MSM feature the vehicle will have
operation similar to a manual transmission. You can
use this for sport driving or when driving hilly roads to
stay in gear longer or to downshift for more power
or engine braking.
The transmission will only allow you to shift into gears
appropriate for the vehicle speed:
• The transmission will not automatically shift to the
next higher gear without moving the shift lever.
• The transmission will not allow shifting to the next
lower gear if the vehicle speed is too high.
If the vehicle does not respond to a gear change,
or detects a problem with the transmission, the range
of gears may be reduced and the Malfunction Indicator
Lamp will come on. See Malfunction Indicator Lamp

not sure I understand. Say I am at certain speed and move the lever to M and then upshift (not downshift) ? Will it upshift and become more sluggish, provided I am not about to stall the engine?
With a true stick shift on a very flat road or going downhill I can easily linger at pretty high gear ... with a high torque engine I presume I could stay at 5th or 6th at pretty low speeds.
On the other hand it's a pretty academic question..I am sure auto will make a good decision and upshift.

The first statement states that the driver needs to press the + button to upshift.
The next statement is telling you if you're running 80 MPH it will not let you downshift to 1st.

The other day on a hilly road I tried to force the trans to stay in 6th to get better mileage, but I was slowing down 10 MPH going up hills and it would speed up going downhill. I did not try it without cruise to see how it would feel.
In the manual mode you can accelerate without downshifts to help with mileage.
I mainly use the manual mode on curvy roads.

not sure I understand. Say I am at certain speed and move the lever to M and then upshift (not downshift) ? Will it upshift and become more sluggish, provided I am not about to stall the engine?
.

Yes, if you upshift too soon.

thanks all, i finally get it :)
the behavior is exactly what i was hoping for.

Odd or not, I prefer the GM design for the paddle shifters. This design means I can shift up or down with one hand (either hand). And my fingers fall naturally on the downshift side with the upshift side being perfectly placed for operation with the thumb. FYI- the + and - aren't separate either- the '+' is basically an extension off of the top of the finger area that allows you to push it away from you for upshifts (pulling it against the wheel with fingertips for downshifts).

Great job GM!

Odd or not, I prefer the GM design for the paddle shifters. This design means I can shift up or down with one hand (either hand). And my fingers fall naturally on the downshift side with the upshift side being perfectly placed for operation with the thumb. FYI- the + and - aren't separate either- the '+' is basically an extension off of the top of the finger area that allows you to push it away from you for upshifts (pulling it against the wheel with fingertips for downshifts).

Great job GM!

Yeah, I figured how to use them during the test drive. IMO the only thing is not ideal (though not a big deal) is that you actually have to move the level to M. If I was a GM engineer I'd activate M mode on any input on a paddle and perform the shift immediately. I would add a distinct button to the steering wheel that would return to full auto. But I guess, they are afraid that not so savvy drivers will be accidentally invoking paddles not being up with the program with manual control. Which, when I think about it, is a valid concern.

It's fun seeing how human-machine interaction develops and enters our lives.

Actually I just had another idea. There should be a selectable option in the car settings (like advanced settings in computer software) that would be called 'Shift immediately on paddle input'. The default would be 'No'. In that mode you have to move the lever to 'M' for paddles to be active. There would be a button on the steering wheel with a big 'A' on it. If the setting is enabled any paddle input is processed immediately and this button can be used to return to full automation. If the setting is off then you have to move the lever to M.

This way the same car would prefectly cater to ponit A to point B drivers as well as enthusiasts.

....kinda got carried away there :). The current design should be good enough after getting used to it.

actually scratch all the above...drove my Bu since yesterday - having to shift to M is not a big deal at all. I don't think it needs any real improvement.

PS I should stop talking to myself here :)

PS I should stop talking to myself here :)

We'll start to worry when you argue with yourself :)

We'll start to worry when you argue with yourself :)

.....:D :D :D

Actually I just had another idea. There should be a selectable option in the car settings (like advanced settings in computer software) that would be called 'Shift immediately on paddle input'. The default would be 'No'. In that mode you have to move the lever to 'M' for paddles to be active. There would be a button on the steering wheel with a big 'A' on it. If the setting is enabled any paddle input is processed immediately and this button can be used to return to full automation. If the setting is off then you have to move the lever to M.

This way the same car would prefectly cater to ponit A to point B drivers as well as enthusiasts.

....kinda got carried away there :). The current design should be good enough after getting used to it.

:eek:Sounds expensive!

:D:p

We'll start to worry when you argue with yourself :)

Yeah. But he can keep talking, the discussion seems to be pretty interesting! :p

been trying to figure out the limitations in manual mode this morning. It seems that the actual upper limit where + will go to depends on speed...which is reasonable of course, we don't want the engine to stall.
up to 3 from the start....I am sure that V6 would pull off at 5th too, there's plenty of low end torque.

Overall this system needs practice. It may seem easy at the fist glance, but to use it efficiently you would have to develop a feeling what's best given the gear ratios and dynamic limits.
I guess once I am out of the brake in period I'll teach myself.

up to 3 from the start.....

2 or 3 will be handy for starting on snow or ice.

Sorry Yury, I did not mean to interrupt you :)

I agree the Manual mode took some practice to get down a good rthym but works mostly intuitively. I also found I can up shift from the back of the steering wheel which really helps getting the 1-2 going around intersection turns where the thumb pad is out of reach. There's just enough gap to get my nails between the downshift grip & the steering wheel to flick it forward. Anyone else have it stay in 3rd if you're parking lot cruising? I.E. I have found it stay in 3rd if I stop-n-go to third 2-3x in a row. Doesn't do it everytime.

I haven't noticed it staying in third to a stop yet at all. But that doesn't mean much, since it may require specific driving conditions, and at the very least there should be a provision for second gear starts in slippery weather (and maybe third with these torquey 6's and relatively low gears on the bottom).

yes, I think these engines are fine keeping at 3rd at low speed, they can definitely handle it.