Auris 1.4 D-4d Mmt First Drive - Very Pleased

[on board training]

Hi,

Better slightly late than never.

Remember this is the diesel and at the moment I haven't driven the petrol version of the MMT

Took delivery of my new Auris 5 door 1.4 MMT Black, with VSC, Style & Protection Packs today and just managed a short drive to take in some general town driving with junctions and roundabouts as well as some rural roads - all in initially I am very pleased with how the car and gearbox performs.

I used both E and Multimode using gearstick and paddles with nothing untoward being noticed. Yes the car changes into first gear just under 12mph or 18kph but I don't see this as an issue never mind the big issue some are making on forums. In reality the car should be driven at the correct speed for a turn into a junction and ideally with most junctions this speed is going to be about 10-12mph, much faster and you are likely to be going too fast and are going to be cutting the corner for right turns.

If you time your approach to roundabouts the correct speed for most, if your gap is there to go, is about 15-18mph or 24-29kph and this makes for 2nd gear. Bigger or smaller roundabouts then speed is either +/- for balance and control.

The general handling on the rural roads up to NSL of 60mph the car performs well too and handles corners/bends with ease.

I will need a much longer journey to report on how I find the drivers seat as today I was out for about an hour and my wife and I were both comfortable.

[Johan007]

I think most manual drivers only ever use first gear from a standing start. However I presume automatics are geared differently and correctly by Toyota in the first place and having only ever driven an automatic for a few days the driving style needs to be a lot more relaxed anyway.

[on board training]

Hi,

The posts on some sites regarding the MMT Gearbox being wrong when the particular gearbox has been checked by garage and found to be operating correctly, I think in most cases will be the driver not driving in a style suitable for the particular car.

This is something many of us have had to do when going from a petrol car to diesel or vice versa or even different models of any car.

A classic example of this, bearing in mind I have completed many driving courses, was when I got a Rover 820 a few years ago. In all honesty this was a cracking big car but I found I stalled it easily to start with.

I went out within my first couple of week's ownership with a friend who was a former police driving instructor who had taught police Class 1 & 2 Traffic officers in the Rovers a number of years beforehand and he laighed quite merrily recalling the days when quite profficient police drivers were out in the cars and were stalling the Rover cars to start with. When I asked him, 'Is it a fault with the clutch or accelerator pedals, the way they are set up?' He laughed again and said 'Naw it's yir feet!'

True enough, I hadn't changed my driving style for the car's set up and I was all to ready to blame the car as it couldn't possibly be the driver's fault! !

Within a cou;le of hours of concentration and coaching my driving style had changed and the car was a dream to drive.

It may benefit those with problems with their cars (eh...... or dare I say their) control, to look very closely at their driving style, even if it is with an Advanced Instructor or Tutor with knowledge about their particular car, or is at least prepared to learn with them. This could obviously be a paid for lesson but better for the individuals would be the consideration of joining an Advanced Driving Group like IAM or RoSPA's RoADAR Goups and you might just be amazed at what you pick up.

[auris2008]

Hi,

Better slightly late than never.

Remember this is the diesel and at the moment I haven't driven the petrol version of the MMT

Took delivery of my new Auris 5 door 1.4 MMT Black, with VSC, Style & Protection Packs today and just managed a short drive to take in some general town driving with junctions and roundabouts as well as some rural roads - all in initially I am very pleased with how the car and gearbox performs.

I used both E and Multimode using gearstick and paddles with nothing untoward being noticed. Yes the car changes into first gear just under 12mph or 18kph but I don't see this as an issue never mind the big issue some are making on forums. In reality the car should be driven at the correct speed for a turn into a junction and ideally with most junctions this speed is going to be about 10-12mph, much faster and you are likely to be going too fast and are going to be cutting the corner for right turns.

If you time your approach to roundabouts the correct speed for most, if your gap is there to go, is about 15-18mph or 24-29kph and this makes for 2nd gear. Bigger or smaller roundabouts then speed is either +/- for balance and control.

The general handling on the rural roads up to NSL of 60mph the car performs well too and handles corners/bends with ease.

I will need a much longer journey to report on how I find the drivers seat as today I was out for about an hour and my wife and I were both comfortable.

Hן

Nice to see you are enjoining driving the Auris MMT - The same I do.

I don't know all the corners and turns in your closed home area , but surly it is very odd that you drive all of them in the speed higher then 12 mph.

In my home neighbourhood , most of the streets are very narrow and most of then having cars parking on both sides , plus many kids crossing the street carelessly

= So you can't drive in my neighbourhood corners in the speed more then 8-10 mph =Otherwise you will hit a kid or your car .

Therefore, the case of driving MMT in the speed lower then 12 mph - IS A BIG ISSUE AND VERY CRITICAL

Now about the behavior of the other Gearbox in various cars - I did check some ( not all of them) and I can make a statement :

I didn't find any Gearbox ( except the Auris-MMT) , that their gearbox going down to the 1th in speed so high like 12 mph.

Feat, Alfa - the Semi-Auto gear going down to 1th - Nearly in 2-3 mph

Ford focus - The automatic gear , when you drive it in "manual" mode = also going down to 1th in less then 3 mph.

I am asking every one here to test = If there is any car which is going down to 1th gear in the speed too high like our Auris

Please do and tell us your survey results !!!

[on board training]

Hi,

It may be the language, I have posted above that most are 10-12mph so not much different from ours at 8-10mph. I also, to go much faster than that speed would be too fast most times.

So in that respect the gearbox in the 1.4 D4D feels ok when in 1st gear at these speeds for the junctions.

I haven't yet driven the 1.6 petrol MMT so cannot comment on how it feels in 1st gear at that speed

[on board training]

Hi,

I was at Toyota dealer in Bishopbriggs in Glasgow, today and mentioned to Sales manager that I was totally happy with the 1.4D MMT Auris but was aware of grumbles on forums about the MMT and especially the petrol one.

He said they had a number of complaints about the performance of the MMT gearbox in the petrol ones more than the diesel ones but also said that once the salesmen had gone out with the customer, sometimes more than once, to explain and demonstrate the driving style that in time most of the customers had changed their driving style accordingly to drive the MMT.

[auris2008]

Hi,

I was at Toyota dealer in Bishopbriggs in Glasgow, today and mentioned to Sales manager that I was totally happy with the 1.4D MMT Auris but was aware of grumbles on forums about the MMT and especially the petrol one.

He said they had a number of complaints about the performance of the MMT gearbox in the petrol ones more than the diesel ones but also said that once the salesmen had gone out with the customer, sometimes more than once, to explain and demonstrate the driving style that in time most of the customers had changed their driving style accordingly to drive the MMT.

see my post in Toyota Must Upgrade The Mmt-gear's Software