Is there a Proper Hybrid Manual/Auto Gearbox Available?

Alt

Soon it will be time to retire my trusty 14yo Mondeo Diesel and I will be looking for another 1-3yo car to replace it with. I have been looking at Avensis and Octavia initially.

My driving for the next couple of years will include M25 during rush hour so I wanted to know if there is a manual car (with proper gear shift not paddles) which also would have an Auto option so I can switch to it during stop/start traffic? I have got a feeling I might be asking for too much

Also I am familiar with the DPF issue with newer Diesel cars so was looking at petrol but second hand Diesels are more common and better priced so is there a difference in DPF by different manufacturers? Is there a model that is known for being more tolerant of short trips?

Thanks
Alt

missile

You have this back to front. :rotfl:

There are many cars available with automatic gearboxes and most have option to select gear by manual. Both Octavia and Avensis automatic have this option e.g.

Good luck finding a hybrid Avensis or Octavia

wgl2014

I would suggest the OP means a hybrid of a manual and automatic gearbox rather than a hybrid engined car.

I can't think of any manual gearbox that can be used as an automatic in stop start traffic. You could get some cars with a manual gearbox and automated clutch a few years ago, they were awful.

I would suggest trying a modern automatic, they are good.

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

If the last time you looked was 13-14 years ago, then things have moved on.

There are 5 sorts of gear boxes:

1) Manual
2) Manual with automated clutch
3) CVT (a metal belt drive system which theoretically has continuous gears but they usually rig it to have set points), the clutching is built into the system.
4) Double clutch automatics (DSG is the VW term for example). Hydraulic or electronically controlled gear changing where some manufacturer had the bright idea two clutches to wear out would be more repair bills than one.
5) Torque converter automatics, the traditional ones, but even these have moved on massively with 7, 8 or 9 gears being on offer.

You'll notice that the common point with all but (1) is that none of these have a user operated clutch. All will have some system of manually selecting gears.

If you drive a diesel, then you really should try a modern torque converter auto box - a decent one will skip gears, and although you can change manually, you would find it hard to change gear better than the auto, and you'll struggle to devise a situation where manual changing is better than what they do (unlike 13 years ago).

DSGs are all very nice, but their Achilles Heel is actually stop start, crawling traffic. If you get it wrong, crawling in traffic is like sitting in a manual slipping the clutch. Some will bias towards engaging the clutch too soon to avoid the problem, leading to jerky rides. So while you think it is nicely looking after you, it can be doing the wrong thing. Also, for that reason unsuitable for a tow car, as slow manoeuvring under heavy load can kill a clutch.

Nothing wrong with CVTs, quite a good solution but very much down to implementation whether you'd like them.

Manual with automated clutch gives you all the motoring joy of wiggling the gear stick without any of the fun of playing with the clutch. They can be sluggish to engage, have the same issues with crawling traffic as dual clutch boxes, and my experience of them has always been disappointing (as in, oops, left that late, foot down, wah! why won't it go? panic!).

So think of it this way. If you normally drive on the motorway, you barely change gear anyway so why bother with a manual in the first place? If you drive on country roads and want to play with the gears, then my take is that I can use my auto box to lock down into lower gears (on my car I simply hold the downshift and it jumps straight to the perfect overtaking gear which normally will be the optimal engine braking gear too, and hold the upshift when I'm done) so you have extra control on the accelerator if you want it.

Modern torque converter boxes are reasonably light, very clever and joy to use. DSGs are ok but you need to know their weak spots and be sure your usage profile is ok with them. CVT, meh, auto clutches on manual boxes, typically nasty, and manuals still cover the range of dreamlike changes (even though you normally have 6 gears to choose from now) to life long members of the pudding club.

Diesels are particularly well suited to torque converter auto boxes. Very pleased with mine.

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

DPFs. Difficult to say what the rule is but essentially there are some clean diesel engines where the filter doesn't have to work too hard, and then there are dirty engines where unless the planets are aligned, they are going to clog up. Of course, the basic engine may be ok, but faults or poor maintenance could lead to them being too dirty, as can a heavy foot.

DPFs are a fudge. There are definitely cars that have more problems, but I couldn't name them off the top of my head. My car has a very poor driving profile from me, but I've had no issues in 4 years, never seen a hint of a regen.

Alt

Thanks for the comprehensive reply. So the next logical question is which manufacturers/models use Torque Converter Box and how can I easily Identify them?

Alt

IamNotAllowedToUseMyName

Alt wrote: »

Thanks for the comprehensive reply. So the next logical question is which manufacturers/models use Torque Converter Box and how can I easily Identify them?

Alt

Not sure there is a hard and fast rule. For example the Mondeo range has a mixture of PowerShift and traditional autos.

jk0

Alt wrote: »

My driving for the next couple of years will include M25 during rush hour so I wanted to know if there is a manual car (with proper gear shift not paddles) which also would have an Auto option so I can switch to it during stop/start traffic? I have got a feeling I might be asking for too much

Smart Car?

Rodders53

Torque converter boxes are becoming rarer and more difficult to find.

Ford use the term Powershift for their twin clutch autos and Durashift for torque converter boxes. Don't know about other makes. But my Galaxy can no longer be found with Durashift boxes (and in my MY 2013/14 only the 2.2 diesel came with it).

Manual control of gear selection on all autos I know, is limited to 'change up' / 'change down' and will be over-ridden (ignored) by the computer if it will cause over-revving or over labouring.

The 'better' DSG types are those with 'wet plate' clutch as these withstand the slipping needed in towing and slow moving traffic much more from what I've read on other forums.

Warwick_Hunt

Rodders53 wrote: »

Torque converter boxes are becoming rarer and more difficult to find.

Ford use the term Powershift for their twin clutch autos and Durashift for torque converter boxes. Don't know about other makes. But my Galaxy can no longer be found with Durashift boxes (and in my MY 2013/14 only the 2.2 diesel came with it).

Manual control of gear selection on all autos I know, is limited to 'change up' / 'change down' and will be over-ridden (ignored) by the computer if it will cause over-revving or over labouring.

The 'better' DSG types are those with 'wet plate' clutch as these withstand the slipping needed in towing and slow moving traffic much more from what I've read on other forums.

I ain’t even got that option.

macman

If you do mean 'hybrid' in it's proper context, then the Hyundai Ioniq has a proper dual clutch 6 speed auto, with a manual option, as in most conventional cars with a DSG gearbox.
The auto works well with the hybrid system, so I find that I use the manual mode only when needing a bit more oomph entering a busy roundabout, merging into traffic etc.