Tiptronic performance driving?

Hello Folks, Having bought the car last week, I am trying to get familiar with steering wheel shifting. It is a 2002 C4S, and absolutely wanted the Tiptronic because this car will assist with all kinds of daily driving duties. But I am still rather awkward with the shifting switches on the wheel. Compared to the 968, which also also has a Tiptronic, but 4-speed, but with that car the shifting is still with the stick. When in manual mode, you just slap the spring loaded stick back and forth to shift; that took some learning but was much more natural given past experience with manual transmissions. The one thing this experience taught me is how to "subconsciously" know when to downshift on an uphill (same thing needed on 996) and that became kinda automatic in my brain. What I've been doing with the 996 is simply keeping and eye on the tach and then making a decision when to shift, but my fingers are not trained to find the proper buttons on the wheel. It isn't yet second nature. By the way, the one very cool thing I love on the 996 Tip is being able to shift while in D; not possible on the 968, have to move to M do do any manual shifting. So to get fluent with the 996 Tiptronic, is it just practice? Any suggestions how to get "wheel shifting" into my head? How do people do it, use right or left buttons? I tend to the right button, since it is the right hand that does the shifting, correct? Anybody know of any written material with tips and suggestions on performance driving with the Tiptronic? Thanks! Roland

It takes some getting used to. I'm not crazy about how the buttons work. When I first got the car there were many times when I shifted by accident. I haven't done that in a while. Autocross can be tricky because at times the steering wheel is upside down and then down is up and up is down when shifting. Luckily you don't do too much shifting in Autocross. Someone at one of the meets had replaced his steering wheel with one that has paddle shifters and he was very happy with it. Not a cheap option - over $1000 plus installation. I wish they had it so you did the shifting with the stick, but you will get used to it.

There's a thread around here somewhere detailing how someone installed paddle's (I think they're Mercedes) on their Tip wheel... do a search, it's fairly recent.

The best mod I have done to my 996 Tip is install Mercedes Paddles on the steering wheel .I own a 1999 996 Coupe Tip, 1999 996 Cap 6 speed, 2002 Boxster S manual. There are several options for getting paddles on a 996, Different steering wheels, kits, ect., but if you are handy with DIY the Mercedes AMG paddles fit perfectly, and you can still use the buttons when you want to. See the Pics of my steering wheel.

I think the buttons are placed just right, and it's easy to use with your thumb on either side. I track my Tip 996 and it works fine. I really don't see the need (or expense) to add little paddles right behind the buttons. I think you just have spend a little time with it and get used to it. I bet you'll find you'll like it better than the operation of the 968 stick. Congrats, and enjoy it good health.

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I find the Paddles to be perfect position for two-handed hard rough turns with thumbs against the thumb bumps with tight grip, and the buttons are good for a lower hand position with a looser grip and also for one-handed driving.

Thanks for the info on the paddle shifters. It is probably equally difficult to get my head into a state of comfort and automation with those as with the button shifters. Every stick car (have one now), I never have to think about shifting 95% of the time once I am am familiar with it -- the shifting happens somewhat subconsciously. I'm just searching for a way to get into that state of mind with the tip -- and maybe it's just practice.

+1 on the paddles

^Nice wheel!

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You'll get to the point where it's just by feel and sound. I usually shift around 3500 rpm unless I'm driving a bit more aggressively. The great thing about the Tip is that it won't let you over-rev the engine. Even in manual mode, it will shift automatically around 6500 rpm. Maybe closer to 7000, but won't let you past redline.

Porschtech3 - I love those wheels!

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Same here. I agree 100% As stated above, it does sometimes get a bit tricky at autocross when the wheel is upside down, but you get used to it. On the big track, never an issue. You can't really over-rev a tip, so don't worry while learning.

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Thankx !! They are Italian made 997.1 Turbo knock-offs(?) with narrow body offsets. A bit thicker and heavier than Porsche OEM but do not bend on Alabama potholes !

Stay with the buttons...its like learning to dance. The positive thing about them is that you can go up and down with either hand. Porsche did a variation of it on the first year pdk before going to the usual up with right down with the left. And I agree with the fellow who said it quickly becomes second nature. You learn the sound of the rpms and the feel of the torque and you know when to shift. Even shifting when the wheel is upside down. Interesting that many cars new have opted for the automatic trans vs the pdk...and the electronics make them honestly 99% as real world fast. The more you interact with the tip, the more responsive it becomes. Give the slightest slightest lift on a manual mode upshifts and give the slightest increase in throttle when you down shift...these will smooth the shifts out and make it a more immediate response in manual mode. I'm driving some cars this weekend trying to decide about going back to manual or staying with my tiptronic. I didn't enjoy the tip on the track...or maybe I just didn't have enough confidence in it to push it as hard as I would a manual. It was a short track but longer than autocross and I just never felt it was as responsive as I wanted.

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Would love to hear your track techniques using the tip. And how it is holding up...more frequent trans fluids changes? Any special preps to the car...IMS, etc.?

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The Tip is holding up just fine on the track. I've put 9 or 10 DE weekends and a few track days on it with no issues. I do change the fluid more frequently, but any track car needs an accelerated maintenance schedule. The rest of the car is a compromise between street & track. Suspension and brake mods, deep sump, Fister exhaust, roll bar, race seats, six point harnesses, etc. I had the engine rebuild over the winter but I had replaced the IMS when I first got the car as a precaution. As far as driving a Tip on the track, technique-wise, there's not really much difference than driving a manual trans. I raced in SCCA for nearly 20 years all in manual cars of course, but since I can no longer drive a manual the Tip is a good option (not a good as a PDK though). You just have to keep it in manual mode to keep it in the appropriate gear. Obviously it gives up a little in performance vs. a manual, but otherwise not much different. I generally keep up with or pass manual 996's and other (supposedly faster) 911's, but that's probably my racing experience and not the car. I also have to drive it with one hand on the steering wheel, and one hand on the hand controls at all times. So having an up/down shift feature on the same button helps. It will shift itself if you let it go to ~7000rpm, but I typically try to shift it myself at about 6500. When downshifting from high speed and getting on the brakes, you can hit the down button and it won't downshift until the revs are within range, i.e. hard to over-rev a Tip. On most tracks I'm typically using 2nd through 4th, and then maybe getting into 5th on a long straight. I'd like the shifts to be a little quicker, but I can live with it and I'm not going to spend $900 to have the TCU re-flashed. If I ever sell it, I'll probably market it to a Porsche guy who wants to get his "non-manual-driving" spouse or kid out on the track.

Last year I set a CC04 PCA track record in a tip Boxster. I do 10 to 12 AXs per year, and about 5 big track events per year, Car has 167,000 miles, original IMSB, RMS, etc.

^^^ There ya go.

I thought I'd add some more notes and experiences. Hoping we can use this thread to collect info and experiences with the Tip. First, comparison to the 968 Tip. That one is a 4-speed with only 5 shift maps. It was nice to hear Mike write that the Mk2 Tip has over a hundred shift maps here: https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...l#post14040986 �The MK1 tip is somewhat sluggish, only 5 shift modes. The MK2 tips have 250 or 500 shift modes� This is really good to know and highly appropriate, which in my mind makes the Mk2 Tip much better. Uphill and downhill in D (auto) mode don�t work well. I am always shifting down one gear. Uphill the Tip makes the car lug, and downhill I am coasting. Not a problem on freeways or lazy mode around town. But for example when there is a downhill curve coming up, say going at 45-50 mph, the Tip will stay in 5th gear which basically means no tight control over the car and simply coasting downhill in the curve which eliminates a feeling of good handling. Still learning the timing of when to shift. I am starting to understand why some have modified the steering wheel to paddle shifters. The wheel shift buttons are not so good, because I am not yet used to �finding� those darn buttons on the wheel. I sometimes have to glance from the road to the wheel to find them. Seems like the paddle shifters would always be readily at hand, easy to locate. I never use the left shift button anyway, only the right one. I�ve found that my favorite position in the car is naturally to have my hands at 10:00 and 2:00 � this is great, exactly where I want to hold the wheel and speaks well for the ergonomics that Porsche put in the 996. But the buttons are way out of reach! The 968 has a lateral acceleration sensor that blocks auto gear changes when in a curve. That is good, we want that. I haven�t heard yet or learned if this exists on the 996 Tip. Downshifting to 2nd: This appears to be a common event for me as I am approaching a curve. It needs more testing but this shift seems to be a bit sluggish as I am trying to apply more power entering the curve. I have been trying to learn the timing so that the downshift happens at the right time before entering a curve. Too early or too late messes up the performance of the car (less fun!). Sometimes the Tip doesn�t select a higher shift map as quickly as I would like. For example, probably the most annoying is entering a freeway and flooring it with low RPMs in 3rd gear. It just kinda seems to accelerate in that gear without kicking down fast enough (more testing needed). Obviously the tip computer will select higher performance shift maps as we drive aggressively, but it seems to take its time learning what the driver wants. I always wished that Porsche had included a method to manually and instantly select a shift map. I simple **** on the console perhaps, but I�ve never seen this. And then it would be really great to get more technical info about the different shift maps, for example for each shift map at what RPM does it up/down shift. We tried to get that info in 968 land ( www.968forums.com ) but could not. Maybe that is available somewhere for the 996. It probably wouldn�t enhance the driving experience, but learning the cars and technology is half the fun. And what are the algorithms for deciding when to change shift maps, and how it selects them. I�ve concluded that the function of the tip stick could be specified simply as one thing: when it M, don�t shift automatically (unless RPM limits are reached). Stated another way, it doesn't matter very much at all if the car is in D or M, except for the 10 seconds or so that causes the Tip to go back into auto mode after shifting in D. (Can't recall exactly how long it waits). To reiterate, being able to shift while in �D� is wonderful, so glad this is allowed without first reaching for the stick to slap into manual shifting. No regrets at all about buying a Tip. This is the best choice given my DD style of Porsche usage. This week running errands with 6 stops around town, late meeting driving home at 8:30. All wonderful, much better driving with the Tip. I spent many years commuting in my �82 911, sometimes 20 minutes in stop and go traffic or on ramps, man did that stink with a stick. -- Roland

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Thanks for the additional info Mike. Didn't know about gear skipping techniques or the superbutton. More goodies to explore! What? You mean you can't understand sex just by reading?

I love this steering wheel and want to get the same with shifting paddles. Please advise where to get it. Thanks for your help

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Best way is OJT. Sex that is...

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Not sure where you can buy a steering wheel with the paddle shifters, but here is a thread with a DYI to install paddles on the 3 spoke wheel. Also search some more, there are other threads on the forum about paddle shifters on 996. https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...-write-up.html

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I may need to revisit that thread. Maybe a change to the washer behind the screw will help me finish this.