Advice Re Mmt G/box Please

[Eater Sundae]

Up until now I've always owned manual cars, and only have a little experience of conventional torque converter auto cars. However, I'm now considering a self changing gearbox, such as the MMT, for my next car, as they are reasonably priced and do not have a big impact on fuel consumption. I'm interested in the Aygo, or more probably a diesel Yaris. (Ideally I'm looking for a low emission car to get into band B VED). As yet, I've not test driven either, but I've searched through other threads to learn what I can about MMTs, before I do. From what I've read, it seems that the gearbox seems to be better suited to the smaller cars (Yaris and Aygo) than bigger cars such as the Auris - at least, posters writing about the smaller cars seem to be happier.

In many of the posts I have read, it is not clear whether the posters drive their cars in manual or fully auto mode. I would hope to normally use one in fully auto mode. However, one of the posters on this forum have gone as far as to say that the MMT is suitable only for manual operation, ie its not really up to fully automatic operation.

Can any of you MMT users please let me know if you run it as a full auto, or do you still change gear manually. Is it a practical gearbox to use as a full automatic? Also (at the risk of alienating the Toyota lovers), do other manufacturers' equivalent gearboxes perform any better, or worse, as a full auto, or are they all very similar?

Thanks in advance for any help or advice.

[Parts-King]

MMT will never be a full automatic, so please dont judge it as a full auto. It can best be described as a semi auto. You can use it like a manual or in auto mode. I personally feel the Auris is much better suited to it than the smaller cars as it is very smooth in the Auris. Emissions and fuel consumption are far better in MMT than a full auto, that is why manufacturers make them. Go and test drive one and try it in both modes, I'm sure you will like it

Kingo

[Eater Sundae]

MMT will never be a full automatic, so please dont judge it as a full auto. It can best be described as a semi auto. You can use it like a manual or in auto mode. I personally feel the Auris is much better suited to it than the smaller cars as it is very smooth in the Auris. Emissions and fuel consumption are far better in MMT than a full auto, that is why manufacturers make them. Go and test drive one and try it in both modes, I'm sure you will like it

Kingo

Thanks for the response, Parts-King.

I don't quite understand the comment "please don't judge it as a full auto". I would hope to normally be able to drive in the auto position, and would therefore expect it to work OK. If I need to drive in the manual mode most of the time, then I would not see the point of spending the extra on the MMT option. An occasional use of manual (eg if needed for the odd quick getaway to enter a roundabout, or to force a low gear when going up or down a steep hill) would be OK. My regular commute involves some stop-start traffic, occasionally quite a lot, so it would be nice to have a rest from the constant gear changing. When they change gear (in auto) is it smooth or noticably jerky? Much of what I've read about jerkiness seems to be when changing up, and advises backing off the throttle. This implies to me that they are talking about a manual change up, and that seems reasonable and obvious, as you would on a conventional car with a manual clutch. What about when they change up in auto - does the control system automatically back the throttle off, or are you expected to listen out for the auto gearchange and back it off yourself, or do you just have to accept a jerky gearchange when it changes up? Are there any problems when setting off (both on the flat and uphill), or when stopping from slow speed?

I've also seen comments that they tend to stay too long in a high gear when going uphill and so can lose momentum. If so, is there a specific technique to avoid this, (ie some sort of kickdown) or is it a case of switching to manual and choosing a more suitable gear yourself?

Sorry about all the questions, (not all addressed at you Parts-King, just general requests to anyone who can help) but I'm trying to understand any possible shortcomings (and ways around them) before I take a test drive, so that I can plan the test to check whether I could live with any of the limitations, and to make sure I chose a suitable way to check them out.

I'm hoping that my next car will have a CO2 output of less than 120. Both the Aygo and the diesel Yaris can do this. As noted in Parts-King's response, I'm interested because the MMT does not impact on emissions in the way that a "proper" auto would, and so I can stay under 120 kg of CO2, as well as being cheaper to buy than a conventional auto.

Finally, does anyone know of any on-line guides to good techniques when driving cars with these gearboxes?

Thanks in advance for anyone's help.

[hertsnminds]

Even though there is no clutch pedal and DVLA class the vehicles as auto, the cars still have a conventional clutch and gearbox system. The difference between a manual and an MMT, DSG, EGS or whatever the manufacturer calls it is that clutch control is taken away from the driver and left to some sensors, servos and computers.

The only system I have seen good reviews of is the VAG (Volkswagen/Audi) DSG setup as it pre selects a gear making the change as quick as possible. I know that on the Citroen C4 owners site half of the owners have no issues and love the EGS system whilst the other half have nothing but problems. It seems from reading posting on this forum that Toyota owners have a similar experience with the MMT system it either works perfectly or it is a nightmare.

With all of the systems if you are used to a manual clutch then one thing that takes some getting used to is finding the bite point, especially when parallel parking. This is because the clutch being in or out is controlled by how much the brake or throttle pedal is being pressed.

[Parts-King]

I don't quite understand the comment "please don't judge it as a full auto

The only reason I say this is that it is sometimes assumed that MMT is somehow a cross between a proper auto box and a manual. It is a manual gearbox with a clutch that is controlled electronically and so does not operate the same way as a fully auto box. That said, it does the job perfectly well, and particularly so on Auris with the padal shift system. I havnt driven many Aygo/Yaris but they do take a particular style to drive and that is something you will get used to. When the car is about to change gear you need to lift off the throttle for a second while it changes gear, fast gear changes are not as easy in MMT than would be in a "Normal" manual. I'm sure some owners of MMT may be along here to describe how to drive the car better than I can

Kingo

[Eater Sundae]

I don't quite understand the comment "please don't judge it as a full auto

The only reason I say this is that it is sometimes assumed that MMT is somehow a cross between a proper auto box and a manual. It is a manual gearbox with a clutch that is controlled electronically and so does not operate the same way as a fully auto box. That said, it does the job perfectly well, and particularly so on Auris with the padal shift system. I havnt driven many Aygo/Yaris but they do take a particular style to drive and that is something you will get used to. When the car is about to change gear you need to lift off the throttle for a second while it changes gear, fast gear changes are not as easy in MMT than would be in a "Normal" manual. I'm sure some owners of MMT may be along here to describe how to drive the car better than I can

Kingo

Thanks, Kingo

[gramps]

I don't quite understand the comment "please don't judge it as a full auto

The only reason I say this is that it is sometimes assumed that MMT is somehow a cross between a proper auto box and a manual. It is a manual gearbox with a clutch that is controlled electronically and so does not operate the same way as a fully auto box. That said, it does the job perfectly well, and particularly so on Auris with the padal shift system. I havnt driven many Aygo/Yaris but they do take a particular style to drive and that is something you will get used to. When the car is about to change gear you need to lift off the throttle for a second while it changes gear, fast gear changes are not as easy in MMT than would be in a "Normal" manual. I'm sure some owners of MMT may be along here to describe how to drive the car better than I can

Kingo

Thanks, Kingo

I've had a 1.3 Yaris with MMT for about 2 years.I tend to leave it in the auto position all the time except for a couple of roads locally where it insists on going uphill in the highest possible gear very sluggishly, so I always go to manual and choose 2, this stops it going any higher. Other than this I find it satisfactory to drive.

[Eater Sundae]

I don't quite understand the comment "please don't judge it as a full auto

The only reason I say this is that it is sometimes assumed that MMT is somehow a cross between a proper auto box and a manual. It is a manual gearbox with a clutch that is controlled electronically and so does not operate the same way as a fully auto box. That said, it does the job perfectly well, and particularly so on Auris with the padal shift system. I havnt driven many Aygo/Yaris but they do take a particular style to drive and that is something you will get used to. When the car is about to change gear you need to lift off the throttle for a second while it changes gear, fast gear changes are not as easy in MMT than would be in a "Normal" manual. I'm sure some owners of MMT may be along here to describe how to drive the car better than I can

Kingo

Thanks, Kingo

I've had a 1.3 Yaris with MMT for about 2 years.I tend to leave it in the auto position all the time except for a couple of roads locally where it insists on going uphill in the highest possible gear very sluggishly, so I always go to manual and choose 2, this stops it going any higher. Other than this I find it satisfactory to drive.

Thanks