I use mine sometimes....mainly just in stop/go traffic, taking a turn quickly or passing. Otherwise I just leave it in D and cruise. I have a turbo nissan 240sx for my manual needs! lol

 

i only used it twice maybe...im kinda nervous ill screw up my tranny or something

 

E-shift is one of the things that really impressed me about the GS when I first drove a '98 back in late '97 (I was working for C.E.C. back then!)

When I finally was able to buy a GS, I insisted on the 400 (as opposed to the 430) because I loved the e-shift and I felt the 400 engine was more 'tunable' and had better response.

I use my e-shift almost every time I drive the car... mostly in spirited situations, like setting-up for a turn or playing around with a tuner car... leave that sucker in 2nd gear at about 40mph and boot it; and there aren't many cars that can get away from you. Ask the 350Zs, 300Cs, and S2000s I have spanked! Eshift is also great for long sweepers and freeway entrance/exit ramps. If you leave the car in 'D' and boot it mid-turn, you get a delay while the car downshifts; this upsets the balance and attitude of the car. Leave the car in 2nd all the way around the turn, you can almost steer it with the throttle. Also, if you keep the 1UZ in it sweet spot, it can be quite a beast.

I think the steering wheel location is ideal, you can keep both hands on the wheel (where they are supposed to be) and the digital readout tells you what hear you're in. As far as the risk of damaging the transmission... the ECU will not let this happen. It knows better than to 'let' you shift into 2nd gear at 80 mph; it has failsafes built-in. The only set-up I would like better would be a true paddle-shift as I have used in various Ferrar 360 F1s and a 360 Challenge.

Would I trade E-shift for stereo controls? Absolutely not!!! E-shift makes the GS a driver's car!

 

I don't think the GS430 has E-Shift..

 

Same for me. It was a deciding factor when I bought mine.

I'm glad to have both hands on the wheel when I let the beast out.

Steering wheel radio controls...can live without it. I'd rather have a stereo upgrade to Alpine.

 

is it bad to use E-shift alot? i use it alot to downshift to slow down faster..

 

It's not bad, it does wear out the clutch packs quicker and adds heat to the trans. So using the trans in place of the brakes will reduce your transmission's life. Brake pad material is cheaper and easier to replace than transmission clutch packs.

 

The buttons on the steering wheel was used in formula 1 cars back in 97. The GS 4 was the only car to offer that feature in its day. Today, formula 1 cars use paddle shifters. The 2nd gen GS4 was and is a trend setter for other cars on the market.

 

I occassionally use it on the highway, mostly just to merge, or change lanes to get ahead of other cars. I only downshift it once for that initial jump, and then put it back in "D" (I'm too scared that after the initial downshift, that I'll do it wrong and mess up my transmission). It would probably help if I knew had to use it propertly

 

If I'm trying to go fast (from a stop), I've come to the conclusion that it's better to manually move the shifter because you can hold it in 1st for as long as you want.

 

What other cars use buttons to shift? I would agree with that statement if other cars started using buttons to change gears. An M3 (SMG) and Ferrari are trend setters IMO.

 

I remember seeing an early 60's Chrysler giant 2 door convertiable with a push button shifter on the dash

 

Key word "was". As far as bringing formula 1 shifting to production Read the statement again

 

I would use it if I knew how. I just don't know when to shift up or down. I'm just incompetent like that

 

I do enjoy e-shift alot. I'm sad that 01+ don't have that feature anymore. Bought 2000 GS400 silver on black instead of 01 Black cherry on black, i'm very pleased with my choice