I have a 08 350 AWD GS. I notice when I switch from D to S around 60 MPH. The transmission uses 4th gear instead of 6th gear. Is this normal? This is kind of dangerous. Can this be re-configured based on the speed?

 

Yeah this is normal, that's why you dont switch from D to S on the highway, Or if you do quickly upshift. Haha, i found this out the same way you did =P

 

I think it assumes you want to start on a lower gear since you want a more sportier acceleration.

 

yes, that's how it is. it will automatically down shift from 6th to 4th

but why is it dangerous. as long as your foot is on the brake, all you get is higher rev and "ready" power

can't reconfig

 

The sport transmission is well protected just like everything else on your Lexus You cannot do any harm.

 

6th into fourth is not dangerous. Nor is 6th into 3rd. This will allow the rpms to climb and put the car into the power band. Most of your power is going to be above 3-4K rpm . What I dont like is when you stop at a light in S mode the trans doesnt shift into 1st again for you. Helps when racing BMW's from light to light. The modern cars have alot of protection mech built into the motor and trans ( example rev limiters., etc)

 

when you are at red light and start the car is in 1st........ the number shows the highest gear tranny can be in, not the gear it is in

 

So I take it that there is a protection built in so that when you are going 100mph and downshift into 1 gear, transmission will not let you do that to protect it self from blowing up?

Speaking of not shifting into 1st at stop slight, why can't you just slide into S model and downshift into 1st before flooring it. I mean if you are at the stop light waiting for the green, you have plenty of time to shift into 1st.

 

yes, if computer detects it will go pass redline, it won't let you shift.

 

Speaking of not shifting into 1st at stop slight, why can't you just slide into S model and downshift into 1st before flooring it. I mean if you are at the stop light waiting for the green, you have plenty of time to shift into 1st.[/QUOTE]

I used to race my G35 against beamers ( amongst others) from light to light for miles.( man I used to wave from the sunroof ) sometimes we would come to a stop for a second, then you take off again and your watching the road and him in the rear view. Its more difficult to remember what gear you last had it in ( 3rd or 4th) so that you can shift the sport mode aggresively to pull all the power out and to avoid hitting redline. (the g35 will not shift at redline in sportmode. she'll just bounce off the limiter). with a lic plate like I8ABMR ( I ate a beamer )I get into alot of street racing and ***** out freeway challenges and got used to the sport mode set up from the old car. I am aware that when stopped an Im in third or 4th that rep the top gear it will goto, but I dont like having to count gears up to that point and then start shifting. Id rather the direct and relative total control that the G35 set up gives when going aggresively from light to light I have noticed that people generally dont even look at a lexus gs as anything racey, so not many street challenges since I have had this car. Ive noticed though the car catches alot more attention with the wheels, and hopefully more with the exhaust

 

I dont want to have to think about what gear I was in when I stopped then count the shifts up to that point and then start shifting manually. Its confusing and thats how you can end up hitting the limiter and allowing the other guy to pass you as your car gasps and chokes for fuel. Also I had the rev limiter pushed up in the old car from 6400 to 7200 rpm. More reason to try to aviod nailing the rev limiter. The ECU retune done adjusted the fuel and ignition maps ( also got rid of speed limiter and advaces timing), but the internals were not designed to spin and run that hard. I used the 6400 - 7200 rpm as my scamble feature. It also allowed me to keep accelerating as the other guy has to shift at the lower redline and falls lower into the powerband

 

how is the g35 done? when you are driving and it shows 4, then you go to stop light. it goes back to 1? that's pretty interesting. i know both acura and lexus work the same way

 

the way I figured it out is that the car as a safty will always show 4th when ****ing into S. When youre at a standstill, 4th is the maximum it'll upshift into. So it'll behave like D but with 4 gears. I don't like how Lexus does the autoshift. It seems fake. Example. You leave it in 1st. It'll redline in 1st untill you upshift. You start it in 2nd, just means it'll upshift and stop at redline in 2nd. The only reason why I found S to be of any use is to help in slowing down.

 

It actually does it in a very smart way. I mean...when you shift to the Sport mode, you wanted more power. So itself shifting to 4th gear makes perfect sense. I instantly got more power and go...

 

the 350z and g35 "sports mode" automatically down shifts for you as you come to a stop, but would never shift up and bounce off the limiter as i8abmr said. leaving the auto 350z in 1st w/ tcs off lots of fun in empty parking lots as for slowing down, with the shifter in the 350z and g35 @ freeway speeds, it usually always stayed in the gear you choose until you changed it (i think thats how i remember it working)