as the 2017 Soul Turbo will be available with a 7-speed dual clutch transmission, many (like me) might be curious as to how different it will feel and operate compared to a manual and conventional automatic transmissions. This info is straight out of the owners manual, so I thought this might be a good reference for potential future owners or for members just curious about it. Some of it is just common sense.
• The Dual Clutch Transmission gives the driving feel of a manual transmission, yet provides the ease of a fully automatic transmission. Unlike a traditional automatic transmission, the gear shifting can be felt (and heard) on the dual clutch transmission
- Think of it as an automatically shifting manual transmission.
- Shift into Drive range and get fully automatic shifting, similar to a conventional automatic transmission.
• Dual clutch transmission adopts dry-type dual clutch, which is different from torque converter of automatic transmission, and shows better acceleration performance during driving. But, initial launch might be little bit slower than Automatic Transmission.
• The dry-type clutch transfers torque and provides a direct driving feeling which may feel different from a conventional automatic transmission with a torque converter. This may be more noticeable when starting from a stop or low vehicle speed.
• When rapidly accelerating at low vehicle speed, engine could rev at high rpm depending on vehicle drive condition.
• For smooth launch uphill, press down the accelerator pedal smoothly depending on the current conditions.
• If you release your foot from the accelerator pedal at low vehicle speed, you may feel strong engine brake, which is similar to manual transmission.
• When driving downhill, you may use Sports Mode (manual operation)and press the paddle shifters or manual shift to downshift to a lower gear in order to control your speed without using the brake pedal excessively.
• When you turn the engine on and off, you may hear clicking sounds as the system goes through a self test. This is a normal sound for the Dual Clutch Transmission.
• To hold the vehicle on a hill use the foot brake or the parking brake. If the vehicle is held by applying the accelerator pedal on a hill the clutch and transmission will be overheated resulting in damage. At this time, a warning message (“Steep grade! Press brake pedal”) will appear on the LCD display and you may feel a vibration.
• If the clutch becomes overheated by excessive use of the clutch to hold on a hill, you may notice a shudder feeling and a blinking display on the instrument cluster. When this occurs, the clutch is disabled until the clutch cools to normal temperatures. If this occurs, pull over to a safe location, shift into P (Park) and apply the foot brake for a few minutes.
• If the LCD warning is active, the foot brake must be applied.
• Ignoring the warnings can lead to damage to the transmission.
• If the display continues to blink, for your safety, we recommend that you contact an authorized Kia dealer.
• Under certain conditions such as repeated launch on steep grades, the clutch in the transmission could overheat. When the clutch is overheated, the safe protection mode engages.
If the safe protection mode engages, the gear position indicator on the cluster blinks with a chime sound.
At this time, a warning message (“Transmission temp. is high! Stop safely”, “Trans Hot! Park with engine on”, “Trans Cooling. Remain parked for 00 min.”, “Trans cooled. Resume driving”) will appear on the LCD display and driving may not be smooth.
If you ignore this warning, the driving condition may become worse. To return the normal driving condition, stop the vehicle and apply the foot brake for a few minutes before driving off.
• Gear shifts may be more noticeable than a conventional automatic transmission. This is a normal characteristic of this type of dual clutch transmission.
• Repetitive kick downs may lead to overheating of the transmission. This will lead to change in the vehicle speed shift pattern, and illuminate some warning message. To return the normal driving condition, refrain from kick down speed changes. When the warning message illuminates, park the vehicle at a safe location.
• During the first 1,500 km (1,000 miles), you may feel that the vehicle may not be smooth when accelerating at low speed. During this break-in period, the shift quality and performance of your new vehicle is continuously optimized.
• Always come to a complete stop before shifting into D (Drive) or R (Reverse).
• Do not put the shift lever in N (Neutral) while driving.
• The Dual Clutch Transmission gives the driving feel of a manual transmission, yet provides the ease of a fully automatic transmission. Unlike a traditional automatic transmission, the gear shifting can be felt (and heard) on the dual clutch transmission
- Think of it as an automatically shifting manual transmission.
- Shift into Drive range and get fully automatic shifting, similar to a conventional automatic transmission.
• Dual clutch transmission adopts dry-type dual clutch, which is different from torque converter of automatic transmission, and shows better acceleration performance during driving. But, initial launch might be little bit slower than Automatic Transmission.
• The dry-type clutch transfers torque and provides a direct driving feeling which may feel different from a conventional automatic transmission with a torque converter. This may be more noticeable when starting from a stop or low vehicle speed.
• When rapidly accelerating at low vehicle speed, engine could rev at high rpm depending on vehicle drive condition.
• For smooth launch uphill, press down the accelerator pedal smoothly depending on the current conditions.
• If you release your foot from the accelerator pedal at low vehicle speed, you may feel strong engine brake, which is similar to manual transmission.
• When driving downhill, you may use Sports Mode (manual operation)and press the paddle shifters or manual shift to downshift to a lower gear in order to control your speed without using the brake pedal excessively.
• When you turn the engine on and off, you may hear clicking sounds as the system goes through a self test. This is a normal sound for the Dual Clutch Transmission.
• To hold the vehicle on a hill use the foot brake or the parking brake. If the vehicle is held by applying the accelerator pedal on a hill the clutch and transmission will be overheated resulting in damage. At this time, a warning message (“Steep grade! Press brake pedal”) will appear on the LCD display and you may feel a vibration.
• If the clutch becomes overheated by excessive use of the clutch to hold on a hill, you may notice a shudder feeling and a blinking display on the instrument cluster. When this occurs, the clutch is disabled until the clutch cools to normal temperatures. If this occurs, pull over to a safe location, shift into P (Park) and apply the foot brake for a few minutes.
• If the LCD warning is active, the foot brake must be applied.
• Ignoring the warnings can lead to damage to the transmission.
• If the display continues to blink, for your safety, we recommend that you contact an authorized Kia dealer.
• Under certain conditions such as repeated launch on steep grades, the clutch in the transmission could overheat. When the clutch is overheated, the safe protection mode engages.
If the safe protection mode engages, the gear position indicator on the cluster blinks with a chime sound.
At this time, a warning message (“Transmission temp. is high! Stop safely”, “Trans Hot! Park with engine on”, “Trans Cooling. Remain parked for 00 min.”, “Trans cooled. Resume driving”) will appear on the LCD display and driving may not be smooth.
If you ignore this warning, the driving condition may become worse. To return the normal driving condition, stop the vehicle and apply the foot brake for a few minutes before driving off.
• Gear shifts may be more noticeable than a conventional automatic transmission. This is a normal characteristic of this type of dual clutch transmission.
• Repetitive kick downs may lead to overheating of the transmission. This will lead to change in the vehicle speed shift pattern, and illuminate some warning message. To return the normal driving condition, refrain from kick down speed changes. When the warning message illuminates, park the vehicle at a safe location.
• During the first 1,500 km (1,000 miles), you may feel that the vehicle may not be smooth when accelerating at low speed. During this break-in period, the shift quality and performance of your new vehicle is continuously optimized.
• Always come to a complete stop before shifting into D (Drive) or R (Reverse).
• Do not put the shift lever in N (Neutral) while driving.