yeah, kind of cool, its exactly what a race car does!!
True on the race car side where they perform a rev-match, similar to what you would manually do
with a heel-toe shift. Ferrari has had it in their street cars since the 360... where a downshift from
the paddle will blip the throttle so you are matching engine speed to proper land speed... ultimately
the tail does not fly out AND speed is not abruptly taken away. Brakes are for that. Porsche new 991's,
Boxster, Caymans, the new Gen7 Corvettes do it in sport mode with the normal shifter (no paddles)
and is so immediate it is seamless. But a majority today with "paddles" in cars, you pull the paddle and
it will downshift (w/no rev matching.... which could lead to an over-rev or hit the limiter plus the added
bonus of extreme oversteer unless your cars stability system is really-really good)
These Spyders have limiters in the form of fuel shut-off but still you never want to attempt a "mechanical"
over-rev...Meaning if you are in 4th (lets say), 6500 rpms and pull a downshift, the results may not
be pleasant and at speed you will max out the rpms. These machines are manual whether SE5/6 or not.
The fuel system will work as designed (rev limiter), but, that does not stop the mechanical motions that
are already in-play... Typically leading to upper valve train damage.
So sure I could run in 5th up a hill but, prefer lets say 4th and not to lug the engine or when in slower
curved mountain areas where I want to maintain 4000rpms and regulate in the turns. (Where you NEVER
want to apply brakes, ever).... You brake IN a turn, then transfer weight forward, and understeer (plow)
and loose stability.