True that! ^ Use the paddle shift to operate the gearbox
exactly like you would the manual box, just without trying to outguess the computer's control of the throttle & it'll change up & down as smooth as glass,
IF you are competent at chosing your shift points (the computer's always gonna be WAAAAYYY better at the finer control than you could ever possibly be, not the least because it operates
right there, instead of at the end of a 'fly-by-wire' loom & ultimately slooooow human reaction times!) But don't worry too much, the computer will step in & help you if you are going to stuff it up too badly anyway!! :shocked:
As to why bother with the manually initiated shifts, why on earth NOT?? After all, it
IS exactly the same gearbox as the manual, albeit with engine & clutch protecting downshift over-rides built in just so you can't hurt the clutch or lug the engine by being in too high a gear for the road speed/revs & with a computer controlled shift mechanism that's activated by the +/- paddles plus an electro/hydraulic clutch controlled by the computer & oil pressure. Pretty much the same way virtually all top end & commercial load carrying vehicles are heading nowdays anyway; the technology is even appearing increasingly rapidly in new everyday vehicles too, mainly because it's smoother, safer, & more efficient than the old school stick selectors that came out with the first gear boxes way back whenever!
Sure, you can ryde your SE Spyder without bothering to elect when to do the downshifting yourself, but regardless of whatever spin the marketing mob or anyone else might try to put on it, at the most fundamental level the auto downshift on the SE's
IS a protective mechanism that operates only if you let the road speed or revs get out of the 'safe operational range' for that gear, & as a result you get to accept whatever lumpiness the computer has to impose in order to make the change. You don't want that lumpiness? Then change manually when
YOU feel the road speed/revs for that gear are correct & develop the skill to match those smoothly - do that & the computer will do the gear change & minutiae of throttle control with far more smoothness & precision than you could ever possibly achieve, while your skill or lack there-of will be evident to all in the smoothness of matching road speed & revs to the selected gear... Or you could choose not to operate the paddles & just sit back & let the fail-safes take care of the mundane stuff..... but then you'd get to live with the '
damn - you left it too late to change smoothly but don't worry, I can still save your lazy arse' fall-back lumpy option
Your Ryde, your choice, maybe even your skill?!? :dontknow:
:thumbup:
Again, the passenger will be surprised if he/she doesn't also shift their weight (which is not required on a two-wheel bike).
