what is step tronic and tip tronic in bmw?

Question

My bmw 325 , 2001 has D+ and D - on gear. what is that? Its an automatic car and i always use D not + or -. How can i use them?

Answer 1

For most of us its not at all important to know the mechanical differences between steptronic and tiptronic. The two are both names used by two different brand of cars to label their respective automatic transmission with "do it yourself" shifting capabilty. I believe BMW calls it Steptronic and Porsche calls it Tiptronic. There are others like Honda and Acura who calls their's the Sequential Sport Shift. Anyways, like I said, these are all names for their automatic transmissions with the added capability to shift (as in manual shifting of the gears) without the use of the clutch. No, this option does not result in faster acceleration than a standard (manual) transmission, and no, the use of this option will also not accelerate the car any faster than just smashing down on the accelerator with the car in "D". It is best suited (IMO) to driving through patches of roads where one might accelerate and brake often (like twisities through mountains) and find that the brain of their automatic transmission car "lost" as it hunts and searches for the proper gear (simply put, remember times when your car goes up a hill slowly even though you have the gas pedal depressed down quite a bit and then all of a sudden the car lurches forward a lot faster with more power?). I also find the steptronic/tiptronic/etc useful when trying to teach the idea behind "gears and revs" to people that have a hard time understanding the concept of a "standard/manual" transmissions as it relates to engine revolutions (revs).

Ok, Im babbling. Sorry. For the person that asked this question: just push the shifter to the left of D, and shift up into the D+ and D- as you're driving (make sure you're not in a busy street) and you will pick up right away what it is you have just done. The gear the car is currently in will be displayed on your instrument panel. For most cars the gear display should be the same display where you find the lights for "D,D2, P, N, etc..,) on your dashboard. You cant damage the engine or the transmission (the computer will not allow you to shift into 1st gear at an inappropriate speed). The only danger I see if you dont know what you are doing is not to be able to accelerate rapidly (when you need it) if you are driving slowly (e.g. 20 mph or less and the gear is in 5th). If you find yourself lost/have no idea what is going on, just push the shift lever back to the right to "D" and you are back to full automatic mode. Also, note that once you come to a stop, no matter what gear you thought you were in, the transmission will automatically shift the gear into 1st or 2nd (BMW will shift into 2nd).

Answer 2

basically, tiptronic is just a cheesy selling point. Its just an automatic with a manual gear selector (even though it can still override your inputs, as its still all computer controlled). The D+ and D- are just your way to shift up (D+) and down (d-) gears. Basically its a waste of time, and no more fun than a normal auto. All the hassle of manual without the added fun factor and involvement with the car.

Answer 3

Step tronic and Tip tronic are "stick automatics". Shift to D+ to shift up and D- to shift down.

Answer 4

for sure the tiptronic presented you have a innovations clever adequate to seem on the RPM or hear the engine and shift at or basically below the redline. the whole theory in the back of the triptronic is for pansies who choose for to tension a handbook yet are frightened of the grasp.