A/T FRS ... Does Your Hesitate ?! Granny Tranny
 

hey guys so heres my issue or dilemma

this only happens really on an uphill and low speed keep this in mind.
im going up a hill slow and decide to pass someone and go around i put the pedal down about 70% and the rpms dip down low and theres very little throttle response, takes about a full 1-2 seconds before the rpms and A/T Tranny shfit into the proper gear. now i dont know if this is normal or is a common experience or what. what are the possibilities?
:burnrubber:

Bump

There's a delay on the ECU to detect the throttle based on what you want it to do. You can downshift with the paddles temporarily if you really want an immediate response to avoid the delay or use manual mode to stick to the gear you want.

To be honest, this is one of the more responsive Automatics I have ever driven and have not noticed that. Try the paddles next time and see how that goes

Yeah it only happens at low rpms on uphill or an incline really I was just wondering if it was normal or if my car was "totaled"

This ^^

I love how the ECU knows what you want to do.

"You driving up a hill? Let me downshift into a lower gear for you."

"You driving like you stole it? Let me downshift and stay in a lower gear for you."

I have a AT and drove it this morning up hill (about 1.5 hr ago) It really makes a huge difference to put it in Sport Mode when going uphill. It keeps it at a higher rpm than regular mode. I thought I read this in the manual or at least somewhere. Anyways, when I ever I am going up hill I put it in sport mode and it makes a HUGE improvement. Let us know what you think. I have been doing this for quite some time. I have owned the FR-S for over 2 years now and no issues with the trans, and believe me I drive it. However, I know what it is like to drive this up certain hills that are steep in regular mode. Sport mode is the way to go. Or, like the others mentioned you can do manual, but then we have an automatic. Sport mode.. when going up hills..!!

What rpm are you at during hill climbs? Eg. If you're at 1500rpm and going up a hill and you floor the gas pedal, it appears normal for a 1-2 sec delay before the car downshifts to a lower gear for you.

This right here...
Actually barely started using sport mode after having it for a few years already... yes, i'm a bit conservative. I noticed this fixes any real delay you might have in traffic or uphill. It seems when in normal mode, unless you are really pushing the pedal down, the AT is going to be geared more towards MPGS

I rarely use sports mode, but I also rarely depend on the AT to downshift. If I want acceleration I almost aways "double tap" the paddles down. I know what I want before the AT does, and it shifts faster than I do, so it all works out.

The car always wants to be in its highest gear for economy fuel reasons. Feels like it's always lugging the engine in 5th gear, around 1500rpm. I practically never drive in normal mode for that very reason, unless I'm in that "fuel saving" type of mood.

I also use sport mode in traffic bc it locks the torque convertor in all gears so you can use engine braking for slowing rather than having to tap the brakes so frequently. And def much faster throttle response when you want to accelerate NOW rather than in 1-2 secs.

So I'm guessing this is normal lol

Yes