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I have used left foot braking (LFB) on my automatic cars for years - mainly for smoothness rather than fast driving. I know it's Not For Everyone, and indeed is not recommended for the IAM, Police, and Driving Test, but it works for ME for reasons that I won't go into in this post.
My point here is that I have found a couple of benefits using LFB with the way DSG gearbox is programmed on the Kodiaq.
1) Complaints about slow or jerky starts from stationary with brakes on are common. However with left foot still on brake, introduce a little throttle with right foot and the stop-start kicks in AND first gear engages. So then release brake and the car immediately moves off as-smooth-as-you-like.
2) The DSG box is programmed to anticipate what gear you will want next. Sometimes it gets this wrong, resulting in the well known hestitation before accelerating for instance as it re-selects a lower gear.
When slowing down in say 6th coming up behind a lorry you are about to overtake, the box doesn't know there's a lorry to be overtaken and plans for economy by lining up 7th - completely wrong for when you DO accelerate, and we get that frustrating jerky hesitation. However when waiting behind lorry just before the road clears with left foot slightly on brake, ease down accelerator and the box will line-up and even change down to a lower gear - left foot off brake pedal as accelerator goes down and we get smoooth overtaking in the appropriate gear.
I am finding other uses for this happy coincidence of DSG programming. Changing down while braking coming into a roundabout or corner for instance - neither of which are good times to be working manual on the stick, or trying to find paddles on the rotated steering wheel.
Hope this helps somebody.
My point here is that I have found a couple of benefits using LFB with the way DSG gearbox is programmed on the Kodiaq.
1) Complaints about slow or jerky starts from stationary with brakes on are common. However with left foot still on brake, introduce a little throttle with right foot and the stop-start kicks in AND first gear engages. So then release brake and the car immediately moves off as-smooth-as-you-like.
2) The DSG box is programmed to anticipate what gear you will want next. Sometimes it gets this wrong, resulting in the well known hestitation before accelerating for instance as it re-selects a lower gear.
When slowing down in say 6th coming up behind a lorry you are about to overtake, the box doesn't know there's a lorry to be overtaken and plans for economy by lining up 7th - completely wrong for when you DO accelerate, and we get that frustrating jerky hesitation. However when waiting behind lorry just before the road clears with left foot slightly on brake, ease down accelerator and the box will line-up and even change down to a lower gear - left foot off brake pedal as accelerator goes down and we get smoooth overtaking in the appropriate gear.
I am finding other uses for this happy coincidence of DSG programming. Changing down while braking coming into a roundabout or corner for instance - neither of which are good times to be working manual on the stick, or trying to find paddles on the rotated steering wheel.
Hope this helps somebody.
