Diesel Auto BX

Barnsley BXer · Post by **Barnsley BXer** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 6:29 pm

I think so Stewart,I'm almost certain Phil Clark of the CCC had a Xantia TD auto

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 8:58 pm

Im told otherewise guys, they made a Xantia 1.9D auto but not a TD, I had a BX auto diesel myself and found it to be quicker in midrange than the manual cars. It didnt have a revcounter tho so It may have been me driving it hard!

DavidRutherford · Post by **DavidRutherford** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:05 pm

It's most likely that the autobox was more willing to change down than a manual driver would be, as it's impossible for an auto car to outperform a manual car (on the same engine) as the torque converter saps power

Hence the need for an auto fluid cooler... the heat that the cooler dumps is the energy wasted by the torque converter.

Even very modern auto-adaptive boxes are still less efficient than the same car with a manual box.

cavmad · Post by **cavmad** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:12 pm

Maybe it`s because kicking down at the optimum time really scares owners of much new/faster cars and in certain circumstances can lead to you getting ahead and staying ahead too.
The Volvo 940 turbo auto I`ve just sold was pretty hard to drive fast until warmed up and even then getting just the right speed/revs to optimise kick down was a real knack but well worth it when it worked. It went like a bat out of hell as did the BX GTi auto. Ian`s already commented that it`s not as quick as a manual GTi which fits in well with your comments about the torque converter David.
For me the real beauty of automatics, especially the GTi, is that they are brilliant cars for a nice lazy drive one minute and a damn good thrashing the next. The only thing I missed was that playing racing driver on the way home from work I always like to blip the throttle coming down the gears before roaring away again.

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:25 pm

I've just finished a 20mile trip in the GTi auto. Its slower by a LONG way than a manual GTi 8v.

The car could do with a good service but i dont think it'll make that much difference.

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:30 pm

True but its not al about performance, something to be said about having a free hand whilst drivind!

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:33 pm

Well as my only MOT'd cars are both currently auto's i cant exactly say i dont like them!

Your right performance isnt everything but a BX GTi is such an involving car to drive that it just feels a little bit wrong with an autobox.

tim leech · Post by **tim leech** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 9:38 pm

Wait till I get my 16TRS auto that will be no fast mover lol!

Philip Chidlow · Post by **Philip Chidlow** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 10:08 pm

Fair points, especially about the GTi auto, but as Cavmad says it's all about having flexibility, being able to cruise around in a relaxed way, but knowing you've got some grunt when you need it.

As for fast driving, if sporty driving is high up on the list, I wouldn't ever consider an auto BX full stop.

I sold a manual GTi before buying that auto, and it is slower. But then again once you adapt your driving style and learn to read the car's particular characteristics (and no GTi auto I've driven - and I've driven four - have been the same performance-wise) you can extract decent, 'newer-car embarrassing' moments from it. Kickdown seems good on yours, Ian, not so good on my remaining one...

Mind you I don't know how much the thrashing (not really Billy

!) it had at the hands of The Emperor affected it!

cavmad · Post by **cavmad** » Tue Apr 25, 2006 10:29 pm

I didn`t go too mad too often in all honesty but when I did give it some welly I was impressed. That`s almost the fun, drive round in a (relatively) slow diesel and a lot of cars seem quick. The `new` estate is starting to get a good pasting now and is remarkably smooth and the performance is gradually improving. I swear the Morette`s and the Scooby vent make people more determined to try and get away from it but it`s holding it`s own pretty well up to now.
I`m now pondering whether to transfer the `go faster` bits over to the 1.9TD TZD when it`s done. That`s one area that needs looking at asap. I`m going to refit the belt to the pump, get a new battery and then investigate the problem with the suspension and then start tidying things up a bit pre-MOT. That`s one diesel that`s promising to be a real hoot and it`ll be interesting to see how it compares performance wise to the GTi auto.