Is the I4 Turbo DCT really that bad?

[308tr6]

I am back looking at Emiras after a bit of a detour. Having previously owned a V6 manual I was just not that happy with it. I found the first gear too low (I would often start in second if on a slight decline, or just baby it to avoid the upshift that would have to come immediately). The shifting seemed a bit laborious and notchy, which I guess some folks love.

So as I start to consider my next Emira, I see a lot of complaints on the DCT, but again is it a tad over-stated? I am coming off ownership of a McLaren Artura that shifted like an F1 car, and people complained that was too slow also. So....ya know nothing is perfect.

Thoughts?

 

[Kaz]

Upshifts are fine, downshifts have a lag which I have just adjusted for. We're talking 0.3 seconds-ish? Enough to notice, not enough to throw your keys in the lake and sell the car. I love driving my Emira it's a rocket but it would be much better with snappier downshifts. Coming from the Artura you will feel the upshifts are ok and the downshifts are an eternity, and then you'll adjust the downshift to compensate.

Also all of this may be a moot point as at some point there may be a TCU software update from Lotus (which may be out right now?) and the aftermarket will handle this too. Obviously best to just try one out if you can -

 

[BruceN]

Upshifts are fine, downshifts have a lag which I have just adjusted for. We're talking 0.3 seconds-ish? Enough to notice, not enough to throw your keys in the lake and sell the car. I love driving my Emira it's a rocket but it would be much better with snappier downshifts. Coming from the Artura you will feel the upshifts are ok and the downshifts are an eternity, and then you'll adjust the downshift to compensate.

Also all of this may be a moot point as at some point there may be a TCU software update from Lotus (which may be out right now?) and the aftermarket will handle this too. Obviously best to just try one out if you can -

Agree with this. On track the DCT if manually done with the paddles is bad, so I just put it in track mode where it functions well. For regular driving, the paddles are fine but not impresive

 

[308tr6]

Thanks for the comments, I take it the downshift lag is while manually pulling the paddles, but if left in full auto mode is it still laggy or weird feeling?