Discover the 10 Key Facts About Automatic Cars You Should Know

There was a time when we used to imagine a future with self-driving cars. With technology advancing each day, automatic cars have become a reality and have in fact, taken over the motor world by storm. Every big car brand is looking to tap the automatic car sector which means that these are here to stay! The sheer ease of driving an automatic car, especially if you do a lot of city-driving is totally unmatched.

There are different types of automatic cars available. The most popular ones right now are semi-automatic gear transmission (AMT) cars. They are an upgrade from normal manual cars but give a lot of ease while driving.

Best automatic cars in the UAE

If you want to make the shift from your manual car to an automatic car, then this would be the perfect time. Here’s the list of the best automatic cars in the UAE –

1. Hyundai Elantra 2021 1.6 GL
2. Toyota Corolla 2.0 XLi 
3. Lexus GX 460
4. Nissan Altima 2021
5. Jaguar New F-Type Coupe First Edition P300 RWD Automatic
6. Volvo S90
7. Telsa Model S
8. Rolls Royce Phantom Extended Wheelbase 2021
9. Aston Martin DBS Superleggera coupe 2021
10. BMW X2

How to drive an automatic cars?

Whenever people think of automatic cars, one of the first questions that comes to mind is – how to drive an automatic car? For seasoned drivers it wouldn’t be much of a task. It might take a few days to get used to the fact that you don’t have to change gears or press the clutch constantly. It is fairly easy and simple to drive an automatic car. You can even go to your nearest car dealership for a test drive to know how easy it will be to drive an automatic car before you finalize it.

Most automatic gearboxes will let you select between ‘P’ (for park), ‘R’ (reverse), ‘N’ (neutral) and ‘D’ (drive).

• Park should only be used when you’re stopped and getting out of the car. This ‘locks’ the transmission, preventing it from rolling away (but you still need to apply the handbrake when parked as well).
• Reverse does as it says – acts the same as a reverse gear in a manual, and should be selected when you want to drive backwards.
• Neutral is the same as knocking a manual gearbox out of gear. It shouldn’t be selected when moving – this is known as coasting – but can be used (along with the handbrake) if you’re stopped for a short period of time.
• Drive will select gears automatically and allow the car to move forwards.

How to start an automatic car?

• Put your right foot on the left-hand pedal (the brake) and push down
• Start the car by twisting the key or pressing start button
• With your foot still on the brake, move the shifter to ‘D’ (if you want to drive forward) or ‘R’ (if you want to reverse)
• Lift your foot off the brake, this will cause most automatic vehicles to ‘creep’ forwards
• To gain speed, gently press your right foot down on the right pedal (the accelerator)
• Once moving, the gearbox will select the correct gear for the situation and do all the hard work for you

How to stop an automatic car?

• As you reduce the speed, the automatic transmission will shift down in gears for you
• When you’ve finished your journey, press down on the brake pedal until the car stops
• While stationary, keep your foot on the brake and shift the lever to ‘P’
• Apply the handbrake (either a lever or button usually next to the ger selector)
• Then turn the ignition off

10 things you should know about automatic cars

If you are also planning to buy an automatic car, then keep in mind these 10 things.

There’s a difference between AMT and Proper Automatic Transmission

An AMT doesn’t function like other automatic cars. You might also feel that it’s a downgrade and the driving experience might feel sluggish. But if you are a first-time automatic car driver, you would definitely feel the difference and it would be like a cake-walk to drive an automatic car.

These cars have no clutch

Unlike manual cars where you have to constantly manage the clutch, an automatic car manages the clutch for you to make it really easy to drive an automatic car. AMT per se stands for Automated Manual Transmission. The working of the transmission remains the same, it just takes away the hassle of the clutch and manually switching gears which makes it rather easy to drive these cars.

Ease of maintenance

Contrary to popular belief, it is easy to buy and easy to maintain automatic cars. If you are just venturing into this segment, then you should know that AMT would be the best choice to start from. What AMTs are basically cars with some automatic transmission functioning added to a manual gearbox. Considering the fact that it’s not such a complicated thing to add, AMT gearbox is available in a lot of budget hatchbacks. It is the additional features that make the AMTs more cost-effective in terms of maintenance cost as compared to other cars with manual gearboxes.

Manual transmission traits

There are two sides to every coin. With many benefits like – ease of driving, hassle free navigation, and easy to maintain, people tend to forget certain drawbacks of an automatic car.  These cars don’t offer features like parking mode, hill descent, and hill hold. So, make sure that you develop a habit of using the handbrake if you have/are planning to buy a car equipped with AMT.

Great fuel efficiency

One of the first things people see when buying a car is fuel efficiency. With AMT you don’t need to worry. As compared to conventional automatic transmissions, AMTs are more fuel-efficient. AMTs are part manual, which means they don’t impact the fuel efficiency and give the same average as their manual counterparts.

Getting better by the day

Technology is developing at such an amazing speed and one of the boons has been in automatic cars. With the new-gen automatic cars you get features like – hill hold (it’s available in cars like Tata Nexon & Renault Duster). Aside from adding to improving the driving experience, it also allows a driver to relax even as the car is parked on inclined surface/terrain.

Control your car and shift gears

Most of the AMT cars get the usual stick which you can use whenever you feel the need to control your vehicle manually. It is beneficial as you get used to the idea of shifting to an automatic car from a manual car.

Driving in traffic becomes easy

Driving in traffic is a driver’s worst nightmare. The constant coordination of gear, clutch, break, and accelerator can be so cumbersome. Most AMTs sold come with a feature called ‘creep’. This feature allows your car to move slowly while in traffic without having to put your foot on the accelerator. Your car won’t turn off in first gear, your car will move slowly on its own, you’ll just have to keep a hand on the steering and that’s that.

Think before you overtake

You should be careful while overtaking an AMT as they can be a bit sluggish as compared to manual cars.  Even in manual mode, they can’t match the gear shifting speed of an actual manual car or other more advanced automatic transmission vehicles.

Driving downhill can be a task

Manual cars have an engine braking system and a lot of people count on it while driving downhill or stopping the car over a shorter distance. Automatic cars don’t have the option to control the clutch which means that you don’t get an engine braking system. EBS keeps your car in lower gears while driving on slopes or plane surfaces which eventually reduces the vehicle speed. So, when driving downhill, it is recommended that you switch to manual mode. 

Author Bio: –

Kritika Manchanda is a content writer with BuyAnyInsurance. She has more than a decade of experience of churning out SEO friendly content. When she is not writing, she is either reading, or making travel plans.

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