Powershift 2 Second Delay

[NRC]

I have just returned from the Local Main Ford Dealership in my area after they tried and tested my new (6 weeks and 3500 miles) Ford Galaxy 163ps. The car was with the Garage due to its inability to accelerate satisfactorily when approaching roundabouts, junctions and overtaking. The car pauses for thought for 2 seconds when the accelerator is pressed and then powers forward. This is very disconcerting and does not instill confidence in the cars ability to actually go. It is very stressful to drive a vehicle not knowing if it is going to go quick enough to get out of a junction or roundabout before another vehicle comes.

 

When attempting to park after driving forward and stopping, there is at least a two second delay before any drive is engaged. After you select reverse gear and if you were performing a 3 point turn, there is also a 2 second gap before forward is engaged. If you chose to press the accelerator before the 2 seconds were up you would just rev the engine and the car would not move in the required direction. When going up a hill in forward gear if you were to stop and try to restart it takes the hill start assist 2 seconds to engage and if you haven't driven off within 2 seconds the hill start assist releases and the vehicle rolls back down the hill. The opposite also happens if you are trying to reverse up an incline, for example to avoid parking too close to your neighbor or a wall. The Vehicle does not hold itself on a hill and it takes 2 seconds before it engages gear so even if you accelerate in reverse it still rolls forward.

 

Selecting sport mode or manually shifting into a lower gear does NOT improve the acceleration as it still takes 2 seconds before the engine springs into life. When going from the flat to a steep incline where a lower gear is required the vehicle sits there revving but not moving as it is in the wrong gear (2 Seconds), then it changes to 1st gear and is overpowered going up the hill.

 

The Ford Dealership have advised me that the car is performing as it was designed and there is nothing wrong with it. There are no software updates available and the five hours they had the car with them today has made no difference to its performance.

 

I wonder who designed this car with a 2 second delay before gears and power are engaged? Why would Ford install an automatic gearbox into a car that rolls the opposite way to the selected gear direction on a hill? Why on earth would ford design and then produce a car as useless as this one? Did Ford really design the car this way or did they just get it wrong at the expense of us the Customer?

[scooper1]

There is a long delay when coming up to junctions and demanding power

I used to think this was a powershift problems

But know I know understand problem better and believe it turbo delay

 

What I believe is engine is shutting down on overrun and the turbo stops spinning it then takes 2 seconds to spin turbo up when power required

 

Normally there is not a problem at idle speed as the turbo remains spinning as there are some exhaust gasses to spin it

 

After some time you get used to it and don't notice most of the time. The trick seams to be to be light on accelerator until engine start pulling then give it power

if you don't wait for engine to come on power then gearbox tends to down shift by 2 gears and causes more delay followed by uncontrolled wheel spin

 

You may just have a lazy turbo that is not managing to spin up on idle. - most fords granges would not pick this up even with the computer connected.

 

I had a ford mechanic sitting in my passenger seat for a few hours with computer connected

In the end we concluded that it was a engine design feature and he put in a official problem report - of cause ford never followed up on that one

[davewill]

Thanks NRC a very accurate description of what i have had happen over the last 18 months of driving my 140PS 2.0 Powershift model

 

Scooper1 comment that "After some time you get used to it and don't notice most of the time" is also correct, and my driving style has changed to accomodate the car's idiosyncrasies.

 

I find that driving it as a "manual" car actually helps the "lag" both at speed and also pulling away at islands, as with no clutch to manage its just simply a shift down or up on the gearstick. The only thing is to remeber to change "up" when you have exited the roundabout, quite often i find myself at 40mph still in second gear and now at 3500 revs!!!

[gaz]

When going up a hill in forward gear if you were to stop and try to restart it takes the hill start assist 2 seconds to engage and if you haven't driven off within 2 seconds the hill start assist releases and the vehicle rolls back down the hill. The opposite also happens if you are trying to reverse up an incline,

 

I am not sure if i read this right. I thought the hill assist was to stop the car rolling during the time it took to take your foot off of the brake pedal and move it to the accelerator and pulling away. on my car if i pull up on a hill the car takes a second or so for the hill assist alert to come on (as your car does) I then leave my foot on the foot brake until I need to move off - no free rolling.

 

Are you saying: If you stop then pull away almost instantly the 'electronics' dont 'set' and you get a not insignificant jerk pulling away? If so then I have to agree it is very anoying but as someone else said you do 'modify' your driving style to suit. not the answer you were looking for I am sure.

 

my biggest problem with the powershift is when reversing off of my drive then pulling away. unless I stop, slowly shift to drive, wait and then pull away I get that 'jerk' i am slowly getting used too! The other day my 3 year old granddaughter glaired at me from the back as if to say... WTF! steady granddad!

[MadBaz]

Sounds like they're using Iveco gearboxes http://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gifhttp://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif, welcome to the wonderful world of automated manualshttp://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/wub.gifhttp://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/ph34r.gif also known as Marmite boxes, you love em or hate em.

 

The only experience I've had with similar gearboxes are on trucks (Powershift has 2 clutches though), and what you describe is similar to the poorer gearboxes used by manufacturers. Busy roundabouts with a full load on are a bloody nightmare, set off, box changes to 2nd, loses momentum, revs & turbo when changing to 3rd, drops back to 2nd cue the flashing lights and Gareth Hunt hand signals. The interesting thing is that same box that is fitted in Ivecos is also fitted in some DAF's which have a cleverer box of electrickery and you don't quite get the same 'lag' as the engine speed is automatically matched to the input shaft speed, without going into over-run. Trucks also have a turtle mode for manoeuvring, which basically slips the clutchhttp://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/blink.gifhttp://www.fordgalaxy.org.uk/ford/public/style_emoticons/default/blink.gif and that is no fun at all when things are a bit tight.

 

I've found that giving slight revs when almost ready to go helps with the lag, when idling the clutch is depressed fully and the electrickery takes a while to catch up, whereas when giving a tiny bit on the loud pedal gets the gearbox ready without it riding/slipping the clutch, a really really bad thing when loaded. When I get going I keep the revs constant, then the engine speed is easily matched to the gearbox and the next gear. Using semi-auto mode is very useful when you need more control, going up/down hill, slow moving traffic, etc.

 

You do have to change your style of driving to how the computer likes it, not something I am comfortable with.

 

I find it ironic that the best truck 'auto' by a country mile is Volvo's I-shift, you'd have thought Ford would've asked their sister company for some advice.

Edited May 27, 2012 by MadBaz

[chrispb123456]

Hi Baz

 

Can agree with what you have said, I did a post about a year ago comparing the powershift to our MAN and Mercedes trucks and that annoying delay or hesitation when pulling out of junctions and roundabouts, and giving you the feeling your not fully in control of the vehicle.

 

The blipping of the throttle to get the box into the right gear when approaching roundabouts and junctions where you know you wont come to a complete stop is the way to go.

 

The boxes are a completely different design to the traditional automatic and therefore a new driving style needs to be adapted.

 

The vehicle rolling back on hills when going from the brake pedal to the throttle won't happen if you use the handbrake like your supposed to when you come to rest.

 

I didn't get much response from my post before, perhaps we may get some replies from other members who have now got used to the new driving style