Are manuals basically going away for the automatics?

No Im saying its awefully hard to drop two gears at once going down a mountain when you find yourself running faster than you really wanted to be because you had your head up your butt and didn't slow down to start with. It's alot easier to do if you have a trailer brake handle but many trucks today dont come with one. The auto shifts match the rpm's much easier than you can in those oh crap situations. like it or not we are all human and subject tto such brain farts.

 

I'll agree that we're subject to such brain-farts, but, I will say, in my position, the reaction was to stop the truck and start over. Rather than try to time a shift or anything, I knew it was safer to just get myself stopped and start over before I let the situation get out of hand.

 

that would be the safest method with the manual but with the auto you just step on the break to start the slowing punch it in manual and start down shifting. If you have screwed it up so bad that the computer dont want to then hit the low button and it will drop 2 right then no matter what. If you ever accidently hit the low switch ( easy to do on a frieghtliner) it will trip you out.

 

Sounds like a good way to tear up an engine. What sort of auto are you running? My understanding is that many of these ultra-shifts just beep at you if it doesn't want to make the downshift, even in manual mode.

 

Do autos have jake brakes? Sorry I'm new to trucking might be a stupid thing to ask.

 

Jakes are part of the engine, not the transmission.

 

it is a great way to tear up an engine. Both the auto shift and ultra shift will beep and not let you downshift in manual if running too fast for what you are trying. This is to protect the engine. when low is selected it bypasses that protection and drops 2 imediately. Low is also a manual mode but only allows for downshifts. you cannot upshift in low. I dont recommend doing it but it will do it.

 

The danger I see underlying this is that it could make driver's lazy. Lord knows there are plenty of driver's out there who should not be in a truck to begin with, and an over-ride like that just seems dangerous to me. Just my thought.

 

Being a lazy person myself I can honestly the danger is when you hit low by accident. I do that more than actually reaching for manual. Manual requires effort.