Tiptronic question (but ultimately about "lugging the engine")
 

Here's the scenario...

Access road light turns green, I take a left onto the overpass and continue straight on to a 45mph road. Well, on this particular section I like to accelerate "aggressively" and usually take it up to about 60or so and kinda "coast" down to the posted limit (not looking for a moral/ethical debate about "speeding" here :D)

Now, today, just as I cleared the overpass, there's one of San Antonio's finest sitting at the red light to my left. My revs are super high at this point (maybe 4500-5k) and I guess 3rd gear. I'm already doing 50. I quickly let off the gas (no brake) and car stays around 50 long enough for me to be "safe" from the cruiser. Then I continue accelerating just fast enough to get it to shift all the way up to 5th.

My question is.. is it "safe" for the Tiptronic transmission to stay in that high rev area like that "waiting" for the next "command" to be delivered from the driver's right foot? Is this the same as "lugging" the engine? If it's bad, what's the appropriate thing to do in that scenario (ie: accelerating quickly and need to quickly slow down or maintain that speed for a bit.. in a Tip)?

Idleness I don't drive a tip but redline is around 7-8k so that wouldn't be considered lugging the engine. Lugging is driving around in to high a gear with the rpms around 1-2k. This also puts alot of stress on the Ixx. Think of it as driving around in 5th gear going around 20mph. Thats lugging!!
Some of the track guys who corner at rpms higher than that might chime in but there shouldn't be any harm done to the car. These are high revving engines after all.

oh wow! That's the complete opposite of what I thought lugging meant. Because the Tip controls the shifting (and presumably the correct revs), is it safe to assume that in "Auto" mode, that the Tip avoids lugging? It's odd, because it gets to 5th pretty quick, even at lower speeds (35-45ish)... I try to avoid that by "forcing" it to downshift with the pedal "click". Allows me to accelerate faster if I need to in order to avoid something if I need to.

The tiptronic in my 2004 2.7 changes up at absurdly low speeds in my opinion, so I drive in manual mode a lot unless traffic makes it necessary to use auto. And when in auto I use the manual buttons to change as and when I think it is better to keep the revs up. It is a pity that the tip transmission does not have a 'sport' mode like my BMW Steptronic had, which changed at higher revs that the 'normal' mode. I had to go with the tip because my wife can't drive a manual shift, and now she never drives it! The Boxster is much nicer to drive in manual mode, and I believe it is better for the IMS to keep the revs up - so I do.

actually higher RPM are good, these engines fare poorly when the engine is "idling" for too long, like sitting in traffic during your intense summer heat or running while parked for too long. Also bad is when you are short shifting in an attempt to save gas or to "go easy" on the engine -- shifting at low RPMs, below 3,000. The caveat is that you should shift above 3,000 RPM once the engine is properly warmed up (by driving it at normal speeds for about 10 minutes). I'm not sure if a tip is programmed to do all this when in slushbox mode. I would always drive it in manual mode for the first 15 minutes if I had a tip.
You also want to make sure the oil never low, add oil whenever it needs a bit more.
I tell my friends that Porsches are reliable but they are not durable if you don't drive them correctly or maintain them properly. AKA...high maintenance!

[QUOTE=Perfectlap; The caveat is that you should shift above 3,000 RPM once the engine is properly warmed up (by driving it at normal speeds for about 10 minutes). ![/QUOTE]

Yeah +1 on what he said. If your not shifting your boxster above the 5k range, get ready for a treat. Thats wher the fun begins. Totally different car!!!:D

the tip (it's computer really) will not let you hurt it. high revs / low revs, they can't get "dangerous" because the computer will eventually take over and force a gear change. now what it's doing to the engine is another story (at low revs).

staying in the 3-5k range should be considered "average" rpm, so have fun. mash the pedal, hard on the brake, mash the pedal... it's all good.

also, what you experienced with it not shifting (i assume) when you let off the gas is normal. it's designed to stay in the same gear if you're hard on the accelerator and lift your foot quickly. it also won't shift (unless it has to) if it senses you're going around a hard corner (helps keep the tires from breaking loose).

another pretty cool trick (if you've got the right year / model) is to brake with your left foot while doing a quick stab on the accelerator with the right foot. the car will figure out what gear it needs to be in to get to around 5k rpm and jump right to it. very good for on ramps... :)

and what year & model would that be?